Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service rated good by inspectors

The service said the report was a testament to the hard work of employees

Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service has been rated as good by inspectors.

HM Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services carried out its first inspection in the county since 2019.

Roy Wilsher, HM Inspector of Fire and Rescue Services, said in a report he is "pleased with the performance of the service in keeping people safe".

He also said some training "should be more effectively monitored" and called for "further work" on helping staff.

In 2021 firefighters in the county went to 2,399 fires, with 2,493 false alarms and 1,663 "non-fire incidents".

Derbyshire has 0.66 firefighters per 100,000 residents, slightly more than the England average of 0.62, but only just over half (51.3%) are full-time, compared to 61.4% across the rest of the country.

The inspection report said the county "now has good and up-to-date risk information that it makes available to staff" and "is meeting its response standard to life-risk incidents", but recommended a review of availability of on-call fire engines.

It said Derbyshire had improved prevention work and resumed face-to-face safety checks since the Covid pandemic lessened, but said it "should make sure its work is making a difference to the people it visits" after finding "no evidence of quality assurance or review" of the procedures.

Inspectors identified "an effective process to monitor and assure commanders of operational incidents" as an area for improvement, as well as monitoring and reviewing technology and collaborations with police and other agencies.

Managers were advised to make annual fitness tests "consistently across the service" and to monitor staff working hours, with on-call staff reporting working more than their contracted hours.

Gavin Tomlinson, chief executive of Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service, said the report was "a testament to the hard work and dedication" of employees, adding the service is working on "already planned improvements".