The Combined Fire Authority for County Durham and Darlington Human Resources Committee was scheduled to meet on Tuesday 19 May 2026 to discuss a range of HR-related matters. Key topics included the service's health and safety performance, sickness absence statistics, and progress on equality and diversity initiatives, including the gender pay gap.

Health and Safety Performance 2025/26

The committee was scheduled to review the Health and Safety 2025/26 Quarter Four and Annual Report. This report details the service's health and safety performance against four key performance indicators (PIs): the number of accidents to personnel (PI69), the number of County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Service (CDDFRS) contributory vehicle accidents (PI72), the number of local health and safety investigations incomplete after 28 days (PI73), and the number of health and safety investigation actions overdue their specified completion date (PI74).

For PI69, the report indicated that 17 accidents to personnel were reported for the 2025/26 year, exceeding the annual target of eight. The majority of these occurred during operational incidents. The report noted that this figure was the highest in the last five-year period but reflected an increase in the reporting of minor, first-aid-only injuries. Six accidents were reported to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR) due to resulting in over seven days of absence, all being musculo-skeletal injury related.

Regarding PI72, 20 CDDFRS-contributory vehicle accidents were reported for 2025/26, exceeding the target of 17. The report highlighted that slow-speed manoeuvring accounted for 60% of these accidents. For PI73 and PI74, the report stated that no investigations remained incomplete after 28 days and no actions became overdue their specified completion date throughout the entire 2025/26 period, indicating a robust approach to investigations.

The report also detailed near misses, causes for concern, and notifications, with an increase in reporting for near misses and causes for concern compared to previous years, which was considered an indication of a mature health and safety culture. Incidents of violence towards service personnel were also reviewed, with 17 reported for 2025/26, a figure similar to previous years. A comparison with other predominantly rural fire and rescue services showed CDDFRS performing well for vehicle and personal accidents but being the second highest for attacks on firefighters during operational incidents.

Sickness Absence Performance Quarter 4

The committee was set to receive an update on sickness absence performance for the period of 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026. The report indicated that overall sickness absence remained above the service's annual targets, but presented a mixed but improving picture. Total shifts/days lost for all staff had reduced compared to the previous year, driven by reductions in sickness absence within Control, Retained Duty System (RDS), Day Duty/Flexible Duty Officers, and non-uniformed staff. However, Wholetime Rider sickness absence had increased and continued to exceed the target, largely influenced by a significant number of long-term sickness cases, many related to musculoskeletal injuries.

Musculoskeletal conditions remained the primary cause of absence, followed by mental health-related conditions, a pattern consistent with national fire and rescue service data. Long-term sickness accounted for the majority of absence (78%) across the service. The report noted that the total salary cost of sickness absence had increased by £179,669 compared to the previous year, despite an overall reduction in absence levels, due to a shift in the profile of absence towards the salaried Wholetime Rider group.

The report also included national sickness absence data for the fire and rescue sector, indicating that CDDFRS's performance varied across key indicators and staff groups. For Wholetime (WT) and corporate staff, absence levels were in the second quartile and below the national average, while Control absence was above the national average. Nationally reported primary causes of absence were musculoskeletal conditions (33.4%), mental health-related issues (26.8%), and respiratory problems (11.4%).

Public Sector Equality Duty and Gender Pay Gap

The committee was scheduled to review findings from the CDDFRS Equality Data Report 2026 and the CDDFRS Gender Pay Gap Report (2025 Data). The Equality Data Report highlighted year-on-year changes, including a reduction in the total workforce, a decline in overall female representation, and a slight increase in ethnic minority representation. Disability declarations had increased, supported by new initiatives. The report also detailed applicant demographics and employee attrition.

Actions the service is taking to address under-representation included positive action initiatives, the Fire Futures programme, use of Women in Leadership Apprenticeship schemes, partnerships for diverse community engagement, maintaining Disability Confident Leader status, and updating mandatory EDI training.

The Gender Pay Gap report indicated that as of 31 March 2025, CDDFRS employed 602 people, with 126 identifying as female. The mean gender pay gap was 4.82%, and the median gender pay gap was 2.71%, representing an improvement from the previous year. Female representation had improved across several pay quartile bands. Key drivers for this narrowing included an increased number of women in higher-paid roles and promotions. However, the report noted that women remained disproportionately represented in the lowest quartile, aligning with a higher proportion of women in corporate roles paid on lower scales than operational roles. The report concluded that while substantial progress had been made in advancing equality, diversity, and inclusion, challenges remained, requiring sustained leadership commitment and targeted initiatives.

Other Scheduled Business

The committee was also scheduled to consider minutes from previous meetings held on 3 December 2025 and 4 March 2026. Additionally, Part B of the agenda included items during which it was considered the meeting would not be open to the public, specifically an Employee Relations Update and Recommendations from an External Investigation.