Lancashire Combined Fire Authority

Performance Committee

Meeting to be held on 4 September 2024

Performance Management Information For 1st Quarter 2024/25

(Appendix 1 refers)

Contact for further information – Jon Charters, Assistant Chief Fire Officer (ACFO)

Tel: 01772 866801

Executive Summary

This paper provides a clear measure of our progress against the Key Performance

Indicators (KPI) detailed in the Community Risk Management Plan 2022-2027.

Recommendation

The Performance Committee is asked to note and endorse the Quarter 1 Measuring Progress report, including one positive and four negative exceptions.

Information

As set out in the report.

Business Risk

High

Environmental Impact

High – the report apprises the Committee of the Authority's progress.

Equality & Diversity Implications

High – the report apprises the Committee of the Authority's progress.

HR Implications

Medium

Financial Implications

Medium

Local Government (Access to Information) Act 1985

List of background papers

Paper:         

Date:           

Contact:      

Reason for inclusion in Part 2 if appropriate: N/A

Measuring Progress

Performance Report

Quarter 1: April 2024 – June 2024

Introduction

The following pages set out Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service’s (LFRS) Performance Framework, an explanation of how our Key Performance Indicator’s (KPI) are measured and how we are performing.

The document illustrates our performance across all our KPI’s and where appropriate, by an analysis of the KPI’s which are classified as being in exception, along with an analysis of the cause and actions being taken to improve performance.

Contents	Page (s)
Introduction	2
Table of Contents	3
Explanation of Performance Measures	4
Performance Framework and Indicator Trends	5 – 7
Key Performance Indicators	8 – 47

Table of contents

Explanation of Performance Measures. 4

Performance Framework and indicator trends. 5

1.1 Overall Staff Engagement 8

1.2.1 Staff Absence Wholetime (WT) 10

1.2.2 Staff Absence On-Call (OC) 13

1.2.3 Staff Absence Green Book. 14

1.3.1 Workforce Diversity. 15

1.3.2 Workforce Diversity Recruited. 16

1.4 Staff Accidents. 17

2.1 Risk Map. 18

2.2 Overall Activity. 19

2.3 Accidental Dwelling Fires (ADF) 21

2.3.1 ADF – Harm to people: Casualties. 22

2.3.2 ADF – Harm to property: Extent of damage (fire severity) 23

2.4 Accidental Building Fires (ABF) - Commercial Premises. 24

2.4.1 ABF (Commercial Premises) – Harm to property: Extent of damage (fire severity) 25

2.5 Accidental Building Fires (Non-Commercial Premises) 26

2.5.1 ABF (Non-Commercial Premises: Private Garages and Sheds) – Harm to property: Extent of damage (fire severity) 27

2.6 Deliberate Fires Total: Specific performance measure of deliberate fires. 28

2.6.1 Deliberate Fires – Dwellings. 29

2.6.2 Deliberate Fires – Commercial Premises. 30

2.6.3 Deliberate Fires – Other (Rubbish, grassland, vehicles etc.) 32

2.7 Home Fire Safety Checks (HFSC) 33

2.8 Prevention activities delivered. 34

2.9 Business Fire Safety Checks. 35

2.9.1 Fire Safety Activity. 37

2.10 Building Regulation Consultations (BRC) 38

3.1 Critical Fire Response – 1^st Fire Engine Attendance. 39

3.2 Critical Special Service Response – 1^st Fire Engine Attendance. 41

3.3 Total Fire Engine Availability. 42

4.1 Progress Against Allocated Budget 44

4.2 Partnership Collaboration.. 45

4.3 Overall User Satisfaction.. 47

Explanation of Performance Measures

KPI’s are monitored either by using an XmR chart, comparing current performance against that achieved in the previous year’s activity, or against a pre-determined standard - for example: the response standard KPI’s are measured against a range of set times.

The set times are dependent upon the risk rating given to each Super Output Area (SOA), which is presented as a percentage of occasions where the standard is met.

XmR chart explanation (Value [X] over a moving [m] range [R]).

An XmR chart is a control chart used to highlight any significant changes in activity so that interventions can be made before an issue arises. It can also highlight where activity has decreased, potentially as a result of preventative action which could be replicated elsewhere.

Activity is deemed to be within standard if it remains within set upper and lower limits. These limits are based upon the previous three years activity and are set using a statistically derived constant, approximately equivalent to three standard deviations.

An exception report is generated if the upper, or lower, XmR rules are breached.

The following rules are applicable to the XmR charts and define when an exception has occurred:

· A single point beyond the Upper Control Limit is classified as a negative exception.

· A single point beyond the Lower Control Limit is classified as a positive exception.

Example XmR chart: In the example below, this KPI would produce a negative exception for meeting rule 1, as the activity, represented as a dark blue line, for May 2021 (    ) is above the Upper Control Limit (UCL) and a positive exception in September 2021 (    ) for meeting rule 2, being below the Lower Control Limit (LCL).

Performance Framework and indicator trends

The Combined Fire Authority sets the Service challenging targets for a range of key performance indicators (KPI) which help them to monitor and measure our performance in achieving success and meeting our priorities. Performance against these KPI’s is scrutinised every quarter at the Performance Committee.

The following graphic illustrates our priorities and how their respective KPI’s fit within the overall performance framework.

This section also provides an overview of the performance direction of the KPI’s. Each KPI is shown within its priority, with an indicator called Sparkline’s; which are the inset summary charts and indicate the relative direction of travel over the last four quarters. The last point of the chart represents the most recent quarter. Sparkline’s are simple indicative indicators and are not intended to have labelled points or axes.

1.1 Overall Staff Engagement

A written update on staff engagement will be provided on a quarterly basis.

