Example Title Sub title | DateMaking the difference needed CFOA Strategic Direction | 2015-2019

The Chief Fire Officers Association’s key objective is to promote the further effectiveness of the UK’s fire and rescue services for the benefit of communities across the country. The strategy set out here has been created to continue to deliver against the aims of the Association which are to:

• Lead and firmly influence the future direction of the UK fire and rescue service on professional, managerial and leadership issues which affect the service

• Be the focal point for professional advice that drives and contributes to the development of policy impacting upon the UK fire and rescue service

• Effectively communicate our views and priorities

• Support members to achieve individual and collective improvement

As the professional voice of the UK fire and rescue service, the Chief Fire Officers Association (CFOA) believes that fire and rescue services make a major contribution to building safe and resilient communities, protecting people and places from harm. Fire and rescue services also play a key role in the country’s shared prosperity and creating conditions for economic growth.

Fire deaths are at an all-time low and the number of fires continues to fall, thanks to prevention and safety work by services across the country and regulation where it is needed. This also has the benefit of reducing the economic cost of fire, protecting the economy, local businesses and the environment.

Other public services see the value of prevention to reduce demand on services, but rarely is there a service which can demonstrate the benefits of prevention in such a visible way.

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Making the difference needed CFOA Strategic Direction | 2015-2019

Fire services have an unrivalled standing, with high levels of public trust, satisfaction and confidence. This grants unique access to vulnerable people, enabling them to provide targeted advice and further support to help keep people safe.

Employees are now multi-disciplinary, with a wide range of skills and expertise which communities know they can rely on. The fire and rescue services across the UK take a wide role and are uniquely placed to actively contribute to tackling some of society’s most difficult and complex issues, particularly around health and wellbeing.

We are proud of the track record of fire and rescue services throughout the UK. Nonetheless, CFOA knows there is more that can and should be done to make even more of a difference, and this strategy outlines our plans to help fire and rescue services to do just that.

The financial challenges that face public services, local government and the fire and rescue service in particular will certainly continue over the current parliamentary term. There will also be other challenges, such as an ageing society and increasingly complex security threats which will place new demands on fire and rescue services. CFOA will work with governments to help shape and deliver transformational change across the public sector, including alternative funding, delivery and governance arrangements for fire and rescue services to encourage local ownership and accountability, while ensuring that services can continue to deliver a full range of important activities.

CFOA believes that fire and rescue services can evolve and transform in order to continue delivering safer, healthier and more resilient communities and a first class emergency response which is the envy of the world.

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CFOA and successive governments all agree that prevention is better than cure; a preventative approach is the most effective way to keep communities safe and this is reflected in a strong track record of reducing fires, deaths and injuries.

CFOA wants to work with governments, politicians and other committed stakeholders to ensure the wider prevention, collaboration and integration agenda is at the heart of everything the fire and rescue service does.

Fire and rescue services have the skills, capability and positive relationship with the public to tackle a much wider range of societal risks and build healthier, safer and more resilient communities. There are already many examples of fire and rescue services delivering greater public and social value in hard to reach communities in different areas such as the PREVENT programme, troubled families, domestic violence, road safety, and health and wellbeing initiatives.

Research carried out in 2013 demonstrated that 16 surveyed fire and rescue services have delivered youth engagement programmes which deliver a Social Return on Investment of £480m, assuming a relatively low 60% success rate. Through the medium of targeted Home Safety Checks, fire and rescue services visit around 670,000 vulnerable households every year, representing a unique opportunity for engagement. Six hundred and seventy thousand opportunities to make a positive difference and improve life chances.

Fire and rescue services also play a key role in fire protection; ensuring homes and businesses are as safe as they can be in the event of a fire or emergency. CFOA and fire and rescue services are also committed to better and more proportionate regulation, through mechanisms such as the Primary Authority Scheme.

Partnership and collaboration are an important means of delivering improved outcomes for communities and the citizen in all areas of the public sector. CFOA believes fire and rescue services should be a partner of choice for other public bodies, charities and businesses.

