Agenda item

The Chair welcomed Ged Basson, Senior Operations Manager, North West Fire Control (NWFC), and Kellie Matthews, Operations Manager, North West Fire Control to the meeting. Ged Basson, NWFC, provided the Committee with a report detailing the performance of NWFC during quarter 4 (January – March 2022).

Activity – Admin Calls 

Within quarter 4, a total of 6,772 admin calls were received for Lancashire Fire and Rescue (LFRS), compared to 6,131 in quarter 3. The total number of calls was 25,222 for the full year, compared to 23,799 in the previous year which equated to a rise of 5.9%. In total, 117,377 admin calls were received by NWFC for 2021/22, of which, LFRS represented 21.4% of those calls.

Admin calls included crews and officers contacting NWFC for either guidance, or to offer advice such as notification of missing equipment, defective resources, liaising with control regarding exercises or resources availability. 

Activity – Emergency Calls

A total of 9,179 emergency calls were received in quarter 4 for LFRS, compared to 9,234 in quarter 3. In total, NWFC received 39,258 emergency calls for LFRS in 2021/22, compared to 32,413 calls the previous year which equated to a rise of 21.1%. In total, NWFC received 162,590 emergency calls last year, of which, LFRS represented 20% of these calls. It was noted that the increase in emergency call volume could be attributed to the lockdown period in 2020/21, as when the country came out of lockdown, by April 2021, more businesses began to fully open and operate. Emergency calls included 999 calls from members of the public and emergency calls from Lancashire Constabulary and North West Ambulance Service.

Call Handling Times – Lancashire

It was noted that 42% of calls were not mobilised in quarter 4, following call challenging and this figure was also similar for LFRS. In April, NWFC implemented a new call challenge process for automated fire alarms on behalf of LFRS, which would ensure that resources attend the fire alarms presenting the most risk. This would make sure that resources were available for other emergencies. 

For NWFC, mobilising performance times for fires in 2021/22, was maintained at 78 seconds. LFRS mobilising times for fires in quarter 4 was under 80 seconds for each month and under the 90 second target. NWFC had continued to mobilise resources to fires under the 90 second target for the full year, showing sustained improvement.

Call Handling Mobilisation Time – Partner FRS’

The call handling times for fires over the previous 24-month period continued to be relatively favourable compared to other fire and rescue services. A drive at NWFC to highlight how a quick response could reduce fire damage, took place over the previous 12 months which included some basic fire behaviour training, and a requirement for operators to record and rationalise any delays in mobilising.

Call Handling Mobilisation Time – Special Service Calls: Lancashire

Mobilising performance times for all NWFC in 2021/22 for special service calls had improved to 119 seconds which compared favourably to 126 seconds for the previous year. LFRS mobilising times for special service calls in quarter 4 were all under 119 seconds. It was explained that NWFC continued to work with LFRS to look at how further improvements could be made. It was noted that several incidents were exempted from the data which included those incidents where there was not an automatic response from NWFC, but when Lancashire FRS had asked that further clarification was sought from a specialist officer, e.g., NILO, prior to mobilisation due to the type of incident, such as suspect packages, and missing persons. Other incidents excluded were, when crews had proceeded to fix a defective smoke alarm several hours after being notified or where incidents had to be queued due to a depletion of FRS resources in a location.

Incidents of Note

During quarter 4, NWFC experienced the prolonged storms of Dudley, Eunice and Franklin which resulted in several days of increased call volume in Lancashire and other partnered fire and rescue services. 

In February, NWFC received a call for a severe house fire in Penwortham involving people inside the property. Based on the information extracted from the caller by the operator, an additional two pumps were mobilised by the operator and utilised at the incident. NWFC dynamically risk assessed this incident, and many others, to ensure there were adequate resources. Members were provided with brief details of the incident. 

999Eye

Ged Basson explained to Members that 999Eye was a commercial product that NWFC used to gain additional situational awareness from callers and allowed operators to request access to a smart phone’s camera which then appeared in the operators mobilising desk. 999Eye allowed operators to view live footage, and also enabled them to pinpoint the caller and instant message them. It went live in October 2021, when Greater Manchester Fire & Rescue Service purchased the product but, since March 2022, NWFC had been using it for all its partners. NWFC mobilised resources prior to mobilising and would then utilise 999EYE. The operators would then consider sending additional resources if the footage indicated that more than the default pre-determined attendance was required. All footage was stored by the 999Eye application for 30 days. Individual incidents would be downloaded and stored indefinitely. Members were provided with a visual overview of where 999Eye had been utilised in the North West in March 2022.

In response to a query from County Councillor Nikki Hennessy in relation to an unconfirmed report of the possible exit of another Fire and Rescue Service from their contract with NWFC, Ged Basson explained that Fire and Rescue Services would periodically consider and review their options. Furthermore, NWFC would have exit strategies and risk assessments in place for such an eventuality, although, Ged Basson confirmed that no official decision to exit from NWFC had been received. 

RESOLVED :- That the Performance Committee noted the Quarter 4 NWFC Performance report.