The number of firefighters in England has fallen since the Grenfell Tower disaster. More than 20 areas across England have seen the number of firefighters and control room staff dwindle since the tragic fire at the London tower block five years ago, which took the lives of 72 people.
There was a combined total of 36,448 full-time firefighters, on-call firefighters and control staff at across England at the end of March 2021, the latest available Home Office figures show. That was down by 176 from 36,624 four years earlier, which was the last workforce count before the Grenfell fire on June 14 2017. However, London Fire Brigade saw the overall figure rise by 45, from 4,799 to 4,844.
The national drop was driven entirely by the shrinking number of full-time roles, which fell by 335 over the period. That was partially offset by an increase of 109 on-call firefighters, and 50 control staff, who answer 999 calls.
This came after large cuts to fire and rescue services in the run-up to Grenfell, said the Fire Brigades Union (FBU), which added that the UK had already lost more than 11,000 firefighter roles between 2010 and 2017 – nearly one in five positions.
Matt Wrack, the FBU’s general secretary, said: “Despite the worst UK domestic fire in living memory the Government is still failing to change direction, and take fire safety and the fire service seriously. It is an insult to the people who lost their lives and it is an insult to the Grenfell community. Unfortunately, none of this is a surprise.
“Central government let Grenfell be turned into a fire trap and has done nothing to fix the building safety crisis that has come to light since. But nonetheless, we should not take our eye off just how heartless you have to be to see an incident like Grenfell and then continue on a path like this. They are gambling with lives.”
A Home Office spokeswoman said that firefighters worked tirelessly every day to protect their communities. She added: “The Home Office works closely with fire and rescue services to ensure they have adequate resources needed to do their work.
“But it is the responsibility of fire and rescue authorities to ensure they have the appropriate number of firefighters and control staff to deliver their core functions. Since the Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase One report was published in October 2019, the Government has introduced new legislation, worked closely with the London Fire Brigade to monitor their action plan, and improved the capacity and capability of the National Fire Chiefs Council.”