Fire and rescue service professionals are, by their nature, problem solvers with a “can-do” attitude, making them flexible and highly effective partners in a wide range of settings. They are universally welcomed into every home in the UK and are seen as a trusted and well respected public sector partner.

Safer, healthier and more resilient communities

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CFOA will:

• Promote the wider role that fire and rescue services can play to tackle a range of social issues leading to safer, healthier and more resilient communities.

• Engage with other bodies at a local, regional and national level to create partnerships which deliver wider social and public value at a local level.

• Continue to promote better regulation and a positive working relationship with business which protects life, property and the environment while also supporting economic development and growth.

• Push governments to expand their thinking and approach to the identification and awareness of risk factors, and challenge policy makers to think differently when commissioning services.

• Encourage the government to take a more radical and result focused view on which organisations are best placed to contribute to the delivery of social outcomes.

• Encourage our government departments to facilitate joint conversations with CFOA across the rest of government to enable fire and rescue services to make a difference against the wider risks agenda to the UK.

• Promote the sharing of good practice between fire and rescue services and with partners to encourage the uptake of new and innovative schemes that have delivered positive outcomes for communities.

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When a member of the public dials 999, they are experiencing a crisis which could be life threatening; they require and expect an effective, timely and appropriate emergency response. The fire and rescue service acts to tackle emergencies at a local, regional, national and even international level. They play a hugely important role in the United Kingdom’s national resilience, as a key part of the UK’s civil contingency arrangements. Perhaps uniquely for any public service, the fire and rescue service has the ability to mobilise 10,000 operational personnel onto the streets across the UK within five minutes, putting boots on the ground to tackle all manner of emergencies.

Their role as a Category 1 Responder under Civil Contingencies legislation coupled with the Integrated Risk Management Planning (IRMP) process is at the core of the fire and rescue service approach. Working within Local Resilience Forums (LRFs), fire and rescue services use data and intelligence to identify a wide range of risks and jointly put in place resources to mitigate them. Great emphasis is also placed on mitigating risks faced by firefighters themselves, and even more should be done to ensure firefighters are safe and well trained.

Fire and rescue services respond to a range of major incidents including chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear and explosive (CBRNE) threats, wide area flooding, terrorism and urban search and rescue (USAR) at a regional and national level. This involves planning right from the concept stage to the physical delivery of response capabilities and beyond, all managed and assured by the dedicated National Resilience Assurance Team (NRAT). CFOA strongly believes that this activity must be strengthened and remain integrated within fire and rescue services as the UK faces an ever increasing range of threats, from terrorism to climate change.

The public now expects fire and rescue services to lead the operational response to flooding across the UK, and services have, and will continue, to step up to the plate during such events. However, CFOA believes that fire and rescue services can have a more proactive role around flood prevention through working with national bodies, such as the Environment Agency, to assist in early flood barrier deployment and creating more resilient communities.

CFOA believes that public services should be citizen focused. Emergencies do not respect organisational or geographical boundaries, therefore fire and rescue services work with all partners to help to create a seamless response to the public when dealing with crises, through the Joint Emergency Services Interoperability Principles (JESIP) and other programmes.

More recently, some services have been assisting colleagues from health, and in particular ambulance trusts, to meet the increase in demand through co-responding, and first responding schemes backed by clear training and clinical governance. This has directly delivered improved outcomes to the citizen and should be implemented much more widely within the UK.

A safe, effective and trusted response

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CFOA will:

• Promote and lead the highest standards of operational performance throughout fire and rescue services.

• Provide National Operational Guidance and Standard Operating Procedures for UK fire and rescue services, with the support of governments.

• Work toward standard training specifications to complement National Operational Guidance.

• Work with organisations such as the Environment Agency and Health & Safety Executive to ensure safe, effective and assertive response across all types of emergency incident.

