Agenda and minutes

The Chair introduced the report and also introduced Neil O’Connor, Director for Fire Resilience and Emergencies at DCLG.  The Director highlighted that Mark Francois, Minister of State for Communities and Resilience, was keen to engage with the fire and rescue sector on the new government’s priorities but unfortunately had been unable to attend the meeting himself.

The Director thanked members for the many welcoming letters that the Minister had received since his appointment, as well as the invitations to visit individual fire and rescue authorities. He had already had discussions with members from all parties, as well as representatives of the three fire unions, including visiting the headquarters of the FBU. Meetings with the unions had been very positive. The Minister would be attending the LGA Annual Conference the following week.

The priorities for the new government were to deliver all aspects of the Conservative manifesto, which included a commitment to enable the fire and rescue service and the police to work more closer together, as well as steps on strike action. Currently no specific proposals had been put forward, but detailed consultation on any proposals would take place in due course.

The Cities and Local Government Devolution Bill was currently progressing through both Houses of Parliament, and localism was very important in the context of fire service reform. The Emergency Services Mobile Communications Programme was progressing and would roll out in 2017, which would enable the service to be more flexible and was an important factor in reform of the service. Members noted that although specific savings had not been identified there would realistically be further reductions in funding, and services would be asked to look for further efficiencies. The Director commented that he was pleased to have seen a very positive interest and enthusiasm for continued reform at the LGA Fire Conference in March. DCLG would be producing a survey for fire and rescue authorities to gauge the level of collaboration which was currently going on across the country, particularly on programmes of work such as improving health outcomes and road safety. The survey would be important in assessing the value that the service provided in these areas and in evaluating what further change might be possible. Further details would be released in due course.

LGA publications such as ‘Future Funding’ and ‘First 100 Days’ would continue to feed into discussions over the coming months, and the government was committed to explore what could be achieved. The Director highlighted that DCLG wanted to work collaboratively and collectively with the fire service, and had always had a good relationship with the Fire Commission and the LGA.

In the discussion which followed the Director’s presentation the following topics were raised:

• The Adrian Thomas report was currently with the Minister for consideration. The previous fire minister had said that the report would be published after the General Election and a timescale for this would be agreed. Members asked that the report be published in full, and that it would be appropriate  ...  view the full minutes text for item 1.

The Chair introduced the report and also introduced Professor Kevin Fenton, Health Improvement and Population Healthcare Leader at Public Health England (PHE).

Prof. Fenton provided a presentation for the Fire Commission entitled ‘A System Wide Approach to Improving Health and Wellbeing’. The presentation covered the current challenges in the provision of health and wellbeing in England, opportunities which PHE had identified for improving health outcomes and tackling health inequalities, and opportunities for collaboration with the fire and rescue service.

Prof. Fenton highlighted that the fire and rescue service was an excellent partner in health preventative work, as it was trusted, had access to residents as part of regular home visits, was community focused, had a desire to contribute, and provided strong leadership. PHE had already identified a number of areas where the fire and rescue service could expand prevention work, including seasonal flu immunisations, falls, mental health crises and dementia, end of life care and prevention of excess winter deaths. A number of pilot schemes were taking place in various locations nationally, but there was now an opportunity to create a collective view of how the fire and rescue service could most effectively contribute, whilst recognising the need for local flexibility and building on existing work.

In the discussion which followed Prof. Fenton’s presentation, the following points were raised:

·         The fire and rescue service needed an agreed model of social value to enable it to quantify the cost to the nation of the healthcare and preventative work undertaken. A new model of funding which took this into account would be welcomed. Prof. Fenton highlighted that the prevention role provided by the fire and rescue service was good for communities and also for the government, and clarity on costs would help make the case for a review of funding to the Treasury.

·         There was agreement that more work could be done, but there were issues around release and sharing of data from hospitals and GPs. The fire and rescue service also had good data which could be shared with local partners, such as the locations of vulnerable people in the community.

·         The fire and rescue service were trusted advocates in society and could greatly help with the cost burden to society that arose from mental health issues or in responding to heart attacks. Pilots which had taken place so far focussed mainly on physical health, but the fire service could also stage mental health interventions where necessary.