Scope and definition:

Staff engagement is achieved through a variety of activities carried out every day across the service including station visits, digital staff sessions, appraisals, and team meetings. This includes a programme of wellbeing interactions such as workplace toolbox talks, station visits, workshops, and wellbeing support dog visits. All members of staff can raise questions, ideas and improvements on the Service’s intranet and staff are regularly involved in testing and trialling new equipment and ways of working. Surveys and consultations are held on specific matters when required such as proposals for emergency cover reviews and working the on-call duty system.

Measurement/update:

From April to June 2024, 19 station visits were carried out by principal officers and area managers as part of our service-wide engagement programme. Six service delivery engagement sessions were held for local leaders across the county to reflect on progress achieved in 2023-24 and consider priorities for the year ahead. Forty-five wellbeing interactions were undertaken ranging from wellbeing sessions with crews to wellbeing support dog interactions.

The Service also engaged with staff over several topics relating to our fleet and equipment, including water rescue buoys, fire flash hoods, and devices to monitor heat stress in firefighters, and property projects such as improvement works at Blackpool and Preston fire stations.

As previously reported: A comprehensive staff survey is undertaken periodically to gain insight from all staff on a range of topics including leadership, training and development, health and wellbeing, and equality, diversity, and inclusion. The feedback is used to shape future activity and bring about improvements and new ideas. The survey includes a staff engagement index which is a measure of overall staff engagement based on levels of pride, advocacy, attachment, inspiration and motivation. The current staff engagement index score is 74% (2023).

An engagement index is calculated based on five questions measuring pride, advocacy, attachment, inspiration and motivation; factors that are understood to be important features shared by staff who are engaged with the organisation.

For each respondent an engagement score is calculated as the average score across the five questions where strongly disagree is equivalent to 0, disagree is equivalent to 25, neither agree nor disagree is equivalent to 50, agree is equivalent to 75 and strongly agree is equivalent to 100. The engagement index is then calculated as the average engagement score in the organisation. This approach means that a score of 100 is equivalent to all respondents saying strongly agree to all five engagement questions, while a score of 0 is equivalent to all respondents saying strongly disagree to all five engagement questions.

During the survey period, the corporate communications department visited wholetime and on-call crews on 51 occasions to encourage participation in the survey. Five focus groups were held with on-call units by the Service’s independent researcher to obtain qualitative feedback on on-call specific matters, to complement the survey data.

1.2.1 Staff Absence Wholetime (WT)

Cumulative shifts lost 2.141

The cumulative number of shifts (days) lost due to sickness for all wholetime staff divided by the total average strength.

Annual Standard: Not more than 8 shifts lost.
(Represented on the chart as annual shifts lost ÷ 4 quarters = 2)

Cumulative total number of shifts lost:

2.141

What are the reasons for an Exception report

This is a negative exception report due to the number of shifts lost through absence per employee being above the Service target for quarter 1.

The element of this section of the report refers to sickness absence rates for the period 1 April 2024 to 30 June 2024.

The agreed target performance level is 8 shifts lost per employee per year for wholetime staff, which equates to a target of 2.00 shifts lost.

The actual shifts lost for the period for this group of staff is 2.14, which is 0.14 shifts over target. During the same period the previous year, 2.10 shifts were lost which is a slight increase of 0.04 shifts lost per wholetime employee compared to the same quarter last year. Cases of long-term absence (over the whole quarter) have decreased by 0.11 shifts from the previous quarter.

Analysis

1,332 wholetime absence shifts lost = 2.14 against a target of 2.00

The number of cases of long-term absence which spanned over the total of the 3 months reduced from three in Q4 of 2023-24 to two in Q1. The absence reasons being:

· Mental Health – Stress

· Cancer and tumours

80 shifts were lost during the quarter as a result of the above cases of long-term absences, this is in comparison to 158 shifts were lost during the previous quarter. These cases account for 0.129 shifts lost per person over the quarter.

There were 31 other cases of long-term absence recorded within the 3 months:

Reason	Case/s
Musculo Skeletal	10
Mental Health	9
Hospital/Post Operative	7
Other absence types (small or single returns)	5

117 shifts lost were related to Respiratory related absences, this includes Coronavirus absence and equates to 0.189 shifts lost per person in Q1, this is in comparison to 154 shifts lost in Q4 of the previous year.

Measures the Service takes to manage absence

The Service has an Absence Management Policy which details our approach to managing absences to ensure that staff time is managed effectively, and that members of staff are supported back to work or exited from the Service in a compassionate way.

The Human Resources (HR) system i-Trent automatically generates monthly reports to line managers and HR Business Partners in relation to employees and their periods and reasons for absence, and these are closely monitored. Where employees are absent due to a mental health, or a stress related condition, they are referred to Occupational Health Unit (OHU) as early as possible. Employees returning to work have a return-to-work interview and stress risk assessment, or individual health risk assessments are completed where required.

The Service has several support mechanisms available to support individuals to return to work or be exited as appropriate including guidance from Occupational Health, access to Trauma Risk Management (TRiM), access to an Employee Assistance Programme and the Firefighters Charity.

Where an employee does not return to work in a timely manager an absence review meeting will take place with the employee and the line manager and a representative from Human Resources. The meetings are aimed at identifying support to return an individual back to work which can include modified duties for a period, redeployment, but ultimately can result in dismissal, or permanent ill health retirement from the service.

The Absence Management Policy details when a formal review of an employee’s performance levels would normally take place. In terms of short-term absence, a formal review would take place where an employee has 3 or more periods of absence in 6 months, or an employee has 14 days absent. In terms of long-term absence, a formal review will normally take place at 3, 6, 9 and 11 months.

A key challenge for supporting operational staff return to work is that the threshold for fitness and return to work for operational firefighters is higher than in other occupations due to their hazardous working conditions.

1.2.2 Staff Absence On-Call (OC)

Cumulative Absence 1.25%

The percentage of contracted hours lost due to sickness for all OC contracted staff. An individual’s sickness hours are only counted as absent where they overlap with their contracted hours.

Annual Standard: No more than 2.5% lost as a percentage of available hours of cover.