• Work with all stakeholders to lead the UK fire and rescue service to further improve interoperability with other emergency services and Category 1 and 2 responders.

• Provide professional advice to UK governments on National Resilience issues and seek to improve on fire and rescue services’ ability to deploy National Resilience assets operationally both within our borders and abroad.

• Work with governments and partners to identify and close any gaps between the National Risk Assessment and local Integrated Risk Management Plans.

• Lead continuous improvement of National Coordination and Advisory Framework (NCAF) for major incidents to ensure the needs of the citizen are met.

• Advocate the much wider use of co-responding and joint response schemes with ambulance and other emergency service colleagues to improve services to the public of the UK.

• Seek capital investment and support for joint 999 services and shared facilities projects, recognising them as a key step in creating better integrated services.

• Share good practice between fire and rescue services and partners to encourage the uptake of new and innovative schemes where they prove successful, making a positive difference to society, communities and the citizen.

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CFOA recognises that reducing budgets, changing risks and shifting priorities mean fire and rescue services will need to further transform in the coming years. Fire and rescue services have already reformed their organisations to meet funding reductions, introducing new forms of operational service delivery, utilising new technology and rationalising support functions.

CFOA and fire and rescue services collectively recognise that further efficiencies and effectiveness can be found through collaboration and integration within the sector, as well as with other emergency and public services. Many fire and rescue services are already integrating or sharing functions with local government and police or completely merging functions with other fire and rescue services. CFOA has and will continue to support the work of the Emergency Services Collaboration Working Group.

However, there is considerable scope to push this further, and there will certainly need to be leaner governance models and fewer fire and rescue services in future. Consideration should also be given to the way services are funded, with a need for further exploration of alternative funding and commissioning models. This would reduce the reliance upon central and devolved government grants and place greater control in the hands of local taxpayers. It is vital that any such changes are intelligence and evidence led, with due consideration given to public expectations.

Local solutions around combinations, collaboration and integration leading to greater accountability and responsiveness are important and are supported. However, CFOA believes that further efficiency and consistency can be achieved through a nationally co-ordinated model for support services such as procurement, operational policy development, human resources, and research and development.

Through innovation and new technologies, CFOA believes fire and rescue services can have safer and more effective firefighters, protect citizens, save lives and reduce loss to buildings. Technology and equipment will also assist in delivering against the wider prevention agenda, particularly in relation to keeping the ageing population safe. Fire and rescue services should be empowered to think nationally and deliver locally. This approach needs no changes to existing governance arrangements so can be delivered quickly.

Any change to the structure and governance of the fire and rescue service should not be undertaken without first considering other government reforms and the role of Category 1 and 2 responders. CFOA wants to be at the heart of any future discussions to help shape change to create fire and rescue services which are the envy of the world.

CFOA believes that governments have a key part to play to open doors for reform at a national level and to ensure that central government functions operate to best support a rapidly reforming fire and rescue service. Governments also have a clear role to play in creating appropriate regulations and legal frameworks to ensure the safety and wellbeing of firefighters, the citizen and the promotion of business.

Driving service reform and integration

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CFOA will:

• Provide professional advice and guidance on the future of governance and structural fire and rescue service reform and debates around the future structure of UK civil contingency.

• Identify and tackle barriers to reform in conjunction with governments and partners.• Work toward a sustainable funding model for all fire and rescue service activities can be

progressed for the benefit of all.• Push governments to consider in-depth UK national risks as a whole and consider where

fire and rescue services can deliver against and prevent these risks from being realised. • With the support of the government, lead on the creation of national hubs to co-ordinate

support services, such as procurement, operational policy, human resources, pension management, research and development and data sharing.

• Actively encourage and support shared facility projects working with local authority, voluntary sector and emergency service partners.

• Commission sector led research that will inform future strategies and stimulate innovation.• Continue to support and lead the development of new fire service technology through

programmes such as the Emergency Services Mobile Communications Programme (ESMCP).

