NWAS predetermined attendance for specialist teams
Manchester Arena Inquiry · Manchester Arena Inquiry: Volume 2: Emergency Response · Issued 3 November 2022 · Addressed to: North West Ambulance Service NHS Trust
Government responseUK Government: Accepted (Nov 2025)
DeliveryCabinet Office says completed (Feb 2026)
Recommendation, verbatim from the inquiry
●Inquiry recommendation
North West Ambulance Service should review its Major Incident Response Plan to consider whether, in order to speed up mobilisation, it should provide pre-determined attendances for the Hazardous Area Response Team, Ambulance Intervention Team and Special Operations Response Team crews for Major Incidents.
Manchester Arena Inquiry, Manchester Arena Inquiry: Volume 2: Emergency Response · 3 Nov 2022 Source PDF →
Published evidence summary
AI-generated evidence summary
The Inquiry asked North West Ambulance Service to consider predetermined attendances for specialist teams. In a February 2026 update published by the Cabinet Office, it stated that predetermined attendance includes Hazardous Area Response Teams (HART) and specialist resources such as Special Operations Response Teams, and that the trust's Incident Response Plan had been updated with action cards, though the Ambulance Intervention Team is not mentioned (Cabinet Office, Feb 2026). In November 2025, the UK Government accepted the recommendation in full (Cabinet Office response, Nov 2025).
AI-generated summary of the record on this page, checked by a second model and automatic checks, 5 Oct 2026.
Government response
●UK Government · Accepted · 14 Nov 2025
Accepted in full
Response document: Manchester Arena Inquiry recommendations (GOV.UK page linking to the Manchester Arena Inquiry Recommendations Dashboard)
Delivery
●Cabinet Office says completed · 27 Feb 2026
Part of the Predetermined Attendance (PDA) includes the Hazardous Area Response Teams (HART) and Specialist resources, (e.g. Specialist Operations Response Teams, Medical Emergency Response Incident Teams etc). The North West Ambulance Service Incident Response Plan has been updated with action cards. These provide clear and concise actions to be taken and considered once an incident is declared.
Earlier statements on delivery (0)
●Cabinet Office · 14 Nov 2025
Part of the Predetermined Attendance (PDA) includes the Hazardous Area Response Teams (HART) and Specialist resources, (e.g. Specialist Operations Response Teams, Medical Emergency Response Incident Teams etc). The North West Ambulance Service Incident Response Plan has been updated with action cards. These provide clear and concise actions to be taken and considered once an incident is declared.
From: Manchester Arena Inquiry Recommendations Dashboard, original version (data file)
Published evidence
●JESIP · 1 Apr 2024
JESIP Joint Doctrine updated to v3.1 (April 2024) following inquiry findings on interoperability failures. Operation Plato reformed to cover all terrorist attack types, not just firearms. Emphasis extended beyond command-level to frontline responders.
JESIP Joint Doctrine Version 3.1, April 2024View source →
How this page is built
The recommendation and the government responses are verbatim from primary documents. Delivery statements and other bodies' findings are shown in their own words, each with its source. The summary is written by this site and labelled as such. The Index does not paraphrase sources or characterise intent; it records what has been published.