Memorandum by Devon Fire and Rescue Authority
(FRS 11)
INTRODUCTION
The Devon Fire and Rescue Authority welcomes
this opportunity to present written evidence to this Inquiry.
Both the Chief Fire Officer and the Chairman of the Authority
are willing to give verbal evidence to the Committee.
The Fire and Rescue Service is going through
the most radical change programme since the end of the Second
World War. The change agenda is significant and is placing huge
demands on all Fire and Rescue Services. Smaller Services may
not have sufficient capacity to cope and the Audit Commission
found this to be so in many of its recent Comprehensive Performance
Assessments. At the same time the government expects efficiencies
to produce significant savings. An appropriate balance needs to
be struck between these, sometimes, conflicting expectations.
THE INTRODUCTION
OF REGIONAL
CONTROL CENTRES
The Devon Fire and Rescue Authority took the
view from the very start of this project that it would provide
support, albeit somewhat reluctantly. This Authority was frustrated
from the start by the lack of information available in order to
comment effectively or to take decisions on matters of importance.
That information shortfall remains to this day with inadequate
information to inform our medium term financial planning process.
Consequently, we remain concerned that the Regional Control Centre
may impose additional costs on this Authority.
The management of the project has been disappointing.
An example is the decision of ODPM to give Chief Fire Officers
and Fire and Rescue Authorities only 45 minutes advance notice
of the publication of the location of the new Regional Control
Centres. This left Chief Fire Officers in the unenviable position
of having to advise affected staff having only discovered the
location a few minutes earlier.
Technically this project is ambitious but achievable
but will require great technical expertise. Experience of the
move to computerised Command & Control Systems in the Fire
and Rescue Service showed that there were many large, experienced
IT companies that were caught out by the complexities of what
at first appears to be a simple application. There is concern
that this could happen again particularly as the proposed systems
will be that much more complex again. Given this there is concern
in relation to the timescales associated with this project, particularly
as Fire and Rescue Services are yet to receive key information
in relation to the data structures that will be used by the proposed
system. There is likely to be considerable work for Fire and Rescue
Authorities to carryout before their mobilising data is in a format
that is compatible with the proposed countrywide system.
Finally, the recently announced delay in the
roll out of the RCC project means that existing control rooms
need to operate for longer. Here in Devon our existing equipment
would have reached the end of its life at about the time of the
originally planned change over date. The delay means that we cannot
rely on this critical equipment for a further two years. The result
is that we need to replace that equipment when we did not expect
to have to do so. Unfortunately, ODPM is refusing to meet these
costs and we believe that that decision should be re-considered.
THE INTRODUCTION
OF AND
IMPLEMENTATION PROCESS
FOR FIRELINK
RADIO SERVICES
Devon Fire and Rescue Service currently shares
a microwave system with Devon and Cornwall Constabulary and Cornwall
County Fire Service which we use to link our radio sites back
to our respective control rooms. We own our part of the microwave
system and currently pay maintenance for that. The majority of
the cost and all site sharing costs currently fall on the police
as the major user.
Devon & Cornwall Constabulary has almost
completed its migration to the new O2 Airwave radio system and
expects to vacate the shared microwave system by June 2006. This
will result in us having to pay all of the costs of any links
and sites we need to retain after that date.
This is an important matter for this authority
as any slippage in the Firelink rollout would result in extra
costs of £214,000 pa as well as potentially increasing disposal
costs. We believe that government should meet such costs as they
are entirely beyond our control and yet would impact directly
upon our local council tax payers.
PROGRESS ON
FIRE AND
RESCUE SERVICE
REFORM
The Service welcomes the increased recognition
given to the Chief Fire Officers' Association in delivering the
modernisation agenda in partnership with central government, the
LGA and other stakeholders. From a local perspective, however,
we need to ensure there is continued meaningful consultation on
all major strategic change that takes account of the different
environments in which Fire and Rescue Authorities operate.
It is disappointing to note that in the draft
National Framework 2006-08 no regard has been given to the inadequacies
of the constitutional arrangements of Regional Management Boards
in delivering improvement to the scale and timetable suggested
by central government. However, from a Devon perspective it is
welcoming to note that the government has not ruled out sub regional
combinations of fire and rescue services as Devon is currently
undertaking a strategic Review with Somerset to see if, and how
the two authorities can work more closely together. See further
comment on this issue below.
Transitional funding has been of assistance
to Fire and Rescue Authorities in supporting the not insignificant
increase in budget necessary to deliver the pay agreement 2003.
This was particularly burdensome for rural authorities with more
retained firefighters than wholetime firefighters. A fact that
appeared to have been overlooked at the time. Although the ethos
of the pay agreement was that management and the Fire Brigades
Union (FBU) would work together to deliver the required changes
in return for the high settlement, as can be seen from the industrial
action taking place around the country this is taking longer to
deliver than anticipated. We believe that it is essential, therefore,
that ODPM agrees to delay the repayment of the transitional funding
for a further year.
