London Fire Brigade makes ‘significant improvements’ – inspectors

London Fire Brigade (LFB) has made “significant improvements” to its performance since the last inspection, according to the fire inspectorate’s latest report.

His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) graded LFB as ‘outstanding’ in its response to major and multi-agency incidents.

It comes two years after the brigade was placed under special measures by after a report found the service was “institutionally misogynistic and racist”.

LFB said the latest report reflect how it has “changed ways of working” and is “transforming the culture across the organisation”.

The inspectorate graded London Fire Brigade’s performance across 11 areas.

It found the brigade to be ‘good’ or ‘adequate’ in nine areas and said it ‘requires improvement’ when it comes to managing performance and developing leaders.

HMICFRS said the brigade “continues to respond quickly to fires and has a good system in place to prioritise its home fire safety visits”.

It also found that the brigade is making “good progress to improve culture” and praised it for its role in counterterrorism nationally.

But it said more needs to be done to recruit a more diverse workforce and must “continue to build staff trust and confidence in the processes it has to deal with poor behaviour”.

The report noted that all 29 recommendations from the Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase 1 have now been implemented.

His Majesty’s Inspector of Fire and Rescue Services, Lee Freeman, said: “I am pleased to find significant improvements in the performance of London Fire Brigade since our last inspection.

“However, it still needs to improve how it identifies and develops high-potential staff and how it manages individual performance and development reviews.

He added: “While there is still more to do, it is evident that the brigade understands where to make these further improvements and has achievable plans for them.”

London Fire Commissioner, Andy Roe, said the report showed a “clear assessment of the positive changes” the brigade had made in the last two years.

He said: “None of this would have been possible without the dedication of everyone in the organisation and the unwavering support of the Mayor of London, who has ensured we have the funding necessary to make the changes required.

“This is not the end of our journey, and every day we will strive to do better to ensure we remain trusted to serve and protect London.”

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said the report was “good news for London”.

In a statement he said: “I will work with the commissioner to deliver a fire and rescue service that Londoners can be proud of – one that is not only trusted to serve and protect our city, but has a workplace culture where staff from all backgrounds can thrive.”