Strengthen governance arrangements to improve accountability, cooperation and participation
What success will look like: The emergency management sector has made continuous improvements to governance arrangements, ensuring roles and responsibilities are clearly understood by the workforce, lines of accountability are clear, and people feel empowered to deliver what is required. The workforce is inclusive and reflective of the communities it serves, to ensure Victorians have opportunities to shape, influence and inform decisions that affect them. The sector has continued to build on supporting community-led approaches to emergency management, where communities are able to apply local skills, knowledge and experience they have to take ownership of decisions made in their communities.
Achievements from the 2022-25 SAP:
- Victoria established Emergency Recovery Victoria as the dedicated and permanent entity responsible for state and regional recovery coordination and state relief coordination.
- The Department of Health delivered two new State Emergency Management Plan (SEMP) sub-plans; the Health Emergencies Sub-Plan and the Viral Respiratory (Pandemic) Sub-Plan. The Health Emergencies Sub-Plan outlines the arrangements and roles and responsibilities for managing health emergencies and emergencies with health impacts in Victoria. It provides guidance on mitigation, planning, response, relief and recovery. The Viral (Respiratory) Pandemic Sub-Plan outlines the arrangements for managing the consequences of pandemics caused by respiratory viruses in Victoria.
Please note: SAP numbers with an asterisk (*) are new actions.
*5.1. Fire Services Command Staff
Delivery of additional Command Staff positions to support FRV and CFA in providing operational and management support, including administrative, training, community safety and fire safety support.
Delivery date: June 2025
Lead agency: Fire Rescue Victoria (FRV)
This action relates to:
5.2. Reforming Victoria's triple zero service
Delivering on the Victoria Government's commitments to reform Victoria's triple zero service and emergency communications. Thirty six actions will be delivered to embed reforms across call taking and dispatch, managed services and technology services supporting state-wide triple zero services.
Delivery date: June 2025
Lead agency: Department of Justice and Community Safety (DJCS)
This action relates to:
5.3. Reforming Victoria's fire services
Operationalising and embedding of the Victorian Government's 10 year program of reform across Victoria's fire service. CFA, FRV and DJCS are responsible for the delivery of the 41 actions outlined in the Minister for Emergency Services Year Two to Five Fire Services Implementation Plan.
Delivery date: June 2030
Lead agency: Department of Justice and Community Safety (DJCS)
This action relates to:
*5.4. Further development of relief and recovery coordination standard operating procedures (SOPs)
Following the completion of recovery coordination SOPs in 2022, this project aims to ensure a comprehensive, accurate and fit-for-purpose set of SOPs that clarify roles, responsibilities and procedures is available to promote confidence in the relief and recovery system.
Delivery date: June 2024
Lead agency: Emergency Recovery Victoria (ERV)
This action relates to:
5.5. Deliver a legislative review of fuel management to support more effective planning and interoperability
This action will deliver a review of the legislative framework for fuel management and consider legislative change to:
- enable more effective planning and delivery of bushfire management across different land tenures and responsible agencies
- support greater interoperability
- ensure all firefighters (including volunteers) have sufficient legal protections when carrying out fuel management.
Delivery date: December 2024
Lead agency: Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action (DEECA) and Emergency Management Victoria (EMV)
This action relates to:
5.6. Increase Victoria’s capability and capacity to manage large-scale, prolonged, complex biosecurity emergencies in the context of increasing threats from exotic plant and animal diseases
This action will strengthen Victoria’s biosecurity system, supporting mitigation of increasing biosecurity risks and supporting growth opportunities for the state. It will include exercises to improve understanding of governance and consequence management for major biosecurity emergencies as well as initiatives to improve surge workforce arrangements.
Delivery date: June 2024
Lead agency: Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action (DEECA)
This action relates to:
- Sector outcome 1: Victoria’s emergency management system reduces the risk and impact of emergencies on business, industry, and our environment.
- Sector outcome 2: Victorians are empowered to proactively manage their own emergency risks.
- Sector outcome 3: Victorians are actively involved in decisions that affect them.
5.7. Deliver a sustainable and resilient health system that can scale quickly and act locally by connecting with all Victorian communities
This action will build on the Health SEMP Sub-Plans delivered in 2022. The sub-plans are supported by a maturing emergency management framework that enables rapid scaling and enables the resources of the Victorian Public Service (VPS) to be leveraged when required.
This action supports an established network of Local Public Health Units which allow for more localised engagement and partnership and place-based prevention, regulation and response programs.
Delivery date: June 2024
Lead agency: Department of Health (DH)
This action relates to:
5.8. Clarify and embed recovery sector governance, business processes and escalation pathways
Agree structure and purpose of recovery governance with partners (including State Recovery Coordination Committee (SRCC) endorsement), operationalise this governance and regularly review arrangements to ensure they are fit-for-purpose.
Delivery date: June 2024
Lead agency: Emergency Recovery Victoria (ERV)
This action relates to:
The department acknowledges Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as the Traditional Custodians of the land and acknowledges and pays respect to their Elders, past and present.