Gold Silver Bronze?

[Bob Hatcher]

Hi all,



We frequently use the terms Gold/ Silver/Bronze. The difference between these command levels is implicit in the colours but members may not always understand the difference in the roles. The explanation below is generic but in many ways applies to us as much as any other organisation. The explanation below obviously refers to a geographically 'tight' area, but the principles apply to any major incident.





COMMAND AND CONTROL

Gold - Silver - Bronze command structure



Contents:

· Summary

· History

· Outline: Gold – Silver – Bronze

· Key Responsibilities: Gold – Silver – Bronze



Summary

A Gold - Silver - Bronze command structure is used by emergency services of the United Kingdom to establish a framework for the command and control of major incidents and/or disasters. Most voluntary agencies involved in emergencies have adopted the same system enabling them to work alongside other emergency services, local authorities and other voluntary agencies.



The Police will normally be the organisation in ultimate charge of the incident, over the other organisations that may attend. A limited exception to this occurs if the incident involves a fire or other dangerous hazard, in which case the fire service will have overall charge of the area inside the inner cordon where firefighting or rescue is taking place.



History

The UK Metropolitan Police created the structure in 1985 directly after a serious riot in North London on the evening of 6 October where Police Constable Keith Blakelock was murdered, and it was later identified their, then normal rank structure was inappropriate under such circumstances, and the Gold - Silver - Bronze command structure was born.



Outline



· Gold (Strategic)

· The Gold Commander is in overall control of their organisation's resources at the incident.

They will not be on site, but at a distant control room, i.e. Gold Command, where they will formulate the strategy for dealing with the incident. If the Gold Commanders for various organisations at an incident are not co-located, they will be in constant touch with each other.



· Gold Commanders often meet before any incident occurs to discuss and formulate policies and working practices for their own organisations, and to pre-plan mutual aid between different groups.



· Silver (Tactical)

· The Silver Commander is the senior member of the organisation at the scene, in charge of all their resources. They decide how to utilise these resources to achieve the strategic aims of the Gold Commander; they determine the tactics used.

· At the scene of the incident, they will work in proximity and harmony with other organisation's Silver Commanders, usually situated in purpose-built command vehicles or makeshift command room(s), known as the Joint Emergency Services Control Centre (JESCC). They will not, however, become directly involved in dealing with the incident itself



· Bronze (Operational)

· A Bronze Commander directly controls the organisations resources at the incident and will be found with their staff working on scene. If an incident is widespread geographically, different Bronzes may assume responsibility for different areas. If complex, differing Bronzes can command differing tasks or responsibilities at an incident.

· During the initial stages of an incident, the first, member of the organisation who arrives at the incident assumes, albeit temporarily, the role of Silver/Bronze Commander, until relieved by a more senior member of the organisation.



Key Responsibilities

Gold (Strategic)

Silver (Tactical)

Bronze (Operational)

[Tony Ferrari]

For additional information GOLD is quite often referred to as the "SCG" or Strategic Coordinating Group