Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service
Annual statement of assurance 2024 - 2025

Strategic Goal 5: We will continue our improvement journey to deliver an outstanding Service

This goal focuses on the continuous improvement of our services, systems and processes.

In 2024/25 our key objectives were:

  • Review our HMICFRS Report, ensuring that any learning & improvements identified are captured and planned for.

Our focus for improvements included:

  • Roll out secondary devices on our appliances, to improve access to risk information and support mobile working
  • Continue to develop our Business Intelligence (BI) capability to better support performance management and decision making
  • Develop our primary customer database (CFRMIS) to improve its functionality and use by a range of our teams
  • Digitise and improve our processes, particularly in relation to travel & expenses, HR process and phones
  • Ensure we capture and utilise learning across the service, by developing and embedding a new Evaluation framework & methodology

During 2024/25:

  • We received the report from our latest HMICFRS inspection. We were graded as ‘Good’ in 10 from 11 areas and ‘Adequate’ in the eleventh. The report noted a single area for improvement (AfI), the lowest number of AFIs for any service in this round of inspections
  • The deployment of secondary devices, which will enhance crew access to risk information and support improved mobile working was integrated into the Replacement Mobilising System project
  • We have enhanced our data capture processes to ensure greater scrutiny and transparency, providing confidence in the accuracy and reliability of the reported data
  • We have continued to develop the Community Fire Risk Management Information System (CFRMIS), which captures and manages vital safety information about buildings and individuals within our communities. This system supports the effective work of our Prevention, Protection, and Response teams

As part of our ongoing development of our business intelligence capabilities to support performance management and informed decision making, we have provided operational staff with guidance on effectively using our BI system to monitor and enhance station-level performance. We have also updated our performance reporting software and introduced a service desk ticketing system to improve the efficiency and responsiveness of the BI team in supporting our workforce.

Ongoing development will focus on improving functionality to better support our teams, while ensuring continued compliance with GDPR and the safeguarding of public information. As part of this, staff will be equipped with new devices to increase efficiency and provide improved access to risk information.

Key improvements included:

  • We trialled new mobile devices
  • We added NFCC Safelincs to better support SWV referral process
  • We upgraded our Building Regulations portal so that building owners can send us information more easily and electronically
  • We began work on improving the quality and accuracy of the data we hold
  • We continued to move away from paper-based systems, which will also help us protect personal data more effectively

We have continued to enhance our processes by providing best practice training to crews and teams responsible for entering data into our systems. With IT support, we have also developed a more streamlined method for our staff to access frequently used digital forms. We appointed an Evaluation and Benefits Management Officer to develop an Evaluation Framework. This framework is designed to provide managers with a structured approach to conducting evaluations and outlines the key components needed to guide the process in alignment with our evaluation principles and NFCC guidance. The framework is scheduled to go live in summer 2025.

Other Highlights

Cyber Security

Maintaining the security of our systems and data is a priority. The threat of cyber-attacks is a constant risk for all organisations, particularly in the public sector. Updating our practices and monitoring these threats is vital to ensure that we can deal with current and future risks.

In 2024/25 we counteracted 444,355 threats, which included spam, malware and viruses. We have also again achieved Cyber Essentials certification. The independently verified accreditation demonstrates our cyber security commitment to the public and provides stakeholders and other partners with reassurance of compliance.