Thursday 24 February 2011

Who is the Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service?

The Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service covers some 4,500 square miles and makes-up almost two thirds of the landmass of the Principality of Wales. A wide variety of risks are found within our operational area ranging from the petro-chemical industries in Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire and Briton Ferry, Neath, to the risks associated with heavily populated conurbations such as Swansea, Port Talbot and Llanelli. There is an extensive farming community and many other light industries throughout the area. These, together with an extensive coastline and inland waterways are some of the specialised risks within the Mid and West Wales region.

The Service is organised into six County Commands, one each to cover the unitary authoritory areas of:

  • Carmarthenshire
  • Ceredigion
  • City and County of Swansea
  • Neath and Port Talbot
  • Pembrokeshire
  • Powys

The central Headquarters is located in Carmarthen whilst the Fire Safety Headquarters are sited at Morriston, Swansea.

The Service is comprised of a mixture of wholetime, day crewed, retained and volunteer stations, which number 57 in all. The current complement of staff, both operational and support, is approximately 1,400.

Elected members are nominated from each of the six unitary authorities and they collectively form the Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Authority Committee. This acts as the main policy making body and governs the adoption of various working practices in line with statutory guidelines laid down by the Welsh Assembly Government (See 'Our Services'). The Fire Authority meets on a quarterly basis and its work is supported by three main committees namely, Resources, Personnel, and Performance Review and Audit. All of these groups meet regularly to consider issues within their areas of responsibility.

The Mid and West Wales Fire Service is funded directly by its six local government Authorities on a basis commensurate with their registered electorate.