The Chief Fire Officers Association

Publicity Line

CFOA is adamant that there is a role for a central training and development
institution in the sector and this should be the Fire Service College.  The facilities for operational training at the Fire Service College are both unique and enviable, and should be maintained as a national asset to support local authority Fire & Rescue Services in delivering the Governments’ commitment to the Critical National Infrastructure agenda.

England

Wales

Scotland

Northern Ireland

• The future funding model for the FSC should be addressed as a matter of urgency, along side providing clarity for financial and governance arrangements.

• National functions relating to operational training and development and particularly Strategic Leadership Programmes, should be located at the FSC.

• CFOA believe the FSC is one of the key institutions to support the delivery of national functions and therefore it is imperative that its relationship with other national institutions should be clear and defined.

• The FSC should be a centre of technical and professional excellence in all aspects of operational training  including incident command.

• The Fire & Rescue Service is a key partner in delivering the Governments' Critical National Infrastructure working alongside other emergency services and agencies.  The FSC should be supported by central Government to develop and deliver inter-agency incident command training.

• The governance of the FSC should reflect local and national government interests and future intentions.

• CFOA believes the pursuit of technical and professional excellence in HR training and good practice should transcend national boundaries and that the FSC should have clear and close relationships with the training and development institutions of devolved administrations.

• The FSC should be a conduit for sharing good practice in all aspects of operational training including incident command with the relevant HR group established in each region and devolved administration.

• CFOA believe the Government should provide an unequivocal assurance on the future of the FSC to ensure there is a consistent approach to the strategic delivery of operational training and incident command.

• The FSC should receive central support to maintain the existing operational facilities at the FSC and be provided with sufficient investment to develop training facilities to meet the increasing and growing operational response demands placed upon local authority Fire and Rescue Services.