Cumulative On-Call absence, as a percentage of available hours of cover at end of the quarter, 1.25%.

Cumulative On-Call absence (as % of available hours of cover):

1.25%

1.2.3 Staff Absence Green Book

Cumulative shifts lost 1.348

The cumulative number of shifts (days) lost due to sickness for all Green Book staff divided by the average strength.

Annual Standard: Not more than 8 shifts lost.
(Represented on the chart as annual shifts lost ÷ 4 quarters = 2)

Cumulative total number of shifts lost:

1.348

1.3.1 Workforce Diversity

Diversity Percentage (Refer to charts)

Workforce diversity as a percentage: Performance measure of how representative our staff are of our communities, to monitor equality and diversity within LFRS.

Combined diversity percentage of Grey Book and Green Book staff. Outer circle represents the current quarter, with the inner circle illustrating the same quarter of the previous year.

Diversity percentage by Grey Book staff and Green Book staff. Counts will include double counts if dual contract between Grey and Green Book.

Characteristic	Diversity	Grey Book	%	Green Book	%
Gender	Female	Grey	10%	Green	61%
	Male		90%		39%
Ethnicity	Other than white	Grey	3%	Green	4%
	White		95%		87%
	Not stated		2%		9%
Sexual orientation	LGBT	Grey	4%	Green	3%
	Heterosexual		57%		62%
	Not stated		39%		35%
Disability	Disability	Grey	3%	Green	4%
	No disability		95%		90%
	Not stated		2%		6%

1.3.2 Workforce Diversity Recruited

Diversity Percentage (Refer to charts)

Workforce diversity recruited as a percentage: Performance measure of our success in recruiting a diverse workforce to monitor equality and diversity within LFRS.

Combined cumulative diversity percentage of Grey Book staff and Green Book staff. Outer circle represents the current quarter, with the inner circle illustrating the same quarter of the previous year.

During quarter 1, there were a total of 10 new recruits.

No further breakdown is provided to prevent the possible identification of individuals due to the small numbers of recruits during certain periods.

1.4 Staff Accidents

Activity 20

This KPI details the numbers of accidents which have involved LFRS staff members at work within the quarter.

As part of our Health and Safety Management System we report and investigate all accidents which occur within LFRS to identify any learning opportunities which can contribute to improving our safety culture within the Service.

As the body ultimately responsible for health and safety performance, this KPI enables Fire Authority members to view LFRS progress on managing health and safety risks within LFRS.

Quarterly activity increased 25.00% over the same quarter of the previous year.

Total number of staff accidents	Year to Date	2024/25 Quarter 1	Previous year to Date	2023/24 Quarter 1
	20	20	16	16

2.1 Risk Map

Risk Score 30,750

This indicator measures the fire risk in each Super Output Area (SOA). Risk is determined using fire activity over the previous three fiscal years along with a range of demographic data, such as population and deprivation.

Specifically, the risk score for each SOA is calculated using the formula shown below. Once an SOA has been assigned a score, it is then categorised by risk grade.

The County risk map score is updated annually before the end of the first quarter. Standard: To reduce the risk in Lancashire - an annual reduction in the County risk map score. An improvement is shown by a year-on-year decreasing ‘Overall Risk Score’ value. The inset table below shows the latest count of risk areas against the previous year, along with the overall risk score compared to the previous year.

Risk Grade	Very High	High	Medium	Low	Overall Risk Score
2024 count	11	54	340	536	30,750
2023 count	15	59	331	536	31,170
Direction / % Change

2.2 Overall Activity

Quarter Activity 4,274

The number of incidents that LFRS attend with one or more pumping appliances. Includes fires, special service calls, false alarms and collaborative work undertaken with other emergency services. For example, missing person searches on behalf of the Lancashire Constabulary (LanCon) and gaining entry incidents at the request of the North west Ambulance Service (NWAS).

A breakdown of incident types included within this KPI are shown on the following page.

Quarterly activity decreased 16.28% over the same quarter of the previous year.

Incidents attended	Year to Date	2024/25 Quarter 1	Previous year to Date	2023/24 Quarter 1
	4,274	4,274	5,105	5,105

	Current mean	3 Year mean	2023/24	2022/23	2021/22
Current mean activity and the monthly mean activity over the previous 3 years.	1,425	1,532	1,449	1,570	1,578

2.2 Overall Activity Breakdown

Quarter Activity 4,274

Incidents attended by LFRS consist of a myriad of different types. The breakdown below, whilst not an exhaustive list, aims to illustrate how activity captured within KPI 2.2 Overall Activity is split by the different types of incidents.

The chart figures represent the count and percentage each activity contributes to the quarter’s activity, whilst the inset table breaks the incident types down further.

	FALSE ALARM incidents make up 43% of activity, with 63% being Fire alarm due to Apparatus incidents, 34% good intent false alarm and malicious false alarms accounting for 3%.
	FIRE PRIMARY incidents encompass Accidental Dwelling Fires, accounting for 34% and are shown later in the report within KPI 2.3.
	FIRE SECONDARY incidents are caused by either a deliberate or accidental act, or the cause is not known. Deliberate fires mainly involve loose refuse and currently account for 50%, with 50% being an accidental or not known cause.
	SPECIAL SERVICE incidents are made up of many different activities, so only a selection of types, such as Gaining entry to a domestic property on behalf of NWAS and Road Traffic Collisions (RTC) can be shown, with the remainder being recorded under ‘other types’. These can range from trapped animals or hazardous materials incidents, to spill and leaks or advice only.

2.3 Accidental Dwelling Fires (ADF)

Quarter Activity 165

The number of primary fires where a dwelling has been affected and the cause of fire has been recorded as ‘Accidental’ or ‘Not known’.

A primary fire is one involving property (excluding derelict property) or any fires involving casualties, rescues, or any fire attended by five or more pumping appliances.

Quarterly activity decreased 18.72% over the same quarter of the previous year.

