Agenda and draft minutes

Apologies were received from County Councillors N Alderson, M Ritson, J Tetlow and Councillor S Sidat.

Members are asked to consider any pecuniary and non-pecuniary interests they may have to disclose to the meeting in relation to matters under consideration on the agenda.

None received.

Resolved: That the Minutes of the last meeting held on 26 November 2025 be confirmed as a correct record and signed by the Chair.

The Director of Corporate Services (DoCS) advised members that this report set out the current budget position in respect of the 2025/26 revenue and capital budgets.

Revenue Budget

Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service’s 2025/26 revenue budget had been set at £77.511 million. The budget profiled to the end of January 2026 was £61.604 million and expenditure for the same period was £61.403 million which was essentially breaking even.

The budget included £0.5 million of savings to be delivered through effective deployment of resources and effective management of overtime, management information showed that overtime had been avoided and therefore the service was forecasting that these savings would be met.

Overall, a small underspend was forecast of £0.184 million, which was just 0.2% of the services net budget. The year to date and forecast positions within all departmental budgets were set out in Appendix 1 of the report, with the major variances of note shown separately in table 1.

Table 1 – Major variances of note

Future Pressures

Although not reflected in the 2026/27 budget set in February, the escalating conflict in the Middle East presented a growing financial risk. Geopolitical instability had already contributed to higher than assumed inflation, particularly in energy markets, with utility costs tracking above 6% compared to the 2% inflation assumption underpinning the budget. This sustained volatility could increase pressures on fuel, utilities, supply chain dependent non?pay budgets, and capital project costs throughout the year. Given the continued uncertainty in global markets, these factors had the potential to create additional in year pressures and would require close monitoring and potential adjustment within future financial planning cycles.

The 2026/27 budget included a 4% increase for both green and grey book pay awards. National negotiations for the 2026 pay awards were underway. For Green Book staff (effective April 2026), the recognised National Joint Council (NJC) unions had submitted a formal pay claim seeking a minimum increase of £3,000 or 10%, alongside a £15 minimum hourly rate and improvements to  ...  view the full minutes text for item 34-25/26

The Director of Corporate Services (DoCS) presented the report to members.

The report outlined the Social Value outcomes delivered by Schofield and Sons Limited as part of the Blackpool Fire Station (Forest Gate) project. The Blackpool Fire Station project involved a full redevelopment and modernisation of the station to ensure the facilities met current and future operational requirements. The scheme included significant refurbishment of the existing building, upgrades to operational spaces, improvements to welfare and training areas, and general estate enhancements to create a safer, more efficient and fit for purpose working environment for firefighters and support staff. The capital works were designed to extend the life of the asset, improve functionality, and ensure the station could continue to support effective emergency response within the Blackpool area.

Social Value Background

As part of the Authority’s procurement processes, major contracts included Social Value commitments to ensure that service investment delivered wider benefits for the communities LFRS served. This approach reflected the requirements of the Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012, which placed a duty on public bodies to consider how the goods, services or works they buy could also improve the social, economic and environmental wellbeing of the area.

In practice, this meant that when the service awarded contracts, it did not focus solely on cost or technical quality. LFRS also considered how the supplier could contribute to wider outcomes; for example by supporting local jobs and skills, offering work experience or training opportunities, using local supply chains, or delivering community projects that added value beyond the core construction works.

These Social Value requirements were therefore built into the services procurement activity from the outset, forming part of the evaluation, the contract, and the monitoring arrangements. The Social Value Report had been completed to demonstrate how these commitments had been delivered in line with the Authority’s expectations.

Overview of the Project and Delivery

The Blackpool Forest Gate Fire Station project generated a wide range of Social Value activities. These included:

• Extensive engagement with young people, including work experience placements, mock interviews, careers talks and not in education, employment or training (NEET) support programmes delivered in partnership with The King’s Trust and local colleges. Activities helped participants develop skills, confidence and insight into career pathways.

• Support for education and skills, including long?term T?Level and Architecture student placements, contributions to “Women in Construction” events, and collaboration with Preston and Fylde Colleges.

• Community enhancement projects, such as material donations and practical help for local school and community projects, refurbishment works (including courtyard improvements and restoration of a heritage station plaque), and seasonal donations to support local outreach.

• Strong local supply?chain spend, significantly surpassing targets through the award of additional work packages to regional businesses, supporting local employment and the local economy.

• Commitment to Fair Payment, Living Wage, and wider responsible contractor practices implemented throughout the supply chain.

The contractor exceeded the overall Social Value target of £255,950.57 by £158,951.36, delivering a total of £414,901.93 in recorded social and economic benefit. This  ...  view the full minutes text for item 35-25/26

The Director of People and Development (DoPD) and HR Manager – Pay, Pensions and Performance presented the report to members which provided oversight and the latest information on pension issues in respect of uniformed officers of the Fire Service.

Internal Disputes Resolution Procedure (IDRP) – Stage 2

Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service (LFRS) had several cases that had previously progressed through both stages of the IDRP process. These related to the payment of pensionable allowances within LFRS. Some members remained dissatisfied, particularly regarding the limitation of backdated allowances to six years or the classification of allowances as non-pensionable when applied to temporary roles. The Pensions Ombudsman had contacted the Service regarding these cases. While LFRS had provided the relevant information, no formal outcomes had been received to date.

A further IDRP application had recently been submitted for consideration by the Committee. This was related to the Age Discrimination Remedy (McCloud/Sargeant).

Firefighter’s Pension Scheme Member Contribution Structure Consultation

During 2024/25 the government conducted a consultation on proposed amendments to the Firefighters’ Pension Scheme (England) Regulations 2014. The objectives of the consultation were to:

• achieve the target yield of 13.2% of pensionable pay over 1 October 2025 to 31 March 2027, and future valuation periods.
• update the member contribution structure to encourage scheme participation and reduce opt-outs.
• ensure the member contribution structure was administratively sustainable.
• ensure due regard to the Public Sector Equality Duty.

On 8 December 2025, the outcome was published confirming that, with effect from 1 April 2026, the contribution structure would be amended as follows:

• An additional band would be introduced, increasing the bands from four to five.
• Contributions would be based on Actual Pay rather than Wholetime Equivalent (WTE) pay. This would be a change for part-time and on-call firefighters, whose banding would now be based on their actual pay instead of the WTE for their role.
• From April 2027 the bandings would be increased each April in line by consumer price index (CPI) to allow for futureproofing.

This change affected all employees who were members of the Firefighters’ Pension Scheme 2015, resulting in either an increase or decrease in employee contributions. This change had been communicated to employees.

FRA’s were expected to have an appropriate policy in place to determine employee contribution bandings.

Information Consultation on the Firefighters’ Compensation Scheme for injury and death

The Local Government Association (LGA) launched an informal consultation on 6 March 2026 relating to the Firefighters’ Compensation Scheme (FCS). The FCS provided compensation for injury and death, in the form of an injury pension or gratuity for firefighters who were permanently disabled or died as a result of an injury received in the exercise of their duties. The consultation formed part of an initial review commissioned by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) to ensure the scheme remained fair, effective and reflective of the modern firefighting role. The information consultation period ended on 14 April 2026.

Age Discrimination Remedy (McCloud/Sargeant)

In 2015, the government introduced new laws which resulted  ...  view the full minutes text for item 36-25/26

The next scheduled meeting of the Committee has been agreed for 10:00 hours on Monday 29 June 2026 in the Main Conference Room, at Lancashire Fire & Rescue Service Headquarters, Fulwood.

Further meetings are:          scheduled for 30 September 2026

                                                proposed for 25 November 2026

The next meeting of the Committee would be held on Monday 29 June 2026 at 1000 hours in the Main Conference Room at Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service Headquarters, Fulwood.

Further meeting dates were noted for 30 September 2026 and 25 November 2026.

The Committee is asked to resolve whether, under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, they consider that the public should be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the following items of business on the grounds that there would be a likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in the appropriate paragraph of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972, indicated under the heading to the item.

Resolved: That the press and members of the public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the following items of business on the grounds that there would be a likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in the appropriate paragraph of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972, indicated under the heading to the item.

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Members considered a report regarding an IDRP Stage 2 application under the Internal Disputes Resolution Procedure. The report outlined the facts of the case.

Resolved: That members approved a response to the applicant in line with the narrative included within the report, noting that the Committee did not have jurisdiction to make decisions that were incompatible with prevailing legislation.

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Members considered a report that provided an update on contracts valued above £175,000.

Resolved: That the Committee noted and endorsed the report.

Councillor D Smith noted that it was the Clerk and Monitoring Officer’s final committee meeting, members expressed their thanks and well wishes to the Clerk for his ten years’ service.