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Fire service launches staff exhibition to mark Black History Month

An exhibition that pays homage to, and highlights, the diverse heritage of fire service staff has been unveiled today (Monday 30 September).

The showcase has been organised by South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue as part of Black History Month and celebrates the achievements of staff with African and Caribbean heritage.

It features portrait photographs of 11 employees past and present – ranging from retired firefighters to support staff – that will be exhibited at various locations across Sheffield.

These locations include the Winter Gardens, Moor Market and Sheffield Train Station, with the service hoping the display will inspire the next generation of firefighters.

“We couldn’t be prouder of our staff, and their rich heritage, and wanted to do something special to celebrate their contributions to the service and those we serve,” said Deputy Chief Fire Officer, Alex Johnson.

“We also wanted to show support to the Black History Month initiative and South Yorkshire’s black communities, at the same time as showing that anyone can be anything in the fire service – regardless of their background.

“The exhibition is about recognising staff of the past, and present, and inspiring the next generation of firefighters, as we strive to ensure our workforce fully reflects the diversity of the communities we serve.”

The photos have been taken by Orestes Rix, a member of the service’s finance team who specialises in portrait photography outside of his day job.

They have been printed onto foam boards and will be showcased on easels as they travel round the city. Their first outing will be at a launch event hosted at the Showroom Workstation, on Paternoster Row.

One of the staff members featured is Elm Lane Station Manager, Delroy Galloway, who has helped organise the exhibition as well as being photographed.

He said: “Over the last few years we’ve done some amazing work around supporting underrepresented groups within the fire service, so it’s really good to be able to carry that work on and get behind Black History Month in a meaningful way.

“People with African and Carribean backgrounds are currently underrepresented within the fire service nationally. We aim to change that through projects such as this one, as well as shine a light on some very deserving colleagues.”

The exhibition will visit the following locations, on the following dates:

Ponds Forge: Tuesday 1 – Sunday 6 October
Winter Gardens: Monday 7 – Tuesday 8 October
Moor Market: Wednesday 9 – Wednesday 16 October
Sheffield Train Station: Thursday 17 – Thursday 24 October

You can see the photos below:

Details on each person, and more about this project, can be found in this booklet.

Surge in home safety check referrals following older person campaign

A campaign to make older people across South Yorkshire safer has contributed to a huge increase in home safety check bookings, according to the fire service.

Find The Time, the latest safety push from South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue, was launched on Mother’s Day earlier this year.

It encouraged people with friends, relatives and neighbours over 60 to pay them a visit and make sure they were OK and safe from fire.

It also asked partner agencies to consider whether the people they were dealing with, be it for health or housing reasons, needed a visit from fire crews.

Driven by data that showed most people dying in accidental house fires were over 60-years-old, the campaign ran throughout April, May, June and July.

The service received 2433 home safety check referrals from partner agencies during that time – 736 and 43 per cent more than the previous year.

There was also an increase in the number of visits organised following calls, from the public, into the service’s hotline – 189 more than the previous year.

This resulted in a 41 per cent increase in the number of home safety checks completed compared to last year – 3941 to 5560.

“A big part of making South Yorkshire safer and stronger means focusing our efforts on those who need us the most, which is what this campaign was all about,” said Group Manager Simon Dunker, deputy head of the joint police and fire community safety department.

“To see such a big increase in home safety check referrals, from partners and the public, is a really good outcome for us. It means we can get into people’s homes and minimise, as much as possible, their risk of having a fire.

“And whilst the campaign might be over, the message still stands, as our figures show that people over 60-years-old tend to be more at risk of fire. Check up on your loved ones, make sure they’re OK and if you have any fire safety concerns, get in touch.”

As part of the campaign, the fire service developed a ‘grandparent check’ that helps people ascertain whether or not their relatives are at risk.

The check asks about things such as smoking, mobility issues and living alone – all three of which can increase someone’s risk of fire.

For more information visit our dedicated Find The Time page.

Fire Authority helps fund sprinklers for Sheffield flats

People living in two Sheffield tower blocks will now be safer from fire than ever thanks to sprinklers that have been part funded by South Yorkshire’s Fire & Rescue Authority.

The life-saving devices have been installed at Queen Anne Court and Queen Elizabeth Court, located on Raeburn Place.

Each block homes 48 self-contained flats – 96 in total – that are occupied by people over 55-years-old with a range of disability and mobility issues.

The majority of the installation cost has been covered by the housing provider, Places For People, but councillors have offered a contribution from the service’s Safer Stronger Communities Reserve.

