Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) has been ranked as one of the “best performing services in the country” following a recent inspection. 

The service, which covers Stockport and Greater Manchester, was rated ‘good’ in 10 out of 11 different areas by inspectors. 

It marks a considerable improvement for GMFRS. Relatively recently, in 2018, only three out of those 11 inspection areas were rated ‘good’, and seven were rated ‘requires improvement’.

It means that, as well as being one of the top performing services across the board in this latest round of inspections, GMFRS can also claim to be the most improved.

The inspectors’ report praised the following: 

• Faster incident response times than national average
• Understanding of diverse risks of fire and other emergencies service
• Quality of fire safety work, including engagement with 8,419 businesses in 2022/23
• Improvement of different capabilities, including terror attack response
• Strength in culture and values, including a ‘culture first’ board and staff sounding panel

Stockport town centre's nearest GMFRS station is on King Street West, SK3 0DT (Image - Alasdair Perry)

Michelle Skeer, inspector of fire and rescue services, said she was ‘pleased’ with the performance of GMFRS.

“The service has improved how it targets and evaluates its fire prevention work and continues to provide an effective response to incidents”, Ms Skeer said. 

“The service has also successfully implemented its new terrorist response capability, ensuring that all stations and fire engines are now equipped and ready to respond to terrorist attacks.

“Overall, I commend the service on the changes it has made and expect it to continue working to resolve the further areas for improvement we have identified.”

Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham said he was ‘immensely proud’ of GMFRS.

“We know that the service of seven years ago has undergone fundamental change, and our Chief Fire Officer and his leadership team have relentlessly committed themselves to that mission”, he said. 

The news comes as plans were submitted for a new fire station on King Street West (Image - GMCA)

“This report is a testament to their work, and to the tireless efforts of everyone within GMFRS to keep our city-region safe and deliver a modern, professional, inclusive service.

“Dave [Russel, chief fire officer], his senior team, our firefighters and all of our support staff deserve every credit for the improvements they have driven. 

“With their leadership, and the support and hard work of staff right across the service, GMFRS has turned a corner – and they will have our full backing as they continue on that path to even greater success.”

Dave Russel himself said: “Whilst we are delighted with this report, we are by no means complacent, and we know that improvement is a continuous journey. 

“We will never rest on our laurels as a service, or shy away from defending our culture and values as we continue on that journey to ‘outstanding’. But today is a day when everyone in GMFRS can be proud of how far we’ve come together.”

~

Free from clickbait, pop-up ads and unwanted surveys, Stockport Nub News is a quality online newspaper for our town.

To get our top stories in your inbox each week, subscribe to our free weekly newsletter HERE.

Please consider following Stockport Nub News on Facebook or Twitter