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DCFO Noel Roberts reports on the changes that have occurred to the Ministry of Defence’s fire and rescue service following its recent restructuring
THE MOD’S FIRE AND RESCUE SERVICES have recently completed a major change programme, into the newly-formed Defence Fire Risk Management Organisation (DFRMO). Historically the management of fire risk, including fire safety and operational response, were managed in a variety of ways across a number of differing budgetary areas and commands within the MOD.
A study (Fire Study 2000) was commissioned by the MOD Personnel Director to review the existing organisation and operation of the MOD fire and rescue services and to develop a strategy that would best meet the future fire risk management requirements in peace and conflict more efficiently and effectively. Fire Study 2000 recommended the creation of a single, totally-integrated and regionally-based organisation which would bring together the services provided by the Defence Fire and Rescue Service, RAF and RN military fire and rescue services into a single organisation. This would be responsible for all fire risk management, fire safety and operational fire response in support of the defence mission and supporting military capability worldwide. On September 4 2004, the Armed Forces Minister authorised the formal bringing together of the various elements of the MOD fire and rescue services in line with the Fire Study 2000 initiative. The decision to implement Fire Study 2000 resulted in a considerable amount of work to update the plan and commence implementation of the change programme.
The updated plan (Fire Study 2005) subsequently aligned DFRMO with the Army’s Regional Forces structure which provided synergy with the divisional and brigade structure in which the DFRMO area and group formation would be embedded but also that of the regional arrangements for national resilience. This signified the start of an intense period of change which has been both an extremely challenging and exciting time for our organisation, offering our personnel some unique opportunities to influence the development and formation of our new structure, service delivery process and governance arrangements. Our Mission statement is: ‘To deliver costeffective and sustainable fire risk management to the MOD in peace and conflict. To protect personnel and assets and provide an operational fire and rescue capability in support of military operations worldwide’. Our vision is: ‘To make the MOD community a safer place to work and live’.
Our key priorities are:
• To work actively to reduce fire deaths and losses across the MOD estate through prevention, protection and provide a community fire safety programme appropriate to the department and its mission
• To provide FRS deployable capability in support of military operations
• To provide, where appropriate, active fire and rescue response
• To provide a competent and motivated workforce.
Human Resources and Development
Obviously our main and most important resource is our people and as such DFRMO, through the modernisation process under Fire Study 2005, recognises that investment in our staff is a crucial element. In seeking to continuously improve the service we deliver to our community, the recruitment, progression, retention, integration and development of our staff has become increasingly more important business drivers. Human resource and development is therefore a central pillar upon which we set the future for our organisation. The formation of DFRMO has required a considerable amount of change over a fairly short time period, which has necessitated a major restructuring into three geographical areas in the UK and one overseas.
Training
Whilst DFRMO fire stations provide cover for a wide variety of high risk facilities, thankfully, by a proactive approach to prevention and protection, the number of incidents attended is relatively low and where they do occur they are generally confined to small scale as a result of prompt response and intervention. Training has therefore always been key to maintain skills and competencies. Competency-based training was originally introduced in the MOD FRS in 1990, with the publication of job roles (firefighter, supervisor and manager) and the associated competency requirements. The introduction of IPDS is seen very much as an extension to what is already in place and provides an excellent opportunity to review and update the systems in place and align them with the new occupational standards. The majority of professional fire and rescue training is undertaken at the Fire Services Central Training Establishment (FSCTE) based at RAF Manston in Kent. DFRS and RAF FRS staffs provide a full range of courses to take DFRMO personnel from recruit to fire station manager. Manston also provides NVQ and instructor qualifications as required and organises training courses and/or facilities for a number of other organisations, FRSs, ambulance services and industrial fire brigades. Other training centres also exist – namely RNAS Culdrose in Cornwall which provides for the unique needs of the RN aircraft handlers, Deepcut in Surrey which provides specialist fire safety training to military personnel to apply in barracks and on operations, and Rheindahlen in Germany which provides for the needs of the LEC firefighters in Germany. Specialist fire safety management training is brought in from the national Fire Service College at Moretonin- Marsh in Gloucestershire, and other FRSs as necessary.
Fire Safety: Prevention and Protection
The MOD’s fire safety strategy is directed by the Secretary of State (SofS) for Defence. The primary objectives are to minimise the risk to life, assets, operations and the environment by ensuring that appropriate protective measures are established and maintained. In addition to the primary objective, DFRMO also aims to identify and measure the department’s risk and business resilience from fire to inform and assist in future requirements for effective, economic and risk proportional fire protection measures.
