Firefighters responded to the lowest number of unwanted fire signals since records began. West Sussex Fire & Rescue Service attended 92 unwanted fire signals between October 1 and December 31, 2024. This is the lowest quarterly figure since the service's records began.
An unwanted fire signal is when an automatic fire alarm is activated, and a fire and rescue service resource is mobilised to the scene, but there is no fire. The data was presented to West Sussex County Council's Fire and Rescue Scrutiny Committee, who reviewed the fire and rescue service's quarter three performance at their meeting on March 6. The significant reduction in unwanted fire signals is attributed to the call challenge policy implemented more than two years ago.
To compare, the service responded to 436 unwanted fire signals for the same quarter in 2021, before this policy was implemented. A performance report also showed sustained good performance in many areas. One particular success was the improvements made around fire engine response times; first and second appliance times had improved from the previous quarter, with second appliances having the strongest response times to date.
The committee also discussed a report from the Chief Fire Officer, summarising the recommendations for fire and rescue services following the Grenfell Tower Inquiry. West Sussex Fire & Rescue Service has already considered the recommendations from the Phase 1 report of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry, and the service is now un.