Accidental Dwelling Fires	Year to date	2024/25 Quarter 1	Previous year to date	2023/24 Quarter 1
	165	165	203	203

	Current mean	3 Year mean	2023/24	2022/21	2021/22
Current mean activity and the monthly mean activity over the previous 3 years.	55	65	59	64	71

2.3.1 ADF – Harm to people: Casualties

Quarter Activity 16

ADF criteria as 2.3. The number of fire related fatalities, slight and serious injuries.

· A slight injury is defined as: a person attending hospital as an outpatient (not precautionary check).

· A serious injury is defined as: at least an overnight stay in hospital as an in-patient.

Quarterly activity increased 45.45% over the same quarter of the previous year.

Casualty Status	Year to Date	2024/25 Quarter 1	Previous year to Date	2023/24 Quarter 1
Fatal	1	1	0	0
Injuries appear Serious	0	0	3	3
Injuries appear Slight	15	15	8	8
Total	16	16	11	11

	Current mean	3 Year mean	2023/24	2022/23	2021/22
Current mean activity and the monthly mean activity over the previous 3 years.	5	4	3	4	4

2.3.2 ADF – Harm to property: Extent of damage (fire severity)

Quarter Percentage 87%

ADF criteria as 2.3. Extent of fire, heat and smoke damage is recorded at the time the STOP message is sent and includes all damage types.

The table below shows a breakdown of fire severity at ADF’s, with a direction indicator comparing the current quarter to the same quarter of the previous year.

An improvement is shown if the combined percentage of fires limited to heat and/or smoke damage only, the item 1^st ignited or to the room of origin, is higher than the comparable quarter of the previous year.

Combined quarterly percentage increased 2.92% over the same quarter of the previous year.

Fire severity	24/25 Q1	24/25 Q2	24/25 Q3	24/25 Q4	Ç/ò	23/24 Q1	23/24 Q2	23/24 Q3	23/24 Q4
Limited to heat and/or smoke	24%				Ç	23%	26%	23%	32%
Limited to item 1st ignited	13%				ò	15%	17%	15%	16%
Limited to room of origin	50%				Ç	46%	42%	52%	45%
Limited to floor of origin	7%				ò	8%	11%	5%	5%
Spread beyond floor of origin	5%				ò	6%	2%	2%	1%
Whole Building	1%				ò	2%	2%	3%	1%
Combined percentage	87%				Ç	84%	85%	90%	93%

2.4 Accidental Building Fires (ABF) - Commercial Premises

Quarter Activity 71

The number of primary fires where a building has been affected, which is other than a dwelling or a private building associated with a dwelling, and the cause of fire has been recorded as Accidental or Not known.

A primary fire is one involving property (excluding derelict property) or any fires involving casualties, rescues, or any fire attended by five or more pumping appliances.

Quarterly activity increased 1.43% over the same quarter of the previous year.

Accidental Building Fires (Commercial Premises)	Year to Date	2024/25 Quarter 1	Previous year to Date	2023/24 Quarter 1
	71	71	70	70

	Current mean	3 Year mean	2023/24	2022/23	2021/22
Current mean activity and the monthly mean activity over the previous 3 years.	24	21	20	21	23

2.4.1 ABF (Commercial Premises) – Harm to property: Extent of damage (fire severity)

Quarter Percentage 78%

ABF criteria as 2.4. Extent of fire, heat and smoke damage is recorded at the time the STOP message is sent and includes all damage types.

The table below shows a breakdown of fire severity at ABF’s, with a direction indicator comparing the current quarter to the same quarter of the previous year.

An improvement is shown if the combined percentage of fires limited to heat and/or smoke damage only, the item 1^st ignited or to the room of origin, is higher than the comparable quarter of the previous year.

Combined quarterly percentage increased 12.1% over the same quarter of the previous year.

Fire severity	24/25 Q1	24/25 Q2	24/25 Q3	24/25 Q4	Ç/ò	23/24 Q1	23/24 Q2	23/24 Q3	23/24 Q4
Limited to heat and/or smoke	15%				ò	16%	13%	20%	14%
Limited to item 1st ignited	19%				Ç	14%	26%	21%	14%
Limited to room of origin	44%				Ç	36%	34%	38%	40%
Limited to floor of origin	13%				ò	16%	9%	8%	18%
Spread beyond floor of origin	1%				ò	6%	0%	4%	2%
Whole Building	8%				ò	13%	18%	9%	12%
Combined percentage	78%				Ç	66%	73%	79%	68%

2.5 Accidental Building Fires (Non-Commercial Premises)

Quarter Activity 21

The number of primary fires where a private garage, private shed, private greenhouse, private summerhouse, or other private non-residential building has been affected, and the cause of fire has been recorded as Accidental or Not known.

A primary fire is one involving property (excluding derelict property) or any fires involving casualties, rescues, or any fire attended by five or more pumping appliances.

Quarterly activity decreased 47.50% over the same quarter of the previous year.

Accidental Building Fires (Non-Commercial Premises)	Year to Date	2024/25 Quarter 1	Previous year to Date	2023/24 Quarter 1
	21	21	40	40

	Current mean	3 Year mean	2023/24	2022/23	2021/22
Current mean activity and the monthly mean activity over the previous 3 years.	7	7	6	7	7

2.5.1 ABF (Non-Commercial Premises: Private Garages and Sheds) – Harm to property: Extent of damage (fire severity)

Quarter Percentage 38%

ABF criteria as 2.5. Extent of fire, heat and smoke damage is recorded at the time the STOP message is sent and includes all damage types.

The table below shows a breakdown of fire severity at ABF’s, with a direction indicator comparing the current quarter to the same quarter of the previous year.

An improvement is shown if the combined percentage of fires is limited to heat and/or smoke damage only, the item 1^st ignited or to the room of origin, is higher than the comparable quarter of the previous year.

Combined quarterly percentage remained static over the same quarter of the previous year.

