10p per week increase in Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service’s share of Council Tax will help to protect frontline services across the city and county

Councillors sitting on the Fire Authority’s Finance & Resources Committee have recommended that Members of the City of Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Fire Authority approve an 10p a week increase to the Service’s share of the council tax precept for an average Band D property.

Members of the Fire Authority will meet on 24 February to consider increasing the Service’s share of the council tax (.pdf, 25 pages, 592Kb) by £5 for a Band D property.

As well as responding to emergencies, the Service uses its budget to ensure homes, businesses, and places of interest in the county are safe; to educate communities on risks; and to support the other blue light services.

If approved, the Chief Fire Officer is also recommending that fire cover across Nottingham and Nottinghamshire should be maintained at this time. At the end of last year, Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service consulted the public on plans to reduce fire cover due to a gap of up to £3m in its budget.

The proposals, based on data from an independent review, were to remove a fire engine from stations at London Road and Stockhill, to remove the night shift of firefighters from West Bridgford, and to reinstate Ashfield as a wholetime (with 24-hour cover) fire station.

The results of the consultation have now been published (.pdf, 76 pages, 1,4Mb), revealing the views of over 1800 respondents, which included being supportive of paying more in council tax to support the fire service.

Chair of the Fire Authority, Cllr Michael Payne, says: 

“If the 10p per week increase in our share of the council tax precept is approved by Members of the Fire Authority, we can hold off making immediate reductions to our service. This means, at this stage, proposals to remove a fire engine from London Road and Stockhill will not go ahead and West Bridgford will retain its night shift. Work by the Chief Fire Officer is also underway to address identified gaps in resourcing to risk faced by communities, namely in the Ashfield area. However, our financial position remains very uncertain and without further investment from central government, we may be forced to consider frontline service cuts in future years.

“Planning for the future is incredibly challenging because our fire service only receives a one-year funding from central government each year.

“I hope Members of the fire authority approve the 10p per week increase in council tax precept, so our fire service can continue to deliver the fantastic service that it does to all of our communities.”