WA's New LEMA Framework: What Local Governments Need to Know in 2026

Western Australia’s approach to Local Emergency Management Arrangements (LEMA) is changing.

The revised framework provides an opportunity for local governments to make emergency management arrangements simpler, more practical and easier to maintain.

But the important question isn’t simply:

“Have we updated our LEMA?”

It’s:

“Are we genuinely better prepared for an emergency?”

A more practical approach

One of the key changes is a more modular approach to local emergency management documentation.

The revised framework separates key information across three core components:

Local Emergency Management Plan (LEMP)

The strategic foundation — setting out the local emergency management context, governance, responsibilities, risks and arrangements.

Incident Support Handbook (ISH)

A practical operational resource designed to help local government personnel quickly access information they may need during an emergency.

Emergency Management Workplan (EMWP)

A forward-looking tool supporting exercises, training, capability development, improvement actions and ongoing preparedness.

Together, these components provide an opportunity to move away from emergency arrangements being viewed as a large document periodically reviewed and returned to the shelf.

What should local governments be looking at?

For councils approaching a review, this is a good opportunity to look beyond simply transferring existing information into a new template.

Ask:

• Are our emergency management arrangements still accurate?

• Are roles and responsibilities clear?

• Could personnel quickly find the information they need during an incident?

• Are contacts, facilities, resources and support arrangements current?

• Have lessons from previous exercises or incidents been incorporated?

• Do we have a structured program for exercising, training and improvement?

• Do our local emergency arrangements connect effectively with other relevant emergency plans?

  
  

The objective shouldn't simply be to update the LEMA.

It should be to improve preparedness.

From paperwork to practice

Documentation is only one part of emergency preparedness.

Exercises provide an opportunity to test whether arrangements actually work.

A discussion exercise, communications test, evacuation scenario or broader emergency coordination exercise can uncover gaps that aren't always obvious during a document review.

Those findings can then feed directly into future planning and improvement activities.

A simple cycle develops:

PLAN → EXERCISE → LEARN → IMPROVE

Keep it usable

Emergency management documentation can become complex very quickly.

But more information doesn't automatically mean better preparedness.

One simple test is:

Could the person who needs this information find it quickly while operating under pressure?

If the answer is no, there may be an opportunity to simplify.

Clear responsibilities, accessible operational information, current contacts and a realistic improvement program can be far more valuable than unnecessary complexity.

An opportunity to reset

The revised LEMA framework gives WA local governments an opportunity to do more than update documentation.

It's an opportunity to consider emergency management as a working system — connecting planning, governance, operational readiness, exercising and continual improvement.

At BlueGuard, we use a simple approach:

MEASURE

Where are we now?

UNDERSTAND

Where are the gaps, risks and opportunities?

IMPROVE

What practical actions will strengthen preparedness?

Emergency management arrangements should ultimately be understood, usable and tested.

Because when an emergency occurs, that's when the paperwork needs to become practice.

BlueGuard Integrity

Measure. Understand. Improve.