“We’re here to make South Yorkshire a safer and stronger place for everyone – particularly those who are more vulnerable than others,” said Area Manager Steve Helps, head of the joint police and fire community safety department.

“The average age of people within these flats is 71-years-old and, having already worked with Places For People to advise on the sprinkler installation, we’re really pleased that members of the authority have agreed to provide part-funding for the project.

“These devices have a long life span and we hope they will continue to protect residents of these two tower blocks for many years to come.”

South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue has been championing the installation of sprinklers for many years and is one of the leading fire services in the country for its pioneering use of sprinklers in high-risk accommodation – having led a UK first project to retrofit a system at Callow Mount in Gleadless.

“Research has shown that these devices protect property, reduce death and injury from fire, reduce costs of fire and disruption to businesses and lower insurance costs,” said Roger Brason, the service’s sprinkler advocate.

“We were only too happy to help Places For People get sprinklers installed at these two flats – especially given that the occupants have varying levels of vulnerability. It’s great to know that these people will have the highest level of fire protection available moving forward.”

Fire service cost saving plans debated by Authority

Fire service plans to meet an annual £4 million cash shortfall have been debated by its governing Fire Authority.

South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue’s final proposals were presented to members on Monday (16 September), having considered responses to a consultation exercise which were broadly supportive of the main cost saving option put forward- to reduce the number of firefighters on a fire engine from five to four.

Voting on the proposals, members decided that if no viable alternative to achieve the level of savings predicted is identified, then the adoption of four firefighters on all frontline fire engines would be implemented in 2020/21. But they also called upon the service to spend the rest of this financial year exploring alternative methods of achieving the required savings and to recruit firefighters to reduce the amount of money it is currently having to spend on overtime.

Fire officers had already made a series of commitments in response to the consultation. Those commitments included investing in technology to help firefighters on the incident ground, regularly monitoring the service’s performance in relation to sickness and safety and only implementing the change at as many stations as it needs to in order to meet the financial shortfall.

Chief Fire Officer James Courtney, said: “In responding to the consultation feedback, we’ve already described the savings we’ve made to protect our frontline service and we will continue to explore further options, as directed by members. However, whilst we would rather not make any changes to our frontline service at all, we’re pleased that the Fire Authority has acknowledged that riding with four firefighters on a fire engine remains a viable solution should we be required to implement it.”

Joint service initiative tackles gun and knife crime

Over 42,000 South Yorkshire school children have received an educational awareness presentation on the consequences of gun and knife crime

South Yorkshire Police and South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue have delivered a gun and knife crime programme to over 42,000 secondary school children across South Yorkshire, as part of their Joint Community Safety Department.

The ‘Guns and Knives Take Lives’ programme, was specially developed by both organisations to raise awareness of and educate young people on the dangers of guns and knives, and supports the work of Operation Fortify, the county wide approach to tackling serious and organised crime across South Yorkshire.

To deliver this programme, members of the department visit local secondary schools to provide a presentation highlighting the hard-hitting reality of the dangers and potentially devastating consequences of carry guns and knives.

During the 50 minute presentation, Information is delivered on gun and knife law, recent statistics, the emotional impact, consequences and real life testimonials, along with details of Operation Sceptre – a national knife crime awareness operation.

Following the success of the programme, which has been delivered to 60 schools in Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham and Sheffield since its launch in May 2017, plans are now in place to roll out the programme to the remaining schools across South Yorkshire, along with delivery to new Year 7 groups.

Steve Helps, Head of the Joint Community Safety Department, has commented on the importance of the programme, “Gun and Knife crime has increased in recent years and it is extremely important that we are able to work proactively within our communities to raise awareness, provide support and educate young people on the consequences and impact of guns and knives.

“The responses we have received so far illustrates the positive impact this is having on our communities and I’m looking forwards to continuing to roll out the programme to the remaining South Yorkshire schools in the coming weeks.”

Chief Superintendent Una Jennings, Head of Operation Fortify for South Yorkshire Police, added “Our commitment to tackling serious and organised crime in South Yorkshire goes far beyond bringing offenders to justice. Guns and Knives Take Lives allows us to reach out early so that the young and vulnerable understand their choices, and the far-reaching impacts of their decisions.

“The consequences and risks of carrying weapons are incredibly serious and it’s absolutely vital that young people understand the devastation they can cause.”

