The chief fire officer (CFO) who in 2013 was at the centre of a controversial employment policy that allowed him to return to his old job only a month after retiring, is set to retire for a second time this December.
Graham Stagg, who has served as CFO for Cambridgeshire for the past nine years, will leave his post after fire authority councillors decided not to extend his six figure contract.
Keith Handscomb, executive council member for the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) in East Anglia, welcomed the move. “This is the right decision for the professionals who deliver the service and for the public who we serve. A change of personnel at the top will provide a great opportunity to positively change the culture of our service”, he said.
The ‘re-engagement’ of Mr Stagg by Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service (CFRS) was criticised by the FBU at the time who said it created the impression of a ‘cosy relationship’ between managers. The then fire minister Brandon Lewis said it looked like a move to get around government pension changes.
CFRS has been dogged by poor morale amongst staff with a recent survey showing only 38% of whole-time firefighters were satisfied with the leadership of the service and only 26% said they trusted senior managers.
Concerns have surrounded senior management at the service over the past few years with a number of reported failings. Two experimental fire appliances, purchased at a cost of £1.3m, have failed repeatedly in their six years of service. Cuts in frontline fire stations, fire engines and firefighter numbers have led to slower 999-response times. It now takes Cambridgeshire firefighters on average 10% longer to get to fires, according to the government’s own figures.
Most recently, the service lost a high profile employment tribunal against former firefighter Kerry Baigent, in which Cambridgeshire fire service managers were described as having acted in a ‘perverse and irrational way’ in their treatment of the longstanding firefighter.
Cameron Matthews, secretary of the FBU in Cambridgeshire, said: “We look forward to working with a new, refreshed management team with a new chief fire officer to make Cambridgeshire a real icon of the UK fire and rescue service. We hope to work together to build a fire and rescue service that our communities deserve and our firefighters are proud to work for.”
