Falkirk residents can have their say on the future of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service

Chief Officer Martin Blunden launched the public consultation SFRS, Long-Term Vision, and asked people to take part and help influence the way the service evolves over the next ten years.

SFRS is one of the world’s largest fire and rescue services, employing almost 8000 staff and last year alone it attended more than 91,000 incidents across the Scottish mainland and islands.

Over the same period, SFRS conducted almost 70,000 Home Fire Safety Visits.

The consultation comes at a time when there is a steady decline in household fires, while Scotland has witnessed an increase in weather related events such as wildfires and severe flooding, both of which are linked to climate change.

One of the proposed priorities of the SFRS is achieving Carbon Zero status to reduce its impact on the communities it serves.

Chief Officer Blunden said: “While our immediate environment is changing and we need to respond to this in terms of the services we provide, I also want our fire and rescue service to evolve and have an increasingly positive impact on the health and wellbeing of our communities.

“I see opportunities to improve the SFRS through advanced technology that will enable us to work in smarter and more innovative ways, continuing our shift towards the prevention of risk of harm for households and communities, and, at the same time to work even more collaboratively with our communities and partners.As an employer, the well being of our staff is a key priority and we want to do more to promote equality, diversity and inclusion, not just in our workforce but across the communities we serve as well.“I would like to encourage peopleto read our vision document. I would like to hear what you think – positive or negative – as well as understand what’s important to you too so that you, your family and your community feels safe and protected.

"We want you to achieve a safer Scotland for all, together.”

The consultation runs until Sunday, July 18 and can be accessed here.

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