Newton News was given a tour of the new accommodation for Aycliffe firemen which was recently completed as part of a new scheme designed to bring about cost saving efficiency. 2013 was a year of great change at Newton Aycliffe Fire Station. In December, Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Service welcomed local policing teams into the station in a move that benefits both organisations and helps to provide a police presence in the area.
The collaboration, believed to be one of the first in the country, sees the fire and rescue service sharing accommodation with the police neighbourhood teams, community support officers and response teams.
The police station within the building is open from 10am to 5pm Monday to Friday and the fire and rescue Service continues to provide its operational response and community safety services from the station.
In April, the fire and rescue service opened a new building adjacent to the fire station to accommodate a new crewing system designed to provide the same levels of operational cover in a more cost effective way.
The new Day Crewing Plus duty system allows firefighters to work 12 hour shifts through the day and then provide 12 hours of standby cover from purpose built accommodation next to the fire station at night.
The Day Crewing Plus system has been successfully introduced into several fire and rescue services throughout the country in recent years and so far it is operating very successfully from Newton Aycliffe Fire Station and Seaham (another station that has benefitted from a new accommodation block).
The system has allowed the Service to make significant savings as the same level of operational cover can be provided using fewer staff.
It is a legal requirement that any standby cover must be completed away from the place of work; therefore a key part of the duty system was the construction of an accommodation building, where operation personnel can reside at the same time as they provide operational cover.
Due to the length of time that staff spend at the station when they are on duty, members of their family are allowed to visit during their standby hours.
The accommodation block houses seven bedrooms, a kitchen and a lounge area.
Robin Turnbull, group manager for County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Service, said: “The new duty system, which has been running for three months now, is working very well. It has allowed us to maintain the same number of fire appliances at the station and provide the same level of cover to the communities of Newton Aycliffe and the surrounding area, while making significant savings.”