CE Case Study
Dorset Council Visitor Demand Multi-Agency Control Centre 2020-2021
Controlled Events supported Dorset Council throughout the COVID 19 pandemic by planning and operating a remote multi agency control centre to coordinate increased visitor demand, public safety and stakeholder response across Dorset.
Context & Background
Dorset Council was required to plan for significant increases in visitor demand during the easing of COVID 19 lockdown restrictions and the temporary restrictions on foreign travel.
Locations including Weymouth experienced unprecedented visitor numbers, creating pressure across local authority services, emergency response arrangements and public safety operations during peak summer periods.
Following operational challenges experienced during summer 2020, Dorset Council continued the response programme into 2021 and 2022 to support changing visitor behaviour, major events and emerging operational risks.
“In a nutshell, Controlled Events provided the service we needed which worked effectively and was well thought through and planned out. Controlled Events knew what radio systems were needed to patch into the wider network and how to coordinate a long term project on a wide scale involving a huge range of stakeholders and blue light services.”
Jack Wiltshire Dorset Council
The Challenge
Dorset Council needed to rapidly establish operational arrangements capable of coordinating the local authority response to record levels of visitor demand during the COVID 19 pandemic.
The operation required continuous situational awareness, stakeholder coordination and multi agency communication across a large geographic area involving council departments, emergency services and external partners.
Additional pressures included weather related incidents, EURO 2020 related activity, protests, spontaneous events and changing public behaviour throughout the pandemic recovery period.
Our Role & Scope
- Remote Multi Agency Control Centre planning and operations
- Radio communications integration and coordination
- ECR Manager incident logging and audit trail management
- Stakeholder and emergency service coordination
- Daily situational awareness reporting
- Monitoring of social media, weather and news intelligence
- Facilitation of emergency briefings and operational coordination meetings
Approach & Solution
Controlled Events planned, staffed and managed a remote Multi Agency Control Centre (MACC) during peak operational periods between April and September across 2020, 2021 and 2022.
The MACC connected into the wider radio communications network and provided a central coordination hub supporting out of hours response, peak demand management and operational information sharing.
Daily situational awareness updates were distributed to 17 Dorset Council departments alongside external stakeholders including Dorset Police.
The operation remained highly agile throughout the project, with staffing levels, MACC operating hours and operational priorities adjusted weekly based on Local Resilience Forum intelligence, operational feedback and Dorset Police updates.
By operating the MACC remotely, Controlled Events delivered a resilient coordination capability that remained fully operational throughout peaks in COVID 19 disruption.
Delivery Highlights
- Remote Multi Agency Control Centre operations across three summer seasons
- Integration with wider radio communications networks
- Support for 17 Dorset Council departments
- Stakeholder coordination with Dorset Police and partner agencies
- Social media, weather and intelligence monitoring
- Weekly operational coordination meetings via video link
- Facilitation of Silver hosted emergency briefings
- ECR Manager incident logging and reporting
Outcomes & Impact
Controlled Events delivered a flexible and resilient operational coordination capability throughout one of the most demanding periods Dorset Council had experienced.
The remote MACC enabled efficient stakeholder coordination, effective situational awareness management and rapid operational adjustments in response to evolving intelligence and changing demand patterns.
The project supported operational continuity during major visitor surges, protests, weather events and COVID related pressures while providing a clear audit trail and reliable communication structure for all involved agencies.
“Controlled Events provided a combination of competence and experience that we didn't have in one division of the council ourselves. Bringing in a team of people who are trained to step up in an emergency with the ability to adapt to changing scenarios ultimately gave us peace of mind. Controlled Events were a huge asset to this project in terms of risk mitigation and giving us confidence at a very important time.”
Jack Wiltshire Chair of COVID Response for Additional Visitor Demand, Dorset Council