New ‘Safe & Well’ scheme launched by Fire & Rescue Service, councils and Citizens Advice

News with our partners Shropshire Fire & Rescue Service

Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service has teamed up with local councils and Citizens Advice to create a new method of getting help and support to vulnerable people.

Firefighters already visit more than 3,500 homes each year to conduct fire safety checks and to give advice to people identified as vulnerable, including the elderly, disabled and people living alone. If firefighters feel that someone needed additional help they contact the local authority on an informal basis and pass on their concerns.

That informal arrangement has now been swept away and replaced with a new system called “Safe & Well” that aims to ensure that vulnerable people get the help and support they need.

Guy Williams, Shropshire FRS’s Group Manager (Prevention), said:-

“Our firefighters often pick up on things that need to be brought to the attention of other agencies and until now they would pass on their concerns informally because there were no formal pathways or procedures. That mean’t that people who really needed help could fall through the net.”

At the heart of the new Safe & Well system, launched today (Monday 3 July 2017), is a simple form that the firefighter fills in with the householder.

The form asks questions about the top four key issues identified by Public Health England: lifestyle, warmth, social isolation and slips, trips and falls. If a householder answers “Yes” to any question and agrees to a referral, it will trigger an automatic email from the fire service to the appropriate organisation and the householder will be contacted by that organisation within 28 days.

Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service is collaborating with Shropshire Council to deliver the Safe & Well system across the county, and with Telford & Wrekin Council and Citizen’s Advice in Telford.

Guy Williams added:-

This is a big step forward and will help the relevant bodies to intervene much earlier with help and support for vulnerable people.”

Lee Chapman, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member for health, adult social care and housing, added:-

“We are delighted to be working with Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service on this initiative. Safe & Well visits are an invaluable way of supporting vulnerable people to look after themselves and stay safe and well in their homes.

“Fire officers are highly regarded and trusted by their local communities so are in an excellent position to give health advice and support to some of our more vulnerable residents.

“Safe & Well visits not only help improve the health and well-being of residents, they help individuals and families access many local resources, support services and activities in their community, helping them become less dependent on social care and health services.”

Andy Begley, Shropshire Council’s director of adult social care and housing, said:-

“We work with very vulnerable people with health problems on a day to day basis and who can be most at risk of fire.  So this joint initiative is a great opportunity to reach our most vulnerable residents and take steps to help them stay healthy and remain independent for longer.”

Councillor Arnold England, Cabinet Member for Communities, Health & Wellbeing, Telford & Wrekin Council, said:

‘We are very pleased to have worked together with Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service to support the Safe & Well visits. The Fire Service consists of many enthusiastic, highly skilled officers who are excellent at reaching out and building relationships with our residents and we are happy to help them support our vulnerable groups.’

A liveried Safe & Well outreach vehicle will visit fire station open days and other events through the Summer to promote the new scheme.

Further information

Shropshire Council’s community enablement and public health teams have been working closely with local fire officers and other organisations to look at how residents and local communities can take more control over their health and reduce their risk of decease.

The work forms part of the council’s Healthy Lives programme, which is currently being piloted in Oswestry. The Healthy Lives programme looks at how organisations and local communities can better support individuals, families and neighbourhoods to take more control over their health and well-being, to help them remain safe and reduce their risk of ill health. Other areas of the programme, include falls prevention, carers, social prescribing, diabetes and CVD prevention and mental health.