Cumbria County Council’s cabinet will be asked to approve changes to a multi-million pound fire station investment programme when they meet in the New Year (8 January).
Cumbria Fire & Rescue Service has already received preliminary backing from the government to replace ageing stations in the north and west of the county through an £11 million private finance initiative (PFI).
Planning permission has been secured to replace the flood-hit station at Rickergate in Carlisle with two new city centre sites and build new stations at Workington, Penrith and Patterdale.
Fire bosses had also wanted to build a new station in Whitehaven and secured planning permission on the town’s only suitable vacant site at Meadow Road earlier this year.
Since then, the Environment Agency has reviewed its flood-risk assessment of the site, moving it from the lowest possible category (Zone 1 –little or no risk) to the highest (Zone 3 –high risk).
The reclassification makes it too expensive to build a new station on Meadow Road and councillors will be asked to remove Whitehaven from the PFI project.
In the meantime, The Fire and Rescue Service will continue to work with Copeland Borough Council to try and identify a suitable site for possible development in the future.
In addition to the Whitehaven change, councillors will also be asked to approve relocating the county council's emergency planning unit from its current home in Carlisle Castle to a new purpose-built building in Penrith.
The new building, at Kemplay Bank roundabout, will also be used to house Penrith fire station and the Fire and Rescue Service training centre - both currently based on the town’s Bridge Lane.
Kemplay Bank’s proximity to the M6, A6 and A66 would help improve the time it takes firefighters to respond to fires and other emergencies.
It could also be used by the council's emergency planners to create a new multi-agency control centre to help coordinate the county's response to major incidents.
Cumbria currently has three multi-agency control centres for use in major emergencies: Summergrove in Whitehaven, the Civic Centre in Carlisle, and Barrow fire station. A fourth in Penrith would improve the county's resilience and provide more options in the event of a major incident.
Fire chiefs have decided not to recommend relocating the service’s Cockermouth headquarters to Penrith at this time. Instead, the future of the Cockermouth building will be considered as part of the council’s countywide property review over the coming years.
Councillors will get the final say on the future use of the building which is due to see its compliment of 50 staff almost halved in 2011 when Cumbria's fire control room functions transfer to a new regional control centre in Warrington as part of a Government initiative.
Councillor Gary Strong, cabinet member responsible for Cumbria Fire & Rescue Service, said: "Moving our emergency planning unit to a new building in Penrith will improve the county council’s capability when responding to major incidents.
"As well as offering improved transport links, the site also provides an opportunity to improve the county's emergency resilience through the creation of a new multi-agency control centre.
"Relocating the town's fire station to the same building will also improve the time it takes firefighters to respond to incidents and get across important messages on accident and fire prevention."
Councillor Strong continued: "We are naturally disappointed that the increased flood-risk at Whitehaven means we cannot proceed with plans to build a new station there under this current scheme.
"If other suitable sites become available, we will assess then whether other sources of investment are available to fund the construction of a new station.
"In the meantime, the town will see no change in the level of emergency response it currently receives.
"Over the coming months, we will also be putting even more emphasis on preventing many fires in the town from happening in the first place through an increase in the number of free smoke detectors and home safety checks we provide."
ENDS
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Notes
Cumbria County Council's emergency planning unit works to ensure that if a major incident occurs in the county, the people of Cumbria are protected and essential services are restored as quickly as possible. More information can be found at http://www.cumbria.gov.uk/planning-environment/emergencyplanning.asp
Cumbria Fire & Rescue Service contributes towards creating a safe and secure community within the county. The organisation works with partner organisations to educate the people of Cumbria to help prevent fire and road related deaths and injuries.
This is achieved through identifying and working particularly with those groups who are most at risk ensuring that appropriate safety measures are in place. When called to an emergency the fire and rescue service utilises best operational practice to minimise injury and loss.
Follow this link to view the full report to be considered by cabinet members on Tuesday 8 January