Agenda item

To consider item 13

The Group Commander Community and Business Policy advised Members that this report was an update of the Building Risk Review and some of the Protection work being undertaken and the self-assessment against the Protection Fire Standards. The Building Risk Review was completed at the end of last year and concentrated nationally on high risk residential buildings. The review was completed ahead of schedule, and work continued to take place on these buildings as business as usual.  This would continue and incorporate the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022.

The Group Commander Community and Business Policy advised Members that the Service continued to deliver the Protection Uplift Programme, utilising the associated grant funding to deliver improvements in fire safety and training, improved software and wider support for business engagement, including an additional role of a Business Engagement Officer. Other spending had contributed to the improvement in the Premises Risk Management System to improve the communication and coordination of Site Specific Risk Information, Prevention activity and Protection audits to improve the way the Service could make its staff and communities safer.

The Group Commander Community and Business Policy advised that the Service aimed to fully comply with the competency framework and was aligning with the Competency Framework for Fire Safety Regulators, which recommended that all fire safety inspectors, working on high risk premises, should be third party validated.

The Group Commander Community and Business Policy advised Members that the Fire Standards Board had been set up to oversee the identification, organisation, development, and maintenance of professional standards for fire and rescue services in England. The Board had since launched the Protection Fire Standard which could be seen at Appendix 1. The Service had undertaken the self-assessment which could be seen at Appendix 2. Members should note that question two around equality impact assessments had now been removed, as it was considered this was ongoing and part of what was undertaken on a daily basis and part of any audit process.

Members would also be aware that there were a number of legislative changes to fire Safety including the Fire Safety Act, The Fire Safety (England) Regulations and the Building Safety Act which officers had been working on to incorporate into the Protection function.

(Councillor Lambert re-joined the meeting)

The Chairman asked if it would be possible for Members to have a briefing session to take them through the Building Safety Act to understand what the implications were for the Authority.

The Group Commander Community and Business Policy would provide a presentation at the next Fire Authority meeting.

A Member asked in terms of building risk, if the FBU would be balloting on strike action, what contingency plans would be in place to cover high rise building and whether the government had offered appliances to cover those high risk buildings in the event of strike action.

The Chief Fire Officer advised that the Fire Brigades Union had informed the Authority of its intention to ballot for strike action and plans were going ahead to put in contingency arrangements to provide an emergency response. The latest position was that fire and rescue services were in negotiation and discussion with the government in terms of whether or not the military would be involved in providing that response. The Service had also gone out to members of the public to engage in terms of defensive firefighting. The Service would provide the appliances and training, a plan would be brought to Members, once it was finalised in terms of what emergency response the Service could provide. The issue of high rise buildings was a national issue and was something that would be put on public record if it got to that position.

RESOLVED –

That the Building Risk Review, Protection Update, and Fire Standard Protection Self-assessment be noted.