North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service (NYFRS) has taken "significant steps" to resolve areas of concern raised in a  report which labelled it  "inadequate". 

His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS) said urgent improvements were needed following an inspection in January.

It highlighted two areas of particular concern. It said the service didn't have "robust processes" in place to become more efficient and effective and that it didn't have "adequate" workforce planning processes.

Areas such as safety-critical training, succession planning, absence and work-time management were singled out for criticism, after which NYFRS submitted an action plan to address the concerns.

Now, following a revist to the service in September, HMICFRS said that "considerable work" has been carried out and it considers that both causes of concern have been "resolved".

In a letter to the chief fire officer, Michelle Skeer from the HMICFRS said: "I am pleased to see the significant steps that the service has taken in response to the causes of concern we issued."

She added: "We recognise the considerable work carried out to support these improvements. As a result, we now consider both causes of concern to be resolved.

"We will, however, continue to monitor them during our scheduled inspection of the service in 2024 as part of our established inspection methodology."

Get the latest news, sports, and entertainment delivered straight to your device, click here

Chief Fire Officer Jonathan Dyson said he has been committed to making progress in trasforming the service since he was appointed in July 2022.

He said: "We welcome the independent scrutiny from HMICFRS and I am delighted that they have recognised our efforts and have removed the two causes of concern.

"A huge amount of work has gone into making these improvements and I would like to thank everyone from across the service, who have helped to deliver this progress.

"As a people centred and progressive service, we will continue to deliver improvements to ensure we are efficient and effective and delivering the best possible services to our communities."

North Yorkshire Police Fire and Crime Commissioner Zoë Metcalfe added: "Since the causes of concern were issued, I have sought regular assurance from the chief fire officer that necessary improvements were being made to address them.

"I am delighted that the Inspectorate has formally recognised the clear progress the service has made to address both causes of concern.

"This process clearly demonstrates the value of independent oversight of critical public services, and I would like to commend the chief fire officer and all those in the service who have worked so hard at pace, to provide an improved service to our communities."

A spokesperson for NYFRS said: "The new chief fire officer and his new leadership team have made significant progress to ensure that appropriate governance arrangements are in place around enabling services, alongside improving data to support improvements in workforce planning processes.

"The risk and resource model is being delivered, creating efficiencies to benefit the service and public."

An inspector from HMICFRS visited from September 4 to September 7 to review what progress had been made.

Read more

The inspector interviewed the staff who were responsible for developing the action plan, including the chief fire officer, as well as managers and staff with responsibility for assurance, service improvement and training.

Their letter adds: "The strengthened working relationships between the enabling services have helped to change the working culture and improve staff understanding of the benefits that the collaboration can provide.

"We saw evidence that showed the improvements made are sustainable and that they will continue to be monitored at a senior level."