Her Majesty's Fire Service Inspectorate for Scotland
Her Majesty's Fire Service Inspectorate for Scotland or HM Fire Service Inspectorate is an autonomous agency of the Scottish Government which functions to provide independent, risk based and proportionate professional inspection of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service. The inspectorate, also known simply as HMFSI, is not a firefighting body.
The HMFSI can enquire into any matter concerning the operation of a fire and rescue service, with their powers originally set out in section 43B of the Fire (Scotland) Act 2005.[1] Their role was substantially amended by the Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Act 2012 that came into effect on 1 April 2013. The inspectorate is based in St Andrew's House, Edinburgh. The current HMFSI Chief Inspector is Martyn Emberson. It is general practice for Chief Inspectors to have previously served as Firemaster or Chief Fire Officer (CFO) - Emberson is a former CFO of Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service. He holds the Queen's Fire Service Medal.
HMFSI's remit
The HMFSI's main responsibilities include the following:[2]
- Inspection of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service and public reporting thereon
- Advising Scottish Ministers, and the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service on professional and technical matters generally
- Providing advice to other government departments, professional associations, Audit Scotland and the Health and Safety Executive
- Attendance at public inquiries, where appropriate
- Assessment of fire safety activities including encouragement of contributions to community fire safety
- Developing of guidance and good practice for operational planning and delivery
- Helping to develop performance indicators for the Fire and Rescue Service
- Management of internal inspectorate resources
- Determining disputes between enforcing authorities and duty holders under section 67 of the Fire (Scotland) Act 2005.
See also
- Scottish Government
- Fire services in the United Kingdom
- Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Fire Services (England, Wales and Northern Ireland)
References
- ↑ "An Overview of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service" (PDF). Her Majesty's Fire Service Inspectorate for Scotland. 12 November 2013. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
- ↑ The Scottish Government: About HMFSI (accessed 14 Nov 12)
External links
- Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Fire Services for Scotland: Report for 2004-2005
- The Scottish Government: HMFSI