Northumberland Fire and Rescue Service
Fire & Rescue Inspection.
His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS)
Assessments by HMICFRS are designed for the public to see how each fire and rescue service is performing. The assessment looks at Northumberland Fire and Rescue Service’s performance in relation to other fire services across the UK.
The inspection programme includes an assessment of:
Effectiveness
including prevention, protection, resilience, and response
Efficiency
including how well the fire service provides value for money, allocates resources to match risk, and collaborates with the police and ambulance services
People
including how well it promotes its values and culture, trains its staff and ensures they have the necessary skills, ensures fairness and diversity in the workforce, and develops leadership and service capability
Our Inspection Results
Here you will find the results of Northumberland Fire and Rescue Service inspections.
NFRS planning for the future following inspection report
Chief Fire Officers at Northumberland Fire and Rescue service are reassuring residents of their commitment to prevention, protection and response following recommendations from the most recent His Majesty’s Inspectorate for Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS) inspection.
Keith Carruthers, Chief Fire Officer for Northumberland Fire and Rescue said: “When I took up my role in April, I was fully briefed by HMICFRS on the findings of their inspection.
"We welcome this report, which provides an important opportunity to reflect, learn and build on the strengths that already exist within Northumberland Fire and Rescue Service - driving positive and lasting change across the organisation.
"While it identifies areas where we need to improve, it also recognises the commitment of our staff and highlights areas where we are serving our communities well.
"Alongside the publication of the report, HMICFRS have moved the service to an enhanced level of monitoring which will provide us additional support to improve.
"We are committed to delivering the changes needed and ensuring we provide the highest standards of prevention, protection and emergency response for the people of Northumberland.
"The inspection reflects a period of significant organisational change and disruption for the Service. Since then, my new Senior Leadership Team and I have focused on strengthening leadership, rebuilding capacity and improving stability.
"This work is already underway, and we will continue to build momentum in the months ahead.
"Residents can be assured that public safety remains at the heart of everything we do. We are determined to learn from this inspection, deliver the improvements identified and continue to make Northumberland a safer place to live, work and visit.”
Whilst recognising NFRS are good at protecting the public through fire regulation and preventing fires and other risks are carried out adequately, HMICFRS has made recommendations for improvement across eight areas:
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Understanding fires and other risks
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Responding to fires and other emergencies
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Responding to major and multi-agency incidents
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Making best use of resources to provide an efficient and affordable service
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Promoting, embedding and improving values and culture
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Training and developing the right people with the right skills
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Ensuring fairness and diversity
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Leading people effectively
View the full report on His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) website.
Improvement Action Plans
Following HMICFRS inspection findings, we have developed action plans to address each Cause of Concern identified. These plans set out the actions we are taking to deliver improvements and strengthen our service. We are committed to being transparent about our progress and will provide regular updates as this work continues.
HMICFRS Values and Culture in fire and rescue services report
In March 2023, HMICFRS produced the 'Values and culture in fire and rescue services’ report which contained 35 recommendations.
Twenty of these recommendations were directed at Fire and Rescue Services, and are the ones addressed and commented on in this progress report.
The remaining 15 recommendations were directed at external bodies such as the Local Government Association, the Home Office and National Fire Chiefs Council. As a result, we are unable to progress these locally.
The action plan is reviewed and updated on a regular basis, with quarterly progress updates submitted to HMI.
HMICFRS Thematic Inspection
On 13 July 2023, the Home Secretary commissioned His Majesty’s Chief Inspector to undertake a thematic inspection of the handling of misconduct in fire and rescue services in England.
