ReciteMe Accessibility Tool

Appendix Three - Our Focus for 25/26

  • Maintain focus on our core Prevention, Protection and Response services
  • Invest in our people and improve our culture
  • Ensure the Service is fit for the future
  • Make every penny count

 

1. Maintain focus on our core Prevention, Protection and Response services

We exist to Prevent fires and emergencies, to Protect people and property by improving fire safety in the built environment and Responding to fires and emergencies promptly and effectively.

We will:

  • Continue work to prevent fires and emergencies, particularly fires in the home;
  • Reduce the risk and impact of fires in the built environment though a blend of education, engagement and enforcement supported by an effective, risk-based inspection and audit programme;
  • Strengthen the capability and resilience of Fire Control to improve response to emergencies;
  • Maximise availability of our emergency response assets

 

2. Invest in our people and improve our culture

Supporting our people to be happy and engaged in the workplace will enable them to be the best they can be so we can serve our communities better.  

We will:

  • Create more opportunities for senior leadership to listen to colleagues, act on their feedback, both formal and informal, and recognise their achievements;
  • Expand the opportunities available for colleagues to shape and influence our future plans;
  • Invest in training that improves the cultural awareness of colleagues and better equips them to tackle inappropriate behaviour;
  • Refresh our approach to handling grievances and misconduct at work;
  • Continue to develop how we assess, develop, and manage the performance of colleagues.

 

3. Ensure the Service is fit for the future

As Bedfordshire continues to rapidly grow and change, we will work to keep pace with the evolving risks and emerging demands on the fire and rescue service, now and in the future.

We will:

  • Undertake a refresh of our Community Risk Analysis and associated planning assumptions to take account of emerging and future risk and demand;
  • Present revised proposals for investing in our buildings, collaborating with our partners wherever possible, to meet current and future needs and reduce energy use;
  • Use the outcomes of the refreshed CRA to review wholetime firefighter and flexible duty officer duty systems to maximise efficiency and effectiveness;
  • Continue reviewing emergency response capabilities to maximise efficiency and effectiveness and keep pace with the evolving risk profile;
  • Explore opportunities to improve how we better share and utilise data with partners and deploy new technology, such as artificial intelligence, to improve public safety.

 

4. Make every penny count

Like many public services, our financial outlook is both challenging and uncertain, but we remain committed to delivering a fire and rescue service that provides value for money.

We will:  

  • Review and replace financial systems in 2026/27 to streamline ways of working and improve access to financial data and insight for budget managers;
  • Improve how we assess the productivity of frontline staff in line with our productivity and efficiency plan;
  • Explore opportunities to collaborate with partners to maintain or improve effectiveness and reduce costs;
  • Strengthen our internal governance processes and focus our limited resources on the most urgent risks and priorities and those which most positively impact our communities and colleagues;
  • Deliver a savings and efficiencies plan that balances the budget in the medium term (2026-27 to 2028/29);
  • Continue to lobby to secure a fair funding settlement for the fire and rescue service.