Fire chiefs in the North East will launch their own internal review after a “very disturbing” report that revealed racism, misogyny, bullying and prejudice at the London Fire Brigade.
Bosses at the Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service confirmed on Monday that they are closely examining the damning findings of the independent culture review of London Fire Brigade (LFB), which branded it "institutionally misogynist and racist". The investigation, set up by the London Fire Commissioner after a trainee firefighter took his own life in 2020, uncovered incidents including a black firefighter having a mock noose put above his locker and women being groped.
Sunderland councillor Phil Tye, chair of the Tyne and Wear Fire Authority, said that he had never heard of any such issues here on his visits to fire stations. But he told colleagues that local service bosses will consider each of the 23 recommendations made in the London report “with a view to planning in potential actions we want to take to ensure we continue to focus on strengthening inclusivity”.
At a fire authority meeting on Monday morning, chief fire officer Chris Lowther called the conclusions of the 10-month review “incredibly serious”, adding: “I am confident we are in a good position but we will work through each and every one of the recommendations in the report.”
He said: “We have a zero tolerance approach to all of the behaviours listed in the report. That Is not the workplace we have in Tyne and Wear or the culture we have in Tyne and Wear. Where we have a breach of that we deal with it in the most serious way possible.”
Newcastle councillor Tom Woodwark called the findings of the review, led by Nazir Afzal, “very disturbing”, with the report also including claims of women being “sexually taunted" and men being "huddled around a screen watching porn" at some fire stations. The Liberal Democrat added: “My view is that the level of bullying and intimidation here is, at worst, low, but we should never take for granted that it is non-existent. Looking at it is timely and I look forward to the report.”
Mr Afzal said in his review that other fire brigades should take note of the serious failings in London. He wrote in his conclusion: “The exposure of prejudice in the workplace at one of the world’s largest firefighting and rescue organisations should put other brigades on notice.
“Because while London’s public services are very much in the spotlight at the moment, I have no doubt that similar cultural problems exist in other fire brigades across the country.”
In its most recent review by His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services, the Tyne and Wear brigade was deemed to be “good at looking after its people”, but told that it needs to do more to promote fairness and diversity – especially in attracting staff from ethnic minority backgrounds.
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