-         Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) is proposing to move Sale fire station from a wholetime model to a day crewing model, which means that crews would provide an immediate response during station hours (8.30am to 6pm) and up to a four-minute delayed response during on-call hours (6pm to 8.30am).

-         GMFRS claims that this proposal would save £340,000 per year and allow them to invest in other priority areas.

-         Sale fire station has low incident levels, with the third-lowest number of night-time life risk incidents and the third-lowest total incidents at night-time in the last three years.

-         However, Sale fire station is strategically placed to cover a central area of the Trafford borough and extending to Urmston, Flixton and Partington.

-         Sale fire station also serves as a backup for other fire stations in Trafford and neighbouring boroughs in case of emergencies or major incidents.

-         The average response time in Sale would increase by 1 minute 10 seconds (from 7 minutes 45 seconds to 8 minutes 55 seconds) and the overall response time across Trafford borough would increase by 20 seconds (from 7 minutes 43 seconds to 8 minutes 3 seconds) if the proposal is implemented.

-         The ongoing changes to highways to reduce speed limits and accommodate cyclists will add to response times which have not been factored in.

-         These increased response times could have serious consequences for public safety, especially for vulnerable groups such as elderly people, children, people with disabilities, or people living in high-rise buildings.

 

We believe:

 

-         The proposal to move Sale fire station to a day crewing model is a biased preferred option consultation, that has failed to take into consideration the residents of Partington. Conservatives see this as unacceptable. Basing the proposal on data from the past three Covid years is incomparable with any other years.

-         The proposal offers little or no data on the assumption of being able to attend the station from the fire fighters’ home within 4 minutes or how this will be monitored.

-         The consultation does not do enough ensure those most affected have their say, Sale’s residents and businesses deserve better.

-         The proposal flies in the face of the promise made by Greater Manchester Mayor, Andy Burnham to avoid cuts to frontline services in Greater Manchester despite raising the precept tax on residents.

 

Resolve:

 

-         We the Conservative group of Trafford Council, therefore, ask the Labour administration to write to the Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham to uphold his commitment not to cut services and leave residents of Sale at risk from delays to response times, making it clear we reject in full GMFRS’s proposal to move Sale fire station to a day crewing model.

(Note: The Council did not consent to a proposed alteration of the Motion of which Councillor Butt had given notice to amend the first line of the proposed resolution to read “The Council resolves to write …”

 

It was moved and seconded that:

 

“-      Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) is proposing to move Sale fire station from a wholetime model to a day crewing model, which means that crews would provide an immediate response during station hours (8.30am to 6pm) and up to a four-minute delayed response during on-call hours (6pm to 8.30am).

-            GMFRS claims that this proposal would save £340,000 per year and allow them to invest in other priority areas.

-            Sale fire station has low incident levels, with the third-lowest number of night-time life risk incidents and the third-lowest total incidents at night-time in the last three years.

-            However, Sale fire station is strategically placed to cover a central area of the Trafford borough and extending to Urmston, Flixton and Partington.

-            Sale fire station also serves as a backup for other fire stations in Trafford and neighbouring boroughs in case of emergencies or major incidents.

-            The average response time in Sale would increase by 1 minute 10 seconds (from 7 minutes 45 seconds to 8 minutes 55 seconds) and the overall response time across Trafford borough would increase by 20 seconds (from 7 minutes 43 seconds to 8 minutes 3 seconds) if the proposal is implemented.

-            The ongoing changes to highways to reduce speed limits and accommodate cyclists will add to response times which have not been factored in.

-            These increased response times could have serious consequences for public safety, especially for vulnerable groups such as elderly people, children, people with disabilities, or people living in high-rise buildings.

 

We believe:

 

-         The proposal to move Sale fire station to a day crewing model is a biased preferred option consultation, that has failed to take into consideration the residents of Partington. Conservatives see this as unacceptable. Basing the proposal on data from the past three Covid years is incomparable with any other years.

-         The proposal offers little or no data on the assumption of being able to attend the station from the fire fighters’ home within 4 minutes or how this will be monitored.

-         The consultation does not do enough ensure those most affected have their say, Sale’s residents and businesses deserve better.

-         The proposal flies in the face of the promise made by Greater Manchester Mayor, Andy Burnham to avoid cuts to frontline services in Greater Manchester despite raising the precept tax on residents.

 

Resolve:

 

-         We the Conservative group of Trafford Council, therefore, ask the Labour administration to write to the Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham to uphold his commitment not to cut services and leave residents of Sale at risk from delays to response times, making it clear we reject in full GMFRS’s proposal to move Sale fire station to a day crewing model.”

 

It was moved and seconded as an amendment that:

 

“Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) is proposing to move Sale fire station from a wholetime 24-hour station model to a day crewing model, which means that crews would provide an immediate response during station hours (8.30am to 6pm) and up to a four-minute delayed response during on-call hours (6pm to 8.30am).

GMFRS claims that this proposal would save £340,000 per year and allow them to invest in other priority areas.

Sale fire station has low incident levels, with the third-lowest number of night-time life risk incidents and the third-lowest total incidents at night-time in the last three years.

