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THE UK Government and fire and rescue services should take a range of measures to tackle violence against fire crews – including introducing a coherent national strategy on the issue – says the Fire Brigades Union (FBU).
A new report from the union, Easy targets? Tackling attacks on fire crews in the UK, says there are more than 2,000 attacks on fire crews every year – the equivalent of 40 a week – ranging from physical and verbal abuse to missiles thrown. However, with widespread under-reporting, the FBU thinks the actual figure is at least twice as high.
The report, carried out by the Labour Research Department, criticises Communities and Local Government (CLG) for providing guidance that the union claims is ‘cursory and, in places, contradictory’. Moreover, it says that CLG ‘appears to put few resources into tackling the problem centrally or providing support to local brigades’.
According to the union, the Government should develop a coherent national strategy, in consultation with FBU and senior officers. ‘It should include adequate reporting and data collection methods, and the production of comprehensive good practice guidance, backed by resources.’ In addition, all fire services should develop separate ‘violence at work’ policies and ensure all personnel get relevant training.
Adequate funding should be made available for youth and education programmes, which the report says is the best long-term strategy for preventing attacks.
The report is available from the FBU website: www.fbu.org.uk/
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