Author: Chloe Sellwood

Andy Wapling, OSt J MSc FRSPH FICPEM, is the Head of Emergency Preparedness, Resilience and Response for NHS England South Region. Andy provides strategic leadership and assurance across providers and commissioners of NHS-funded care for a quarter of the UK population. Andy has been involved in emergency preparedness for over 20 years where he has worked in private, voluntary and public sector organizations. He has been directly involved in the response to many emergencies including the Paddington rail disaster 1999, Soho bombing 1999, 7th July London bombings 2005, Yorkshire flooding 2007, pandemic influenza 2009 and many more. Andy obtained a Master”s degree in Civil Emergency Management in 2005 at City University London and continues to support others in their education as a visiting lecturer at Loughborough University on the Diploma of Health Emergency Preparedness Resilience and Response. Andy maintains his connection with the voluntary sector and is the National Service Delivery Adviser for St John Ambulance. As a part of this role Andy is responsible in providing the charity with advice on national emergency preparedness policy. Andy was admitted into the Most Venerable Order of St John of Jerusalem in 2001 and further promoted to Officer of the Order in 2012.