The people of Essex are being urged to have their say, in the potential change in the way Essex Police and Essex County Fire & Rescue Service is governed, through a 12 week consultation that starts today (Thursday 16th February) and ends on Wednesday 10th May.
The new Policing and Crime Act 2017 offers the opportunity to transform local fire and rescue governance, enabling police and crime commissioners to become the fire and rescue authority where a strong local case is made. The Government has also created a statutory duty to collaborate.
Police and Crime Commissioner Roger Hirst said: “Together we have developed a local case for Essex to strengthen our emergency services, improve joint working and deliver significant savings. We have an opportunity to share knowledge; back office services; make better use of estates, and help protect vulnerable people in joined-up ways. The resources freed up by this would be reinvested in front line services and enable both emergency services to better protect the people of Essex.”
This new duty requires emergency services to keep collaboration opportunities under review and to take on collaboration opportunities where it would be in the interests of efficiency and effectiveness to do so.
To give your views, please visit www.essex.pcc.police.uk/LocalCaseForChange or contact the Office of Police Crime Commissioner by emailing consultation@essex.pnn.police.uk .
