Quality Assurance Systems: Herefordshire Fire and Rescue Service - Case Study Example

Quality Assurance Systems: Herefordshire Fire and Rescue Service Name: Course: Tutor: Date: Executive Summary Community safety is a key activity to Herefordshire Fire and Rescue Service. Fire-fighters affiliated to this Service deliver safety talks to the community on a daily basis to in an effort to reduce fire and other emergency situations. Safety talks delivered to the community by fire-fighters have led to significant reduction in fire injuries, deaths and other forms of emergency incidences. This reduction in fire related injuries, deaths and other forms of emergency incidences does not only as a result of the safety talks but also due to Integrated Risk Management Plans and Quality Assurance Systems. Introduction Quality, in its broad sense, is a degree of excellence. It is that level which something is deemed fit for the purpose it is intended for. In a more narrow sense, quality, with regards to a product or service, can be defined as the level which the product or service conforms to the required standard, free from any form of defects, and how the respective product or service meets customer needs to a point of satisfaction. The idea of quality of anything, be it a service or a product, leans more towards the consumer’s psychological expectations towards attainment of the expected results or outcome. Against this background, there has to be some level of information of the expected outcome against a given benchmark. Thus, quality can be construed to mean the outcome of a comparison between the degree of satisfaction of what was initially needed and the end product (Inter Agency Guidelines p. 6; Bieleman, 2000, p. 359). Quality assurance refers to a systematic or a predetermined process necessary to provide best practice to facilitate consistently high standards of service. It is a management system employed by an organisation in an effort to elevate work standards and to ensure consistency with respect the organisational operations. A quality assurance system sets out to meet consumer expectations. The various stages that an organisation seeking to implement a quality system should take into account are: Standards, that is, what the various stakeholders expect from the organisation; Self Assessment, that is, comparison against the set expectations; Action Plan, which includes what needs to be done, how it will be executed, and the timeframe; Implementation; and Review (Doherty, 2003, p. 7). The Civil Contingencies Act 2004 gave Fire and Rescue Authorities the responsibility to evaluate, strategise, and advise on emergency and emergency related issues. The Government has effectively worked with the Local Government Association, together with the Chief Fire Officers Association to enhance self sufficiency in emergency situations. It is the duty of the respective Fire and Rescue Authorities to keep emergency levels under review as they deem fit hence, the need for Integrated Risk Management Plans (IRMP). The IRMP sets out targets Fire and Rescue Authorities have imposed on themselves and the standards they will employ within their statutory duty to enhance continuous improvement so as to offer quality value to the local taxpayer (Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Authority, 2007, p. 4: Communities and Local Governments, 2008, p. 17). Aim This report seeks to assess the Integrated Risk Management Plans (IRMP) as well as the quality assurance systems employed by Hereford Fire and Rescue Service. This report will deeply analyse the validity and benefits of the principal quality assurance systems incorporated by the Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service before the government change in with regards to abolition of the Comprehensive Area Assessments and the local government inspections as from October 2010. The report will then ascertain appropriateness of any quality assurance systems linked to the key strategic objectives laid down in the existing IRMP forecasts by the Hereford Fire and Rescue Service. Another analysis in this report will be in respect to the validity and benefits of the principal quality assurance systems incorporated by Hereford Fire and Rescue Service subsequent to the government change as of October 2010. Finally, this report will develop and recommend quality assurance systems that will enable the organisation realise quality enhancement in terms of service delivery. Local Area Agreements To deliver effective and more efficient local services, it is essential that local services work together with effective partnerships to achieve this objective. The Local Government Whitepaper titled Strong and Prosperous Communities gave guidelines on how local public services are supposed to work together. Beginning 2008, Local Authorities have the responsibility to consult partner authorities Fire and Rescue Services when creating their consistence foolproof strategies. Since 2008, Local Authorities prepare a strategic plan referred to as a Local Area Agreement (LAA) for the purposes of delivering the set of priorities agreed upon, priorities that reflect the requirements of their respective communities as laid down in the set strategies (Department for Communities and Local Government, 2008, p. 35). Fire and Rescue Authorities ought to work together with local partners to ascertain targets encompassing appropriate fire standards of priority within the Local Area and provide appropriate resources to meet those targets. To effectively achieve this, they will have to assess how effective arrangements and programmes attributed to these partnerships are. It is essential that fire authorities uphold any guidance issued by Local Government and the community. Also of importance is that the fire authorities display the changes they have made with regards to the services they provide, and to demonstrate that they have taken into account the needs and opinions of every stakeholder involved in making these changes. Several Fire and Rescue Authorities have conventional mechanisms for gathering the opinions of, and consulting with their respective communities to design IRMPs and fire safety programmes (Department for Communities and Local Government, 2008, p. 35). . Comprehensive Performance Assessment (CPA) A new approach to performance assessment is necessary to enhance delivery of Local Area Agreements hence the need for Comprehensive Performance Assessment (CPA). A Comprehensive