The Inquiry’s terms of reference require me to consider the adequacy of the preparedness for and response to the Attack by organisations beyond the emergency services.
Three principal organisations had staff present at the Arena for the Ariana Grande concert: SMG, Showsec and Emergency Training UK (ETUK). In Part 2 in Volume 1, I set out in detail the arrangements between SMG and Showsec. Both organisations had staff at the Victoria Exchange Complex when the bomb was detonated. In the case of Showsec, some of those staff were in the City Room at that moment. The employees of both SMG and Showsec did what they could to help casualties of the explosion. Staff from ETUK went to the City Room to offer assistance.
In addition to staff directly related to activity at the Arena, there were employees of Northern Rail and TravelSafe present within the Victoria Exchange Complex in connection with the railway and tram stop.
There were also many members of the public within the Victoria Exchange Complex when the explosion occurred. Some were in the City Room at that moment. Many more event‑goers were within the Arena. Additionally, there were people in the travel areas of the Victoria Exchange Complex: the railway platforms, the tram stop, the station concourse and the NCP car park. A number of these people made important contributions to the effort to save lives. At least one member of the public came to help at the scene from outside the Victoria Exchange Complex.
In this Part, I deal with those organisations and individuals. Where appropriate, I examine the issue of how prepared the organisations in question were for a Major Incident.