Sphere Handbook now delivered with the Core Humanitarian Standard

Since 1 September, all orders of the English version of the Sphere Handbook are shipped with a wrapped folder containing the CHS Nine Commitments, Guidance Notes and Indicators plus a document that helps practitioners navigate between the CHS and Sphere Core Standards.

A voluntary standard, the CHS describes the core elements of a principled, accountable and high-quality humanitarian response. It will be fully integrated into the Sphere Handbook during the revision of the Handbook to take place in 2017.

The CHS is meant to be used in conjunction with the Humanitarian Charter, the Sphere sectoral minimum standards and the Protection Principles. Together, they provide a comprehensive framework to strengthen the quality, effectiveness and accountability of humanitarian response.

The CHS is the outcome of a collaborative process involving the Groupe URD (Urgence, Réhabilitation, Développement), the Humanitarian Accountability Partnership (HAP), People In Aid and the Sphere Project.

It draws on and replaces the Sphere Handbook Core Standards, the 2010 HAP Standard, the People In Aid Code of Good Practice and the quality reference framework of the COMPAS method developed by Groupe URD.