The key ambition of West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Authority is making its area of operation safer by facilitating efficient, safety measures. The authority responds to fire fighting, floods, traffic accidents, incidents such as lift trapping and those involving hazardous materials such as petroleum, gas, and electricity.
The authority conducts education on matters relating to fires such as prevention and control to youth groups and schools. It also performs emergency planning, fire safety inspections, and first aid to fire victims. Firefighters and officers frequently visit commercial and residential premises to advice on fire prevention and hazard risk assessment.
The central office of West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Authority coordinates fire prevention tasks in accordance with legislation and support from specialist officers. This paper gives details of the legislation and standards that apply to West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Authority as a requirement of the Fire and Rescue Services Act of 2004, Fire and Rescue National Framework, and the Regulatory Reform Order of 2005. It also gives an explanation on how the International Organization for Standardization models can be integrated in the authority.
In the current economic conditions, public services are experiencing real challenges in supplying efficient and effective services. For purposes of quality assurance, there are several legislative requirements and standards that apply to the authority based on the Fire and Rescue Services Act of 2004.
According to the Act, it is the mandate of the fire and rescue authority to make provision with the intention of promoting fire safety in its respective area.
In doing so, the authority ought to provide information to the public on the steps that people should take to prevent injury or death by fire. In addition, it is the duty of the authority to give advice to the society on how to prevent fires and curb their spread in both private and public premises and ways to get away from buildings and other surroundings in case of fire (The National Archives 2004).
The Fire and Rescue National Framework requires for fire and rescue authorities to carry out the task in cooperation with their communities and other partners locally and nationally to deliver their services (Department for Communities and Local Government 2012, p. 7).
In connection with this, the authority has established a strong partnership arrangement with local communities in regions such as Bradford and Birkenshaw to guarantee service delivery that meets the organization’s statutory duties. The organization is transparent and accountable to the local communities in its decisions and actions to create the opportunity for communities to help plan for their local service through efficient consultation and involvement.
According to the Regulatory Reform Fire Safety Order of 2005, an employer must provide appropriate and comprehensible information to employees. The information should include potential risks at the work place and preventive and protective measures (2005, p. 14). This also applies to any employer employing a child.
The information must be provided to the child’s parent or any other person who has parental responsibility over the minor. Moreover, the employer should notify his or her employees of the existence of dangerous substances within the premises and provide them with in depth details about the substance such as the name of the substance, the risks it presents, and legislative provisions concerning the hazardous material.
In order to promote efficiency in authority, it is necessary to integrate the quality management principles on which the International Organization of Standardization (ISO) bases its standards. The principles act as a framework, to point the authority towards improved performance.
West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Authority can incorporate the principle of customer focus in its operation through direct involvement and consultations of the community members in its area of operation in planning and making decisions regarding their services. Doing this enables the authority to combine the principles of customer focus and involvement of people. The authority collects and stores data on its daily activities and operations.
Accurate and reliable data and efficient analysis of the data will result to realistic and informed decision making. This also ensures that the information is accessible to the people who need it. Processes such as employee training using effective tools, upgrading products and systems, acknowledging employee effort, and establishing goals result to overall advancement in the authority’s performance.
Incorporating the system approach management principle is an excellent means to recognition, comprehending, and managing systems. As a result, the authority attains efficiency in achieving its goals (International Organization of Standardization 2012). Since the authority and its suppliers are interdependent, the parties should ensure that the relationship creates value to both. Value can be created by ensuring open communication, establishing joint development activities, and sharing information.
This paper has discussed the significant legislation and standards that pertain to West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Authority in accordance with Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004, Fire and Rescue National Framework, and the Regulatory Reform Order 2005.
Moreover, the writing has provided explanations on how the International Organization for Standardization principles can be integrated in West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Authority. A combination of these aspects will aid the authority in achieving its goal of making its assigned region safer.
List of References
Department for Communities and Local Government. (2012) The Fire and Rescue National Framework for England. Web.
International Organization of Standardization. (2012) Quality Management Principles. Web.
The National Archives. (2004) Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004. Web.
The Regulatory Reform Fire Safety Order 2005. (2005) Web.