Derbyshire Firefighters took further strike action yesterday morning due to the continued rows over pensions and retirement ages. This was a further strike to the ones which took place over the weekend - the busiest of the year for fireworks and bonfires! This latest strike lasted from 6am - 8am, during which time thankfully no emergencies were reported.
But further friction has been caused by a proposal to transform Derbyshire Fire & Rescue Services service delivery for 2022 and beyond - do you know what the proposal are and what they might mean for your saftey?
At a meeting of the Derbyshire Fire & Rescue Authority (DFRA) on Thursday 26 September 2013, a report was approved to consult with stakeholders on the following proposals to transform the service:
- The closure of 19 fire stations;- The opening of 8 new stations;- Relocation of three stations and introduction of two new RDS (retained duty system) stations;- Reduction of the number of wholetime stations to five, with seven wholetime crewed fire engines;- A Reduction in the number of RDS standalone stations from 19 to 15; This could result in the total number of stations reducing from 31 to 20.For those of us in the Heanor & Ripley area this would mean the closing of all four Fire Stations at Crich, Ripley, Heanor, Alfreton and creating a new station in Ripley that would cover all 4 areas. This will increase response times for Heanor to 10 minutes or more (and thats on a good day with no traffic) and will also reduce the number of Fire Engines from the current 5 across the 4 stations, to just 2 at the newly proposed station.
Consultations have been taking place at departments and stations throughout the Service, giving people the opportunity to talk to their Officers about the proposed changes.
Have Your Say
The second phase of the 12 week consultation began on 1 November with events being held at public venues across the county. Here are the next few dates:
7 November 2013: 9am onwards at Westfield Centre, Derby9 November 2013: 9:30am - 3pm at Ilkeston Market Place15 November 2013: 9am - 4pm at The Delph, SwadlincoteHmmm, none in Heanor or Ripley then!!!!
For those of you that do not want to see Heanor Fire Station close, a campaign has been set up named ‘Save Heanor Fire Station’ – for more information and to find out what you can do to show your support please visit the Facebook page.
You can also tell us what you think of these proposals - drop us a comment with your thoughts using the form below!
