Person-Centred Emergency Preparedness (P-CEP) Toolkit in Australia

The Person-Centred Emergency Preparedness (P-CEP) Toolkit, developed in Australia, is a novel approach to advancing the Sendai Framework’s call for people-centred disaster risk reduction. It shifts the focus to enabling people with disability to prepare for emergencies in partnership with emergency personnel, community stakeholders, and disability services.  

P-CEP supports individuals with disabilities in tailoring their emergency preparedness plans to their unique needs and fostering collaboration with their support networks. Trained facilitators - including peer leaders, community and health service providers, and emergency personnel - can guide these planning conversations. In Australia, Peer Leaders trained in P-CEP have already advanced their own preparedness and are mentoring others to do the same.  

The P-CEP Framework and Process Tool consists of three key components: 

1. Capability Framework - A set of eight elements to help individuals self-assess their strengths and support needs in both everyday life and emergency scenarios. 

2. Principles - Guidance for fostering collaboration among stakeholders to support tailored emergency preparedness planning. 

3. Process Steps - A step-by-step planning process that includes: 

   • Identifying individual strengths and support needs in daily life. 

   •  Assessing current preparedness and understanding disaster risks. 

   • Creating a plan to manage support needs during an emergency. 

   • Communicating the plan with support networks and addressing gaps collaboratively.    

P-CEP emphasizes the value of planning conversations, which connect people with disability to those responsible for enhancing disaster resilience.  

Tools and Resources: 
The P-CEP process is supported by: 

• A P-CEP Workbook for self-assessment, reflection, and action planning. 

• A publicly available facilitator Certificate offered by the University of Sydney, providing interdisciplinary training for government officials, emergency personnel, people with disability, and supporting services. Participants complete the program with a tailored emergency plan and the skills to assist others. The P-CEP Certificate was co-designed, implemented, and evaluated successfully, earning the 2023 National Resilient Australia Award.  

The P-CEP Toolkit complements Australia’s Disability Inclusive Emergency Management (DIEM) Toolkit, emphasizing cross-sector collaboration and the integration of individual, organizational, and community-level emergency plans. The program is also being replicated in Oregon, USA, with an ongoing evaluation of its implementation. 

Having an emergency preparedness plan means knowing how you will act together with your support network before, during, and after a disaster. The P-CEP was designed by people with disability and can be used by everyone. By using the P-CEP Toolkit, people can create a realistic plan tailored to their support needs and risk situation.  

A realistic emergency plan considers:  

• the person’s individual strengths, support needs, and situation;  

• steps the person has already taken to prepare; 

• gaps in the person’s preparedness that increase risks in emergencies; and  

• ways to address the gaps.  

Before we can help others plan for emergencies based on their needs, we first need to understand our own risks and be prepared. Going through the P-CEP process ourselves and making our own emergency plan is a crucial step. 

Some people need support to make a personal emergency preparedness plan. This is particularly important for people who rely on others to assure their safety and well-being in the face of disasters and other emergencies.  

When facilitating preparedness with others, the P-CEP helps us to sustain our shared focus on key ingredients for success, including:  

Key recommendations for success include: 

• Understanding capabilities in daily life: Effective plans start with identifying gaps in everyday functionality, which may become critical during emergencies. 

•  Focusing on function: The P-CEP framework encourages attention to what individuals can do independently and where support is needed during emergencies. 

• Adopting a people-centred approach: Using P-CEP’s conversational methodology helps individuals assess their preparedness and take incremental actions to improve. 

• Cross-sector collaboration: Strengthening connections among individuals, emergency services, and community networks is essential for comprehensive emergency planning. 

• Addressing gaps: Collaborative efforts should focus on identifying unmet needs and removing barriers to safety and well-being during emergencies.   

• Villeneuve, M. (2022). Disability inclusive emergency planning: Person-centred emergency preparedness. Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Global Public Health. 
• Collaborating4Inclusion PCEP  

Author Information: The P-CEP Toolkit was co-produced under the leadership of Professor Michelle Villeneuve through a participatory research program. This program supported the development and field testing of the P-CEP framework and process tool in collaboration with people with disability, supporting services, government agencies, and emergency personnel. Full details on the research process, outcomes, and impact are available at www.collaborating4inclusion.org. 

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