Foreword
We first set out our ambition to provide an outstanding service in our Community Risk Management Plan 2022-25, and the actions we have taken in delivering that plan have started our journey towards achieving it.
In this document, we explain what achieving our ambition means and how we know when we have been successful.
The fire service is at its most visible when responding on blue lights to an emergency call for help, but we do much more than that. We work to promote fire, road and water safety, through education and campaigns, and we directly support individuals and groups who are at the greatest risk of harm. We work with landlords, businesses, and other organisations to ensure fire safety legislation is followed, and we collaborate with other agencies to provide better services and value for money for our communities.
We operate in an environment that is continually changing. The risks to and within our communities evolve as changes happen within society, as buildings, infrastructure and use of land change and develop, and increasingly, from the impact of climate change, both in terms of extreme weather events and the drive towards decarbonisation.
We monitor these changes to ensure our resources remain aligned to the risks.
We must meet the high expectations placed on us as a publicly funded fire and rescue service, balancing political and financial drivers and challenges to deliver our statutory duties and create safer communities.
We need to maintain a service that is fit for purpose today and into the future. We are strongly committed to maintaining an open, positive and inclusive culture that attracts and retains high quality staff; invests, innovates and embraces change; and continuously seeks to improve its effectiveness and efficiency to achieve the greatest value for money and impact on community safety.
To ensure we can continue to deliver the services the community needs and expects from us, we need to maintain a longer-term perspective, to set the direction for the Service and provide a context for our community risk planning and annual delivery planning. Our Ambition 2032 provides this perspective. We hope you find it interesting and informative.
Audra Wynter
Chair of the Combined Fire Authority
Craig Parkin DL
Chief Fire Officer