Minister for Policing and the Fire Service has awarded £1 million from
the Police Transformation Fund to 9 police and crime
commissioners (PCCs) for their work in
developing proposals to take on the additional responsibility for
the governance of fire and rescue in their area.
The proposals are expected to bring about a fundamental shift to
the way police and fire services work together, including sharing
estates or back office functions. It follows a police-led process
which saw funding recommendations made by the Police Reform and
Transformation Board.
The PCCs who will
receive funds are Sussex, West Mercia, Essex, Cambridgeshire,
Northamptonshire, Hertfordshire, Gloucestershire, Staffordshire
and North Yorkshire.
Minister for Policing and the Fire Service said:
Further collaboration between the 2 services presents a real
opportunity to increase their efficiency and effectiveness –
that’s good for the public as whole.
PCCs taking on
responsibility for fire and rescue services will lead to the
same level of public accountability for both services. I am
pleased to support those PCCs who are
developing proposals to take on governance of local fire and
rescue services.
The new provisions in the Policing and Crime Act 2017
enable PCCs to take on
responsibility for the governance of local fire and rescue
services where a local case is made. It brings the same direct
accountability to fire as is already in place with policing and
allows PCCs to drive
reform, maximize the benefits of collaboration and ensure best
practice is shared.
Several PCCs are developing
proposals to take on governance of local fire and rescue services
as the earliest adopters of the new governance provisions.
Further PCCs are expected to
bring forward proposals soon and the funding award will ensure
that the work and knowledge gained is properly disseminated
amongst the policing community.
Set up as part of the spending review in 2015, the fund, which is
police-led through the Police Reform and Transformation Board, is
designed to allocate extra investment to continue the job of
reform and shape policing for the future. PCCs and chief
constable representatives sit on the board alongside senior
leaders in policing, with the final decisions on bids made by the
Home Secretary.