Performance Assessment is an appraisal from a corporate level on how well a Fire and Rescue Authority is operated (Department for Communities and Local Government, 2008, p. 38). Advantages and Validity of Quality Assurance Systems at Herefordshire Fire and Rescue Services before the October 2010 Government Change Quality assurance systems and IRMPs are beneficial to an organisation in a number of ways. It is for this very reason that Herefordshire Fire and Rescue service has incorporated these two into the organisation’s system. This is evident in the Fire and Rescue service’s policy planning and performance structure. The Fire and Rescue Service’s mission is to enhance service delivery to communities within their jurisdiction by making sure that that they have their policies in check; that they have effective planning processes to trim down risks; and that the organisation’s performance run in tandem with every stakeholder’s expectations (Hereford and Wocester Fire and Rescue Service). Poor standards of quality assurance systems in a fire and rescue service’s operations systems are not only fatal to the community which it serves but also to the fire fighters as well. In fact, the main causes behind fire-fighter fatalities are more often than not organisational. Usually, poor services take the form of ill communication and fire fighting equipment, poor training, more so with respect to emergency response, lack of risk assessment process, and so on (Fire Brigade Union, 2008, p. 4). If proper strategic plans and policies are not put in place, then it is virtually impossible to contain the negative aspects highlighted above. In effect, the community and the fire-fighters will constantly remain at risk and this goes against the very objectives that the fire and rescue authorities are trying to achieve. Before the Government change in October 2010, Herefordshire Fire and Rescue service’s objectives were to: Decrease the number of fire and other risks as well; mitigate loss of lives to fire and other emergency situations; reduce the magnitude and severity of injuries caused by fires and related risks; decrease social, commercial, and economical impact of fires and other emergency occurrences; and protect the environment. The organisation’s aims were to mitigate fire incidence and consequences that result from the same; secure employee safety; and offer value for money. Achieving these aims and objectives is not easy without the presence of proper quality assurance systems which double up as a benefit of incorporating the same within the organisation’s operation system. Some of the quality assurance systems that Herefordshire Fire and Rescue service had in place entail working in partnership with other stakeholders whenever necessary, developing the capacity and safety role of the community, enlightening the community with respect to risks relating to fire and other hazards, campaigning for risk mitigation measures and delivering an effective and emergency response when need arises (Hereford and Wocester Fire and Rescue Service). The quality assurance systems employed by Herefordshire Fire and Rescue service prior to the October 2010 government change were quiet beneficial to the organisation’s key objectives. One area where evidence of benefits of quality assurance systems to the Herefordshire Fire and Rescue Service key objectives is with regards to community safety strategy. The service’s objectives were to ensure safety in roads, fire, water, and homes. Achievements of this entailed extensive distribution of the community’s safety strategy all over the service’s jurisdiction and to major strategic partners; continuous assessments of multi agency initiatives and promotions and development of staff and resources to contribute to non fire related safety improvement of the community; a decrease in the rate of accidental home based fires and a reduction of injuries and deaths resulting from home fires (Hereford and Wocester Fire and Rescue Service). Another area with regards to benefits arising from quality assurance systems to the Herefordshire key organisational objectives is on schools fire safety program whose objective was to develop and offer fire and education safety programmes to schools on a continuous basis. Achievements encompassed extension of schools education programme to the third stage, addressing the issues of malicious calls and deliberate fires; extended delivery to incorporate independent schools, children’s homes and pupil referral units, and development of a school awareness programme with respect to juvenile fire setters. Another area where benefits of quality assurance systems were evidenced was on domestic sprinklers. The objective was to promote actively, the installation of domestic sprinklers wherever appropriate (Integrated Risk Management Plans, 2006, p 18). Achievements in this area took the form of active commencement on partnerships with major stakeholders to retrofit domestic sprinkle systems onto identified high risk areas of occupation. The benefits attributed to quality assurance systems on an organisation’s objectives are numerous. This implies that their incorporation is necessary if the laid out objectives are to be effectively achieved. Appropriateness of Quality Assurance systems linked to the main strategic objectives set out in the current Integrated Risk Management Plans forecasts for Herefordshire Fire and Rescue Service Integrated risk management has a significant impact on mitigating risk among communities of Herefordshire. This achievable through delivery of regulatory enforcement in business premises and targeted community safety activities, and by making emergency interventions are not only safe but efficient too. To achieve this end, it is essential that the employees be given top quality training, remain safe and that the organisation be able to execute services at the highest level. Going by the 2009-2012 IRMPs, the primary aims of Herefordshire Fire and Rescue service were to strengthen its capacity in an effort to enhance community safety and mitigate risk; ensure training as well as safety of the entire workforce; enhance service delivery; and to improve operation efficiency with an aim to achieve annual efficiency and budget targets (Hereford And Wocester Fire And Rescue Service). . Fire and Rescue Service IRMPs are based upon the process of ascertaining the group that is most vulnerable, the group’s location, ascertaining specific risk that they are