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Defence and civil preparedness: a reading list

The 2025 Strategic Defence Review and the National Security Strategy said that defence and security must become a ‘whole of society’ endeavour, one that uses the resources and capabilities of not just the military but industry, civil society and the population at large.

Both documents also called for a “national conversation” to raise public awareness of the threats to the UK, to reconnect the armed forces with society and to increase understanding of the role that society has to play in national resilience and mobilisation of the country’s resources in the event of crisis or war.

This briefing provides a list of useful reading and resources on the whole of society approach, including some selected international comparisons.