NOT PROTECTIVELY MARKED. A new combined fire authority for Dorset and Wiltshire

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1 A new combined fire authority for Dorset and Wiltshire Transformational funding bid 2014

2 Foreword Dorset Fire Authority and Wiltshire & Swindon Fire Authority are both facing significant financial challenges. We both receive very low levels of grant from the Government and are among the lowest spending in England with over 60% of our frontline staff being made up of on-call firefighters. We have already made substantial changes to the way we deliver our lifesaving services. Further cuts to back-office costs alone will not deal with the future budget situation. Major change to both services is now needed to avoid large-scale reductions in firefighters and fire service staff working to keep our communities safe. After looking at a number of options, we strongly believe the best way forward is to combine our two organisations and work more closely with local authorities, the police and other public services. By doing this we can save in the region of 40 million over a 10 year period, without affecting existing emergency response times. We will also be able to maintain and, in some areas, strengthen the important work we do with our blue light and local authority partners in preventing emergency incidents and supporting vulnerable people who so desperately need our help. Our bid provides an exciting opportunity to show real public sector reform at work. This joint bid is fundamental to the success of our future combination. We believe that by supporting our proposal it will provide a tangible national demonstration towards both transforming fire and rescue services and making a considerable positive contribution to national finances. This is an exciting time for us all. We hope that through this bid there will be a fruitful partnership opportunity to enable us to realise our vision of being a safe, strong and sustainable fire and rescue service now and in the future. 1 P a g e (Left to right) Darran Gunter, CFO. Dorset FRS Cllr. Rebecca Knox, Chairman, Dorset Fire Authority Cllr. Graham Payne, Chairman, Wiltshire and Swindon Fire Authority Simon Routh-Jones, CFO Wiltshire FRS

3 Executive summary Where fire and rescue authorities can provide business cases for local merger, showing clear, achievable efficiencies, I do think central government should step forward to provide financial support (Source: Facing the future: findings from the review of efficiencies & operations in fire and rescue authorities in England April 2013, p74) In addition to the above finding, Sir Ken Knight as author of the report also stated that the levels of futures savings necessary will not be found by individual fire and rescue services acting alone. Over the last 12 months the Dorset Fire Authority and the Wiltshire and Swindon Fire Authority have been working closely together. Since December 2013 a period of due diligence has been undertaken to develop a business case for a potential new combined fire authority. The final business case will be considered in September This bid is critical in terms of covering necessary transition costs for the combination and also as a signal to the courage both authorities are demonstrating. We also believe the combination will improve the viability of the organisation to work more effectively with local authorities and blue light partners. With a transformational grant of less than 6million we believe we can gain in the region of 4 million of savings each year which would provide a total of up to 40 million over a ten year period. In addition to protecting front line services (where over 80% of our operational appliances are crewed by oncall staff) this combination will also serve as a vanguard for others who wish to follow. The main benefits Savings over 10 years will be up to 40 million, for an initial investment of less than 6 million. Significant cuts to response services can be avoided and prevention and protection services strengthened by the combination. An additional 20,000 young people per year to benefit from visiting the Streetwise safety centre An additional 13,000 home safety checks delivered in vulnerable homes A more sustainable fire and rescue service to work with local authority and blue light partners 2 P a g e

4 Our vision A Safe, Strong and Sustainable Fire and Rescue Service The main focus of the potential combination is of course to assist the new authority to be more financially sustainable; however, this unique opportunity allows us to do more than just focus on balancing the books. We believe through our combination and transformation programme we can reposition both our support and frontline services and not just sustain but improve the safety and strength of our new organisation and indeed the communities we serve. Creating a new Authority and fire and rescue service that is safe, strong and sustainable is at the heart of our transformation: SAFE By maximising our saving opportunities current response standards will be maintained. The number of home safety checks across Dorset and Wiltshire will rise from 15,000 to 28,000 by The amount of work that we do with private landlords and those that own and manage factories, shops and other commercial buildings will be increased across Dorset and Wiltshire By investing in a Streetwise safety centre in Wiltshire a further 20,000 young people will be able to learn about home and road safety We will be able to continue and build upon our work with partners helping with troubled families and young people who need support to make better life choices and to reduce antisocial behaviour and help them get a job The main benefits Maximising savings opportunities will allow current response standards to be maintained. The nationally acclaimed Streetwise safety centre concept in Bournemouth will be extended to cover Wiltshire and Swindon. This will deliver over 20,000 additional educational visits for young people. Home safety checks increased across Dorset and Wiltshire to 28,000 by P a g e

