What Can Collaborative Working Learn From JESIP?

Published: 6th October 2017 Category: Innovation and Design Download Article as PDF

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JESIP (Joint Emergency Services Interoperability Programme) was primarily developed to improve and standardise the way the police, fire and rescue and ambulance services work together when responding to major multi-agency incidents.

The next phase is looking to extensively roll JESIP out to all agencies involved in any emergency response. Added to the list already are:

● HM Coastguard
● Environment Agency
● Highways England
● National Grid
● St John Ambulance
● Red Cross
● Port Authorities

Local authorities and other local resilience partners are being invited to follow.

Divided by a common language…

As we all know, a key aspect of successful collaborative working is to have a common language which everyone uses and understands.

JESIP was developed for that very reason and emergency services are adopting these principles for all incidents where joint-working is key to a positive outcome for all partners, including members of the public.

Whilst the initial focus on developing JESIP was on improving the response to major incidents, JESIP is scalable.

The five joint working principles (on the right) which are generic, can be applied to any type of multi-agency incident and can be utilised in a multitude of environments where organisations need to work together more effectively.

A number of collaborative partnerships between emergency services, including Kent, Derbyshire and Devon/Cornwall have based their (successful) collaborative activity on the five JESIP principles.

The principles can be used to underpin an efficiency matrix narrative, resulting in a jointly agreed working strategy where all parties understand what is going to happen, when and by whom.

The JESIP strategy should include:

1. What are the aims and objectives to be achieved?
2. Who by – which partner organisations?
3. When – timescales, deadlines and milestones
4. Where – what locations?
5. Why – what is the rationale? Will this meet the strategic narrative of each organisation?
6. How are these tasks going to be achieved?

The value of the JESIP principles is that they have an agreed language and terminology, and work through ensuring there is a shared situational awareness, joint decision model, a joint understanding of risks and information assessment.

The leadership of collaborative projects, and their project managers, could help address the issues of communication by using JESIP principles and language, especially where requirements, focus and culture are different, and individuals want to protect and defend their “fortress”.

If we want to find a proven communication framework to underpin our Highway Code and assist mutual understanding, we could do a lot worse than adopt the JESIP principles to underpin decisions made in all strategic, tactical and collaborative meetings.

Removing the ambiguity that can frequently occur in collaborative working will build the understanding and trust across partners needed for a successful collaboration.

For further information on JESIP, please visit www.jesip.org.uk or contact Chief Inspector Richard Melton: Richard.melton@essex.pnn.police.uk

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