Fire severity	24/25 Q1	24/25 Q2	24/25 Q3	24/25 Q4	Ç/ò	23/24 Q1	23/24 Q2	23/24 Q3	23/24 Q4
Limited to heat and/or smoke	14%				Ç	5%	0%	0%	0%
Limited to item 1st ignited	10%				ò	23%	0%	0%	0%
Limited to room of origin	14%				Ç	10%	0%	0%	20%
Limited to floor of origin	14%				Ç	5%	11%	31%	10%
Spread beyond floor of origin	0%				ó	0%	0%	0%	0%
Whole Building	48%				ò	58%	89%	69%	70%
Combined percentage	38%				ó	38%	0%	0%	20%

2.6 Deliberate Fires Total: Specific performance measure of deliberate fires

Quarter Activity 498

The number of primary and secondary fires where the cause of fire has been recorded as deliberate.

This is an overall total measure of deliberate dwelling, commercial premises, and other fires, which are further reported within their respective KPI’s.

Quarterly activity decreased 27.19% over the same quarter of the previous year.

Deliberate Fires	Year to Date	2024/25 Quarter 1	Previous year to Date	2023/24 Quarter 1
	498	498	684	684

	Current mean	3 Year mean	2023/24	2022/23	2021/22
Current mean activity and the monthly mean activity over the previous 3 years.	166	168	151	191	162

2.6.1 Deliberate Fires – Dwellings

Quarter Activity 24

The number of primary fires where a dwelling has been affected and the cause of fire has been recorded as deliberate.

A primary fire is one involving property (excluding derelict property) or any fires involving casualties, rescues, or any fire attended by five or more pumping appliances.

Quarterly activity was static against the same quarter of the previous year.

Deliberate Fires - Dwellings	Year to Date	2024/25 Quarter 1	Previous year to Date	2023/24 Quarter 1
	24	24	24	24

	Current mean	3 Year mean	2023/24	2022/23	2021/22
Current mean activity and the monthly mean activity over the previous 3 years.	8	7	7	7	8

2.6.2 Deliberate Fires – Commercial Premises

Quarter Activity 48

The number of primary fires where the property type is a building, which is other than a dwelling or a private building associated with a dwelling, and the cause of fire has been recorded as deliberate.

A primary fire is one involving property (excluding derelict property) or any fires involving casualties, rescues, or any fire attended by five or more pumping appliances.

Quarterly activity increased 14.92% over the same quarter of the previous year.

Deliberate Fires – Commercial	Year to Date	2024/25 Quarter 1	Previous year to Date	2023/24 Quarter 1
	48	48	42	42

	Current mean	3 Year mean	2023/24	2022/23	2021/22
Current mean activity and the monthly mean activity over the previous 3 years.	16	11	12	10	11

What are the reasons for an Exception report

This is a negative exception report due to the number of deliberate commercial premises fires being above the upper control limit during April of quarter one.

Analysis

Whilst the count of deliberate fires within the first quarter was within the tolerance for the months of May and June, April recorded a high of 21 incidents, which is one incident above the upper control limit. The month of April accounted for 43.8% of fires over the three-month period.

Over the quarter one period, 17 (35.4%) of the incidents occurred in prisons, equating to over a third of all deliberate fires at commercial premises. The most common ignition source was smoking materials, such as an electronic vape (e-Cigarette) to intentionally cause a fire.

Actions being taken to improve performance

Although LFRS has no direct legislative power over Prisons as they are Crown Property, LFRS has established a Prison Working Group and is working closely with the Prison’s within Lancashire to support and advise in relation to fire safety and incident reduction.

Fire protection teams continues to drive their performance through the Risk Based Inspection Programme, (RBIP). This work is enhanced through operational staff carrying out Business Fire Safety Checks (BFSC’s) on lower risk businesses. This work supports Lancashire business safety through advice and guidance and referral to Protection teams where appropriate.

2.6.3 Deliberate Fires – Other (Rubbish, grassland, vehicles etc.)

Quarter Activity 426

The number of primary and secondary fires where the property type is other than a building, except where the building is recorded as derelict, and the cause of fire has been recorded as deliberate.

The majority of deliberate fires are outdoor secondary fires and include grassland and refuse fires. Derelict vehicle fires are also included under secondary fires.

Primary fires are when the incident involves casualties or rescues, property loss or 5 or more pumping appliances attend the incident, and can include large scale moorland fires or vehicle fires which are not derelict.

Quarterly activity decreased 31.07% over the same quarter of the previous year.

Deliberate Fires – Other	Year to Date	2024/25 Quarter 1	Previous year to Date	2023/24 Quarter 1
	426	426	618	618

	Current mean	3 Year mean	2023/24	2022/23	2021/22
Current mean activity and the monthly mean activity over the previous 3 years.	142	150	132	175	143

2.7 Home Fire Safety Checks (HFSC)

Quarter Activity 53%

The percentage of completed HFSC’s, excluding refusals, carried out by LFRS personnel in the home, where the risk score has been determined to be high.

An improvement is shown if:

· The total number of HFSC’s completed is greater than the comparable quarter of the previous year and,

· The percentage of high HFSC outcomes is greater than the comparable quarter of the previous year.

Quarterly activity remained static against the same quarter of the previous year.

High risk outcomes decreased 1% against the same quarter of the previous year.

