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Arson investigators take on European project |
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Arson investigation experts from Northumberland Fire and Rescue Service will soon be sharing their skills and knowledge with fire services and police forces across Europe after securing funding under a grant from the European Commission Directorate-General for the Environment in the field of community co-operation as regards to civil protection.
The funding means that staff from Northumberland Fire and Rescue’s Arson Task Force will be working to identify, collate and disseminate best practice in arson investigation and prevention across Europe. The two-year project will create a database of best practice in arson investigation and prevention. The aim is to make this proposed database accessible to fire, police and forensic services across all EU member states. Dave Myers of the Arson Task Force said: “This is a great opportunity for Northumberland Fire and Rescue Service to be involved in an international arson project. We will be working in partnership with Laboratoire Central de la Prefecture de Police in Paris and the aim is to develop a Europe-wide register of arson investigation and prevention experts who would be willing to advise others and participate in exchange schemes.”
In Northumberland the work of the Arson Task Force and other local agencies has contributed to a 43 per cent reduction in deliberate fires over the past three years. Partnership working has been the key to this success in preventing, tackling and investigating arson. The Task Force acts as a catalyst for positive local change, identifying the existence of problems or potential problems, informing relevant partners of these issues and co-ordinating an appropriate response. This pioneering approach to arson prevention and investigation is supported by a Detective Constable from Northumbria Police who is seconded to the Task Force fulltime. Dave Myers added: “Our experience of establishing and maintaining a partnership approach in Northumberland will form a key foundation for establishing larger-scale partnerships and informationsharing networks among different European countries.
“Northumberland Fire and Rescue Service already has links with the fire and police services in Poland, and Arson Task Force staff will be leading training workshops in Poznan later this year. The EU-funded project will aim to develop similar links between all European countries, attempting to make positive steps towards the investigation and reduction of the destructive and devastating effects of arson.” In September 2008 the results of the project will be presented at an international conference in North East England to be organised by Northumberland Fire and Rescue Service. The conference will further consolidate Europe-wide awareness of the benefits of national and local partnership approaches for investigating and preventing arson.
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