5 STRONG SUSTAINABLE By protecting front line services, we will be a stronger partner for local authorities, police, ambulance and other agencies. We will be able to build on our unique community standing and presence in local communities to work in a joined up way to make people safer from fires and other incidents such as flooding We will be a larger and much more influential organisation with a stronger voice for Dorset and Wiltshire We will be able to find in the region of 4 million savings per year without adversely affecting our response arrangements As an organisation we will be more sustainable with stronger and more resilient support departments Our larger size will help us improve our economies of scale giving us better buying power We will have more options available to us to meet any remaining financial shortfalls and they will potentially be less damaging. The main benefits Be a stronger partner for local authorities, police, ambulance and other agencies. Build on our unique standing within local communities. Savings in the region of 4 million each year. Improve organisational resilience. Improved economies of scale giving better buying power. There will be more options available to meet any remaining financial shortfalls. 4 P a g e

6 Bid proposal Our bid has been developed to ensure that our vision becomes a reality. Government support for the following three key elements in our bid will be fundamental in helping the timely and smooth transition to a new Combined Fire Authority (CFA). They are: 5 P a g e Further strengthening the focus on prevention by extending the unique and award winning education facilities of Streetwise to the communities of Wiltshire and Swindon and creating a multi-agency strategic hub in a central geographical location that provides easy access for partners Harmonising our ICT infrastructure to assist in addressing the challenges of being a large and predominantly rural Fire and Rescue Service Driving transition towards a new Combined Fire Authority STREETWISE SAFETY CENTRE AND MULTI-AGENCY STRATEGIC HUB With Government support we will be able to extend the nationally acclaimed safety centre operating in Bournemouth to cover Wiltshire and Swindon. Currently 20,000 young people visit the centre each The main benefits The nationally acclaimed Streetwise safety in Bournemouth will be extended to cover Wiltshire and Swindon. This will deliver over 20,000 additional educational visits for young people to allow them to make good life choices and stay safe.

7 year. Young people can learn in a safe and controlled environment and become aware of potential everyday dangers and reduce the chance of accidents happening. Communities in Wiltshire and Swindon would then have a significant resource that would allow an additional 20,000 young people to benefit from a proven experience that is not currently available to them. The on-going costs will be met by partners and the Safewise charity; all partners are supportive of this bid (See Appendix A for artist impression). EVALUATION Evaluation of the impact that the Streetwise experience has on children is a key part of its success. This is undertaken in a number of ways including; Children s knowledge is measured in a safety quiz before, after and as a follow-up session later in the school year. Qualitative evaluation is determined by considering the written comments made during the evaluation process. University evaluation has been undertaken by researchers from Oxford University and Oxford Brookes University on the Bristol safety centre that operates on a similar basis to Streetwise. Real life experiences are used when this becomes available. As an example, the table indicates how two year 2 groups knowledge improved on railway safety following their visit. The main benefits University research has found that both 3 and 12 months after visits children were more knowledgeable and performed better on all tests and were rated as more confident in dealing with emergencies than children who hadn t attended. The mum of a 6 year old boy who had visited Streetwise had a fire in the kitchen and the boy was able to calmly tell his mum how to deal with it. An 11 year old boy was approached by a stranger near his home, remembering what he had been taught he went straight home and mum called the police. 6 P a g e

8 Dorset and Wiltshire are both counties with large rural areas. Although there are some faster journey times, road and rail links are often difficult. To improve the efficiency of the new Authority, and as an integral part of the safety centre site, we want to construct a small building that can: Host key teams and personnel central to leadership and coordination of the new authority and service. This also includes providing a strategic geographical base for operational cover Break down geographical boundaries to aid partnership working with local authorities and blue light partners Fulfil the requirements of a Strategic Coordination Centre for single or collective Local Resilience Forum use between the current Police Forces of Dorset and Wiltshire. This facility would also be available to wider Category 1 partners and the Resilience and Emergencies Division. The main benefits The multi-agency strategic hub will host key teams and personnel central to leadership and coordination of the new authority and service. Provide a strategic geographical base for operational cover to minimise officer response times. Break down geographical boundaries to aid partnership working with local authorities and blue-light partners. Fulfil the requirements of a Strategic Coordination Centre for single or collective Local Resilience Forum use or by wider Category1 responders and RED. 7 P a g e

