Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service (TWFRS) has signed a Primary Authority Scheme (PAS) agreement with Sainsbury's Supermarkets Ltd to provide advice and guidance on fireworks storage at its stores throughout the country. 
This partnership will deliver reliable advice in relation to the storage of fireworks, as required by the Manufacture and Storage of Explosives Regulations 2005. 

The PAS is administered by the Local Better Regulation Office (LBRO), which was established under the Regulatory Enforcement and Sanctions Act 2008 as a non-departmental public body, accountable to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. 

The agreement is the latest step in a longstanding partnership between TWFRS and Sainsbury's which has helped to improve community safety by Sainsbury's removing traditional chip pans from sale in over 1,000 stores and committing to not re-introducing them. Sainsbury's has also provided a mock up of a shop for SafetyWorks, a centre run by TWFRS with partner agencies in Newcastle, that offers safety advice for the community of Tyne and Wear. 

The service has provided technical advice in support of approaches to fire safety solutions within Sainsbury's stores which has resulted in more efficient working practices. 

Protection and Technical Group Manager Keith Addison, TWFRS, said: "The Primary Authority Scheme agreement is the next stage in our successful partnership with Sainsbury's. We aim to provide Sainsbury's with an informed and considered professional view of the law in relation to the storage of fireworks so that they are confident that the compliance systems they have in place are accepted and any further regulatory burdens are minimal."  

Patrick Heaney, Group Fire Safety Manager from Sainsbury's, said: "The Primary Authority Service agreement is significant for Sainsbury's because it gives us the opportunity to work alongside Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service to ensure that our policies and processes are safe, robust and fit for purpose. Customer and colleague safety is of paramount importance to Sainsbury's, and this agreement builds on the success of the longstanding partnership between our two organisations."  

 

Posted: 10.50am, 27.05.11

rachael.haydon@pavpub.com