Post by Madhatter on Jul 12, 2010 17:13:37 GMT
Warwickshire’s Chief Fire Officer is setting out proposals to modernise the Service which will be presented to the County Council on Tuesday 20th July.
After a period of extensive analysis of risks, which has included consultation feedback, response times and standards, speaking with firefighters and staff, examining cross border resilience, attending incidents, particular risks and looking at national structures, the options being put forward to full council on 20th July have been amended from those first proposed in September 2009.
Graeme Smith, Chief Fire Officer, explains his proposals:
"Whilst it has been a lengthy process, I felt that it was only right to take stock of all of the issues we face as a fire and rescue service as well as the feedback we received from the public consultation process. I believe that we have made closer links with communities, businesses and neighbouring fire and rescue authorities through the consultation and I hope that will remain.
"Having attended the public meetings, I do know that people are passionate about their fire stations, but it is important that people understand we need to make changes and the reasons for that. We need to strengthen our work on preventing all types of fires and emergencies, we know this saves lives and drives down injuries, so it is critical that we progress this work. We also want to ensure that wholetime and on-call firefighters can work more closely together in order to share their knowledge and experiences.
"I hope that the public will see that I have listened and whilst not all decisions will be popular, I have adapted the improvement plan to offer a resilient service that prioritises our resources. That does mean taking difficult decisions but we have to have a service that is fit for purpose now and into the future. I would not be proposing these changes unless there were clear benefits to be achieved and I am confident about what must be done to face the challenges which lie ahead to ensure that we provide a first class emergency prevention, protection and response service."
After a period of extensive analysis of risks, which has included consultation feedback, response times and standards, speaking with firefighters and staff, examining cross border resilience, attending incidents, particular risks and looking at national structures, the options being put forward to full council on 20th July have been amended from those first proposed in September 2009.
Graeme Smith, Chief Fire Officer, explains his proposals:
"Whilst it has been a lengthy process, I felt that it was only right to take stock of all of the issues we face as a fire and rescue service as well as the feedback we received from the public consultation process. I believe that we have made closer links with communities, businesses and neighbouring fire and rescue authorities through the consultation and I hope that will remain.
"Having attended the public meetings, I do know that people are passionate about their fire stations, but it is important that people understand we need to make changes and the reasons for that. We need to strengthen our work on preventing all types of fires and emergencies, we know this saves lives and drives down injuries, so it is critical that we progress this work. We also want to ensure that wholetime and on-call firefighters can work more closely together in order to share their knowledge and experiences.
"I hope that the public will see that I have listened and whilst not all decisions will be popular, I have adapted the improvement plan to offer a resilient service that prioritises our resources. That does mean taking difficult decisions but we have to have a service that is fit for purpose now and into the future. I would not be proposing these changes unless there were clear benefits to be achieved and I am confident about what must be done to face the challenges which lie ahead to ensure that we provide a first class emergency prevention, protection and response service."
