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EMERGENCY PLANNING

Prepare for disruption

When digital systems fail, local government becomes the operating system, says Kurtis Toy.

© Cagkan Sayin-shutterstock

The Government is telling households to stockpile food. But what if a council's email, case-management system, telephony, finance platform and resident portal all become unavailable or untrustworthy?

You might have food under the stairs but people will quickly experience missed care visits, uncertainty over medicines, failed payments, closed buildings and an absence of reliable information. Digital continuity has too often become synonymous with service continuity. It is not the same thing. That is why I have proposed Analogue 72 (A72): a practical test of whether the United Kingdom can maintain a viable community response during the first 72 hours of severe digital disruption. Imagine going back to analogue for 72 hours.

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