• Commit to working with governments and the EU to influence debate and further the creation of new measures and regulations that will make firefighters, citizens and communities safer and make the United Kingdom more resilient.

• Work with other organisations and interested parties concerning research which will enhance the use of technology which promotes the protection of business and the citizen.

• Work with stakeholders to ensure that technology and equipment are used to enhance the safety and effectiveness of fire and rescue staff.

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Through this strategy CFOA is advocating an innovative and ground breaking future for the fire and rescue services in the UK. To achieve this and perform at their best, fire and rescue services’ workforce also needs to be fit for purpose. This will ensure fire and rescue services enjoy a capable, flexible and well managed workforce, with a diverse mix of men and women, full time, part time and volunteers, equipped to deal with the full range of challenges modern society presents. Recruiting, retaining and developing talent at all levels and from a wider range of sources will be critical as the role of the fire and rescue service changes and fire service staff take on a wider range of roles.

The fire and rescue service needs to be managed and governed effectively, innovatively and openly. Fire and rescue services, CFOA and our partners have a key part to play in equipping fire authority members and senior managers with the information, acumen and skills necessary to lead at a time of significant challenges. As the professional body for senior fire officers, CFOA plays a critical role in offering support, guidance and expertise to fire service leaders whenever they need it, particularly in times of crisis or change.

Not only should CFOA play a role in equipping the leaders of the fire and rescue service, but in providing them with challenge and assessment. CFOA believes sector-led improvement and greater local accountability and scrutiny improves performance and outcomes. At the heart of this is a mature Peer Challenge process, which provides services with a critical friend, to help them assess themselves across a number of key aspects of service provision and to access independent input to support improvement.

If the fire and rescue service is to meet the financial and operational challenges facing it over the next decade, CFOA particularly wishes to see greater flexibility in the way the workforce within fire and rescue services is used. Local flexibility, to meet local risk, driven by local need, is key. The current national negotiation machinery and structures often frustrate attempts to make simple and positive changes locally and are not conducive to future needs and plans.

Like many other local and national public sector organisations, there are too few women and ethnic minorities employed within the fire and rescue service and the service remains unrepresentative of the demography of the UK. All staff must continue to create an inclusive culture and uphold the values of the fire and rescue service. It must continue to be made abundantly clear that bullying and harassment is never acceptable at any level.

CFOA wants to work hard with key stakeholders, including fire and rescue services and representative bodies, to build a welcoming, adaptable and representative workplace, despite the challenges presented by reducing staff numbers and an ageing workforce. CFOA will lead on this area and help fire and rescue services to understand any barriers to recruitment and/or progression to create an open and positive working environment so that the fire and rescue service becomes an employer of choice.

Delivering through our greatest asset

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CFOA will:

• Promote the further development and skills of our members and all senior managers within the fire and rescue service and create a network for sharing experience and insight.

• Deliver an improved Peer Challenge process, in partnership with the LGA, which focuses on future challenges to services and will promote a more efficient and effective service.

• Be a champion for equality and diversity within the fire and rescue service.• Work with the fire and rescue service workforce, unions and others to promote the values

of the fire and rescue service and encourage an open, flexible and inclusive culture. • Play a full and active part in the SOLACE code of ethics steering group to create an up to

date code of conduct and ethics for all CFOA members and senior fire service managers as part of the wider local government sector.

• Offer senior officer support and expertise from a network of their peers.• Explore new ways to recruit and foster talent in the fire and rescues service at all levels

and from a wide range of backgrounds. • Seek to simplify the national negotiating structures for terms and conditions to allow

greater flexibility and allow positive changes made at a local level to be rolled out more widely.

• Share good practice between fire and rescue services and with partners and encourage the uptake of new and innovative schemes where they prove successful.

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The Chief Fire Officers Association9-11 Pebble Close | AmingtonTamworth | Staffordshire | B77 4RD

Telephone: +44 (0) 1827 302300Facsimilie: +44 (0) 1827 302399www.cfoa.org.uk

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