Issue - meetings

A report that presents the HMICFRS Inspection Report for Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service and seeks endorsement of the Action Plan returned to HIMCFRS regarding the Protection Cause of Concern and the internal action plan developed to address the Areas of Improvement identified during the Inspection. 

Cabinet Portfolio Holder – Councillor Andy Crump

Councillor Andy Crump, Portfolio Holder for Portfolio Holder for Fire & Rescue and Community Safety explained that this report was presented following Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service’s (WFRS) most recent inspection and sought endorsement for the action plan addressing the issues raised in that Inspection Report.  He went on to explain that the report summarised the findings of the Inspection Report and the areas in which significant improvement had been made since the previous inspection.  WFRS had one Cause of Concern and 26 Areas for Improvement which were outlined in the report.  Much of the report explained the improvement that had taken place since the previous Inspection, with two out of three Causes of Concern being addressed and the number of Areas for Improvement reducing from 41 to 26, almost a 40% reduction.  The report detailed the progress made.

Councillor Crump commended the measured response from the Service which had acted positively to criticism from HMICFRS and had either made adjustments in those areas or had a robust plan in place to do so, acknowledging that reaching the standards might take further time but once changes were embedded, the Service would not only be fit for the present but will also continue to keep the county safe well into the future.

Councillor Sarah Boad, a member of the Community Risk Management Plan (CRMP) Assurance Panel, noted that the Inspectorate was now engaged with the Panel and peer support had also been provided by Justin Johnston, Chief Fire Officer at Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service, who was skilled in those areas which WFRS was required to improve upon and she was pleased to see that this was resulting in good progress.

Councillor Crump confirmed the engagement with the CRMP Assurance Panel referred to by Councillor Boad and added that he was pleased with the progress that had been made to date and the direction of travel as a result of the hard work that had taken place.

Resolved

That Cabinet notes the HIMCFRS Inspection Report for Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service (WFRS) (Appendix 1 to the report) and confirms its support for the Action Plan returned to HMICFRS regarding the Protection Cause of Concern (Appendix 2 to the report), and the internal action plan developed to address the Areas of Improvement identified during the Inspection (Appendix 3 to the report).