Councillors from Norfolk County Council’s Communities Committee voted unanimously today (Wednesday 17 January) to recommend to the Police & Crime Commissioner (PCC) that it does not proceed to a full business case and that Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service (NFRS) continues to be governed by Norfolk County Council (NCC).

The PCC for Norfolk engaged consultants Grant Thornton to carry out an independent review of potential changes in governance to NFRS.

Margaret Dewsbury, Chair of Norfolk County Council Communities Committee said: “We had lengthy discussions at Communities Committee which revealed that councillors from all parties were of the shared view that there should be no change to NFRS governance. It has always been stated that there must be a compelling case to make changes to the way the fire service is managed and we do not feel this report provides enough justification to progress to a full business case.

“NFRS is intimately integrated within many departments across...

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Norfolk residents looking to add another string to their professional bow are invited to apply to become on-call firefighters across the county. People looking for an additional career, or a part-time career to fit around other commitments, can help to solve the current shortage of on-call firefighters and help their community. 

Norfolk Fire & Rescue Service (NFRS) is recruiting across the county, with the on-call positions sure to attract people from all walks of life.

There is currently a recruitment drive in Dereham, which is hosting two open days later this month to fill on-call (also known as retained) vacancies. 

With 39 of Norfolk’s 42 fire stations relying on on-call firefighters, there is an ongoing campaign to fill  roles in towns and villages around the county. It is really important as it means firefighters are available nearer to any incidents and the service can respond quickly.

NFRS's on-call firefighters often maintain other careers too, with...

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Norfolk Fire & Rescue Governance

In response to the publication of an independent report exploring the future options for police and fire and rescue governance in Norfolk, published today (Friday 12 January), Cliff Jordan, Leader of Norfolk County Council said:

“The Police & Crime Commissioner (PCC) for Norfolk engaged consultants Grant Thornton to carry out an independent review of potential changes in governance to Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service (NFRS).

“Norfolk County Council (NCC) has reviewed the report in full and notes that the conclusions are finely balanced and there is no compelling case made for any change. Therefore we do not feel it’s necessary to proceed to a full business case as this will not only incur significant costs for tax payers but also take up considerable time. We also believe that such a process would detract fire officers from their primary role of keeping Norfolk safe and have a negative impact on the upcoming NFRS inspection.

“At Communities Committee on Wednesday councillors...

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01 December 2017

Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service (NFRS), the Borough of King’s Lynn & West Norfolk, the Environment Agency and Norfolk Police have issued an update on the situation at Bawsey, King’s Lynn:

• NFRS has been working hard during daylight hours and into early evenings and the fire has now been successfully extinguished

• As with all fires, now that the site is in a good condition with minimal risk to local residents and their properties, it has been handed back to the site operator

• NFRS will continue to carry out site visits over the weekend

• Due to the significant reduction in smoke emissions, air quality visits are no longer required
• Now that the fire is extinguished it poses no risk to the health of local residents
• Throughout the incident no local residents contacted their GP with health concerns due to smoke exposure
• Residents are advised that if they can no longer smell or see any smoke they can open windows and doors to ventilate their house
• When the ash is completely...
  
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Norfolk residents are being reminded to stay safe in their homes this winter by the fire prevention team at Norfolk Fire and Rescue service (NFRS). 

Traditionally, winter sees an increase in calls made to the fire service to attend incidents in homes as people light open fires, use candles on dark evenings and switch on electric blankets. As Norfolk residents are starting to put up Christmas trees inside and outside their homes which potentially pose extra fire risks.

Garry Collins, Head of Fire Prevention and Protection, said: “Members of the public can take some simple steps to reduce the risk of fire occurring in their home this winter. At this time of year residents may be starting to put up Christmas trees including festive lights.

“Please ensure that any tree lights are turned off and unplugged at bedtime. If you have lights up outside the home, ensure they have the correct plugs and wiring for outdoor use.

“Historically, December and January account for the highest...

