The fire minister, Brandon Lewis, used the Chief Fire Officers’ Association Conference as a platform to call for more “constructive and collaborative” working relationships between fire authorities and businesses.
Specifically, the minister has stated that businesses want to see enforcement of the Fire Safety Order enhanced.
The theory is that, if there’s a system in place whereby companies are able to approach fire authorities for advice on compliance — and can rely on enforcement action being both consistent and proportionate — this would then realize significant benefits.
The Fire Industry Association (FIA) supports the minister’s call to action: “The advent of a Business Engagement Forum, possibly based on the Scottish model, would be a good thing for all stakeholders in the fire world,” explained the FIA’s CEO Graham Ellicott.
The Future Control Room Services Scheme report updates on progress made to date in terms of improving control centers — and the news is extremely positive.
GB pound 82 million worth of funding has been put behind the enhancements (with GB pound 1.8 million going to each fire and rescue authority in England), and projects are said to be making “clear and steady progress.”
Improved efficiencies and resilience for control rooms will be achieved by some operational mergers, bringing in technical upgrades and forming new alliances between fire authorities. The projected savings — now totalling GB pound 126.5 million — have grown by GB pound 500,000 since April.
Work is set to be completed in March 2015, with the next progress report scheduled to see the light of day 12 months earlier.
New research conducted by insurance and risk management solutions specialist Zurich Municipal in collaboration with the National Union of Students suggests that four out of five students carry out activities in their accommodation that pose a fire risk.
Last year, over 500 fires were recorded at student accommodation across Britain, with 58 percent of incidents due to the misuse of cooking appliances. Less than 10 percent of fires were found to be the result of defective appliances.
A third of the students questioned didn’t know the fire safety procedures within their term-time homes. Two-thirds have cooked after midnight, half of them while under the influence of alcohol.
Clearly, reading up on fire safety procedures ought to be top of the to-do list for Freshers’ Week.
The London Fire Brigade has announced that businesses and councils alike will be facing severe penalties if they persistently dial 999 to cope with non-emergency lift call-outs.
Under new rules, the Brigade is set to claw back GB pound 290 +VAT from building and lift owners for attending such call-out scenarios.
The charge will be applied from the third time fire-fighter crews are called to the same address in any given 12-month period.
Last year, fire crews in London attended just shy of 6,500 lift rescues. That works out at something like 17 per day.
Speaking at the Conservative Party Conference last Wednesday, Welsh Secretary David Jones stated that unnecessary red tape — including the requirement for sprinkler systems to be installed across all new homes in Wales — has led to a 32 percent fall in new house registrations made between May and July 2013.
Setting that figure in perspective, registrations in England increased by 34 percent during the same timeframe.
Regulations that would force builders to install sprinklers in all new buildings were intended to take effect in 2013, but then a phased introduction was announced.
New high risk properties — care homes and university halls of residence, for example — must have sprinklers from April 2014.
The regulations will not apply to other houses until January 2016.
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Brian,
Thanks for the round-up. very useful as ever.
on the final story I find it hard to believe that new house registration numbers were all impacted by a fire sprinkler regulation. Sounds like a politician using a statistic to back up an argument when the truth is surely more complicated.
Spot on, really, Phil. But I do think it’s possible that this was a contributing factor, even though the regulations haven’t taken effect yet.
same here, could not agree more… I think you are right Rob as -” regulation haven’t taken effect yet.”
could not agree more good round-up… but it true reality and yes, I do agree with your point/idea – numbers it good but life not always in numbers…