Force Duty Officer not to handle media enquiries
Manchester Arena Inquiry · Manchester Arena Inquiry: Volume 2: Emergency Response · Issued 3 November 2022 · Addressed to: College of Policing, Police Services
Source — verbatim from the inquiry
●Inquiry recommendation
The College of Policing should issue guidance to all police services to ensure the following, in the event of a Major Incident: a. The Force Duty Officer is not expected to deal with media enquiries. b. The important task of ensuring that the media is kept informed is done in a way that does not interfere with the work of the police control room.
Manchester Arena Inquiry, Manchester Arena Inquiry: Volume 2: Emergency Response · 3 Nov 2022 Source PDF →
Published evidence summary
Publicly available evidence relating to this recommendation:
- The Force Incident Manager (FIM) curriculum has been finalised with accreditation processes, set to go live in Spring 2025, and guidance was issued to forces in spring 2023 (Manchester Arena Inquiry Recommendations Dashboard, Cabinet Office, February 2026).
- Both work strands were closed via NPCC Governance in May 2024 (Manchester Arena Inquiry Recommendations Dashboard, Cabinet Office, February 2026).
Response — verbatim from government
●UK Government
The Home Secretary made a written statement to Parliament on 3 November 2022 following publication of Volume 2, acknowledging the findings on emergency response failures and stating the government would work with emergency services to implement improvements. The response committed to reviewing interoperability arrangements between emergency services and strengthening joint training and exercising protocols for major incidents.
UK Government · 3 Nov 2022 Written response →
Evidence trail — what's actually happened since
- 27 Feb 2026 NPCC Update: Force Incident Manager (FIM) Accredited Training - The FIM curriculum has been finalised along with accreditation processes and supporting guidance. A training team is being created, as delivery of the course will be centrally managed by the College. This training is set to go live in Spring 2025 for all new FIMs and to include existing FIMs where appropriate. This work strand has been closed via NPCC Governance May 2024. NPCC Update: Guidance to Forces - Guidance was issued to forces in spring 2023. Collated feedback from this process was sent into the College to support the development of the Force Incident Manager Accredited Training. This work strand has been closed via NPCC Governance May 2024. Source →
- 14 Nov 2025 NPCC Update: Force Incident Manager (FIM) Accredited Training - The FIM curriculum has been finalised along with accreditation processes and supporting guidance. A training team is being created, as delivery of the course will be centrally managed by the College. This training is set to go live in Spring 2025 for all new FIMs and to include existing FIMs where appropriate. This work strand has been closed via NPCC Governance May 2024. NPCC Update: Guidance to Forces - Guidance was issued to forces in spring 2023. Collated feedback from this process was sent into the College to support the development of the Force Incident Manager Accredited Training. This work strand has been closed via NPCC Governance May 2024. Source →
- 14 Nov 2025 · Cabinet Office Government published formal Manchester Arena Inquiry recommendations dashboard on GOV.UK (14 November 2025) tracking all 149 recommendations with implementation progress updates. View source → Reasonable Progress
- 3 Apr 2025 · UK Parliament Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025 received Royal Assent 3 April 2025. Creates two tiers: Standard Duty (200-799 capacity) and Enhanced Duty (800+). SIA will be regulator. Not yet in force -- at least 24 months before enforcement (expected April 2027). View source → Reasonable Progress
- 1 Apr 2024 · JESIP 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. View source → Good Progress
- 5 Jun 2023 · National Police Chiefs Council NPCC, Counter Terrorism Policing and College of Policing provided comprehensive updates to Sir John Saunders demonstrating "continued drive to improve collective response to terrorist incidents." View source → Reasonable Progress
Each entry above links to a primary source — gov.uk written statement, consultation response document, or inspection report. The Index does not characterise government intent; it tracks what has been published.
How this page is built
Source and Response are verbatim from primary documents. The Evidence trail records published activity since — written statements, consultation outcomes, inspection findings, parliamentary references. The Index does not paraphrase or characterise intent; it tracks what has been published. Where the evidence is the absence of action (a missed deadline, a slipped timetable), that absence is documented from primary sources rather than inferred.
This recommendation's data is verified periodically against primary sources. The Index is monitored for staleness weekly.