	2024/25		Ç/ò	2023/24
	HFSC completed	% of High HFSC outcomes	Progress	HFSC completed	% of High HFSC outcomes
Q 1	5,807	53%	ó/ò	5,807	54%
Q 2				5,930	52%
Q 3				5,728	54%
Q 4				5,835	54%

Cumulative year to date activity

2.8 Prevention activities delivered

Activity	Description	Targets for delivery	Data for quarter 1 2024/25
ChildSafe	Fire Safety education package to Year 2 (key stage 1)	Offered to all year 2 pupils	1 session delivered to 30 students
RoadSense	Fire and Road Safety education package to Year 6 (key stage 2)	Offered to all year 6 pupils	89 sessions delivered to 3,210 students
SENDSafe	Fire Safety education package for learners with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND)	Offered to all SEND schools	6 sessions delivered to 200 students
Wasted Lives	Pre Driver information session in workshop or assembly format. Aimed at Year 10 or Year 11 in high school (key stage 4)	Increase delivery aligned to district risk in the academic year 24/25	9 sessions delivered to 1,059 students.
Biker Down	3 hour course aimed at Powered 2 Wheel riders covering incident management, first aid and the science of being seen	Deliver a minimum of 12 sessions per year	6 sessions 90 attendees
FIRES	Fire setting intervention delivered to 4-17 year olds. Referrals made by anyone who might work or support the family of a child who is setting fires	Deliver an intervention to all referrals	40 referrals opened prior to Q1 and carried over. 46 referrals received in Q1. 35 referrals closed in Q1. 45 referrals carried to 2024-25, Q2.
Partner Training (including care providers)	LFRS deliver a ‘train the trainer’ package to organisations/agencies within health and social care. There are currently 190 preferred partners and 73 standard partners registered with LFRS. Partnerships are reviewed and RAG rated quarterly	Increase the number of partners rated green on the RAG report and continue to review partnerships and provide training	15 sessions, to 11 different partners, to 161 delegates.
Specific education sessions such as Water Safety & Bright Sparx	Education package delivered either virtually or in person to educate about Water Safety, Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB), deliberate fire setting etc. Covers key stages 2,3 and 4	Increase delivery	39 in school water safety sessions, delivered to 5,468 students. 8 virtual sessions to 9,147pupils
Arson Threat Referral	Bespoke service where a threat of arson has been made. Referrals largely come from the Police.	Meet demand from LanCon	191 completed

2.9 Business Fire Safety Checks

Quarter Activity 924

Business Fire Safety Checks (BFSC) are interventions which look at different aspects of fire safety compliance, including risk assessments, fire alarms, escape routes and fire doors. If the result of a BFSC is unsatisfactory, fire safety advice will be provided to help the business comply with The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005. If critical fire safety issues are identified, then a business safety advisor will conduct a follow-up intervention.

· The pro rata BFSC target is delivered through each quarter.

A +/-10% tolerance is applied to the completed BFSC’s and the year to date (YTD) BFSC’s, against both the quarterly and YTD targets. When both counts are outside of the 10% tolerance they will be deemed in exception. This enables local delivery to flex with the needs of their district plan over the quarters.

	2024/25				Ç/ò	2023/24
	BFSC completed	Quarter Target	BFSC Cumulative	YTD Target	Progress	BFSC completed	Quarter Target
Q 1	924	625	924	625	Ç	826	625
Q 2		625		1,250		893	625
Q 3		625		1,875		862	625
Q 4		625		2,500		791	625

Cumulative year to date activity

Top five completed BFSC’s: satisfactory and unsatisfactory premise types.

*Workplaces undefined.

What are the reasons for an Exception report

This is a positive exception due to the number of completed Business Fire Safety Checks (BFSC) being greater than 10% of the quarterly target, and the cumulative year to date target.

Current Focus

Crews continue to embed built environment knowledge and understanding. The first of two Built Environment virtual training (BEVT) sessions was delivered in 2023 and the second phase of BEVT roll out is due to begin shortly. Protection grey book staff will commence with strengthening operational awareness days in Q2 which will see them quality assure the BFSC delivery and support the transition of crews starting to undertake BFSCs in more sleeping risk premises types.

2.9.1 Fire Safety Activity

Quarter Activity 6%

The number of Fire Safety Enforcement inspections carried out within the period resulting in supporting businesses to improve and become compliant with fire safety regulations or to take formal action of enforcement and prosecution of those that fail to comply. Formal activity is defined as one or more of the following: enforcement notice or an action plan, alterations notice or prohibition notice.

An improvement is shown if the percentage of audits ‘Requiring formal activity’ is greater than the comparable quarter of the previous year. This helps inform that the correct businesses are being identified.

Quarterly activity decreased 1% against the same quarter of the previous year.

	2024/25										2023/24
Quarter	Fire Safety Enforcement Inspections	Formal Activity	% Formal Activity	Informal Activity	% Informal Activity	Satisfactory Audit	% Satisfactory Audit	Business Safety Advice	% Business Safety Advice	Progress	% Formal Activity	% Informal Activity
1	530	31	6%	426	80%	64	12%	9	2%	ò	7%	78%
2											6%	80%
3											5%	82%
4											7%	78%

2.10 Building Regulation Consultations (BRC)

Building Regulations: If a business intends to carry out building work it must do so in accordance with the requirements of current Building Regulations.

There are two building control bodies that can be used, the Local Authority or an Approved Inspector.

These bodies are then responsible for ensuring compliance with building regulations which generally apply when:

· Erecting a new building

· Extending or altering an existing building

· Providing services and/or fittings in a building

· Altering the use of a building

Purpose of the consultation process: If the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (FSO) applies to the premises, or will apply following the work, the building control body must consult with LFRS. LFRS then comments on FSO requirements and may also provide additional advice relevant to the building type which may exceed minimum requirements but, if adopted, would further enhance safety or resilience (e.g. use of sprinklers).

LFRS cannot enforce building regulations but can offer observations to the building control body regarding compliance if it is felt the proposals may not comply. In addition to securing a safe premises, an important outcome of the process is to ensure that the completed building meets the requirements of the FSO once occupied, so that no additional works are necessary.

Building Regulation Consultations	24/25 Q1	24/25 Q2	24/25 Q3	24/25 Q4
Received	208
Completed within timeframe^[1]	207

^[1] LFRS should make comments in writing within 15 working days of receiving a BRC.

