Community initiatives

Firefighters offer free fire safety checks on homes in Glodwick as part of the Beat Sweep initiative

These are just some of the community initiatives that we are involved in…

Chip pan exchange scheme
We have launched a chip pan exchange initiative to reduce the number of fires caused by traditional chip pans. The aim of the initiative is to encourage residents at risk to swap their chip pans for modern and safer deep fat fryers.

Beat Sweep
Oldham's first ever Beat Sweep in Glodwick earlier this year was a great success. The initiative involved the Fire Service, Police, different local authority departments and other partners working together to help rid a community of problems such as litter, abandoned vehicles, drugs and anti-social behaviour.

Education programme
Community fire safety officers are involved in delivering fire safety education to all key stage groups in schools across Oldham. All fire stations have a comprehensive programme of primary school visits.  During their primary school years children receive fire safety education during years 2 and 5. The adult population are engaged through specific talks to local community groups, at local events and by campaigns involving radio, posters and leaflets.

Crucial Crew
Community fire safety staff are also involved in the running of the Crucial Crew scheme, a multi-agency approach to safety in the home for children in Key Stage 2. The event is held once each year and is organised and run in conjunction with the Police, Ambulance Service and other local organisations that provide a wide range of safety information.

Learn Not To Burn
Operational crews are involved in The Learn Not to Burn Quiz, visiting local primary schools and teaching fire safety to children in year 5. The classes provide teams who attend their local fire stations and take part in a knock out fire safety quiz, with the winners going on through various rounds to a grand final.

Oldham Community Outreach Partnership
This is aimed at creating better relationships with young people in the community.  The purpose is to improve community cohesion and reduce anti-social tendencies through interaction and support groups.  £2 million has been set aside from the Government’s Decent Homes Initiative to provide around 28,000 mains-powered smoke detectors in 14,000 homes.

Shaw Spectacular
In response to a sudden increase in residential property fires in the Shaw area, the ‘Shaw Spectacular’ was launched to raise awareness and provide safety messages to the community.

Team Fire Experience
As part of the community cohesion initiative, Team Fire Experience has been developed to bring together young people from across Oldham for a day-long programme of events including fire safety education and team building.