Stations in England are falling apart, say fire chiefs

Fire stations in England are falling apart, fire chiefs have said, with funding plummeting by an estimated £1bn in the last decade while callouts have increased by a fifth.

- Robyn Vinter

Fire and rescue must not become the "forgotten emergency service", the National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC) said, while warning of mounting pressures that "risk undermining public and firefighter safety", as they respond to more 999 calls with fewer firefighters.

The warning comes before the government's spending review next Wednesday in which Rachel Reeves has promised to support the NHS and increase defence budgets.

Fire services have not been mentioned, leading to concern that they would be forgotten, said the NFCC, which represents the heads of fire services across the UK.

Firefighter numbers in England have dropped by a quarter in just seven years, the equivalent of 11,000 full-time staff, according to the government's workforce statistics.