Current focus

To comply with the National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC) Competency Framework for Fire Safety Regulators these consultations must be completed by Level 4 qualified Fire Safety Inspectors. It is the same inspectors who are required to complete intervention work in high risk, complex premises identified by the risk-based intervention program. Consequently, the use of finite resources must be fully co-ordinated and balanced to achieve this and ensure consultation timelines are achieved:

· The implementation of centralising building regulations onto CFRMIS and assigning dedicated resource to consistently inputting new applications continues to improve our efficiency at responding to the majority within their statutory timescales.

3.1 Critical Fire Response – 1^st Fire Engine Attendance

Quarter Response 07:41

Critical fire incidents are defined as incidents that are likely to involve a significant threat to life, structures or the environment. Our response standards, in respect of critical fires, are variable and are determined by the risk map (KPI 2.1) and subsequent risk grade of the Super Output Area (SOA) in which the fire occurred.

The response standards include call handling and fire engine response time for the first fire engine attending a critical fire, and are as follows:

· Very high risk area = 6 minutes	· Medium risk area = 10 minutes
· High risk area = 8 minutes	· Low risk area = 12 minutes

We have achieved our standards when the time between the ‘Time of Call’ (TOC) and ‘Time in Attendance’ (TIA) of the first fire engine arriving at the incident, averaged over the quarter, is less than the relevant response standard. Expressed in minutes & seconds.

Critical Fire Response	Quarter 1	Quarter 2	Quarter 3	Quarter 4	Year to Date	Previous Year to Date
Very High (6 min)	[06:02]				06:02	05:51
High (8 min)	07:12				07:12	06:03
Medium (10 min)	07:02				07:02	06:48
Low (12 min)	08:51				08:51	09:02
Overall	07:41				07:41	07:30

[Failures are expressed within square brackets]

What are the reasons for an Exception report

This is a negative exception report due to the critical 1^st fire first appliance average response time to very high risk areas marginally exceeding the standard in quarter one.

Analysis

The standard within a very high risk area is 6 minutes. The average time achieved during quarter 1 exceeded this by 2 seconds.

The monthly average response times to very high risk areas are shown below.

April	May	June	Quarter 1
07:19	05:33	05:26	06:02

This shows that only April exceeded the 6 minute average, with the average time of 07:19 being made up of just three incidents, of which, two recorded a response longer than six minutes.

The first incident was suspected overheating of cables within an electric shower in a domestic property. The nearest pump to this incident was engaged at another incident, and the second pump was On-Call crewed and, at the time, was on the run as a small incident unit (SIU), which led to the first attending pump responding from another station area, hence an extended run time.

The second incident involved a wheelie-bin alight next to a fire exit of a commercial building. The delay was due the roadworks on the main ring road, so the location was reached via busier than normal side roads.

Actions to Improve

Response times are constantly monitored and, where they do not meet the target, the reason why is reported on and then scrutinised at regular performance monitoring meetings. This allows for trends to be identified and improvements implemented as necessary.

3.2 Critical Special Service Response – 1^st Fire Engine Attendance

Quarter Response 08:22

Critical special service incidents are non-fire incidents where there is a risk to life, for example, road traffic collisions, rescues and hazardous materials incidents. For these incidents there is a single response standard which measures call handling time and fire engine response time.

The response standard for the first fire engine attending a critical special service call = 13 minutes.

We have achieved our standards when the time between the ‘Time of Call’ (TOC) and ‘Time in Attendance’ (TIA) of the first fire engine arriving at the incident, averaged over the quarter, is less than the response standard. Expressed in minutes & seconds.

Critical Special Service Response	Quarter 1	Quarter 2	Quarter 3	Quarter 4	Year to Date	Previous Year to Date
(13 min)	08:22				08:22	08:31

[Failures are expressed within square brackets]

3.3 Total Fire Engine Availability

Quarter Availability 86.91%

This indicator measures the total availability of the 1^st fire engine at each of the 39 fire stations. It is measured as the percentage of time the 1^st fire engine is available to respond compared to the total time in the period.

Standard: 90%

Quarterly availability decreased 2.57% over the same quarter of the previous year.

Fire engine availability – WT, FDC, DCP & OC	Year to Date	2024/25 Quarter 1	Previous year to Date	2023/24 Quarter 1
	86.91%	86.91%	89.48%	89.48%

What are the reasons for an Exception report

This is a negative exception report due to the 1^st fire appliance availability percentage, being below the lower control limit during quarter one.

Analysis

Overall availability across all stations for the quarter recorded 86.91%, which is 3.09% below the 90% standard, although only the month of June recorded availability (86.25%) below the lower control limit of 86.80%.

The following table shows the availability by each of the stations designated first pump crewing type during quarter 1.

Crewing	WT	DCP	FDC	OC	Total
Availability	99.28%	98.86%	99.48%	70.97%	86.91%

Whilst all of the Whole time (WT) appliances achieved exceptional availability, the 1^st appliance at our wholly On-Call stations contributed to the availability falling below the 90% standard.

On Call recruitment, development, and retention is a national challenge which has seen a downward trend in availability over several years.

A shortage of staff with the Officer in Charge (OIC) skill is a significant contributing factor to low On-Call availability. On-Call Support Officers (OCSOs) are working with station-based staff and management, together with our Training Centre, to support those in development and identify opportunities for staff to acquire additional skills earlier in their career.

Actions being taken to improve performance

• The On Call Improvement Programme (OCIP) is driving transformation across the Service with several workstreams to improve recruitment, development, and retention.
• Incident Command trainers have reviewed the process for On-Call Incident Command Courses, which has resulted in an increase in staff being trained as OICs.
• The Service is exploring options to enable WT Managers to provide additional OIC availability at On-Call units.
• On-Call Performance Management training for Station Managers and On-Call Unit Managers commenced in Q1, which included the roll-out of sector-leading innovative software for On-Call Availability, Recruitment and Skills (OARS). The software was developed in collaboration with an On-Call academic and a software designer. This will enhance the support for mangers with workforce planning, development, and performance.
• The Service trialled a ‘365 Recruitment’ model in July, which has enabled an additional 8 recruits to be trained outside of LFRS’ two annual On-Call recruitment campaigns. A ‘Local Area Training Hub’ trial enabled the recruits to be trained at a local fire station. The trials will be evaluated in Q2 with potential for wider roll out for future campaigns.