exposed to, and concentrating most efforts and resources at mitigating the identified risks by applying a variety of initiatives including prevention, protection and intervention. The appropriateness of quality assurance systems with regards to Herefordshire Fire and Rescue Service IRMPs is based on the implementation of these initiatives (Hereford and Wocester Fire and Rescue Service). . The prevention initiative takes various forms including home safety, water safety, road safety, youth services, and arson fire setters. Appropriateness of quality assurance systems on these is evidenced thus: On home safety, the service intends to ensure 70 percent conformity annually against execution of home fire safety checks in high risk output locations by 2012 April. Incidentally, still on home safety the organisation intends decrease fire percentage in constructions in buildings with no smoke alarms by 25 percent. The Service also targets extending delivery of water safety education to identified risk groups, reducing the number of severe injuries attributed to road accidents, and attaining a ten percent reduction in arson fires (Hereford and Wocester Fire and Rescue Service). The protection initiative revolves around business fire safety, heritage sites, and built environment. The Service aims at reducing the rate of fires in non-domestic occupation areas by 10 percent averaged over the strategic period in comparison to the average recorded in a time frame of three years ending March 2008. Following introduction of the regulatory reform order, the Service will embark on a comprehensive assessment of the complex built environment (Hereford and Wocester Fire and Rescue Service). On intervention, the need to develop and maintain necessary skills to implement interpretation activities and employee safety remain a priority. Local cluster managers have the responsibility to make sure that this workload is balanced to depict local needs and priorities. Intervention support will ensure the support of all staff with the appropriate policies and mechanisms to facilitate delivery at a level of response and intervention when required (Hereford and Wocester Fire and Rescue Service). Advantages and Validity of Quality Assurance Systems at Herefordshire Fire and Rescue Services After October 2010 Government Change Subsequent to the 2010 Government change, Herefordshire Fire and Rescue Service’s objectives encompassed reducing the number of fire and other risks as well; protecting the environment; and identifying target groups at higher risk within the community and working at reducing inequalities that lead to greater risks. Additionally, the Service aims ascertain the nature of social exclusions of some groups and its link to community risk; mitigate loss of lives to fire and other emergency situations; reduce the magnitude and severity of injuries caused by fires and related risks; and lower social, commercial, and economical impact of fires and other emergency occurrences while safeguarding the environment and heritage (Hereford and Wocester Fire and Rescue Service). Without Quality Assurance systems it is virtually impossible to attain the objectives highlighted in the paragraph above. Quality assurance aims at not only stabilizing but at improving services offered by the organisation in an effort to reduce. Better still it aims at minimising situations that might cause injuries or even deaths hence Herefordshire Fire and Rescue Service’s objectives. Based on the quality assurance systems present at Herefordshire Fire and Rescue Service, it is not far fetched to draw that the organisation’s credibility is enhanced as consumer confidence on the services offered by the organisation is amplified. Reviewing Recommendations Protection, prevention and intervention initiatives are necessary if Herefordshire Fire and Rescue Service is to attain its laid down objectives and offer quality service that would meet and satisfy community needs. Proper quality assurance systems as well as IRMPs are essential components towards this end, particularly proper employee training, modernised fire fighting and communication equipment and taking into account employee welfare. Having these in place will not only ensure community safety, it will also reduce the number of deaths suffered by fire fighters in the line of duty and significantly reduce fire risks and other hazards. To facilitate consistent proof of quality improvements the measures mentioned above have to be considered and every stakeholder has to be involved in their preparation and implementation. This would imply that all issues from every aspect with regards to the stakeholder are considered and addressed prior to preparation of quality assurance systems and implementation of the same. Conclusion Quality can only be truly measured through the end user satisfaction, irrespective of what an organisation perceives on the quality or services it offers; the end user usually has the final word. This takes into account both subjective and objective interpretations of the requirements and expectations of the end user. If the end user’s satisfaction is met, then the organisation can be said to not only have interpreted the end user’s needs and expectations but also to be providing products or services of top quality. Reference List The Fire Brigades Union, 2008, In the Line of Duty, Bradley House, Available from http://www.fbu.org.uk (31 January 2011). Department for Communities and Local Government, Fire and Rescue Service, National Framework 2008–11, Available from http://www.communities.gov.uk (31 January 2011). Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Authority, Integrated Risk Management Plan 2007-2010, Available from http://www.manchesterfire.gov.uk (31 January 2011). Department for Communities and Local Government, Fire and Rescue Service, National Framework 2008–11 Doherty, G, 2003, Developing Quality Systems in Education. Routledge Publishers, New Fetter Lane. Inter Agency Guidelines, 2007, “A Model Quality Assurance System for Procurement Agencies,” Available from http://who.int/medicines/areas/quality_safety/quality_assurance/inspections/en/ (31 January 2011). Bieleman, J, 2000, Additives for coatings. Wiley-VCH: Langestraat, Netherlands Hereford and Wocester Fire And Rescue Service, Available from http://www.hwfire.org.uk (31 January 2011). Integrated Risk Management Plan 2006/07 Version 7- February 2006, Available from http:// www.hwfire.org.uk (31 January 2011). Read More