However, Sale fire station is strategically placed to cover a central area of the Trafford borough and extending to Urmston, Flixton, and Partington.

Sale fire station also serves as a backup for other fire stations in Trafford including Altrincham which covers Timperley and Hale areas, and neighbouring boroughs in case of emergencies or major incidents.

The average response time in Sale would increase by 1 minute 10 seconds (from 7 minutes 45 seconds to 8 minutes 55 seconds) and the overall response time across Trafford borough would increase by 20 seconds (from 7 minutes 43 seconds to 8 minutes 3 seconds) if the proposal is implemented.

The ongoing changes to highways to reduce speed limits and accommodate cyclists will add to response times which have not been factored in.

These increased response times could have serious consequences for public safety, especially for vulnerable groups such as elderly people, children, people with disabilities, or people living in high-rise buildings.

 

This CouncilWe believes:

The proposal to move Sale fire station to a day crewing model is a biased preferred option consultation, that has failed to take into consideration the residents of Partington, or indeed, the views of firefighters who serve at Sale and across Trafford. This council Conservatives sees this as unacceptable. Basing the proposal on data from the past three Covid years is incomparable with any other years.

The proposal offers little or no data on the assumption of being able to attend the station from the fire fighters’ home within 4 minutes or how this will be monitored. This Council understands that several of the assumptions made in the Fire Cover Review are based on modelling, which GMFRS themselves have accepted is flawed.

The consultation does not do enough ensure those most affected have their say, Sale’s residents and businesses deserve better.

The proposal flies in the face of the promise made by Greater Manchester Mayor, Andy Burnham to avoid cuts to frontline services in Greater Manchester despite raising the precept tax on residents.

This Council notes:

The extraordinary meeting of Scrutiny Committee that was held on Monday 10 July and thanks members of the GMFRS and the Fire Brigade Union for their attendance and cooperation with elected members.

That, after initially considering the Chair’s call for a ‘pause’ before reaching a decision, the committee subsequently agreed to support the Liberal Democrats’ proposal, calling for a complete rejection of the ‘Day Crewing’ proposals. The Chair of Scrutiny Committee, then undertook to draft a letter outlining the settled position of the Committee.

This Council Rresolves to:

We the Conservative group of Trafford Council, ask the Labour administration to write to the Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham calling on him to uphold his commitment not to cut services and leave residents of Sale at risk from delays to response times, making it clear we restating the settled and firm view of Scrutiny Committee and this council as a whole that Trafford fully rejects in full GMFRS’s proposal to move Sale fire station to a day crewing model.”

 

Following speeches on the matter, the amendment was put to the vote and declared lost.

 

(Note: Before consideration of a second amendment, the Leader of the Council advised of the intention to include the first and last paragraphs of the proposed Green Party Group Amendment, starting “Following over a decade” and “Trafford councillors support” respectively.)

 

It was moved and seconded as a second amendment that:

 

“-      Following over a decade of austerity introduced by the Conservative government which has resulted in cuts in front line services, the Fire Service is having to redistribute its current funding to meet the future needs of Greater Manchester. This has resulted in proposed cuts to staffing in Trafford and a day-crew model being established in Sale. The government needs to fund the service properly and not force the service into cuts in some areas.

-     Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) is proposing to move Sale fire station from a wholetime model to a day crewing model, which means that crews would provide an immediate response during station hours (8.30am to 6pm) and up to a four-minute delayed response during on-call hours (6pm to 8.30am).

-         GMFRS claims that this proposal would save £340,000 per year and allow them to invest in other priority areas.

-         Sale fire station has low incident levels, with the third-lowest number of night-time life risk incidents and the third-lowest total incidents at night-time in the last three years.

-         However, Sale fire station is strategically placed to cover a central area of the Trafford borough and extending to Urmston, Flixton and Partington.

-         Sale fire station also serves as a backup for other fire stations in Trafford and neighbouring boroughs in case of emergencies or major incidents.

-         The average response time in Sale would increase by 1 minute 10 seconds (from 7 minutes 45 seconds to 8 minutes 55 seconds) and the overall response time across Trafford borough would increase by 20 seconds (from 7 minutes 43 seconds to 8 minutes 3 seconds) if the proposal is implemented.

-         The ongoing changes to highways to reduce speed limits and accommodate cyclists will add to response times which have not been factored in.

-         These increased response times could have serious consequences for public safety, especially for vulnerable groups such as elderly people, children, people with disabilities, or people living in high-rise buildings.

 

We believe:

 

-         The proposal to move Sale fire station to a day crewing model is a biased preferred option consultation, that has failed to take has not given sufficient into consideration to the residents of Partington. Conservatives see this as unacceptable  The Council is very concerned about the specific impact the plans would have on businesses and residents in the Carrington and Partington areas.Basing the proposal on data from the past three Covid years is incomparable with any other years.

-         The proposal offers little or no data on the assumption of being able to attend the station from the fire fighters’ home within 4 minutes or how this will be monitored.

-         We are very concerned that the proposals will leave Partington with the slowest response times to night-time 999 calls in all of Greater Manchester.

