Meeting documents

To consider Item 13

The Lead Member for Human Resources and Equality and Diversity advised Members that this report provided an update on collaborative working, primarily within the Thames Valley. Also included was the Authority’s contribution on a range of national and regional collaborative programmes which support the Authority’s reform agenda and in time will enhance the Thames Valley collaborative outcomes.

The Lead Member for Human Resources and Equality and Diversity advised Members that the best example of the Authority’s collaboration was the Thames Valley Fire Control Service, where there was a joint Control Room with Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service and Oxfordshire Fire and Rescue Service. This was working increasingly well and the Lead Member encouraged Members to go and visit the Control Room.

The Lead Member for Human Resources and Equality and Diversity advised Members that a Memorandum of Understanding was signed by the three Thames Valley Fire Services in June 2015. Significant progress had been made since then and it was good to welcome to the meeting Julie Pickford who was the new Programme Manager for the Thames Valley. This appointment showed how serious all three Services were in moving forward with collaborating to provide a better and higher level of service for residents, whilst still ensuing this Service got best value for money.

The Lead Member for Human Resources and Equality and Diversity also advised Members that an increasing number of fire and rescue services had expressed an interest in the Authority’s approach to building on the workforce reform agenda to move to local terms and conditions of employment.

The Director of People and Organisational Development advised Members that the success of the joint Fire Control had also identified a whole range of further opportunities in terms of operational policy and ways of working for the three services and the significant focus of the Thames Valley Collaboration was in that area.

The Director of People and Organisational Development advised Members of a significant event that took place on 28 November 2016 when the three Service’s senior management teams, together with a lead member from each Service and Councillor Reed attended on the Authority’s behalf, met and reviewed progress and identified future collaboration priorities. The three Services also agreed the next steps and priorities for the ensuing two years and how to turn them into tangible outcomes and benefits.

The Director of People and Organisational Development reassured Members that any plans the Authority signed up to, to enhance collaboration, would also enhance delivery of the Corporate and Public Safety Plans and not detract from it.

A Member asked if collaboration in Northamptonshire and Bedfordshire could be looked at as well as the Thames Valley as they shared close borders with Milton Keynes and was advised that the Chief Fire Officer had regular meeting with his counterpart at Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service.

A Member asked if the Authority was looking at further collaboration with the Police and was advised that the Authority had regular meetings with the Police to look at opportunities for co-location. The Chief Fire Officer also said that collaboration with the Police in terms of property and estates had worked very well and there were further opportunities in the short to medium term to focus on fire-fire collaboration which would increase resilience, quality and possibly realise efficiencies.

(Councillor Clarke OBE left the meeting)

RESOLVED –

1.            That the Thames Valley Fire and Rescue Services collaborative achievements to date, set out in Annex A be noted;

2.            that the range of national and regional examples of collaborative working, set out in Annex B, be noted.