Report of the Assistant Chief Fire Officer

The Panel received a report from the ACFO which provided a briefing on ESFRS preparedness and response arrangements to the Covid-19 Pandemic.

The Panel asked about the tripartite agreement which was in place.  The Chief Fire Officer (CFO) explained that the National Fire Chiefs Council had negotiated with the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) at a national level and reached agreement on additional areas of activity which sat outside of statutory obligations such as the delivery of food parcels and transport to hospital for example.  There were in total 14 different activity types which had national risk assessments.  ESFRS had undertaken 3 of the 14 additional activities in order to support the local community during the pandemic.  Each activity was subject to a local risk assessment in order to determine the local way of working in terms of equipment, staffing and training for example and were agreed with local FBU representatives.  The CFO added that national level negotiations with the FBU on extending the agreement to March 2021 had taken place, however, the FBU position was that agreement would only be reached if services adopted all 14 activities.  With regard to ESFRS position, the CFO explained that it had been agreed that the Service would accept in principle all 14 activities, however, the additional ways of working and risk assessments would only be carried out for those activities which would be undertaken.  This approach had been agreed with the local FBU representatives.  The CFO reiterated her assurance that all activities would carried out with appropriate and effective risk assessments agreed by Health & Safety and the FBU and that all statutory obligations would be fulfilled.

The Panel observed that the Risk Register showed a number of risks as amber which was indicative of the pressure that the service was under.  The ACFO agreed that there were a number of risks which demonstrated the extraordinary circumstances and although this emphasised a number of issues, it also highlighted ESFRS’s ability to respond and mitigate against risk.  All risks had been shared and assessed by the Sussex Resilience Forum and considered by the Emergency Management Team.  The ACFO added that he was proud of how officers had responded to the unprecedented circumstances, whilst maintaining statutory responsibilities and supporting the local community. 

Members also asked about how the volunteer call scheme aligned with other local volunteer schemes in the area.  The ACFO explained that knowing that many Home Safety Visit customers would be vulnerable and shielded, a courtesy call service offering pastoral support had been established.  1900 calls had been made through the vulnerable people scheme which had resulted in 500 referrals for further Home Safety Visit activity, 56 referrals to the relevant local authorities for additional support and 27 referrals to community hubs.

The Panel offered their congratulations on the resilient and adaptive response.  The CFO added that letters of thanks had been sent to staff and gave thanks to Fire Authority its support.   A full report on the ‘lessons learnt’ would be brought back to the Panel in due course.

RESOLVED: That the Panel noted the East Sussex Fire & Rescue Service preparedness and response arrangements to the Covid 19 Pandemic.