THE public have been asked to help radically overhaul the county’s fire service in a bid to save £2.4m by 2020.

Largely due to a £2.1m cut in central government funding, the Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service (RBFRS) is looking for way to redesign its operations and save money in the process.

At a meeting on December 6, senior RBFRS members laid out a number of options that aim to bridge the funding gap, with the public asked to choose from the list in a 13-week consultation period.

Those responding to the consultation can choose one option from each of three categories – Prevention, Protection and Response.

In the Response category for example six proposal packages are outlined. One suggests three stations be managed remotely, the services Retained Support Unit (RSU) be scrapped and Pangbourne and Wargrave stations be closed, saving £1.31m.

Another would introduce a watch shift system, have Wokingham Road station remotely managed from Caversham Road and also scrap the RSU, saving £1.4m.

In the Prevention category one proposal reduces fire safety education in schools by 40 per cent, instead pumping the money into water safety education for 11 to 15 year-olds in a bid to halve drownings by 2026.

“We need to make sure that the Fire and Rescue Service here is financially viable,” said Andy Fry, Chief Fire Officer.

“The second thing we need to do is make sure that the changes wherever possible align with the aspirations of our staff so they can see why we have made these changes, they appreciate why we are making the changes and they are also changes that continue to maintain a group of staff who are highly committed to the organisation.

“But the overriding important thing that we are trying to achieve from this is to redesign our services delivery arrangements so they can deliver the best possible services to your constituents.

“That is a relatively difficult circle to square, I appreciate that.”

To read the full document and to have your say click here