8. KLOE 4 - Emergency Response
8.1 Emergency response considers how, in accordance with IRMP, FRSs determine resource requirements to deliver effective intervention services for all incidents to which they might reasonably be expected to respond, as detailed in the Fire (Scotland) Act 2005, the National Framework and by fire authority direction.
Retained Duty System ( RDS)
8.2 As demographic trends change, services are increasingly facing challenges in the recruitment, retention and development of RDS and Volunteer personnel. Current work patterns and locations have an impact on the availability of RDS personnel with increasing numbers unable to provide round the clock availability.
8.3 Services continue to address these issues through the introduction of more flexible working arrangements for RDS staff and the promotion of dual contracts for wholetime staff which enable them to serve in their local retained unit when not engaged in their wholetime duties.
8.4 The levels of training and experience for RDS staff varies considerably throughout the Country as do their respective roles. Services are moving towards the implementation of risk based development programmes for RDS staff. This is based on the development programme for wholetime staff but carried out over a three year period as opposed to one, typically centred around a smaller number of core skills aligned more closely to the range of risks a particular RDS unit will face. In addition, services have determined differing levels of responsibility for RDS staff, dependant on other factors such as the location of the nearest wholetime station or high reach appliance.
Area of Good Practice:
Tayside Fire and Rescue has gained accreditation to certificate and deliver modules 1 and 2 of the Firefighter development programme (task and task management skills) and has used this to run courses for RDS and volunteer staff. The family friendly delivery method that allows students to return home each evening, is something that could not be achieved by attendance at the Scottish Fire Services College due to distance. This has significant potential benefits in attracting new entrants as it avoids attendance on a two week residential course. Expansion of this scheme, both within Tayside and throughout Scotland, for a broad range of roles, would produce significant benefits for services and their staff, particularly in rural areas.
8.5 It is important that services continue to invest in RDS in order to ensure that resources and development are aligned to the risks which may be faced by RDS personnel.
Area of Good Practice:
In recognising the risks faced by crews in remote parts of the area covered by the service, Highlands and Islands Fire and Rescue Service has designated "Community Response Units". These units comprise suitably trained and experienced personnel, equipped to deal with specific and frequently occurring risks within their local area such as road traffic collisions and wildfire incidents. Resources are targeted to meet these risks and response standards ensure that other, less frequently occurring types of incident are met by other resources.
8.6 A number of services have introduced schemes whereby, in certain circumstances and subject to operational constraints, RDS crews may mobilise with fewer than the normal minimum crew of four on an appliance. While the principle of a risk-based variation to crewing is sound, in practice assessment teams found significant variations in both the development and application of such systems among services.
Services should review the circumstances under which primary pumping appliance crews can be mobilised with crews of less than four riders to ensure that suitable safe systems of work can realistically be achieved in every case. Crewing at three should be considered as temporary measures whilst staffing issues are addressed to improve crew numbers and competencies.
Safe Working at Height
8.7 The issue of safe working at height has been approached differently by different services and hence there is no clear standard applied across Scotland. The assessment teams found variation in both interpretation of what is required by the regulations and how it is applied throughout services. On more than one occasion, senior management's view of how far the roll out of equipment and training had gone was different from what could be evidenced.
The safeguarding of personnel working at height requires clear policy and procedures and adequate training and roll out of equipment. While services have progressed this issue over the ensuing months it is important that management is clear about what is required in terms of progress and preparedness in their own service and that progress is achieved.
Flexible Officer Cover Arrangements
8.8 An important issue for all services is the disposition of suitably qualified officers, operating on flexible duty systems, who are able to deploy and take command of emergency incidents occurring anywhere over a substantial area. Such officers bring additional experience and incident command skills to the incident ground, vital for ensuring that safe systems of work can be employed, particularly in more remote locations where resources are limited. Assessment teams found a number of good examples of how officers on the flexible duty systems were being effectively utilised to provide supervision and mentoring to officers and crews at emergency incidents.
8.9 Ensuring the optimum disposition of such officers throughout service areas remains a challenge for all services. The roles of flexible duty officers are different throughout the country, with local standards being applied in different services as to the expected time of control of supervisory officers at incidents, where responding officers should be based, the type of incidents they should attend and what their respective roles are on attendance. In some areas it may be prudent to consider the skill sets of experienced officers on other duty systems. An example of this would be RDS staff who may, with appropriate development, be able to deliver some or all of the functions traditionally associated with the flexible duty officer. This is an approach currently being explored by Highlands and Islands Fire and Rescue Service which may provide an effective alternative officer cover arrangement.
8.10 Officers on the flexible duty system form a vital component of the command structure for any service and are key to ensuring that operational incidents are well managed with appropriate safeguards incorporated into the command process for all but the smallest incidents.
All services should take account of the skill sets of supervisory officers, both on the flexible duty system and other systems when determining the level and distribution of officer cover and ensuring its maintenance.
Mobile Data Systems
8.11 In order to accommodate the vast amount of data required by operational crews, a broad range of information is provided by services to front line personnel. This includes standard operating procedures, safe systems of work, aide-memoires, operational checklists and information on premises obtained through inspections or attendance at incidents.
8.12 There is a broad range in the quality and accuracy of information available for front line crews with some services continuing, in lieu of completion of the "Firelink Project", to retain paper-based copies for crucial information while others have progressed vehicle mounted data systems. These provide an I.T. solution to data provision en route to and at incidents and are capable of being updated on a regular basis, often remotely. However, regardless of the medium employed, a significant challenge for services continues to be the ability to ensure that safety critical information provided to incident commanders and crews at the scene of operations is both current and in a manner that can be easily utilised.
All services are now committed to programmes of development of vehicle mounted data systems, but these systems need to be supported by developed procedures for the provision of accurate and effective safety critical information and by a system of regular update and review.