Council Clears Major Hurdle to Rrunning Local Fire Service
The Royal Borough's bid to run a local fire and rescue service has passed a significant hurdle on its way to the Secretary of State who has the ultimate power to say yes or no.
The Local Government Association (LGA) – the body appointed to vet applications – has commended the council on its 'well thought out proposal' which met all the requirements under the new Sustainable Communities Act (SCA). It will now go forward to the next stage in November.
The council's move is a direct result of residents' opposition to the Berkshire Fire Authority proposal to close Windsor fire station at night, leaving cover to be provided from Slough. A recent survey carried out on behalf of the council showed 65% of residents want a local service, and 66% of them want the council to run it.
Cllr David Burbage, council leader, said he was delighted by the LGA's decision: "Our bid is based on solid evidence and on the clear wishes of our residents and businesses for a round-the-clock fire service in our borough. We have clearly demonstrated how local people will benefit from local control rather than having service levels imposed upon us and we are delighted that the LGA has recognised the robustness of our case."The Local Government Association (LGA) – the body appointed to vet applications – has commended the council on its 'well thought out proposal' which met all the requirements under the new Sustainable Communities Act (SCA). It will now go forward to the next stage in November.
The council's move is a direct result of residents' opposition to the Berkshire Fire Authority proposal to close Windsor fire station at night, leaving cover to be provided from Slough. A recent survey carried out on behalf of the council showed 65% of residents want a local service, and 66% of them want the council to run it.
Cllr Christine Bateson, one of the council's representatives on the fire authority, said: "This is great news. We have worked tirelessly to fight the fire authority's decision so that residents and visitors benefit from the level of fire cover they need and deserve. Local people will be thrilled that we have passed this major first hurdle and we look forward with confidence to the next stage in November."
The LGA assessment said the council had submitted a well thought out proposal that responded to community concerns. There was high level political commitment to make it work and the thorough feasibility study was evidence that the council intended to maintain community protection.
The assessment highlighted that the council had completely met all the requirements on consultation. It also completely met all the SCA's requirements on 'sustainability' – ie encouraging improvement of the economic, social and social wellbeing of the area. The assessment commented: "The local authority area is a major tourist destination and a locally based fire service would reduce the amount of vehicle journeys, increase involvement in local democracy as the accountability chain would be shorter and create potential for more local jobs as turnover of retained fire fighters is addressed."
If the proposal passes the next stage LGA panel in November it will go to the Secretary of State for final decision next year.
The council is also awaiting news from the LGA about its second proposal to take over information, diagnosis and brokerage (IBD) services from Business Link, currently under contract to SEEDA. This follows concerns by small businesses in the area about the quality of current IBD services.
The SCA is all about changing the way services are provided to empower councils and communities and to improve quality of life and wellbeing in their areas.
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