Improvements to Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service mean that more fire appliances are available to respond to incidents and they are responding more quickly.
OPFCC Stephen Mold with Northamptonshire firefighters
Northamptonshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Stephen Mold took over the governance of Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service (NFRS) in January 2019 and has supported investment in firefighters and vehicles.
Chief Fire Officer Darren Dovey said: “We have worked very hard over the last 12 months to make improvements in our service, changing our approach so that we can respond more flexibly and quickly.”
There are now more fire engines available to respond to emergencies – on average 18-20 appliances. Between 7pm and 8pm, this can be around 20-24 appliances, which is important in the evenings, while people are at home.
And appliances are reaching incidents more quickly as average response times have reduced from 11 minutes 15 seconds to just over 10 minutes.
These improvements will be further enhanced by the recruitment of 32 new whole-time firefighters, of whom 12 are brand new posts that will support daytime availability.
This will increase the whole-time strength of NFRS to 254 from 242 fire fighters.
NFRS is also continually recruiting on-call firefighters and have recruited 40 more during both 2018 and 2019, making a massive difference to improving appliance availability.
Stephen Mold said: “Our Fire and Rescue Service has already made tangible strides forward. Moving to my Office has brought stability and certainty that has allowed NFRS to plan and develop, and we are already seeing the results of that. I’m excited that even closer working with Northamptonshire Police will provide opportunities to further enhance the service that the public receive.”
Darren Dovey continued: “One year on from the change in governance, we are in a more stable position, able to invest and make the innovations that we want to make.
