Cabinet to review Fire Services work over last year

The Cabinet Meeting on 7 August will consider reports on the Fire Service's Improvement Plan and its annual Statement of Assurances, including details of the work carried out by NFRS over 2022/23.

This includes a rise in the number of accidental dwelling fires attended to 418 - up from 362 the previous year - while the number of deliberate fires attended rose from 657 in 2021/22 to 952 in 2022/23.

Deliberate fires include those involving arson, but also include any deliberately ignited fire, such as bonfires or BBQs that have grown out of control.

Cllr Margaret Dewsbury, Norfolk County Council Cabinet Member for Communities and Partnerships, said: "Our Fire Service consistently does our county proud, putting themselves in harm's way every day to protect our communities. These annual figures are a chance to reflect on just how much they do, and how much we owe them.

"It's been a challenging year, with wildfires, floods and an increasing number of fires, both accidental and deliberate, but despite this NFRS has not only continued to attend each incident but has also ramped up work on preventing fires, bringing prevention activity up sharply as we came out of Covid restrictions and have begun to return to normal."

Work to prevent fires also rose in 2022/23, with home fire safety checks for people at higher risk rising from 947 in the previous year to 2,188 as in person work resumed after the Covid pandemic.

This work has been carried out in line with the recommendations of His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS), following their inspection of NFRS in 2021 and reinspection in 2022. An update on the service's Improvement Plan will also be going to Cabinet on 7th August, highlighting the work already done, as well as laying out how NFRS will continue to improve over the coming months.

Ceri Sumner, Chief Fire Officer of Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service, said: "We've made a lot of progress towards addressing the issues the Inspectorate identified in our service, which has been recognised, but we know there is more work to do. I'm proud of the work we've already done to support our people and create a positive culture and believe the, the Inspectorate will recognise the strides we're making towards addressing all of their concerns."

Cabinet will discuss these reports when it meets at 10am on Monday, 7 August. You can read the reports and watch the meeting, live or afterwards.