Maidenhead & Windsor

The Windsor and Maidenhead Royal Borough looks set to take legal advice in its ongoing bid to challenge plans to axe night-time staffing at Windsor Fire Station.

The move to seek legal advice is just one part of an action plan drawn up in the Windsor and Maidenhead council’s continuing campaign to maintain 24-hour staffing at the fire station.

Members of the borough’s cabinet will on Thursday (August 23) be asked to approve the action plan, which comes in the wake of the decision by the Berkshire Fire Authority to close the fire station between 8pm and 8am from next year.

In addition to seeking legal advice, councillors will also be asked to approve plans to:

· write to the Her Majesty the Queen – whose own Windsor home was damaged by fire in 1992 – informing her of the council’s concerns

· submit a Freedom of Information request about the consultation process involved in the decision and asking for details of calls received and actions taken at both Windsor and Slough fire stations

· write to Windsor MP Adam Afriyie and his Slough counterpart Fiona Mactaggart, and Hazel Blears, Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, to enlist their support.

Cllr David Burbage, Windsor and Maidenhead council leader, said: “We are committed to continuing the fight on behalf of our residents to maintain full 24-hour cover at Windsor fire station.

“Last weekend’s fire tragedy at the hotel in Newquay has highlighted the need for full-time fire cover in an area which attracts thousands of visitors every year – and we have a very similar situation here in Windsor with tourists visiting the area all year round.

“Our action plan is a robust approach to exploring every possible avenue to ensuring that Windsor has the level of fire cover it needs for both our residents and visitors alike.”

Cllr Christine Bateson, one of the Windsor and Maidenhead Royal Borough’s fire authority representatives, said: “Our residents have made it very clear that they do not want to see fire cover cut at their fire station – and now it is up to us to take that fight forward on their behalf.

“By informing the Queen of our concerns, and rallying support from our MPs, and by investigating fully the way the fire authority’s decision was taken, we will be raising the profile of our campaign – while doing our utmost to keep up the pressure on the fire authority to find an alternative solution and maintain round-the-clock full-time cover for our Windsor residents.”

The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead