Report of the Assistant Director Planning & Improvement

The Fire Authority considered the report of the Assistant Director Planning & Improvement (ADP&I) presenting Members with the annual performance results for 2021/22.  In total there were twenty-one indicators, but only sixteen had comparable data due to the Covid-19 pandemic.  Eight of the top-level indicators improved or met the target set in 2021/22 and eight showed a decline against the previous year.

The ADP&I presented the report to Members, highlighting that comparison would remain difficult with the years affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, however, there was already a noticeable direction back to pre-pandemic levels.  There had been an increase in both the number of incidents and the levels of staff sickness.  There had been a reduction in serious fires and the Service was performing as expected with regards to containing a fire to the room of origin.  The report contained detail on both complaints and compliments and richer detail with regards to information presented on a District level. 

Members thanked the ADP&I and her team for the complex report and the updates contained within.  They were keen to highlight that when dealing with statistics it was easy to forget that a small numeric change could reflect significantly in a percentage figure, the language used occasionally made the figures seem more concerning than they were.  A lengthy discussion followed, Members queried what were the improvements that were so successful in Eastbourne and Rother and sought clarity on increases in Accidental Dwelling Fires (ADF) despite the significant outreach work being undertaken.  The Assistant Director Safer Communities (ADSC) explained that the Covid-19 pandemic had changed and impacted how the Service had to work.  The Annual Assessment of Risk was used to target those groups that were most in need of safety advice especially in the prevention of ADFs, the improvements in Eastbourne and Rother demonstrated the success of targeted initiatives.

Members sought clarity regarding attendance at Automatic Fire Alarms (AFAs) and response times.  The ADSC reminded the Authority that they had taken the decision not to attend AFAs, as it was still early days it would be a while before the figures would be available on this change.  The Control officers provided challenge to calls, under a nationally recognised process, to establish that it was indeed a false alarm, if there was any doubt the Service would attend.  The Service had consulted with the public on how they would like to see response standards reported, there were two ways of measuring; an ‘on station’ response and an ‘on-call’ response.

There was a question regarding the number of vehicles, whether the increasing number of Electric Vehicles (EV) presented an increased risk due to the batteries.  The Assistant Chief Fire Officer (ACFO) agreed that this was a well known risk, lithium batteries burned in a specific and difficult to control way, the National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC) had provided national guidance and additional local guidance had been put in place.  The Chief Fire Officer (CFO) added that Members could assist in the management of this risk by ensuring that their planning colleagues considered EV fires when granting permission to build underground carparks or the fitting of charging points in existing. 

The Assistant Director People Services (ADPS) provided members with some reassurance that the Service was addressing the increase in staff sickness figures.  During the pandemic staff sickness had reduced dramatically and was now showing a return to pre-pandemic levels.  There were several factors influencing the figures, including NHS waiting times, ill-health retirements, and delays of occupational health appointments.  Work was underway to improve Occupational Health facilities and the Service had introduced wellbeing hubs, wellbeing champions, and Mental Health first aiders.  The CFO added that this was a national point of focus as sickness in fire and rescue services was difficult to manage due to the nature of the work we do.  There were injuries that people could work with in other careers that they could not in the fire service.  However, back and Musculo-skeletal injuries had been overtaken by mental health as a cause of absence.  The sector had lightened equipment and de-manualised other equipment to reduce “wear and tear” and the resulting physical injuries.  Staff were exposed to incidents and situations that can cause significant mental health problems and societal issues including suicide.  The Service was encouraging conversations and that it was OK to say that you are not OK.  The Service had improved its response to trauma, but the nature of what crews attend would always be an issue.  The increased retirement age would also have an impact, and potentially there would be increased long-term sickness, being a firefighter was a difficult job at 50 and even tougher at 60. 

Members requested that a presentation be made to a future Members Seminar regarding wellbeing.  It was further proposed by Cllr Galley, seconded by Cllr Geary, that an additional recommendation be added to this report requesting a further widescale review of wellbeing and sickness across the Service.  The Fire Authority approved this additional recommendation.

RESOLVED – The Fire Authority approved:

       i.         the performance results and progress towards achieving the Service’s purpose and commitments;

     ii.         the performance results and remedial actions that had been taken to address areas of under performance in the priority areas; and

    iii.         a request for a further widescale review of wellbeing and sickness with an update provided to the Scrutiny & Audit Panel