ALCESTER will continue to receive night-time fire cover provided by a ‘Day Crewing Plus’ system following a consultation by Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service.

During a full council meeting held on Thursday, September 25, the introduction of the scheme at Stratford and Alcester fire stations was approved.

The new arrangement will now mean firefighters in the surrounding area will use a shift system to cover the evenings and Alcester fire station will be updated to provide the necessary facilities.

Warwickshire County Councillor Mike Gittus said: “I am pleased that we were able to identify a way to enable Alcester to continue its night cover, make savings and improve the service to the community. I would like to personally thank all those that contributed to this decision.

“Far from closing the station in Alcester, the county fire authority intends to invest further in the building, to enable the improvements to the service to take place.

“It’s always been clear to me that with Alcester continuing to expand, the removal of any part of the service from the town would have been foolish.”

In the chief fire officer Andy Hickmott's recommendation document, presented to the full council, Studley and Alcester residents' concerns were expressed.

Mark Cargill, Stratford-on-Avon District councillor and Alcester town councillor, said: “This shows how important consultation is, the residents fought for night cover for Alcester and that's just what they won.”

Sue Adams, Stratford-on-Avon District councillor and Alcester town councillor, added: “The residents of Alcester and the surrounding parishes were very concerned at the proposed loss of service from Alcester, so this is very good news.”

Andy Hickmott, Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Services chief fire officer, said:

“I am confident that the proposals approved today, provide the most effective way of providing value for money, whilst continuing to respond to the public when they need us the most.

“By rethinking how we operate and introducing new ways of working that reflect peak demand and new flexibilities around shift patterns, we are better equipped to deal with life threatening emergencies and make the people of Warwickshire safer. The plans will also ensure that our firefighters have the best equipment and are trained to help keep them safe.”

Les Caborn, Warwickshire County Council’s Portfolio Holder for Community Safety, said: “I am pleased that the changes proposed by the chief fire officer have been approved by the fire authority today. Our main focus now will be to look at how we implement these changes and the time-frames in which they will be achieved as we continue to keep our residents safe and assured.”

Richard Chattaway, chair of the communities overview and scrutiny committee, added:

“The future of Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service is of great importance to all fire authority members and the residents of our towns up and down the county. Communities Overview and Scrutiny will now closely monitor the impact of the changes approved.”

During the meeting, it was also agreed that fire engines will attend life-risk emergencies across the county within 10 minutes on 75 per cent of occasions, rather than the previous aim of 10 minutes for urban areas and 20 for rural areas.