An Inclusive Service: the Twenty-First Century Fire and Rescue

An inclusive service The twenty-first century fire and rescue service Report Contents Introduction 4 The future pattern of recruitment 7 Retained duty system reform 10 National Fire and Rescue People Strategy 11 Innovation in diversity – leading the way through positive action 13 Viewpoint – Equality and Human Rights Commission 15 Case study – West Midlands Fire and Rescue Service 17 Case study – Positive action, Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service 17 Viewpoint – Fire Brigades Union 20 ‘Let’s not reinvent the wheel’ – what can we learn from policing? 22 Viewpoint – Diane Dunlevey, Asian Fire Service Association (AFSA) Chair and Yasmin Bukhari, AFSA General Secretary 26 Viewpoint – Denise Keating, Chief Executive, Employers Network for Equality & Inclusion (enei) 28 Viewpoint – Stonewall 30 Viewpoint – brap 32 Viewpoint – Nicky Thurston, National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC), Diversity Co-lead 34 London’s inclusion strategy 36 The Inclusive Fire Service Group 37 Viewpoint – quiltbag 39 Viewpoint – Kathryn Billing, Flexi Duty Officer, Cornwall Fire, Rescue and Community Safety Service 41 Viewpoint – Dany Cotton, London Fire Commissioner and Chair of Women in the Fire Service 43 Local Government Association’s equality and diversity improvement work 45 Conclusion and questions 47 Introduction As the lead members of the Local provide is changing in significant ways. Government Association’s Fire Services No business would expect to thrive by doing Management Committee (FSMC), we are this and nor can we. The old clichés that proud to be a part of the fire and rescue ‘women can’t carry people out of burning sector. Our service is respected by the public buildings’ or certain ethnic groups ‘don’t want and welcomed into their homes. We have an to be firefighters’ are no longer acceptable enviable record in fire prevention – one that and must be challenged. many public services could learn from – and our pride in our service is widely shared The financial barrier to recruitment is lifting – by our fellow politicians on fire and rescue not fully, and, as we show in this document, authorities across the country and among all not to the extent sometimes envisaged in our staff. Whitehall – but it is lifting. Most fire and rescue services expect to recruit new firefighters There is little doubt, therefore, that for all of us in the next five years. As our case studies in the fire and rescue sector, the Fire Minister’s show, fire and rescue services are already speech to the Asian Fire Service Association working to meet the challenge of recruiting a last November made difficult reading. The representative workforce, but even innovative Minister did not pull his punches, calling approaches to recruitment can only achieve the lack of diversity revealed by the latest so much. A change of culture and perception operational statistics ‘woeful... shockingly and is required if our efforts are to meet a embarrassingly bad’.1 Of course, we can point receptive audience of potential recruits. to the financial pressures that have hampered Action on diversity should not be confined to the recruitment of a more diverse workforce, recruitment at entry level. We need to open but ethnic minorities make up just 3.8 per ourselves to the wealth of external talent cent of firefighters while only 5 per cent are available to fill senior posts and to making the women.2 The picture in other parts of the most of the talent we already have by ensuring service is better, but it is noticeable that there diversity in promotion and development. We has been little change during the past five need to be and to be seen as an inclusive years as recruitment has dropped off. workplace. The Minister is right to say that this is We have an opportunity to change both unacceptable. the demographics of the workforce and the perception of our work. It is an opportunity It is also detrimental to our service. we have to take. The public respect us, but too many of them do not see us as potential employers. We are The Local Government Association (LGA) denying ourselves access to an enormous is determined to work with the National Fire pool of talent, at a time when the service we Chiefs Council (NFCC), the Home Office and our other partners to do so. 1 https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/brandon-lewiss- speech-to-the-asian-fire-service-association The Inclusive Fire Service Group has been 2 https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/ working to this end for nearly two years attachment_data/file/563118/fire-rescue-operational- already and fire and rescue authorities statistics-201516-hosb1216.pdf around the country have been pursuing 4 An inclusive service: the twenty-first century fire and rescue service the inclusivity agenda – a few examples of • We need to change the culture of the the many initiatives involved are included service. This is not about setting targets, here. We need to significantly increase the we need to create an inclusive culture – one rate of change however and together with which values individuals for the abilities the NFCC, Asian Fire Service Association they bring, not tick-box tokenism. (ASFA), Women in the Fire Service, quiltbag, • We need to alter the perception of Stonewall and trade unions, we signed the our service so the public can see recent Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) our profession in its modern form. setting out principles around our approach Firefighting is now a relatively small part to diversity and a list of actions which we are of what we do, but it has a completely now pursuing. The effect of these actions disproportionate impact on how we are will be monitored and the MoU reviewed to perceived. We need to radically challenge ensure we are delivering effectively. this – possibly through a national campaign This document is aimed at everyone with – if we are to attract the right workforce to an interest in our sector but in particular at deliver what we actually do. members of fire and rescue authorities. It has • We need to learn from other sectors, but three aims: we also need to learn from each other. We need to share our ideas, our successes • to provide an opportunity for those and our failures so we can all learn from representing female, ethnic minority and them. We must not let our pride in our LGBT firefighters set out some of the individual services stand in the way of this. problems that they believe the fire and rescue service needs to address • As the political leadership of the fire • to suggest some of the practical steps service we must be the change we want We need to use our oversight to that can and are being taken to improve to see. ensure our service delivers on diversity diversity and which members will want but we also need to exemplify inclusive to consider in the context of their own leadership in the way we treat each other authorities and the way we talk about our work. • to pose some questions that fire and rescue The changes in culture and perception that authority (FRA) members may usefully ask are necessary if we are to achieve a more of their service and themselves. representative service, fit well with the changes We do not claim by any means to have all that our service has undergone in recent years the answers in this document. However, it and which will continue in the future. We are is a starting point and we intend to continue increasingly a prevention service, and it is collating ideas and sharing best practice not only fires that we prevent. For example through a diversity web community. drowning now accounts for more deaths in the UK than house fires and there is a clear need We hope you will find this document of for action to reduce this through education. practical help, but the actions fire and rescue services need to take will vary from It is not only fire prevention which takes us into place to place. If our services are to reflect people’s homes, schools and communities, their communities, they will not all look the but looking at those broader risks to people’s same any more than our communities do. safety in their own homes. Home safety visits Some approaches will work better in some have expanded to become safe and well places than in others and it will not always be visits in many areas, providing a more holistic clear what will work best where, until we try. approach towards safety in the home, going Nevertheless a few key themes stand out: beyond fire risk and looking at a range of other issues like falls prevention, or alcohol use. An inclusive service: the twenty-first century fire and rescue service 5 Many fire and rescue services are working in The MoU on equality, diversity, behaviours partnership with health colleagues, with other and organisational culture in the fire and emergency services and with local authorities rescue service can be found here: on a range of issues from modern slavery to http://www.local.gov.uk/ co-responding with the ambulance service. documents/10180/12157/ Diversity+MoU+30+January+2017.pdf/ Our preventative role is already eroding the cb4ac612-4ab6-45d6-8db7-b98c3e3924ea division between ‘frontline’ and ’support’ staff. Every role in the fire service contributes to prevention. We can expect to see other changes in the future too. Different Councillor Jeremy Hilton approaches will work for different services Chair, LGA Fire Services Management but the existing distinction between wholetime Committee and retained firefighters may not characterise Councillor Philip Howson the fire and rescue service of the future.

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