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Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service (NFRS), the Borough of King’s Lynn & West Norfolk, the Environment Agency and Norfolk Police have issued an update on the situation at Bawsey, King’s Lynn:

• The size of the pile has been revised and it’s now estimated to contain 1,000 tonnes of household waste
• NFRS is taking proactive steps to extinguish the fire. A construction grabber is being used to collect and submerge parts of the pile in water before moving it out of the fire’s reach. Working continuously during daylight hours and into early evening, it’s estimated that it will take three days to complete this task
• NFRS will continue to provide 24 hour presence until further notice
• Due to higher winds today smoke is dispersing more quickly
• Environmental Health staff from the borough council continue to undertake regular visits to assess any potential impact of the plume on the local community
• To date no signs of pollution have been observed in the local rivers and ground water. The...
  
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Following a site meeting on Tuesday (28 November 2017) at a recycling site in Bawsey, King’s Lynn, representatives from the Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service, the Borough Council of King’s Lynn & West Norfolk, the Environment Agency and the Police have issued an update on the situation:

Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service (NFRS) have been on scene since 19:15 on Monday 27 November dealing with the fire and the other agencies involved will continue to monitor the situation and issue advice to the public, businesses and organisations affected as necessary.

 
NFRS will oversee a controlled burn. Due to the quantities of material involved it is difficult to put a definitive time frame on how long this will take, but it's estimated that it could burn for up to a week. This will be reviewed as the incident continues. Firefighters will remain on site 24 hours per day during the controlled burn.

Environmental Health staff from the borough council will be undertaking regular visits to assess any potential impact of the plume...

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The latest retained fire fighters to be recruited by Norfolk Fire & Rescue Service have climbed the first rung on their career ladders by completing their initial two week training programme. 

There are currently 56 retained fire fighter vacancies at Norfolk fire stations. With 39 of Norfolk’s 42 fire stations relying on retained firefighters, filling the roles is really important as it means fire fighters are available closer to any incidents and the service can respond quickly. 

The appointment of 15 new fire fighters this month will fill some of the vacancies at fire stations across the county which are reliant on retained (on-call) staff.

Norfolk's Chief Fire Officer David Ashworth said: "This is really good news for the stations involved and the communities they serve. We have identified retained recruitment as a priority for the service and have invested a great deal of time and effort into improving our recruitment process. It is pleasing to see this delivering positive...

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Land Rover enthusiasts are invited to join Norfolk fire fighters for a country drive this Autumn to raise funds for charity. Participants can sign up now for October’s Land Rover event which will follow a route from Sandringham Estate to Holkham Hall. 

Funds raised will go to the Fire Fighters Charity which offers a range of services including rehabilitation, health care, advice and support to current and former fire service staff, volunteers and their families. 

Those taking part donate £10 per vehicle on the day and are given a map and directions of the rural route. Stop off points include exclusive access to Massingham Airfield en route.

Grant Cotterell, Clive Wells and Bob Ayers at King’s Lynn Fire station are all Land Rover enthusiasts and have taken part in similar charity events so they decided to arrange their own to support the Fire fighters charity.

Grant said: “Clive has owned Land Rovers for years but Bob and I are relative newcomers.  We all enjoy driving the vehicles but I enjoy taking mine...

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As part of a Road Casualty Reduction initiative Norfolk’s Road Safety team are getting together next week with the Norfolk Fire and Rescue team and East Anglian Driveability at a series of events to offer help and support to older motorists so they can carry on driving safer for longer.

One in every six people injured in collisions on Norfolk’s roads is injured in a collision involving an older driver. Older drivers are much more likely than younger drivers to suffer serious or life threatening injuries in road collisions, and with the number of drivers aged over 70 expected to increase significantly over the next few years it’s even more important that the Road Casualty Reduction partnership target their efforts on this group of motorists.

Margaret Dewsbury Chair of the Communities Committee said: “Norfolk County Council are absolutely committed to supporting older drivers and can offer a tutored course specifically for them. The road safety team will be on...

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