Maidenhead & Windsor

Fire authority challenged to retain 24-hour cover at Windsor fire station

Hopes that the Royal Windsor and Maidenhead Borough would take a step closer to running its own fire and rescue service were dashed today on Friday when the Local Government Association (LGA) refused the council's bid.

The Windsor and Maidenhead council's submission was discussed by an LGA selection panel and despite meeting the process criteria demanded by the Sustainable Communities Act, it was turned down because panel members felt the service would be too small to be viable, there were doubts that it would be able to provide an efficient service for local residents and it would have an impact on neighbouring authorities.

The meeting was attended by Windsor and Maidenhead council leader Cllr David Burbage and Cllr Christine Bateson, one of the borough's representatives on the Berkshire Fire Authority.

Cllr Burbage said: "This is a blow for Royal Borough residents who lost faith in the Berkshire service's commitment to our area when the decision was taken to close Windsor fire station at night.

"Since then, residents have made it clear they want the council to run a local fire service that will respond to their needs rather than being part of a bigger area in which Peter is robbed to pay Paul. Unfortunately the LGA did not accept that a small authority could provide an effective and efficient service, maintaining that the trend is toward bigger services which can take advantage of economies of scale - despite our submission having passed an earlier stage with flying colours.

"We now call on the fire authority to listen to local taxpayers' views and keep Windsor fire station open at night. A reversal of their decision would demonstrate a commitment to taking the views of our community - the people who pay for the fire service - into account."

"We will now consider our options available under the Fire Services Act 2004 to ask the Secretary of State to make the appropriate changes, independently of the Sustainable Communities Act."

Windsor and Maidenhead Cllr Bateson said the decision was a bitter disappointment: "We brought together a really strong submission, based on the desire of our residents to have a fire service they could depend on to look after local needs. However, the LGA did not appear to take into account the full range of evidence we provided.

"The Sustainable Communities Act is all about empowering people to deliver better and more responsive services in their local areas but in this instance the LGA has totally disregarded the wishes of a community, which seems to defeat the purpose and the spirit of the Act."

A recent survey carried out on behalf of the council showed 65% of residents want a local service, and 66% of them want the council to run it.

The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead