ecfrs-irmp supp 2010 final

8/7/2019 Ecfrs-irmp Supp 2010 Final

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IRMP 2011-14

Essex CountyFire & Rescue Service

Our Values: Respect, Accountability, Openness and Involvement

SUPPLEMENT


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2 IRMP 2011-14

Essex County Fire and Rescue Service(ECFRS) has already published its Inte-

grated Risk Management Planning con-

sultation document or 2011-14 and the

Service is mid-way through the consulta-

tion period. The document discussed the

principles o our plans to make changes

to fre cover in the county and so we

are now publishing this supplement to

ensure the public has ull access to the

details o our plans and intentions.

At the end of 2010, Fire Authority elected

members signed up to a set of princi-

ples that would govern ECFRS plans

for change, including wherever possible

protecting the jobs of its workforce and

keeping stations open.

The principles adopted by the Fire Authority

as basis for changes to re cover are:

Maintenance of an effective, efcient and

safe operational response by ensuring

that no reduction is made to the number

of re appliances that are sent to life

threatening emergencies.

Maintenance of an effective and efcient

prevention and protection service delivery.

Maintenance of safe communities.

Maintenance of operational resilience.

Saving the jobs of existing staff as far as

reasonably practical.

Changes to re station crewing systemswill be the starting point before reductions

in re appliances or re station closures

are made. Thereafter minimum reduction in

the number of re appliances and mini-

mum re station closures.

ECFRS has already made 3.3m of

efciency savings and has identied a further

1.6m savings from back ofce functions.

There will be no station closures as the Serv-

ice faces up to potential budget cuts in ex-

cess of 10m. However a recruitment freeze

will be put in place and the changes identi-ed in this document represent the further

efciencies necessary in the next two years to

enable ECFRS to deliver the savings required

for the rst two years of the Comprehensive

Spending Review.

ECFRS Senior Managers unveiled their de-

tailed plans for changes to re cover across the

County at a meeting of the Essex Fire Authority

Policy and Strategy Committee on January

19. The recommendations were ratied at that

meeting and will now go forward to a meeting

of the full Fire Authority on February 9, 2011.

In advance of that meeting, ECFRS plan to

hold public meetings to allow the public to

air their views on our proposals, particularly

in relation to changes proposed for Canvey

and Brentwood.

Following one of the most radical reviews

of its re cover arrangements - launched

against the background of the GovernmentsComprehensive Spending Review, ECFRS

is proposing the following actions within the

next two years:

- Change crewing arrangements at

Canvey Fire Station from one wholetime

crewed appliance and one retained crewed

appliance to two retained crewed appliances.

Wholetime reghters from Canvey will be

redeployed within the organisation.

- Change crewing arrangements at

Brentwood Fire Station from two wholetime crewed re appliances to one whole

time crewed re appliance and one retained

crewed re appliance.

- Realign crewing standards at Orsett,

Clacton, Loughton and Rayleigh Weir

Fire Stations. This change will release 16

reghter posts not jobs - by removing one

post from each watch which will reduce the

watch strength from 13 reghters to 12.

- Change the crewing provision at Waltham

Abbey, Dovercourt, South WoodhamFerrers and Great Baddow Fire Stations.

The current system of day crewing will be

replaced by a new low level activity and risk

(LLAR) crewing system. This crewing system

will enable the Authority to ensure the level of

resource provision more accurately reects

the risk in these areas.

Station Crewing System

Wholetime: Crews on station on shits 24/7

Day Crewed: Crews on station during the day

but respond by pager at night and weekends

Retained: Crews on call 24/7 and respond

by pager rom their homes or places o workwhich are close to the fre station.

Introduction


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3IRMP 2011-14 3

-Finally, ECFRS will change the current

crewing system at Great Dunmow Fire

Station from two retained crewed appli-

ances to one wholetime crewed appliance

and one retained crewed appliance. The

change could remove some retained posts

but will introduce wholetime posts, sourced

from other changes being made under the

review. This change will provide ECFRSwith a wholetime presence in the Uttlesford

and Braintree areas. It will ensure that the

level of resource provision more accu-

rately reects the risk in the Uttlesford and

Braintree area. Furthermore, wholetime per-

sonnel will act as safety advocates working

out of Great Dunmow Fire Station interven-

ing in areas with identied issues and thus

supporting the service view that prevention

and protection activity is at the core of its

strategy to save and protect lives. Addition-

ally, wholetime crews at Great Dunmowwill enhance the Service's ability to gather

operational risk information, undertake re

safety audits in the workplace and thus

drive down the risk associated with com-

mercial premises.

With staff costs making up three-quarters

of the Service budget, a reduction in

reghter posts has to be one of the areas

looked at by ECFRS in its efforts to deliver

the savings required by the Comprehensive

Spending Review.

The proposed plans support ECFRS' desire

to deliver reductions by natural attrition

over the next two years without compulsory

redundancies or compulsory retirements.They also deliver change without station

closures and without any reduction in the

number of front line re appliances serving

the county. When considered in combina-

tion, the proposed changes do not impact

negatively on average standards of attend-

ance across the county.

As part of the re cover review process

ECFRS worked with professional statisti-

cians to look at many thousands of op-

tions for delivering re cover across Essex.

When dening our proposals for the futureit is important to consider the provision of

re cover at a county level to ensure that

all members of the public receive a service

that is appropriate to risk. By rationalising

re cover in the south of the county ECFRS

is able to deliver a more equitable provision

of protection/prevention & response in the

north of the county.

These changes will address all the impact

issues as we know them now from the

Comprehensive Spending Review for the

next two years. The Service will continue

to review its strategic planning beyond the

two year horizon so that ECFRS is in good

shape to respond to denitive budget infor-

mation when it is forthcoming from Central

Government. It is anticipated the Compre-hensive Spending Review for years three

and four will require ECFRS to make further

signicant changes.

Chief Fire Ofcer David Johnson has pledged

to do everything possible to ensure that those

people working with ECFRS today, who want

to be with the Service in four years time,

will have a job to do. That may mean fewer

reghters in establishment terms but it is an

option that will allow ECFRS to deliver on its

commitment to a dedicated and committed

workforce while ensuring the Service is still

able to deliver a service to the public that is

appropriate to risk.


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HAVE

YOUR

SAY

I you are interested in

becoming a Retained Firefghter

Contact Us

email: [email protected]

Its your chance to tell us what you

think about our plans or fre cover,

Its your Fire Service so

For Brentwood

Tuesday February 1, 2011 at 7:00pm

Knights Way Centre

32a Knights Way

Brentwood, CM19 2AZ

For Canvey Island

Saturday January 29, 2011 at midday

Smallgains, Island Boys Pavilion

Creek Road

Canvey Island, SS8 8DP


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5IRMP SUPPLEMENT 2011/14

Consultation

Due to the signifcance o its fre cover review,

ECFRS began consultation around potential

outcomes in July 2010. Prompted by wide-

spread media coverage throughout Essex, we

received some 1,500 responses rom the pub-

lic the biggest response we have ever seen

rom any consultation exercise.

This was ollowed up by our IRMP consultation

document in December 2010. It is acknowl-

edged that whilst the initial document outlined

ECFRS' intent it lacked the specifc nature o

our proposals. This supplementary document

now provides the public with the detail o the

proposed changes that ECFRS intends to make

over the next two years. Consultation will end

on February 8, 2011.

I you care about the uture o your fre and

rescue service, we would urge you to consider

careully the inormation contained within

this document and ensure that your views

are taken into account. Go online at www.

essex-fre.gov.uk and take part electroni-

cally; alternatively write with your response

to the proposals to Lisa Hart, Consultation

& Engagement Ofcer, Essex County Fire &

Rescue Service, Service Headquarters,

Kelvedon Park, Rivenhall, Witham, Essex

CM8 3HB

Station Map


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