The NFCC’s Fire Investigation Workstream has delivered a number of guidance documents, working in partnership with others where appropriate, to enable services to assure and improve their capability in this area.
We are grateful for all the feedback we received through the consultation, all of which has been considered. We have provided an explanation and rationale for the changes made in the table below.
Approved Standard
Take a look at the Fire Standard that was published following your feedback to the consultation.
Consultation
DESIRED OUTCOME
| You Said | We Did |
|---|---|
| The methodology used to complete investigations should be scientifically valid so that results can be replicated. | The wording was amended to clarify that fire investigations should be valid. |
| Collecting and analysing data as part of fire investigation led to many improvements, some of those key consequences were not listed. |
The desired outcome was revised to include additional and important consequences of collecting and analysing data from fire investigations, such as: 1. a better understanding of the origin and cause of fire; and 2. a better understanding of how buildings and people behave in relation to fire |
TO ACHIEVE THE FIRE STANDARD
| You Said | We Did |
|---|---|
| Information gathered as part of a fire investigation should go through rigorous quality assurance, as described within the codes of practices. | An additional point was added to align with the codes of practices. |
| Clarity was needed where the standard mentioned workforce planning. This topic was spread across multiple points and was not clear. | The points relating to workforce planning were brought together into one single point for clarity. |
| Clarity was needed where the standard mentioned training, development and continuous professional development. These topics were spread across multiple points which was unclear for readers. | The points relating to training, development and continuous professional development were brought together into one single point for clarity. |
| Fire investigation work is sometimes undertaken jointly with other parties, not just with other fire and rescue services. | The point on collaboration was expanded to state that this could also be with “other interested parties”, for clarity. |
| Fire Investigators often view traumatic scenes and work in environments which could be harmful to their health, therefore having this support available to them is crucial. | The provision of post-incident mental and physical health and wellbeing support to fire investigators was inserted as an additional point. |