Further meetings on £10m fire cuts

Last week a 14-week public consultation was launched on proposals to address Government funding cuts which could see the service having to cut £10m from its budget by 2015.

A spokesman said: “Members and officers stress they do not want to make changes, but have no alternative due to the extent of the cuts.

“The proposals currently out to consultation, together with other internal staffing changes, will save around £4m per year following a one-off investment of £3.65m, including two new fire stations.”

The plans out to consultation involve shedding 140 jobs, though no full-time firefighters would be made redundant.

The changes also involve closing fire stations in Darnall, Mansfield Road, and a part-time station at Mosborough, and replacing them with two new stations near the Sheffield Parkway and Birley.

Royston fire station in Barnsley would also close and crews at Edlington fire station in Doncaster would also be removed.

A new “close proximity crewing” system at up to six existing stations, meanwhile, would save £400,000 per station per year.

The consultation ends on Monday, February 6 next year.

Four public meetings on the plans will be held in Sheffield, all beginning at 7pm. These will be held on Tuesday, November 22 at Church on the Corner in Buchanan Road; on Tuesday, November 29 at St Catherine’s Church in Hastilar Road South; on Wednesday, November 30 at Mosborough Methodist Church and on Wednesday, December 14 at Sheffield Transport Club in Meadowhead.

New public meetings have now been arranged on Monday, December 5 at 6pm at Edlington Victoria Primary School and on Wednesday, December 7 at 7pm at Royston Civic Hall.