9 HARMONISING OUR ICT INFRASTRUCTURE We want to ensure that our staff in the new fire and rescue service can maximise the use of technology to reduce unnecessary processes, use single systems and avoid unnecessary travel time and costs. Harmonising our ICT infrastructure to assist in addressing the challenges of being a large and predominantly rural Fire and Rescue Service will be a critical and fundamental platform for the efficient operation of the new fire and rescue service. We will also use ICT harmonisation as a key enabler to further engage the communities of Dorset and Wiltshire and key partners such as the blue light agencies and local authorities to support our vision of being a safe, strong and sustainable organisation. Like all large scale change programmes, ICT is often an area that causes a great deal of delay and increased costs. For this reason we firmly believe that it would be better to concentrate on getting the broad infrastructure harmonised to allow the new fire and rescue service to operate at maximum efficiency. Our software systems can then be migrated in a controlled, prioritised and closely managed way. An independent assessment has been undertaken of our infrastructure (i.e. network, servers and specialist software) and the user systems. This has identified the following key investment areas: The main benefits Ensure that our staff can maximise the use of technology to reduce unnecessary processes, use single system and avoid unnecessary travel time and costs Harmonising our ICT infrastructure to assist in addressing the challenges of being a large and predominantly rural Fire and Rescue Service Use ICT harmonisation as a key enabler to further engage the communities of Dorset and Wiltshire and key partners such as the blue light agencies and local authorities. Join together the current networks and ensure that efficiency is maximised. Configure the data centres to provide resilience. Harmonise our servers and their software management. 8 P a g e

10 Harmonise security and patch management. Merge existing active directory domains. Bring together and maximise our voice integration capability Harmonise our station end to improve resilience and provide more efficient technical support Create a new intranet and document management system to allow improved joint working Install new video conferencing and improve the use of mobile technologies to support its wider use DRIVING TRANSFORMATION TOWARDS A NEW CFA Public sector reform is fundamental if the national deficit is to be tackled. Government have not been prescriptive in how this should be achieved. Although there are many configurations, there are few examples where a fire to fire combination has been successfully applied. However, there are many advantages to a fire to fire combination that include: Ability to maximise savings by avoiding significant duplication of specialist fire expenditure including senior officers. Our business case demonstrates that a fire to fire combination yields more than twice the savings from any other integration with a single partner Improved procurement opportunities and buying power by being a larger and more influential customer. By combining our two services, the number and size of CFAs in the south west will mean similar size, scale and ambition will exist. Less directing minds will also improve the ability to better standardise and align our forward procurement plans to give us regional size buying power whilst still maintaining local identity. The main benefits An opportunity to demonstrate at a local and national level that fire to fire combinations can and should happen to protect frontline services An opportunity to show how local accountability and community engagement can be strengthened Creating a template for change to help share best practice and learning 9 P a g e

11 Generating greater savings and efficiencies in a less complex and quicker way. Complex mergers and integration with other agencies with differing legal requirements, differing ministerial priorities and reporting lines and differing technological challenges can mean that change is higher risk, slower and less financially focused as a result of a lack of integrated technologies and differing ways of working across sectors that often have their own legal or ministerial reporting lines. Change that is less prone to technical failures. By working with two similar organisations with the same legal and specialist requirements means that change is more readily understood and risks managed more effectively. Efficient legal and political arrangements for politically overseeing the new fire and rescue service. Although shared services can work they often lead to inefficient use of senior managers who are constantly seeking to avoid policy differences that lead to complex accounting and recharging. requirements The opportunity to put in place new democratic arrangements that strengthen local accountability and scrutiny. This will help to further engage local people and partners in acheiving better outcomes for local communities Officials in DCLG have been impressed with the progress that has been made between our two Authorities. There is a unique opportunity for Government to help develop and support a proof of concept that will act as a beacon within the fire sector. Working with government officials, our process may also be used and published as a template for change for others in a similar position. The final element of our bid is therefore associated with; Programme costs to make the change a reality The development of a practical guide The development of new and innovative performance and scrutiny arrangements to strengthen local accountability and local partnership working 10 P a g e

12 Financial Costs Element of the Bid Cost Streetwise safety centre & multi-agency strategic hub Land costs 800,000 Construction costs Streetwise safety centre 696,000 Construction costs Multi-agency Strategic Hub 1,050,000 Site works; car parking 139,000 Site works; infrastructure 360,000 Preliminaries 12% 270,000 Contract contingencies 3% 76,000 Price and design reserve 10% 260,000 Main contractors overheads and profit 6% 172,000 Inflation (assumption start date 4 th quarter 2015) 207,000 Project management costs (11% of build costs) 355,300 ICT requirements, fixture fittings and equipment 164,500 Design and build of Streetwise scenarios 100,000 Match funding via from Wiltshire and Dorset ( 1,000,000) Total 3,649,800 Harmonising our ICT infrastructure Integration of networks 173,000 Harmonising active directory services 27,200 Data centres and storage harmonisation 486,000 Harmonising security management 77,500 Voice integration 149,000 Intranet and document management 250,000 Standardising station end 117,000 Application delivery harmonisation 53,000 Standardising patch management 30,000 Network monitoring and video conferencing 49,000 Total 1,411,700 Driving the transition to the new CFA (2015/16 costs) Programme administrator 22,900 HR specialist 51,000 ICT specialist 51,000 Finance accountant 37,800 Communications officer 47,400 Specialist advice e.g. legal and procurement 50,000 Change Manager x 2 144,200 Project Managers GM and Grade ,800 Total 517,100 Total cost of all element of the bid 5,578, P a g e