·         There should be more co-operation between health services and the fire and rescue service. The fire service could continue to do more health work, but there could be a danger of a skill gap in the short term. Prof. Fenton highlighted that further sustained collaboration over the next three to five years would be vital and the development of a package of work for the fire service around falls and fragility, winter pressures on the NHS, isolation and wellbeing could be one way to develop collaboration further and ensure it is funded.

·         There should  ...  view the full minutes text for item 2.

Simon Pannell, LGA Negotiations, introduced the report which updated the Fire Commission on fire service industrial relations and pension matters since the last meeting.

Simon highlighted that joint work streams were currently in operation on a wide range of issues to examine ways in which core fire service roles could be reinforced. The first phase of work was now complete and the next phase would look at which aspects should be taken forward to a national level and how this should be done. Members welcomed the news that the FBU were working in collaboration on the project.

Members noted that employer members of the NJC for Local Authority Fire and Rescue Services had decided to offer a 1.0% across the board pay increase at their previous meeting. The employees’ side would now consider the offer and it was expected that a response would be received the following week.

Regarding the Thomas Review, it was noted that when a publication date was announced it was hoped that the LGA would receive an embargoed copy so that an appropriate response on behalf of fire and rescue authorities could be drawn together.

Cllr Maurice Heaster, who represented the Fire Commission and FSMC on the Firefighters’’ Pension Committee, highlighted that the Pension Ombudsman had recently upheld a complaint regarding the lack of any review of the commutation factors between 1998 and 2006 by the Government Actuaries Department. The decision would have serious cost implications for the sector, and discussions were underway with the Treasury on the number of people affected and the potential cost to the fire and rescue service.  

In response to a question, it was confirmed that the NJC had agreed in principle to the concept of a Joint Working Group on firefighter’s’ fitness. The Group would consider ways to address aspects of the firefighter role which were physically demanding, identify how to best provide occupational fitness throughout firefighters’ careers and identify actions what employees should take to maintain their fitness, health and wellbeing.

Decision

·         Members noted the issues and updates provided in the report.

Action

·         Further updates on various ongoing issues related to industrial relations and pensions to be provided at the next meeting.

The Chair introduced the report, which outlined the issues of interest to the Fire Commission which were not covered elsewhere on the agenda, and invited members’ questions and comments.

In response to a question on an LGA white paper entitled ‘English Devolution: Local Solutions for a Successful Nation’, it was explained that the report did not suggest that the fire and rescue service should merge with other blue light services, but that blue light services should think more generally about how they could work together in a combined authority model promoted through a ‘bottom up’ and place-based approach. The report did not favour a particular model, but was designed to promote debate and raise questions for the sector. Members noted that the report had been approved by the LGA Executive following consultation with the LGA’s political groups.

Members welcomed the news that the government had taken forward the proposal to introduce regulations to make it mandatory for all private sector landlords to ensure working smoke alarms and, in some circumstances, carbon monoxide alarms were installed in all rented properties at the start of each tenancy. The proposal had been included in the LGA and CFOA document ‘The Fire and Rescue Service: Making our Nation Safer’, as part of the ‘first 100 days’ campaign.

Decision

·         Members noted the updates included in the report.   

The Chair introduced the end of year report, which provided an overview of the issues and work the Fire Services Management Committee and the Fire Commission had overseen during 2014/15. The report also set out the priorities for the FSMC and the Fire Commission for the forthcoming year.

In response to a question, it was confirmed that the number of meetings scheduled for 2015/16 had not reduced as the schedule was the same as the 2014/15 schedule.

The Chair commented that if Mark Francois, Minister of State for Communities and Resilience, was unable to attend the next scheduled meeting of the Fire Commission in October 2015 it may be necessary to change the date of the meeting so that members had the opportunity to hear from and question the Minister.

Decisions

·         Members noted the achievements against priorities for 2014/15.

·         Members agreed the programme of work for 2015/16.

·         Members agreed the programme of meetings for 2015/16. 

Actions

·         Officers to invite the Minister of State for Communities and Resilience to the next Fire Commission meeting. If he was unable to attend, officers to arrange to change the date of the next meeting to a date convenient for the Minister.

Members agreed the minutes of the previous meeting held on 17 October 2014.

The Chair announced that it would be Helen Murray’s last meeting as Head of Programmes for the Fire Commission, as she was to become the LGA’s new Principal Advisor in the West Midlands. Members paid tribute to Helen’s advice and leadership over the last few years and thanked her for her hard work.