-         Although the Council acknowledges that the consultation period has been extended and that GMFRS arranged a community meeting in Partington following requests,the consultation does not do enough ensure those most affected have their say, Sale’s Trafford’s residents and businesses deserve better more time to provide feedback.

-         Althoughthe overallproposal flies in the face of the promise made by Greater Manchester Mayor, Andy Burnham to avoid cuts to frontline services in Greater Manchester despite raising the precept tax on residents. provides enhanced services in some areas of Greater Manchester, it is of significant concern that Trafford faces two distinct reductions in its fire service cover.

 

Resolve:

 

-         We the Conservative group ofTrafford Council, therefore, ask the Labour administration to write to the Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham to uphold his commitment not to cut services and leave residents of Sale at risk from delays to response times, making it clear we reject in full GMFRS’s proposal to move Sale fire station to a day crewing model.acknowledges that the Leader of the Council has written to the Chief Fire Officer to set out the administration’s concerns regarding proposals and to urge GMFRS to reconsider.

-         This Council condemns the Conservative-led governments that have stripped over £20 million funding from GMFRS since 2010.

-         Trafford councillors support the response sent by Trafford Scrutiny Committee to the Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service consultation. The response makes clear that we reject the proposals and would like time to consider alternative proposals that might maintain the current service and meet the future needs too. We request that further investigation is carried out to review the safety implications of moving to a day crewing service model at Sale fire Station which takes into account future building plans and changes in Trafford. This should give particular focus to the more distant areas of Trafford including Partington, Warburton, Carrington and Dunham. It should also consider the practicalities of fire fighters being available within a 4-minute radius.”

 

Following a debate on the matter, during which it was confirmed that the Green Party Group would not be proceeding with a further amendment, the second amendment was put to the vote and declared carried. The substantive Motion was then put to the vote and declared carried.

 

RESOLVED: That

 

-         Following over a decade of austerity introduced by the Conservative government which has resulted in cuts in front line services, the Fire Service is having to redistribute its current funding to meet the future needs of Greater Manchester. This has resulted in proposed cuts to staffing in Trafford and a day-crew model being established in Sale. The government needs to fund the service properly and not force the service into cuts in some areas.

-         Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) is proposing to move Sale fire station from a wholetime model to a day crewing model, which means that crews would provide an immediate response during station hours (8.30am to 6pm) and up to a four-minute delayed response during on-call hours (6pm to 8.30am).

-         GMFRS claims that this proposal would save £340,000 per year and allow them to invest in other priority areas.

-         Sale fire station has low incident levels, with the third-lowest number of night-time life risk incidents and the third-lowest total incidents at night-time in the last three years.

-         However, Sale fire station is strategically placed to cover a central area of the Trafford borough and extending to Urmston, Flixton and Partington.

-         Sale fire station also serves as a backup for other fire stations in Trafford and neighbouring boroughs in case of emergencies or major incidents.

-         The average response time in Sale would increase by 1 minute 10 seconds (from 7 minutes 45 seconds to 8 minutes 55 seconds) and the overall response time across Trafford borough would increase by 20 seconds (from 7 minutes 43 seconds to 8 minutes 3 seconds) if the proposal is implemented.

-         These increased response times could have serious consequences for public safety, especially for vulnerable groups such as elderly people, children, people with disabilities, or people living in high-rise buildings.

 

We believe:

 

-         The proposal to move Sale fire station to a day crewing model has not given sufficient consideration to the residents of Partington. The Council is very concerned about the specific impact the plans would have on businesses and residents in the Carrington and Partington areas. Basing the proposal on data from the past three Covid years is incomparable with any other years.

-         The proposal offers little or no data on the assumption of being able to attend the station from the fire fighters’ home within 4 minutes or how this will be monitored.

-         We are very concerned that the proposals will leave Partington with the slowest response times to night-time 999 calls in all of Greater Manchester.

-         Although the Council acknowledges that the consultation period has been extended and that GMFRS arranged a community meeting in Partington following requests, the consultation does not do enough ensure those most affected have their say, Trafford’s residents and businesses deserve more time to provide feedback.

-         Although the overall proposal provides enhanced services in some areas of Greater Manchester, it is of significant concern that Trafford faces two distinct reductions in its fire service cover.

 

Resolve:

 

-         Trafford Council, therefore, acknowledges that the Leader of the Council has written to the Chief Fire Officer to set out the administration’s concerns regarding proposals and to urge GMFRS to reconsider.

-         This Council condemns the Conservative-led governments that have stripped over £20 million funding from GMFRS since 2010.

-         Trafford councillors support the response sent by Trafford Scrutiny Committee to the Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service consultation. The response makes clear that we reject the proposals and would like time to consider alternative proposals that might maintain the current service and meet the future needs too. We request that further investigation is carried out to review the safety implications of moving to a day crewing service model at Sale fire Station which takes into account future building plans and changes in Trafford. This should give particular focus to the more distant areas of Trafford including Partington, Warburton, Carrington and Dunham. It should also consider the practicalities of fire fighters being available within a 4-minute radius.