Archived decisions
AT A MEETING of the HAMPSHIRE FIRE AND RESCUE AUTHORITY PERFORMANCE REVIEW COMMITTEE held at Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service Headquarters, Eastleigh on 15 March 2007.
PRESENT:
Councillors: D.A. Kirk (Chairman); I.F.E. Beagley; L.T. Dunsdon.
Also in attendance: Councillor Sam Payne.
The Chairman opened the meeting by welcoming Councillor Sam Payne who had been invited to attend the presentation on Home Fire Safety Visits under Item 5. The Committee also joined the Chairman in congratulating Phil Webb, Performance Review Manager, on his appointment as Chairman of the Fire Services Consultation Association.
59 APOLOGIES
Apologies for absence were received from Councillors R.J. Baulk, K.G. Chapman, H. Jones, D. Simpson and R. Williams.
60 DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST
Members were mindful that, where they believed they had a personal or personal prejudicial interest in any matter to be considered at the meeting, they should, normally at the time of debate, declare their interest and having regard to the circumstances described in paragraphs 9, 10, 11 and 12 of the Fire Authority's Code of Conduct consider whether to leave the meeting whilst the matter was discussed.
61 MINUTES
The Minutes of the meeting held on 12 September, 2006 were confirmed as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.
62 DEPUTATIONS
There were no deputations made under this item.
63 HOME FIRE SAFTEY VISITS
Rod Hammerton, Community Fire Safety Officer, gave a presentation on the current refocusing of Home Fire Safety Visits (HFSVs) to target those groups most at risk from fire deaths. He also showed how the performance of stations and areas was monitored in regard to the number of HFSVs undertaken.
64 REVISION TO PERFORMANCE REVIEW COMMITTEE TERMS OF REFERENCE
The Committee considered the report of the Chief Officer (Item 6 in the Minute Book) recommending a change to the Committee's terms of reference.
RESOLVED:
That, it be a RECOMMENDATION to the Authority to accept the revised terms of reference as set out in Appendix A to the report.
65 BEST VALUE PERFORMANCE INDICATORS AND LOCAL PERFORMANCE INDICATORS
The Committee considered the report of the Chief Officer (Item 7 in the Minute Book) highlighting the performance indicator data for the third quarter of 2006/07. The Committee took a particular interest in the indicators for primary fires (BV 142ii), accidental fire deaths (BV 143i) and false alarms from automatic fire detectors (BV 149i).
Members were pleased that the target for Home Fire Safety Visits (LPI 1) had been exceeded by a significant margin and expressed interest in seeing this indicator drilled down to area level. The Committee also asked the Performance Review Manager to investigate the possibility of displaying the data for speed of response (LPI 20a) by incident type.
Members were disappointed that the poor result for the indicator on fire injuries (BV 143ii) had resulted in a score of 3 for the performance information element of the Service Assessment. Officers believed that different collection methods across the country meant that the indicator could not be used to compare fairly the injuries sustained from accidental dwelling fires in differing Fire and Rescue Services.
RESOLVED:
That the performance of the Service for reported indicators be noted and the strategies to meet the targets set be endorsed.
66 IMPROVEMENT PLANNING REGISTER
The Committee considered the report of the Chief Officer (Item 8 in the Minute Book) presenting the latest updated Improvement Planning Register and recommending a pool Members to sit on the Improvement Planning Steering Board.
RESOLVED:
a) That, the latest update of the Authority's Improvement Planning Register be noted.
b) That, it be a RECOMMENDATION to the Authority that there be a pool of Members available to sit on the Improvement Planning Steering Board, and that this pool be comprised of three Conservative Members (Councillors Chapman, Beagley and Kirk), two Liberal Democrat Members (Councillors Price and Dunsdon) and a Labour Member (to be nominated), and for all Members to receive the papers relating to each meeting, regardless of whether they are invited to attend or not.
67 RECOMMENDATIONS AND ACTIONS ARISING FROM INTERNAL AUDIT REPORTS
The Committee considered the report of the Chief Officer (Item 9 in the Minute Book) on the progress against internal audit recommendations.
Members praised the work that the Deputy Performance Review Manager had done but felt that in some instances the number of chase-up memos required to achieve action was undermining efforts for continual improvement under the performance review framework.
RESOLVED:
a) That the Internal Audit Action Reports be noted and that the progress of ongoing and overdue actions continues to be monitored by the Committee.
b) That the Chairman, on behalf of the Committee, write to the Chief Officer highlighting the lack of response or action, in some quarters, from the chase-up memos of the Deputy Performance Review Manager.
68 PROGRESS REPORT ON ACTIONS TAKEN TO MEET THE RECOMMENDATIONS DETAILED IN THE BEST VALUE REVIEW OF PARTNERSHIPS
The Committee considered the report of the Chief Officer (Item 10 in the Minute Book) on the actions taken to meet the recommendations contained within the Best Value Review of Partnerships.
RESOLVED:
That the updated Action Plan be approved and further reports on progress be received by the Committee.
69 PROGRESS REPORT ON ACTIONS TAKEN TO MEET THE RECOMMENDATIONS DETAILED IN THE REPORT OF THE BEST VALUE REVIEW OF SERVICE LEVEL AGREEMENTS
The Committee considered the report of the Chief Officer (Item 11 in the Minute Book) on the actions taken to meet the recommendations contained within the Best Value Review of Service Level Agreements.
Upon the legal advice of the Clerk, the Chairman requested that Officers ensure compliance with EU procurement regulations, where appropriate.
RESOLVED:
That the updated Action Plan be approved and further reports on progress be received by the Committee.
70 PROGRESS REPORT ON ACTIONS TAKEN TO MEET THE RECOMMENDATIONS DETAILED IN THE `ACTION PLAN' WHICH FORMED PART OF THE FINAL REPORT OF THE BEST VALUE REVIEW OF VEHICLE WORKSHOPS
The Committee considered the report of the Chief Officer (Item 12 in the Minute Book) on the actions taken to meet the recommendations contained with the Best Value Review of Workshops.
The Committee considered individual recommendations and approved actions where required. Members also agreed the recommendation in Appendix 1b keeping the existing separate structure of the Workshops Team and Fleet Management Team when the two teams are relocated to the new workshops.
RESOLVED:
That the updated Action Plan be approved and further reports on progress be received by the Committee.
71 FIRE AND RESCUE SERVICE ASSESSMENT FOR 2006/07
The Committee considered the report of the Chief Officer (Item 13 in the Minute Book) detailing the recent Service Assessment for Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service.
Members congratulated Officers on a well-deserved top score of 4 for the Service Assessment section of the Fire and Rescue Performance Framework for 2006/07.
RESOLVED:
That the Committee note the report and the assessment of the Audit Commission.