The Guns and Knives Takes Lives programme complements, and forms an element of the work of, the Joint Community Safety Department to provide specialist early intervention services to protect vulnerable people, reduce demand and keep local communities safe.

As well as delivering this tailored intervention in schools, the Joint Community Safety Department also offers bespoke events at the Lifewise Centre in Rotherham and other early intervention services designed for the needs of local communities.

To find out more about the Joint Community Safety Department and the Lifewise Centre, you can visit the website here.

Extra mental health support for firefighters announced

South Yorkshire firefighters are to get extra mental health support, chief officers have announced.

South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue has published its first ever health and wellbeing strategy, which will put in place extra measures to supercharge support, ditch stigmas and change the culture around mental illness.

Specific help it plans to put in place include using British Red Cross specialists to provide fire crews with psychosocial support following traumatic incidents.

More than a dozen staff from across the organisation will also be trained up as peer support workers, meaning they too can visit crews after critical incidents.

The service also says it will invest in a 24/7 telephone counselling service, which any member of staff can contact for issues ranging from stress and anxiety, to money worries.

More information will also be made available to staff, telling them where they can get extra help if they are struggling with their mental health either inside or outside of work.

Deputy Chief Fire Officer Alex Johnson, said: “Mental health has never had a higher profile nationally, but it’s a particularly important issue when talking about 999 staff who deal with traumatic incidents almost every day.

“We already offered lots of support to our staff, but it’s only right that we look to continually review and update the support we offer, adopting learning from other sectors and making our organisation the best it can possibly be as a place of work.”

The service already has its own in-house occupational health unit, access to counselling services, staff support networks and MIND Blue Light Champions- volunteers with an interest in mental health who can offer a listening ear.

A 2019 Mind survey found 85 per cent of fire and rescue workers had experienced stress or poor mental health whilst working for the emergency services.

Fire service publishes details of 50 ways it is collaborating with other 999 services

South Yorkshire’s fire service has published details of 50 ways it is working with other blue light services to save time, cut costs and deliver a better service to the public.

South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue has unveiled the list to show local people the ways in which it is working more closely with the region’s 999 services, from training and community safety work, to shared teams, equipment and buildings.

50 Ways We’re Collaborating

Highlights of its collaborative work with South Yorkshire Police include a joint community safety department, shared police and fire station in Maltby and more than 1,500 hours of training that’s been jointly delivered to over 500 members of staff.

It’s also working with Yorkshire Ambulance Service and neighbouring fire and rescue services on everything from drones and operational learning, to buying cutting gear and fire kit.

The Policing & Crime Act 2017 placed a new statutory duty on all three emergency services to look at opportunities to work with one another better to improve efficiency and effectiveness.

The bulk of the collaborative work undertaken by SYFR both before and after the Act came into force involves South Yorkshire Police, although the fire service says it is also working closely with the ambulance service and other local fire and rescue services.

SYFR Deputy Chief Fire Officer Alex Johnson, said: “The benefits of collaboration with the police, ambulance and other fire services have always been about more than saving money. For us, it’s about delivering the best service we possibly can to the people we serve. Whilst we still believe each of the emergency services should retain their own unique skills, brand and specialisms, we want to show local people that we are serious about putting them first and providing them with the most efficient and most effective service possible.”

South Yorkshire Police’s Deputy Chief Constable Mark Roberts, said: “We welcome every opportunity to work with our blue light partners to achieve greater impact and realise efficiencies for the tax payer. Whilst it is essential we continue to focus on our specialist areas of work, there are areas in which we can collaborate to achieve a more effective and efficient service.”

Fire Authority Chair Cllr Robert Taylor, said: “It is fair to say that historically the individual services, other than at emergency incidents, have operated mainly in isolation. There are of course positive examples of previous joint-working but true collaboration has been resisted partially through the fear of a loss of individual identity. To some extent necessity has enabled services to look at collaboration  through fresh eyes and outside of the financial considerations there’s a realization that by working together, the services we offer to the public and the ways we function can be greatly improved.”

Dr Alan Billings, South Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner said: “The collaborative work between South Yorkshire’s Fire and Rescue Service and the Police precedes my time as Police and Crime Commissioner.  But I have sought to move that on at pace by chairing a joint collaboration board which has overseen much of that work. As a result I think we can demonstrate both greater effectiveness and greater efficiency, including cashable savings. It is not easy bringing two very different organisations together. They have different cultures and histories.  But we are showing that we can work well together if we put the interests of the people we seek to serve first.”

A new strategy outlining South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue’s approach to collaboration will be published next month.