13 Financial benefits FINANCIAL ANALYSIS The due diligence process has identified that the combination would find savings in the region of 4 million each year. These savings arise from reducing duplication in management and support areas; changing the way we do things and from other corporate savings. A summary of the estimated total savings is set out as follows: Savings Dorset & Indicative new Likely Mid- Likely Upper- Wiltshire Authority costs point savings point savings baseline costs Senior management 1,215, , , ,500 FDS/Technical Management Support 8,644,700 6,319,800 2,324,800 2,673,600 Corporate 15,776,900 14,804, ,800 1,118,700 departments Other corporate savings 940, ,500 83,100 95,500 Total 26,577,200 22,846,400 3,730,700 4,290, P a g e

14 Non-financial benefits Strengthening local action through improved multi-agency working We are already working to create more multi-agency offices on our fire stations for our partners such as the police, ambulance and local council officers. We want to do more with this. Our intention is to be able to provide renewed access to community meeting and information facilities. We will also ensure that these systems are integrated with our partners where this is possible, to provide consistent local risk information. Local people can then be engaged and empowered to deliver local solutions, with the fire and rescue service playing a central facilitating role. We both enjoy excellent relations with our partners. We work with a wide variety of bodies in the public, private and voluntary sector to deliver our protection, prevention and response services. It is essential to us that we continue to do this and Government support through the transformational funding bid will allow us to ensure there is no loss of momentum in this vital area. Prevention We have very extensive programmes of work to help keep communities safe. The combination will allow us to maximise savings and also protect those resources we need to continue the great work we do with our local authority and blue-lights partners. The main benefits Renewed access to community meeting and information facilities Increase home safety checks to 28,000 by Our target will be to reduce accidental dwelling fires by 10% from the 2013/14 baseline by We will increase the number of Fire Safety inspections hours by at least 2,000 by Our target - reduce significant fire in commercial premises by 10% from the 2013/14 baseline by Protection We work extensively with local businesses, shops, factories and private landlords to help make these building and the people who visit and work in them are as safe as possible. By becoming a larger organisation we will be able to improve our efficiency; this will help us deliver more fire safety activity and to support our partners in a better way. 13 P a g e

15 Response We have a wide range of partners that support the planning, management and recovery associated with emergency incidents. We work extensively with our Local Resilience Forums in planning major incidents and where necessary establish strategic command groups where agencies need to respond in a very coordinated way. These relations must and will continue under this proposal. Financial savings estimate achieved by target reduction in fires By targeting savings through rationalising senior officer posts, support departments and corporate costs the new Authority will be able to improve arrangements for delivering prevention, protection and education events. As a result challenging targets will be set for reducing domestic and commercial fires across Dorset and Wiltshire. The intention will be to; Reduce accidental dwelling fires by 10% from the 2013/14 baseline by 2018 Reduce significant fire in non-domestic premises by 10% from the 2013/14 baseline by If these targets are reached, this will see a reduction in domestic fires of approximately 80; and a reduction in significant non-domestic fires of 10 (over 5 square meters). Using aggregate figures from the economic cost of fire; estimates for 2008, Fire Research report 3/2011 (Department for Communities and Local Government) this would avoid incurring additional societal costs of 4,766,420. Avoided societal costs Average cost of fire in a domestic building 49,862 3,988,960 Average cost of a fire in a commercial building 77, ,460 Total 4,766, P a g e

16 Alignment to bid criteria This bid for transformational funding has been assessed against all of the policy objectives and we feel that we have provided very strong evidence that the bid meets the criteria in the following areas; Policy objective No Yes Encouraging greater collaboration with other emergency services Improving local accountability Increasing on-call arrangements/ promoting asset transformation/ other efficiencies Increasing on-call arrangements (Dorset & Wiltshire already crew over 80% of front line appliances using on call staff) Promoting asset transformation/ other efficiencies Prioritising prevention and protection CONCLUSION The potential combination of the Dorset and Wiltshire and Swindon Fire Authorities provides a unique opportunity to demonstrate spectacular transformation both in terms of the savings available to the new Authority ( 40 million over a 10 year period) and the strengthening of services to our communities. Transformational funding will be crucial in allowing us to undertake the efficient transition. Our vision is about tomorrow and specifically for our new Authority and the service s we will deliver to be Safe, Strong and Sustainable. 15 P a g e

17 Appendix A Streetwise and Multi-agency strategic hub - artist s impressions 16 P a g e

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