Avon Fire and Rescue Service to reduce number of firefighters as part of £2m budget cuts

The number of firefighters working for Avon Fire and Rescue service is set to be cut by 40 as part of plans to make £2m budget cuts.

The proposals to reduce crew numbers were approved by Avon Fire Authority committee on 4 October.

The cuts will not result in any redundancies, as it's understood the staffing reduction will be made over the next three years as firefighters retire.

The decision was fiercely opposed by the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) who previously said the proposals would be 'dangerous and irresponsible'.

Avon Fire Authority said they had to make 'difficult decisions' within the budgets available.

The authority added that the changes would not compromise firefighter safety or the communities they serve.

The proposals were voted through 12 votes to 2, with one abstention.

It will mean the fire service will move towards a model where there are four personnel on every pumping appliance at wholetime stations, apart from Hicks Gate where the ladder vehicles crew would remain at five.

The meeting heard how the changes would be made unless funding improves and the plans can be abandoned.

Two other proposals were agreed unanimously, flexible crewing at Yate wholetime fire station and investing in a smaller vehicle to respond to automatic fire alarms in Bristol instead of sending a standard fire engine.

FBU Avon brigade secretary Amanda Mills said: “The reduction of 40 firefighters amounts to just over 10 per cent of wholetime frontline staff.

“Should your constituents who we serve accept these dangerous cuts?”

She said more wildfires and flooding were expected because of climate change while the population served by firefighters increased every year.

“Firefighters help people in their hour of need and should not be bystanders waiting for additional resources to arrive.

“When waiting times for a fire engine increase, so does the ferocity of a fire, leaving less chance for survival should anyone need rescuing, and putting firefighters at greater risk.”

Chief Fire Officer Simon Shilton said: “We are looking at how we can do things differently to ensure we meet efficiency savings required, reinvest in areas to be more agile and make our service stronger and communities safer.

“In an ideal world, we would not have to make these difficult decisions but unfortunately the harsh reality is that we must take the funding we have and find innovative ways to use our resources.

“We will not compromise firefighter safety, we will work with trade unions to ensure we put the right policies and procedures in place while finding these efficiency savings.”

Credit: Adam Postans, Local Democracy Reporter