FIREFIGHTERS in Swindon are set to see changes to the way they work as part of a bid to save £1.8m across the service by the end of 2014.

Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service yesterday started a 12-week public consultation on a proposed major shake-up of the way it delivers emergency response.

The proposals would see changes to how firefighters work, but would keep all existing fire stations, keep all existing fire engines and maintain fire cover across the county.

Chief fire officer Simon Routh-Jones said: “We are facing a period of real change. In light of the current economic climate, we need to ensure that we can continue to deliver an efficient and effective fire and rescue service that meets both the demands placed on it by the Government and, more importantly, the expectations of the public.”

Westlea and Stratton would move to a new ‘day crew plus’ system, whereby officers work 24-hour shifts on a flexible rota-basis, spending evenings on call at accommodation at the stations. They would get paid an allowance for the unsociable hours.

At the moment, the 14 firefighters at Westlea operate an almost identical system, except they spend the evenings at home, which must be within five minutes of the station.

However, the 28 firefighters at Stratton operate on a shift pattern to cover the evenings, so the move would reduce the number of required posts by half.

The staff would be asked to move to vacant posts elsewhere in Swindon or to stations elsewhere in the country, while some posts would not be filled when people retire.

Deputy chief fire officer John Aldridge said the move would improve response times by five minutes in Westlea and provide for both stations a system that matches the reduced number of night-time incidents.

For retained firefighters, the service plans to replace the current scheme – whereby staff are paid a retainer fee, plus money for each incident or training day they attend – with a fixed annual salary.

Swindon’s retained firefighters are based at Stratton and Swindon.

Mr Aldridge said he was confident they would get more money, but in return their contracts would be altered so they would have to commit to working agreed days, rather than having the option to drop out at short notice.

In other proposals affecting Swindon, the aerial appliance would be moved from Swindon fire station to Devizes, meaning it would take longer to reach Swindon.

Mr Aldridge said that, although Swindon has a lot of tall buildings, most large buildings nowadays are designed for evacuation by the stairs. He said the appliance was mainly used as a work platform, for example to remove thatch from houses.

The service hopes the majority of the changes will be in place by summer 2013.

To register as an interested stakeholder in the consultation process, visit www.wiltsfire.gov.uk, email consultation@wiltsfire.gov.uk or call 01380 731114.