16 June 2026: update from Deputy Chief Executive, Will Austin.
Almost half of all parish and town councils in the Dorset Council area have responded to the Community Emergency Response Plans (CERPs) survey. To develop a strong a picture as possible of perceived risks and the extent of the potential community response we still need more! If your council hasn't already done so, please complete the survey as soon as possible:
USE THIS LINK to complete the survey on Dorset Council's consultation portal. Survey closes 30 June 2026.
The picture so far
Patterns are emerging around the risk of emergencies. Unsurprisingly perhaps, flooding and severe weather—particularly strong winds and heat—along with road traffic disruptions and power outages (and associated loss of communications) are seen as common and recurring risks. In contrast, security-related threats such as terrorism or radiation incidents are generally considered unlikely. A 'free format' question allowing councils to highlight other potential risks shows that a number of you are very concerned about pollution incidents - it is really helpful that Dorset Council will be made aware of this through your responses.
Whilst there's some consistency to the perceived risks, levels of preparedness vary considerably. Of responses received so far, around 23% of councils have an established plan requiring a refresh or testing, 43% do not have a plan but are interested in developing one and just one in five councils aren't considering a CERP at all. Volunteer capacity, training accessibility and resource availability are also identified as mixed, with notable gaps in equipment readiness and contingency capacity.
What is clear is an appetite for further support—particularly guidance, briefings and practical assistance. This will help form part of the wider emergency response planning process overseen by the Local Resilience Forum (LSF), and it will be an important factor in guiding the CERP support work we at DAPTC will offer to councils in the future.
Dorset Council needs to know whether resilience and emergency planning is a priority for your council or not so please complete the survey!
Your answers will improve the support for the production of Community Emergency Response Plans (CERPs).
DAPTC is working with Dorset Council, Dorset Prepared and other Local Resilience Forums (LRFs) to support the drafting and adopting of CERPs by parish meetings and parish and town councils. The next step in this project is to establish how many plans exist, how many might need refreshing, what support might be needed in the future and which communities might be ready to test their plans. This week we have issued a survey to gather this information.
The importance of this work means we want a very high response rate and completing the survey at your earliest convenience would be greatly appreciated (it also means you'll avoid being pestered by project lead, Will Austin!). The survey is hosted on Dorset Council's consultation portal where you will find a Word document showing all the questions so you can consider your answers before submitting a response. We ask that you avoid using this document to submit your answers as responses submitted online will aid and speed up analysis of the information.
To complete the survey on Dorset Council's consultation portal USE THIS LINK. The survey closes 30 June 2026.
If you have any questions about the survey or about CERPs more generally, please contact Will Austin on:
