Agenda item

The Deputy Chief Fire Officer presented the report.  During spring 2018, three Fire and Rescue Services were chosen by the Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS) as Pilot Fire Services to help shape the new Fire Service inspection programme (West Yorkshire, Suffolk and Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service).

The lead HMICFRS Inspector for the Northern Region, Her Majesty’s Inspector Matt Parr, had a vast experience in inspecting Police Forces and the Royal Navy. The HMICFRS Service Liaison Lead (SLL) was appointed to lead the inspection team in Lancashire was David Dryburgh, an experienced Fire Officer from North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service. His inspection team was made up of between ten and twelve inspectors who had a range of skills and expertise from across the Fire, Police and Civil Service sector.

The inspection programme would span approximately a two year period and be phased into three tranches. Each tranche of inspections would contain 15 Fire and Rescue Services. Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service were placed in the first tranche and were consequently inspected in July 2018.

In order for the HMICFRS to fully understand LFRS, our planning strategy and our journey to get here, the inspection consisted of a number pre-inspection visit’s by our SLL. He visited a number of stations and key strategic meetings to help gain an insight and understanding into our planning, performance and delivery of our Integrated Risk Management Plan (IRMP). 

We were also required to undertake a self-assessment and provide a number of data set returns based on questions around efficiency, effectiveness and people. The pre-inspection work was designed to identify key lines of enquiry that the HMICFRS would investigate further during our inspection week.

The Executive Board led by our Chief Fire Officer and accompanied by the Combined Fire Authority (CFA) Chair were required to present a strategic briefing to HMI Matt Parr and his Inspection team two weeks prior to the inspection week to outline our strategic vision and future planning. This provided the HMICFRS with an opportunity to question the Executive Board on our self-assessment submission and identify further key lines of enquiry to be investigated during our inspection week.

The first tranche of inspections had now been completed and the Fire and Rescue Services involved had received their initial preliminary reports. We had reviewed our report for accuracy and any observations identified had been fed back to the HMICFRS inspection team. The final reports were due to be published publicly in early December 2018.  It was noted that the publication initially expected on 6 December 2018 had now been delayed to the following week given the publication of the draft government financial settlement was scheduled for 5 December 2018.

The second tranche of inspections would commence in November 2018 and continue into early New Year where they would then be moderated and their results published prior to tranche three inspections commencing in the spring of 2019.

Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service had built a professional relationship with our SLL throughout the inspection process and was continuing to engage with him on a regular basis post-inspection, to help maintain that relationship and support ongoing service improvements.

An internal and external communications strategy to support the release of the report in December was being designed and this would continue to help embed the HMICFRS inspection programme into business as usual working for the Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service and further enhance our strong community engagement.

A further briefing of the report was scheduled for the December CFA meeting.

RESOLVED: - That the report be noted and endorsed.