Fire service bosses are thrilled to have received a very positive report after a thorough inspection.

The body that inspects the police now looks at fire and rescue services and Dorset and Wiltshire Fire Service has been given a report with ‘good’ ratings nearly across the board.

Of 14 ratings in three categories, effectiveness, efficiency and people, there are 13 good ratings and one - understanding the risk of fire and other emergencies - which requires improvement.

In the first inspection of the service which merged in in April 2016, the government watchdog says: “The service is good at keeping people safe. It is good at preventing fires and other risks, protecting the public, responding to emergencies and responding to national risks.

“It is good at looking after its people. But it requires improvement at how it understand risk.”

The inspectors’ report says when they visited and examined the system the brigade has for risk site visits there were a number of premises with visits overdue which had not been reviewed: “Out of date risk information could slow down rescue operations and put firefighters and the public at unnecessary risk.”

It added that risk information about temporary events, such as large festivals was communicated ‘inconsistently’ and the service couldn’t be certain firefighters were seeing information which was sent to station managers, nor was there a way for it to be recorded when they had seen it.

A spokesman for the service said this wasn’t a surprise and there were no surprises and these areas are already being considered and progressed as part of internal improvement plans.

Chief Fire Officer Ben Ansell said: “I am delighted that the service has been independently recognised by the Inspectorate for all the good work that takes place across Dorset and Wiltshire to keep our communities safe from fire and the other emergencies that we deal with.”

“I am very proud of our organisation and all the fantastic work done by my staff. They work really hard to give the best possible service they can to all those who need our help or work with us. This result is even more impressive if you consider that this is a new service, coming into existence just over three years ago.”

In other areas the service’s work was praised.

The report said: “Safe and well visits include identifying potential fire risks, taking action to reduce risks, ensuring working fire alarms are fitted, health prevention and advice on slips, trips and falls.

“Staff showed a good understanding of how they target prevention activity in their areas, using software to identify the highest levels of risk in their communities.”

Discussing responses to fires and other 999 emergencies the inspectors said: “Response standards focus on saving lives.” While only 71 per cent of fires with a ‘sleeping risk’ saw an engine on site within 10 minutes, the inspectors saw figures to show that standard was met more frequently in densely populated areas, and the average response time was 10 minutes and 22 seconds, a drop from 11minutes and 12 seconds three years ago.

Inspectors refer to the brigade’s work in “high profile incidents” – the Salisbury and Amesbury poisoning cases last year, and say it is well-prepared to be part of a multi-agency response.

Staff were able to tell inspectors what actions to take “if notified of a marauding terrorist attack.”

Chairman of the Fire Authority, Dorset councillor Rebecca Knox, said: “This is a great outcome. It is extremely reassuring that we have such an effective fire and rescue service. On behalf of the Authority and the residents we represent, I would like to thank all staff for their professionalism in delivering this highly skilled service to the communities across Bournemouth Christchurch & Poole, Dorset, Swindon and Wiltshire. We look forward to building on this report and its recommendations as the organisation further develops.”