'Clear improvements' have been made at Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service and bosses say crews have 'worked tirelessly to improve in the areas that it needed to'. The fire service has been given an overall rating of 'good' by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS).
Services across three areas were looked at between September and November last year to assess how efficient and effective they are. The fire service has been found to be ‘good’ in all areas, with HMICFRS saying 'clear improvements’ have been made since the last inspection in 2018/19, in which the service was said to ‘require improvement’ in certain areas.
Chair of the Fire Authority, Councillor Michael Payne, said the latest inspection report represented a "well-deserved outcome for the service". He said: “I’m so proud that we have a fire and rescue service which is effective, efficient, and has amazing people working for it to make our communities safer.
“The service learnt a lot about its strength, resilience, and ability to transform from the pandemic. The support its staff gave to communities was quite simply sensational and rightly highlighted nationally.
“Helping to administer over 75,000 vaccinations, to set up over 20 vaccination centres, and providing nearly 500 urgent care shifts for EMAS shows the type of people the service has. During this time and since, the service also worked tirelessly to improve in the areas that it needed to, while also achieving incredible results in its day-to-day operations.
“When you think that our fire service still attended 28,000 emergencies since the last inspection, this really is an extraordinary achievement.”
Nottinghamshire was one of 15 fire and rescue services to be inspected in the latest round of HMICFRS inspections. It is just one of four services from the 30 inspections so far in round two to be rated ‘good’ in all 11 inspection areas.
The inspection areas included responding to fires and other emergencies, protecting the public through fire regulation and having the right people with the right skills.
In the 2018/19 assessment, the fire service was told improvements were needed in a category comprising its 'overall effectiveness'. This has jumped to 'good' with firefighters working on a new 'community risk management plan'.
Inspector said the service had been found to display "good levels of partnership working", meaning "those most at risk from fire can be identified and given further support". And, since a previous inspection, the fire service has been found to use its "budget and resources more efficiently".
"The change of shift pattern at two stations and the control room merger with Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service has helped Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service to make savings without affecting the service it provides to the public," inspectors said after the latest review of the fire service.
"The service has shown repeated examples of its willingness to collaborate. The control room merger is one example, and another is the move to joint headquarters with Nottinghamshire Police. The service shares other buildings with Nottinghamshire Police and the East Midlands Ambulance Service.
"Since our last inspection, the service has better managed its reserve fund and has created a transformation fund, which has allowed for modernisation in areas such as digital technology, collaboration and performance management." The recruitment process has been found to be "open and fair".
Nottinghamshire's chief fire officer Craig Parkin said: “I am delighted that HMICFRS have found us to be a ‘good’ fire and rescue service. This is fantastic news for everyone at our Service, and for the communities we protect and serve.
“The last inspection helped us to identify where we needed to improve, and through the dedication, tenacity, and passion of my staff we’ve become a better Service. our long-term ambition is to become an outstanding fire service, and we are now working towards that.”
For the year ending on June 30, 2021, a total of 9, 304 incidents were attended by the fire service. Of these, 34% were fires, 26% were non-fire incidents, and 40% were false alarms.
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