RRO
The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order (RRO) 2005 and Fire Scotland Act 2005 established the fire and rescue service maintained by the SofS for defence as a fire safety enforcing authority. To ensure legislative compliance, a comprehensive Fire Safety Management Plan (FSMP) is provided for each building which starts with a detailed life safety fire risk assessment and culminates in a detailed plan that can be managed and monitored by responsible persons. The RRO has created a new requirement to enforce on non-crown bodies that occupy premises on the Defence Estate. Such occupancies have become common in recent years and are predicted to increase further in the coming years. By virtue of the enforcement concordat, all risk assessment validation and enforcement processes currently undertaken by DFRMO staff follow the principles established by CFOA wherever possible and practicable. This also has the advantage of presenting a similar enforcement regime to occupiers that may, in certain circumstances, occupy other Crown premises where they may also receive statutory/non-statutory guidance and enforcement from the Crown Premises Inspection Group (CPIG). The DFRMO also ensures that the requirements of the Northern Ireland Fire Safety Regulations host nations fire regulations are also catered for.
Building Regulations
Whilst not required by legislation, the SofS also requires that the MOD complies with the Building Regulations. Compliance and assurance is achieved by having DFRMO fire safety personnel embedded within the Defence Estates organisation, who monitor construction projects on both the MOD and US visiting forces establishments. As well as providing minimum standards for life safety, enhanced protection of the uninsured estate is provided by separate requirements under the remit of the Crown Fire Standards.
Business Continuity
Business Continuity, resilience and sustainability across the MOD is a fundamental strategic necessity with an estimated asset value of over £90 billion spread over a global estate that exceeds 55,000 buildings which, unlike the majority of private sector organisations, is not insured. The risks extend beyond those of a financial nature however with, in many areas, the primary consideration being to maintain and sustain operational continuity. The analysis of the business fire risks across the department is conducted by dedicated DFRMO fire safety managers. Where the risk dictates, this analysis also informs the overall judgement as to the presence and size of operational firefighting resources on the site. Initially developed inhouse approximately 11 years ago, a comprehensive review of the risk assessment methodology has been undertaken over the last two years in partnership with the Fire Protection Association (FPA).
Projects
Project work is carried out by regionally-based DFRMO fire safety officers, and includes a wide variety of building types such as single family dwellings, hotel type accommodation, commercial buildings, aircraft hangers, laboratories and unfenestrated buildings. Many of the projects are multi-million pound buildings which are of strategic importance to the nation and require complex fire engineering solutions.
Collaboration with Other Government Departments and External Agencies
In addition to the FPA, DFRMO fire safety staffs also represent the department on HMG Fire Safety Representatives Working Group and conduct fire risk management development work for one of the NATO panels dealing with fire precautions. Further collaborative work has resulted in a formally-agreed collaboration project that is ongoing with Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service. This includes the identification of risks in terms of life risk and strategic importance, to aid IRMP planning, pre-planning for effective emergency situation management in high risk areas, the reduction of unwanted calls from automatic fire alarm systems, community fire safety and targeted arson reduction initiatives. Further collaboration with other FRSs is being explored that involves extending community fire safety initiatives onto military establishments in the form of home fire safety checks. The aspect of automatic fire alarm (AFA) activations is a typical example of a current issue that is proving difficult to resolve in policy terms across a department that spans many fire authorities, that themselves are taking differing approaches to AFA activations and the consequent attendance levels. DFRMO fire safety practitioners are also engaged in policy development for explosives storage and transportation, specifically in areas of fire prevention, protection and intervention on MOD explosives sites. Wider collaboration is planned between CFO DFRMO, the Chief Inspectors of Explosives of MOD and HSE and the Explosives Industry Group within the CBI to deliver a seminar in the spring of 2008 covering explosive risks, mitigation and incident management. This is to be supported by a revised training video that is currently being planned with a commercial media company.
Response
DFRMO provide operational fire and rescue response from 92 permanently-crewed fire stations (78 in the UK and 14 overseas) providing first response capability to a wide ranging and diverse risk including strategically sensitive and important installations, large storage and distribution establishments, airfields, dockyards, nuclear and ammunition storage and processing facilities and underground facilities to name but a few! DFRMO has an appliance fleet comprising of some 65 pumping appliances, 84 rapid intervention vehicles, 80 major foam vehicles and 21 special appliances which includes, incident support units, control units, water carriers, environmental protection units and chemical incident units. In addition to the main fleet, the DFRS crewed American Air Force fire stations have a combined fleet of over 100 appliances ranging from pumping appliances to airfield appliances and aerial appliances many of which are American appliances. Some DFRMO stations additionally provide coresponder capability. In support of military operations such as Iraq and Afghanistan, a combination of DFRS volunteers and RAF military personnel are detached to provide the necessary cover.
Additionally, fire risk management specialist advice is provided to force commanders by deployed DFRMO station and group managers. Such deployments of FRS capability are generally for a four month period where DFRMO staffs are embedded within the deployed military force.
About the Author: DCFO Noel Roberts GIFireE MCMI is currently the Acting Chief Officer and Head of DFRMO. He is based at the DFRMO HQ at Andover in Hants. In his substantive role he is responsible as DCFO for service delivery, and is Director of the Operations Business Unit. |
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