Agenda item

(To receive a report from Dan Quinn, Assistant Chief Fire Officer, which sets out the Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue Statement of Assurance for 2018-19)

caConsideration was given to a report by the Chief Fire Officer, which set out the requirement for fire and rescue authorities to provide an annual Statement of Assurance on financial, governance and operational matters. 

Members were informed that Lincolnshire was classified as one of the most rural counties in England by the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA). The rural nature of the county posed challenges for Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue, however, the Government were seeming to acknowledge the extent of the challenges faced by fire services in rural areas.

In line with LFR’s commitment to continuous improvement in 2018 the Service was inspected as part of Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS) inspection process, in which the service was rated as 'good' overall. Following the inspection, an action plan was put in place to address any issues highlighted within the report.

LFR had a number of future plans in place to improve the service, which included:

• Improving the health and wellbeing of the workforce.
• Developing the service's information management technology capability, which would include the development of a revised management information system strategy and the joint future control capability.
• The development of prevention and protection capability, which would be developed in line with LCC’s Joint Strategic Needs Analysis and Great Lincolnshire Economic  Plan.

Officers were satisfied that the systems and measures LFR had in place with respect to financial, governance and operational matters for the period 1 April 2018 to 31 March 2019 were fit for purpose and effective.

Members were referred to Appendix  A to the report, which set out the full Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue Statement of Assurance for 2018-19.

Members were invited to ask questions, in which the following points were noted:

·         LFR were exploring the ways in which they could support employers whom allowed their staff to be on-call fire-fighters. Officers welcomed support from Councillors on this matter and encouraged Members to communicate the role of on-call fire-fighters to employers.

·         The Chief Fire Officer thanked the County Council for their continued support to LFR.

·         Officers confirmed that the rate of the ageing population was not impacting on the recruitment of fire officers.

·         It was noted that the vulnerability of the ageing population was concerning for LFR and their partners. LFR had introduced the vulnerability profile 'SHERMAN' to help people identity key traits that led to the fire fatalities. Sherman highlighted seven key factors that may make people at greater risk of having a fire, or being less likely to react to a fire – smoking; hoarding; elderly people or those who live along alone; reduce mobility, hearing or visual impairments; mental health issues; alcohol misuse, drugs/medication dependence and those needing care of support. The campaign aimed to increase awareness of vulnerable individuals so that LFR could work with partners to help reduce the risk of those vulnerable people. 

·         LFR's integrated risk management plan would consider the risks posed by the projections of an 11% increase in Lincolnshire's population by 2041, and whether there needed to be more resources allocated to support the projected increase.

·         The Chief Fire Officer advised that if given extra resource, the service would seek to build resilience, strength and depth into their current practice, rather than introduce alternative provisions. For example, more provision of fire engines and stations and strengthening the ability of trainers and fires stations.

·         Officers confirmed that the highest rating that could be received in the HMICFRS inspection was outstanding. LFR were inspected one of the first 15 fire stations to be inspected nationally, of which only one station received a rating of outstanding on one area of their inspection.

·         The service had acknowledged that improvements to the training record systems needed improvement. Although training was generally up to date, there had previously been no way of instantly verifying this information using the current systems.

·         Members questioned what was being done to improve the connectivity between fire stations and the rest of the county council following the findings in the HMICFRS report. Officers advised that going forward, LFR would adopt LCC's core values rather than have their own set of values. The service would provide a main focus and set of expected behaviours to LFR staff as a sub-set to LCC's core values.

·         The Executive Councillor for Culture and Emergency Services hoped that raised awareness of the council's One Culture agenda would aid a shift in culture across the council and help all staff feel more connected. The Member visits to stations and the Chief Officer representation in the Corporate Leadership Team also seemed to be contributing to feelings of inclusion.

·         Members commended the improved relationships between LFR and the fire services in neighbouring districts.

·         Members were advised that LCC were working to lobby a better deal for Lincolnshire as a rural county.

·         The decrease in the number of co-responder incidents was not a result of a reduction in the number of calls outs. The service were  analysing the situation at each station to identify what improvements could be made to increase the availability of co-responders, including the consideration of new options such as dedicated co-responders.

·         It was confirmed that the fire control room LFR headquarters had not yet moved to Nettleham and was currently still operating from South Park due to a delay in the establishment of specific technology. 

·         It was confirmed the medical response review that was planned for 2019 had commenced and was on-going.

RESOLVED:

            That the report and comments made be noted.