Enfield and Haringey residents have been urged to have their say over changes to their fire service. Local London Assembly Member Joanne McCartney AM made the call after the London Fire Brigade launched a consultation over proposals to meet £6.4m of budget cuts demanded by the Mayor. Local people are able to choose from two options, one which will see the permanent removal of 13 fire engines, and the other which will focus on back office efficiencies, allowing the 13 engines to be returned. A public meeting to discuss the future of fire services in the North West area, including Enfield and Haringey, will take place on 11th January.
Proposals set out in London Fire Brigade’s consultation include plans to permanently axe 13 fire engines, which could potentially see the removal of an engine at Hornsey station in Haringey. However, Ms McCartney warned that cutting more fire engines could exacerbate a recent rise in response times across the capital. 10 wards in Enfield and 6 wards in Haringey saw a rise in response times in 2014/15, when compared with the previous year, before Boris Johnson’s closure of 10 fire stations and scrapping of 14 engines.
Alternative proposals set out by Andrew Dismore AM, Chair of the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority’s Resource Committee, would meet the savings target through back office efficiencies and changing working patterns, enabling the 13 engines to be returned.
A public meeting to discuss both proposals and their impact for North West area, including Enfield and Haringey, will take place at Conference Hall, Brent Civic Centre, Engineers Way, Wembley, London, HA9 0FJ at 7pm on 11th January 2016.
Local London Assembly Member, Joanne McCartney AM, said:
“With our fire services facing uncertain times, and response times already rising significantly in Enfield and Haringey, it’s important that local people have their say over the future of London’s fire service.
“The Mayor’s cuts mean that there are very tough decisions ahead. If you take fire engines out of service then of course response times could rise and lives could be put at risk. Nobody wants to see that happen. With frontline services at stake, it hugely important that local people are given the opportunity to make their views known.”
Notes to editors
Notes
- Average response times across the capital for the first appliance has gone up from 05.19 in 2012/13 to 05.32 in 2014/15, an increase of 13 secs. The second appliance has gone up from 06.29 in 2012/13 to 06.54 in 2014/15 an increase of 25 secs. A borough breakdown of the response times is available here whilst a full ward-level analysis of response times is available here.
- The London Fire Brigade has launched a consultation to find £6.4m of savings for 2016/17. There are two options, Option A and Option B. Option A, put forward by Andrew Dismore AM, recommends the return of the 13 fire engines and making savings by establishing alternate crewing for some special appliances. Option B would see the permanent removal of the 13 fire engines.
- A public meeting to discuss both proposals and their impact for North West area, including Enfield and Haringey, will take place at Conference Hall, Brent Civic Centre, Engineers Way, Wembley, London, HA9 0FJ at 7pm on 11th January 2016.
- The two lists of options prepared by the LFB for Boris Johnson on removing 13 fire engines from London stations are available here:
- In January 2014 the Mayor closed 10 fire stations and axed 14 fire engines
- Joanne McCartney AM is the London Assembly Member for Enfield and Haringey.