Fire Authority

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In the United Kingdom a Fire Authority or Fire and Rescue Authority is a body or committee which oversees the operation, policy and service delivery of a county or metropolitan fire and rescue service.

The Fire Authority is made up of either councillors, officers or representatives from the local borough, county or metropolitan council in the georgraphical area that the fire service operates.

In simple terms a local fire authority is a body which ensures that the local fire service is doing its job properly by serving the community as it should. It means that the fire service is answerable for its actions and performance to the general public.

A Fire Safety Officer whom works in a fire safety department of a fire and rescue service actually works under the direction of the fire authorty and not the fire service. All though a fire safety officer is actually an employee of the fire service and is authorised and answerable to the chief fire officer to exercise powers of inspection, any enforcement or prosecution action taken against organisations by the fire service is actually undertaken under the name of the fire authority.