4.1 Progress Against Allocated Budget

Quarter variance -0.05%

The total cumulative value of the savings delivered to date compared to the year’s standard and the total.

As a public service we are committed to providing a value for money service to the community and it is important that once a budget has been agreed and set, our spending remains within this.

The annual budget for 2024/25 was set at £75.1 million. Spend at the end of June 2024 is showing a small underspend particularly on grey book offset by overspend across non pay.

Variance:

-0.05%

4.2 Partnership Collaboration

A written update on partnership collaboration will be provided on a quarterly basis.

Scope and definition:

The Police, Fire & Rescue Service and Ambulance Service are under a formal duty to collaborate under the Policing and Crime Act 2017. The objectives are to improve efficiency, effectiveness and deliver improved outcomes.

To meet the requirements of this duty, the respective blue light services, LFRS, Lancashire Constabulary (LanCon), and North West Ambulance Service (NWAS), have met at both tactical and strategic levels. Through these meetings the collaboration board have agreed and signed a strategic statement of intent. This contains the following aims:

· Improved Outcomes – The collaboration maintains or improves the service we provide to local people and local communities.

· Reduced demand – The collaboration should contribute towards a longer-term strategic objective of decreasing risk in communities and reducing demand on services.

· Better Value for Money – The collaboration produces quantifiable efficiencies either on implementation or in the longer term.

· Reduced inequalities within our communities –The collaboration contributes towards reducing inequalities wherever possible.

The Service have evaluated the benefits and outcomes of several of our Blue Light Collaboration Workstreams; Missing Persons, Leadership Development, Estates and Co-location, and Community First Responder. The workstreams are contributing towards improving outcomes, providing better value for money, reducing demand, and reducing inequalities within communities.

Missing Persons (Missing from home)

The Service have increasing experience and can provide local or specialist advice for consideration by LanCon. Searches have become streamlined allowing a more structured and effective approach to locating a high-risk missing person. The Service’s drone development (aerial and sub-surface), for which LFRS has the National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC) lead role, has further enhanced our capabilities for Missing Person Searches. LFRS have provided significant support to Lancashire Constabulary (LanCon) with our aerial drone assets, supported by an updated Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). Further investment in 2023/24 led to us strengthening sub-surface rescue/ recovery capability of persons, with an underwater Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV). This asset has been deployed locally, regionally, and nationally and delivered improved outcomes in incident resolution. LFRS received around 200 drone requests last year from LanCon, with most requests for Missing Persons searches.

Estates and Co-location

This is a long-term workstream which may deliver significant efficiencies and effectiveness where co-location sites are identified. A set of principles are being developed to identify high level areas of opportunities. Blue Light partners are currently reviewing property asset management strategies to identify potential areas for co-ordinating future development plans over the next 5-10 years.

All Blue light partners are included in the discussions in relation to future opportunities. All current locations for each organisation have been mapped, with the focus now moving to the understanding of longer-term plans for each service, consideration of site sharing opportunities at existing locations, along with a procedure to facilitate site sharing.

In addition to the physical estate and site sharing, Blue light partners have identified other areas for learning, development and sharing of information in support of providing efficient and effective estate management within respective organisations.

Community First Responders

A trial commenced in 2023 involving LFRS staff volunteering as Community First Responders (CFR) to support NWAS. LFRS staff volunteers undertake an initial CFR training programme at LFRS Training Centre. Once qualified, they can shadow existing CFR practitioners to develop their clinical abilities and build confidence in their newly acquired skills.

Following the successful ‘Phase 1’ implementation, five LFRS staff volunteers have been responding to life threatening emergencies in their communities from the workplace, and administering first aid in the initial vital minutes before NWAS colleagues arrive. The Service has now expanded our support to NWAS on this successful life-saving initiative and several LFRS Flexible Duty Officers (FDOs) completed CFR training in early July as part of the ‘Phase 2’ implementation.

Leadership Development

An analysis of leadership development is ongoing between the three organisations with the Services currently developing three leadership development days.

Command Units

The aim of this project was to establish and deliver additional collaborative uses of the command units in LFRS to support effective multi agency working amongst emergency responders. The key objectives were to improve operational effectiveness and in line with LFRS mission of ‘Making Lancashire Safer’.

The Command Support Unit (CSU) project aimed to upgrade the vehicles and adopt technological advancements to support operational incidents. On-Call firefighters crew a CSU, and as part of the agreed capital vehicle replacement project, two new larger Command Units (CUs) are now operational and have already been deployed to several incidents, with excellent feedback received from the firefighters, FDOs, and partner agencies. LFRS continue to demonstrate the unit and software to other fire and rescue services with a recent visit from Northern Ireland FRS taking place in May. The Service are also carrying out multi-agency familiarisations including in June for the Blackburn-with-Darwen Emergency Planning Team.

The initial benefits realised have been improved information sharing and situational awareness aligned to improving and embedding the Joint Emergency Services Interoperability Principles (JESIP).

4.3 Overall User Satisfaction

Percentage satisfied 98.74%

The percentage of people who were satisfied with the service received from the total number of people surveyed.

People surveyed include those who have experienced an accidental dwelling fire, a commercial fire, or a special service incident that we attended.

The standard is achieved if the percentage of satisfied responses is greater than the 97.50% standard.

75 people were surveyed; 74 responded that they were very or fairly satisfied.

Question	Running Total	Number Satisfied	% Satisfied	% Standard	% Variance
Taking everything in to account, are you satisfied, dissatisfied, or neither with the service you received from Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service?	3,643	3,597	98.74%	97.50%	1.27%