One of the other strands of the agreement was
for recognition of other unions (The Retained Firefighters Union
and the Fire Officers Association) on the National Joint Council,
thereby, in a small way, recognising the legitimate desires of
those unions to be able to represent significant parts of the
Fire and Rescue Service workforce. Although work has started on
this it has some way to go before reaching a conclusion. This
is disappointing and means that although local recognition for
negotiation purposes of these two unions has happened, we are
still in a position where national procedures to resolve local
issues preclude the involvement of these two unions.
Fire Service Reform continues to require "pump
priming" resources if it is to be delivered at the speed
required. There needs to be some recognition of this fact in Revenue
Support Grant settlements for 2006-07 and 2007-08.
FIRE PREVENTION
We welcome the long overdue change to fire legislation
which will enable a risk appropriate approach to enforcement,
whilst supporting the Integrated Risk Management Plan. Considerable
planning, training and support is taking place to ensure that
the Service is fully prepared when the Order is brought into force,
on 1 April 2006, to maintain public confidence and to have appropriate,
embedded, robust enforcement procedures.
PROMOTING DIVERSITY
The Devon Fire and Rescue Authority has achieved
a great deal in increasing the representation of women in the
uniformed workforce. The table below illustrates that increase.
2001-02 27
2002-03 35
2003-04 47
2004-05 57
2005-06 58 (current figure)
The ODPM target is to ensure that 15% of the
uniformed workforce is female by 2009. However, it is important
to realise that we are working from a very low base. Only in recent
years have we seen the repeal of the statutory controls on the
minimum height of firefighters that excluded 80% of the female
population. It is important, therefore, to recognise that Fire
Authorities are not to blame for the current position. Nevertheless,
more needs to be done and we are working hard to improve female
representation in the workforce. However, ODPM should recognise
that the target of 15% by 2009 is simply unachievable.
The Devon Fire and Rescue Authority welcomes
the proposal to open up the Fire and Rescue Service to enable
high quality recruitment into all levels of the organisation.
However, it should not be forgotten that experience is an important
qualification for those Fire Officers that take command of complex
operational incidents. It is important that any change to the
recruitment policy does not adversely affect service delivery.
This change needs to be handled with the utmost care.
JOINT WORKING
It is very noticeable that the Home Office has
a clear view of the need for change in the future structure of
Policing in England. Similarly, the Department of Health appears
to see a need to re-structure the Ambulance Service. The ODPM
appears to have no such clarity of view on the future structure
of the Fire and Rescue Service. The result could be regional or
sub-regional Police and Ambulance Services with the Fire and Rescue
Service remaining at a very local level. This lack of a joined
up approach may leave absolutely no commonality of geographical
boundaries between blue light services. Whilst we have serious
reservations about the establishment of regional Fire and Rescue
Services we are equally concerned about the apparent lack of joined
up thinking across departmental boundaries in central government
on this important issue.
The recent Comprehensive Performance Assessment
conducted by the Audit Commission gave this Authority a "Good"
rating. Somerset was rated "Fair". Both Authorities
agreed that the modernisation agenda and the need for greater
efficiencies were placing unachievable demands on our respective
organisations. As a result we have agreed to explore how we can
work more effectively together. One option is the combination
of our two organisations into a single Authority and Fire and
Rescue Service.
This work is progressing well, however, we believe
that it is important that ODPM should offer financial support,
in the form of grant aid to meet transitional costs, to those
Authorities proposing voluntary combinations in the interests
of improved efficiency and, therefore, value for money for council
tax payers.
Co-responder is a scheme were the Fire and Rescue
Service responds to certain medical emergencies in support of
the Ambulance Service. These responses are aimed primarily at
heart attack victims and those Fire and Rescue Services that are
delivering this service are already saving lives. However, whilst
many Fire and Rescue Services and their local Ambulance Services
are working together there is an absence of joined up thinking
in central government between the ODPM and the Department of Health.
That dialogue needs to take place urgently in order to establish
standard protocols and financial arrangements. It should be noted
that the Fire Brigades Union is opposed to this life saving work
and actively resists expansion of the scheme.
CIVIL RESILIENCE
The ODPM is to be congratulated on the development
of the New Dimension programme, which is considerably enhancing
the capability of the Fire and Rescue Service to respond to a
major terrorist attack or other disaster. Devon Fire and Rescue
Service is one of 20 strategically located Fire and Rescue Services
around the country with an Urban Search and Rescue Team. The vehicles,
equipment, training facilities and staffing costs are all being
met by ODPM and we warmly welcome that. However, the property
requirements for the establishment of the team mean that we do
not have existing suitable property. Unfortunately, ODPM has taken
the view that it will not meet the costs of such property needs
leaving individual Fire and Rescue Authorities in the impossible
position of having to meet those needs from existing resources.
It is essential that the ODPM reconsiders this position to ensure
that Fire and Rescue Services can meet the ODPM target date of
March 2007 for full operational availability of Urban Search and
Rescue Teams.
| 
