Have your say on the proposed changes to Fire and Rescue services in North Yorkshire and York

North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Zoë Metcalfe, has launched a three-month consultation to listen the public’s views on proposed changes to fire and rescue services ahead of making her final decisions.

Commissioner Zoë is considering proposals for North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service’s new Risk and Resource Model 2022-2025, which sets out how the Service would seek to deploy its people, equipment, and resources. These proposals are based on an extensive risk assessment across North Yorkshire and York, which has identified the likelihood and severity of fires, road traffic collisions, water related incidents, and other emergencies.

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service has a balanced budget, so the proposed changes are not a way to cut costs, but instead are an opportunity to invest in vital areas identified by the public as priorities – such as improving the availability of on-call fire engines in our rural areas, and increasing prevention and protection work across the county and city.

With fire-related incidents making up a smaller proportion of what the Service responds to overall, the proposals include significantly increasing and improving prevention and protection work relating to fire, road and water safety to stop harm happening in the first place, managing response to low-risk automatic fire alarms, introducing a new specialist water rescue capability in Craven, and introducing emergency response principles that make it clearer what the public can expect when making an emergency call.

There are also three proposed changes specifically relating to Harrogate, Scarborough, and the York area.

In the Harrogate and Scarborough areas, there is higher demand for services during daytime hours than at night, and the proposed change of fire engine would offer increased ability to respond during daytime hours, as well as boost resilience more widely.

In York, there is currently more emergency response resource than the risk or demand requires. Huntington fire station is the least used in the area and so the proposal is to change the crewing at this station from full-time to On-call. This proposal would offer appropriate and safe cover for the community, while retaining capacity to carry out important prevention and protection work.

To gather the views of the public, Commissioner Zoë and her team are holding 12 events across North Yorkshire and the city to discuss the proposals, including in Huntington, Harrogate, and Scarborough where specific changes are being proposed. An online questionnaire will also be available to complete throughout the consultation period.

Commissioner Zoë said:

“It’s my job to set the direction of North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue service and therefore consider these proposals and make a decision. Before I do that, I want to know what the public think and I therefore encourage people to come along to one of my consultation events this summer to speak with myself or a member of my team, and to complete the online questionnaire.

“The role of a Fire and Rescue Service has changed and continues to change, with only 26% of our incidents last year relating to a fire emergency. We want to ensure we are addressing our current and future challenges and that we have the capacity to prevent and protect to stop incidents happening in the first place and prevent harm before it can take place, while also having the capacity to respond to emergencies when they do take place. We are confident these proposals would do that.

“Inevitably, there are some areas where the setup of the Service would change but I’m confident the right people, right equipment and the right support would continue to be available to everyone.”

Fire and Rescue personnel across North Yorkshire and York have been engaged by the Service on these proposals over the last two weeks and have been reassured that whilst some roles may be redeployed, everyone would remain employed and continue to fulfil what is needed to keep their community safe and feeling safe.

Jon Foster, Chief Fire Officer said:

“The Risk & Resource Model would support the transformation of our Fire and Rescue Service and enable a greater focus on prevention that is underlined by our assessment of community risk. It would also facilitate increased investment in our on-call service.”

Implementing these proposals would mean Commissioner Zoë could deliver another of the public’s key priorities from her Fire and Rescue Plan consultation – improving the availability of On-call fire engines. The proposals outlined would allow investment of over £1.5 million per year from 2025 to improve North Yorkshire and York On-call station availability.

Further information on the proposals, details on local consultation events and a link to complete the questionnaire can be found on the Commissioner’s website: www.tellcommissionerzoe.co.uk

The Annual Parish Meeting for Staveley and copgrove will take place on Tuesday 17th May at 6.45pm in the Village Hall.

The Annual Parish Meeting is open to all Parishioners to attend.

The agenda is as follows:

• Welcome, introduction and housekeeping by the Chair

• Report on achievements and actions of the Parish Council during the last year 2021-2022

• Contributions/reports from individuals/groups

• Date of next Annual meeting:

If you are a local community group and would like to contribute a report to the meeting please contact the Clerk with your report as soon as possible.

Below is an article written in response to the release of the White Paper. This was written by a contributor to the Rural Network Services Bulletin. It was also published in the Local Government First periodical this week.

Will ‘levelling up’ deliver for rural areas?

26 April 2022 

Councillor Cecilia Motley

Councillor Cecilia Motley is Chair of the Rural Services Network

Launched with a flurry of grand statements, the ‘Levelling up the UK’ White Paper promised to ‘break the link between geography and destiny, so that no matter where you live you have access to the same opportunities’.

Rural areas in England have long suffered from historical underfunding by successive governments. Rural councils will receive some 37 per cent (£105) per head less in Settlement Funding Assessment than their urban counterparts in 2022/23.

As a result, council tax in rural areas has increased steadily to help balance budgets, with rural residents paying, on average, 21 per cent (£104) per head more than those in urban areas.

Everyone can support the White Paper’s four headline aims: to boost productivity, spread opportunity, restore a sense of pride and belonging, and empower local leaders and communities. It’s how these will be delivered and monitored in a rural context that is missing.  

Productivity in rural areas is 83 per cent of that for England as a whole, with predominantly rural areas accounting for 22 per cent of the population, but contributing around 15 per cent economically. 

The high cost of housing in rural areas, combined with lower average wages and the significantly higher fuel-poverty gap in which many rural households find themselves, has created a perfect storm for the current cost-of-living crisis. 

