POLICE, FIRE AND CRIME PANEL REPORT

Meeting Date	January 21^st 2026
Report Title	NYFRS Community Risk Management Plan 2025-2029

Information should be accessible for all. If you require this information in a different language or format, please contact the Police, Fire and Crime Team at info@northyorkshire-pfcc.gov.uk.

1.0 Purpose of this report

To provide an update on the development and recent publication of North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service’s (NYFRS) new Community Risk Management Plan (CRMP) 2025-2029, formerly known as the Risk and Resource Model.

2.0 Background

Every fire and rescue service must produce and consult on a CRMP, as required by the Fire and Rescue National Framework (2018)[1]. The Plan provides an assessment of risks facing our communities and outlines how the Service will continue to adapt and improve to meet these challenges, to keep the people of York and North Yorkshire safe.

The CRMP acts as the strategic roadmap for how North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service plans for the future and uses its resources effectively. The new CRMP will support delivery of the Mayor’s priorities in the Fire and Rescue Plan 2025-2029.

The Mayor approves the CRMP but delegates its development to the Chief Fire Officer, to define the risk and resourcing across the service area.

3.0 Developing the CRMP 2025-2029

Development

NYFRS published its updated Community Risk Profile (CRP) in June 2025, providing a comprehensive assessment of foreseeable risks based on incident data, demographics, infrastructure, and partner insights. The priority risks include; accidental dwelling fires, road traffic collisions, fires which impact businesses and the growing impact of climate related incidents. The CRP can be accessed here: Community Risk Profile 2025 - North Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Service.

The CRMP sets out how prevention, protection, and response activities will collectively mitigate these risks. The Plan also includes wider strategic objectives (Areas of Focus) which describe the actions the Service will take to improve its service to communities as an organisation and employer.

Over seventy Areas of Focus have been identified across twelve key functions: Prevention, Protection, Response, On-call, Resilience, Operational Preparedness, Collaboration, People, Culture and Values, Estates, Fleet, Data, Digital and Technology.

These Areas of Focus were informed by a range of sources, including the assessment of risk within the refreshed Community Risk Profile, findings from independent inspections, the Service’s change pipeline and analysis of Service performance. Some Areas of Focus continue existing work, while others reflect new priorities. Together, they demonstrate NYFRS’s commitment to keeping communities safe and continuously improving as both a service provider and employer.

In June 2025, the Chief Fire Officer presented the Areas of Focus and two service delivery change proposals to the Deputy Mayor’s Strategic Oversight Board:

Extending the Automatic Fire Alarm (AFA) attendance policy from 12 hours to 24 hours (no attendance at commercial premises without sleeping risk unless fire confirmed).
Replacing one of the two water bowsers.

Following scrutiny of the rationale for the two proposals, the Deputy Mayor approved progression to formal consultation.

Public Consultation

Public engagement was central to shaping the CRMP. Foundations were laid through consultation on the Mayor’s Fire and Rescue Plan priorities and the Chief Fire Officer’s CRMP planning principles in Autumn 2024. Ahead of formal consultation, NYFRS undertook a two-week staff engagement period.

The formal eight-week CRMP public consultation ran from 7 July to 7 September 2025 and was jointly delivered by the YNYCA and NYFRS. A total of 802 responses were received, representing broad demographic and geographic coverage. 60 responses came from NYFRS employees. Analysis included comparison of feedback before and after the Fylingdales Moor fire was declared a major incident (13 August 2025) to assess any impact on public views.

At the Deputy Mayor’s Strategic Oversight Boards in September and October, NYFRS presented its response to the consultation findings, including measures to address public concerns. The Deputy Mayor reviewed these responses in detail and provided additional direction and stipulations as part of the approval process for the CRMP.

The North Yorkshire Fire Brigades Union response was received post-consultation and given special consideration. All consultation documents and responses are appended to the Mayor’s Decision Notice.

4.0 Approval and Publication

In December 2025, the Mayor made the decision to approve the NYFRS Community Risk Management Plan 2025–2029, including its Areas of Focus and the two proposed service delivery changes. The Decision Notice can be found here: Decision - Approval of the new NYFRS CRMP 2025-2029 .

The CRMP 2025-2029 can be read here: CRMP - North Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Service.

Approval was subject to the following assurances and content changes:

Automatic Fire Alarm Policy

The Deputy Mayor sought additional assurances regarding potential delays in the rare event that an AFA signals a genuine fire, particularly at commercial premises in remote rural areas where the response time to a genuine emergency would be longer and where it is possible a genuine fire would take longer to be confirmed. The Service will:

· Implement a comprehensive communication plan prior to the policy change to ensure responsible persons and Alarm Receiving Centres are fully informed.

· Continue to work with responsible persons to reinforce legal responsibilities and improve understanding of fire safety obligations.

· Deliver a targeted business engagement programme, focusing on commercial premises in rural and remote areas where response times are unavoidably longer.

· Continue its core regulatory responsibilities, with specialist fire safety staff auditing all high-risk premises every three years in line with the Risk-Based Inspection Programme.

· Maintain an effective call-challenging process to ensure AFAs are appropriately assessed. An emergency response will always be provided if a fire is confirmed.

Water Bowser Replacement

In response to consultation feedback, early learning from the requirements of the Fylingdales Moor fire and subsequent assurances sought by the Deputy Mayor, a number of changes to the Areas of Focus have been made:

· A new Area of Focus has been introduced to strengthen resilience to major incidents, ‘Developing a Community Asset Register and formalising contracts with third-party providers to support our response to wildfires and other Major Incidents.’

· The original CRMP proposal, which focused on ‘exploring new technologies and partnerships to enhance wildfire resilience,’ has been broadened and made more explicit. It now states: ‘Replacing one of our two water bowsers and redirecting funds towards wildfire training, alternative vehicles, equipment, and PPE to improve rural response in line with the community risk profile.’ The Service will seek to procure the most appropriate vehicles to address identified risks across the service area. To note, NYFRS will continue to maintain the second water bowser for as long as it is operationally and/or financially viable.

· The recent Fylingdales Moor fire highlighted the critical importance of water logistics to deliver capacity way in excess of the capabilities NYFRS could hold in Service, in tackling large-scale rural fires. In response, the Deputy Mayor has asked for an additional Area of Focus within the CRMP: ‘We will closely work with our partners to ensure we maintain suitable water provision across the service area.

It is important context that, at the height of the Fylingdales Moor fire, a total of 15 water bowsers were deployed, comprising the two NYFRS vehicles alongside additional larger capacity units supplied externally, including those transported by tractors. In late October, the Deputy Mayor met with senior officials from Yorkshire Water to recognise the resources they had contributed during the incident and to discuss the importance of further strengthening partnership coordination to ensure reliable water provision during periods of multiple simultaneous incidents across the Yorkshire region.

5.0 Delivery and Reporting

NYFRS is still in a position where it needs to balance its ambition and improvement journey with maintaining financial security and sustainability. Investment needs to be carefully considered to ensure maximum impact and value for money, whilst still seeking opportunities for efficiencies when possible.

A costed and prioritised investment plan will be developed to enable effective and efficient delivery of the new CRMP.

Performance and progress against the new CRMP will be monitored and scrutinised through the Policing, Fire and Crime Directorate’s Assurance Framework, as well as through independent inspections by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS). NYFRS will provide internal assurance via its governance structures and the publication of an annual performance update.