The Fire and Rescue Scrutiny Committee noted reports on the performance of Gloucestershire Fire and Rescue Service (GFRS) and the Coroner’s service, the progress that has been made on addressing causes of concern found by HMICFRS in 2024, and the training exercises that the service has been carrying out. The committee agreed to recommend to the cabinet member that a final decision on changes to firefighter shift patterns be delayed to enable them to hear from firefighters who are opposed to the change.

Independent Review into Racism and Bullying in GFRS

The committee heard a presentation by Chief Fire Officer Mark Preece on the recently published Independent Review Report¹ into racism and bullying in the fire service, commissioned by Preece and carried out by West Midlands Employers (WME), a not-for-profit organisation with expertise in culturally sensitive investigations. The report concluded that GFRS had been “institutionally racist”² between 1991 and 2018 and that GFRS still had significant work to do to address issues of discrimination. WME found “substantial evidence” of historical “institutionalised racism” and also discovered that “misogynistic behaviour was widespread” in the service over the period.

The report commended recent changes made by GFRS to address these problems, including the introduction of an anonymous reporting system, the re-establishment of staff networks, and the recent dismissals of 5 staff for misconduct related to the behaviours identified in the report.

The committee expressed concern that the Service may not be acting quickly enough to address issues of racism and misogyny and questioned whether the problems found by WME should be referred to the police. The CFO confirmed that if families of firefighters who had been victims of racist or misogynistic behaviour had wished to report issues to the police, GFRS would have supported them to do so. He clarified that he had not been advised that the report should be referred to the police, but agreed to confirm this point after the meeting.

Councillor Dave Norman, the cabinet member responsible for GFRS, praised the work of the CFO in commissioning the review and acknowledged that GFRS had failed its Black and ethnic minority staff.

GFRS Values and Workplace Charter

Catherine Lane, the People Manager at GFRS, presented the committee with an overview of GFRS’ values and Workplace Charter. She confirmed that GFRS was making use of an anonymous reporting mechanism provided by Crimestoppers to enable staff to report issues without fear of reprisal. Since its inception in 2023, 6 reports have been made through Crimestoppers. GFRS had also run leadership workshops to encourage senior managers to reflect on their own behaviours. Ms Lane acknowledged that there were still “pockets of staff” who felt that the Workplace Charter was “just a plaque on the wall”.

GFRS Response Review

The CFO presented the committee with an update on the Response Review, a programme of reforms intended to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the service’s response to emergencies, which included changing the shift patterns worked by wholetime firefighters. He reported on the findings of a 12-week consultation on the proposed reforms and confirmed that feedback on the proposed changes to shift patterns had been largely negative, although he argued that change was necessary to enable GFRS to meet the demands placed on it by HMICFRS and to improve community safety.

Following the CFO’s presentation, committee members spoke about the many objections to the proposed shift patterns that they had received from firefighters. These objections focused on the negative impact the change would have on firefighters’ work-life balance, including their ability to manage caring responsibilities. As a result, the committee recommended to the cabinet member that any decision on the shift patterns be delayed to enable the committee to hear evidence from firefighters.

Overview of Gloucestershire Coroners Service

The committee heard from Barry Sweeny, the Coroner’s Operations Officer, about the Coroner’s Service. Sweeny reported that the Coroner had presided over 450 court cases in 2023-24, conducted 800 post mortems and received 2500 death referrals. The Service is responsible for all deaths that occur in “hospitals, mental health hospitals, community hospitals, military bases, GCHQ, transport hubs, airfields and multiple large-scale public events”. Sweeny confirmed that the Coroner’s Service, which is based in a bespoke complex in Gloucester, had seen recent investment to increase capacity, including new fridges and freezers.

The committee was invited to visit the Coroner’s Complex and it was agreed that this should be arranged for the new committee following the elections in May 2025.

Overview of past local and national exercises and potential future exercises

Temporary Area Manager Liana Selecka-Jones presented an overview of the training exercises that GFRS have recently undertaken and the plans for future training. She reported that GFRS had taken part in 84 exercises in 2024, including a major exercise focused on responding to a marauding terrorist attack. In response to a question from a member of the committee, Ms Selecka-Jones confirmed that all staff were given the opportunity to take part in exercises. She also confirmed that following each exercise, staff were debriefed, and a record of these debriefs was made available to all staff.

Improvement Board Progress Update

The committee noted the report on the Improvement Board.

GFRS Performance Data – Quarter 1 2024/25

The committee noted the report on the performance of GFRS.

Update on GFRS Prevention, Protection and Emergency Response

The committee heard from Richard Humphrey, the Protection Manager, on GFRS’s prevention, protection and emergency response activities. Members of the committee sought clarification on GFRS’s role in inspecting new housing developments and HMOs. They also asked about the regulation of Airbnbs. Humphrey confirmed that the Service was invited to comment on the fire safety of new housing developments, but that it did not carry out inspections. He also confirmed that HMOs were not actively included in the risk-based inspection program. He acknowledged that the Fire Safety Order did not always keep pace with the changing nature of housing, and he encouraged members of the public with concerns to report them via the GFRS website.