“Funding to meet change on the scale envisaged is not set out clearly”

Funds available as part of the levelling up agenda should assess the standards of living achievable in different locations given local labour market conditions, to distribute funding to those areas in need.  

The measures and metrics in the White Paper need to be available at a suitably micro level to enable the pockets of deprivation in rural areas to be acknowledged with support targeted appropriately. 

Using county or regional averages often masks smaller clusters, which are either ignored or left behind in any policy interventions. The Government must acknowledge the differentials within rural areas that need to be addressed.

The White Paper is light on details regarding which bodies will be charged with delivery. Local government will clearly have a key role to play, but additional funding to meet change on the scale envisaged is not set out clearly, nor is the current funding gap addressed.

While we welcome the focus on digital connectivity and improved mobile connectivity, this is almost the only place in the whole document that makes substantive reference to rural areas. 

Unfortunately, there is a long history of broken promises in relation to access to high-quality broadband for rural areas.  

There is real concern that the Government could achieve many of its 12 missions set out in the White Paper without addressing the pressing challenges that rural communities face around the increased cost of service delivery, productivity, wage levels, the ageing demographic, access to skills, training and transport, and a social care sector on its knees.

Can the White Paper deliver levelling up for rural areas? It can, but it needs to measure the current status quo at the right level, and introduce targeted interventions, delivered locally, that meet rural challenges and enable our rural areas to achieve their full potential. Unless such efforts are made, the verdict on the levelling up White Paper from the rural perspective will be ‘could do better’. This would be a serious lost opportunity to transform rural services.

Author

 Councillor Cecilia Motley

Introducing the Anne Robson Helpline – if you or someone close to you is dying, you can talk to someone.

At the Anne Robson Trust we aim to be there to listen to anyone who faces dying or the imminent death of someone they care about.  We know that facing the end of life can leave you feeling isolated and alone.

Being able to access support is so important. Gaining knowledge of what may happen towards the end of life and being prepared helps both the person dying and their loved ones to feel a sense of control.

Calls are free and confidential. Call us on 0808 801 0688 – we have time to talk

Please visitwww.annerobsontrust.org.uk/helpline-service to find out more.

‘Men care too’

This new Carers’ Resource project will offer additional group support to male carers, over and above existing services, to provide a inclusive and beneficial range of activities for male carers.

New activity groups will begin this spring and summer, including allotment groups, fishing trips, walking groups and supper clubs.

There will also be an online group for the Harrogate area, providing group support to male carers. A male carers’ forum will meet regularly, and a number of trips away are also planned.

Carers’ Resource will also be producing specific information resources for male carers, including information on men’s physical and mental health.

To join the ‘Men Care Too’ project or for more info, call 0808 501 5939 or email mencare2@carersresource.org  

Community cycling group for health and well-being

A community cycling support group – everyone is welcome and the group is ideal for those who are new to cycling – maybe you’re feeling a bit stressed out, or you’re going through some tough times right now. Fresh air, a fresh perspective on life, supportive friendships, cafe stop, a sense of pride and endorphins thrown in for free!
 
Sunday Afternoon Rides have now started every Sunday at 1.30pm until October. Free rides and free bikes to loan, great for beginners.  

 17th May 2022 at 6.45pm

 in the Village Hall

You are invited to attend The Annual Parish Meeting for Staveley and Copgrove.

This Parish meeting is open to all to share views, news and celebrations relating to the Village of Staveley and of Copgrove that will help inform the work of the PC throughout the forthcoming year.

Representatives from local groups/organisations are invited to share a short report about their community activities, if they wish.

Likewise, if you are an individual passionate about the village and local area, this is a chance to voice positive ideas that may help the Parish Council to improve it still more. 

Please contact Liz at clerk@staveleyandcopgrovepc.org.uk if you would like to attend by 2^nd May 2022.

You must also provide a brief written report of your intended contribution, to add it to the draft agenda, below.

Agenda (Draft)

Welcome and housekeeping by the Chair of the PC

Presentation of achievements and actions of Parish Council during the past year (2021-2022)

Contributions and reports from public: groups/individuals

Date of next Annual meeting

We welcome all visitors to Staveley and are happy to see our reserve being used by many for quiet enjoyment, wildlife watching and exercise.

We do allow dogs on site, but ask that they remain on a lead at all times. There are no exceptions to this rule, and it is in place for the benefit and protection of wildlife, our livestock, and for other users of the site. There are public rights of way across the reserve where the official guidelines are that your dog should be “under close control” – this means they should not be straying from the paths and should remain within your reach at all times. The other paths around the reserve are permissive only, and are kept open by Yorkshire Wildlife Trust for everyone’s enjoyment and access, dogs must be on a short lead at all times. This is especially important at this time of year where many species are nesting, we trust that all visitors to the reserve will adhere to these rules and please do get in touch if you require any further information or explanation.

Many Thanks, Laura Harman, Reserve Manager.”

Could you help the Independent Advisory Group by volunteering your time?

Please see the leaflet we have received for all of the details.

Notice has been received of the uncontested election of the Councillors for the Parish Council by Harrogate Borough Council.

In Staveley there are three Councillors elected: Nigel Bowland, David Greenwood and John Thornton.

In Copgrove there is one Councillor elected: Peter Edwards

The Parish Council is quorate but is in need of co-opted Councillors. If you are interested in supporting the Parish Council please contact one of the Councillors or the Clerk for more information.