Auckland Civil Defence Emergency Management Group Plan

This consultation closed on 31 August 2023. Thank you for having your say.

Written submissions 

We received 182 feedback submissions via our AK Have your say website.

This included 160 individuals and 22 organisations.

Attachment A contains the submissions and Attachment B contains the summary document.

In-person submissions 

Under the Civil Defence Emergency Management Act 2002, anyone who makes a written submission within the specified period must be given a reasonable opportunity to be heard.

A hearing was held on 22 September 2023 where nine people presented their submissions.

Key feedback themes 

Key feedback themes included comments on:

• the impacts of the Auckland Anniversary flood and Cyclone Gabrielle 
• the importance of community readiness, in particular community planning, training, funding, relationships, communications and emergency hubs
• the need for increased representation of Auckland’s diverse communities throughout the document and in practice, across emergency management activity (reduction, readiness, response and recovery) known as 'The 4 Rs'
• the need for localised considerations in response structures and practice
• the need for increased training and resourcing for all emergency management staff and a strong volunteer workforce framework.

What happens next 

Recommended amendments to the draft Civil Defence Emergency Management Group Plan were presented to the Civil Defence Emergency Management Committee on 24 October 2023. All staff recommendations were accepted, along with three additional changes. View the agenda and minutes. 

The plan will now be amended in line with the recommendations. It will then be submitted to the Minister of Emergency Management for review. Following Ministerial review, the plan will be adopted by the CDEM Committee.

About the Civil Defence Emergency Management (CDEM) Group Plan review

We are reviewing our Civil Defence Emergency Management Group Plan.

The plan describes how we work with our partners and the community to prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters.

The plan also sets the direction for our work on Auckland’s Civil Defence Emergency Management system.

It outlines:

• our mission and objectives
• how we will achieve them
• how we will measure our performance.

Guiding principles of emergency management

Our mission is to strengthen the disaster resilience of Tāmaki Makaurau.

We will do this by managing risks and supporting everybody to be ready to respond to and recover from emergencies.

We will use the 4Rs of emergency management to guide us.

They are:

• reduction: reducing the impact of hazards on our whānau, businesses and community
• readiness: having the skills, knowledge, plans, and tools before a disaster happens so we are prepared
• response: taking action to ensure the safety and wellbeing of people and places
• recovery: restoring sustainable wellbeing after an emergency.

The plan's focus areas

The plan focuses on:

• actions within the 4Rs
• partnership with mana whenua (hapū and iwi with ancestral ties to certain areas in Tāmaki Makaurau where they exercise customary authority) and mātāwaka (Māori living in the Auckland region who are not mana whenua.)
• management and governance within the system
• monitoring and evaluation
• ensuring a strong understanding of hazards.