Firefighters in Cumbria have been praised by an independent government watchdog.
Cumbria Fire & Rescue Service is ‘improving well’ and its use of resources is ‘consistently above minimum requirements’, according to the latest report from the Audit Commission.
Last year, the service was judged to be 'improving adequately' in its overall direction of travel. The latest judgment means Cumbria has improved over the last 12-months, receiving an overall score of four out of four.
The annual report, which lists the scores for each Fire and Rescue Service, singles out Cumbria for its innovative use of mobile libraries to deliver fire safety advice in remote rural areas, and its redirection of resources to enable more prevention work.
Chief Fire Officer Dominic Harrison, said: "This result is an endorsement of all the hard work done throughout the service to put prevention on an equal footing with cure.
"Cumbria Fire & Rescue Service has been going through a major period of change to help meet the risks and challenges that exist today.
"Over the last twelve months, we have changed the way we crew and equip some of our stations and invested more money in helping people to reduce their risk of fire through the fitting of more free smoke detectors.
"None of this would be possible without the service’s dedicated and professional staff. They are the ones who have embraced change and are delivering the improvements on the ground.
"There is still a lot of work to do and between now and the next inspection, we will be re-doubling our efforts to help keep more people safe."
Councillor Gary Strong, cabinet member responsible for Community Development and Safety, said: "The service has been undergoing a period of modernisation and this report is a tribute to Cumbrian firefighters’ hard work and commitment."
ENDS
Media enquiries to Mark Graham, Media Officer on 01228-606337
Notes
The Audit Commission assessment compared the county’s direction of travel against other Fire and Rescue Services on a scale of: improving strongly; improving well; improving adequately; and not improving adequately / not improving'. Cumbria Fire & Rescue Service received a score of ‘improving well’ in this component.
Fire and Rescue Services' use of resources were judged by the national watchdog as: well above minimum requirements; consistently above minimum requirements; only at minimum requirements; or below minimum requirements. Cumbria Fire & Rescue Service received a score of ‘consistently above minimum requirements’ in this component.
The image (jpeg) shows Cumbria's Chief Fire Officer Domininc Harrison.
The Audit Commission Fire and Rescue Service performance assessment 2007 (pdf)