Communicating Fire Safety via partnership arrangement with Kidde

 A clever initiative by Humberside Fire & Rescue Service,  supported by Kidde Safety,
makes use of driver training opportunities to get safety messages across to the public.

Driver training in the fire & rescue service has changed considerably over the years. 
Traditionally, drivers used to train on vehicles that were no longer in front line service and were
‘falling off the end of the line’ but of course this did not prepare the students fully for life driving
through busy city streets responding to an emergency. 
More recently fire services have adopted the principle of having one of their newer fire engines
allocated to the training section thus preparing students in all aspects of fire appliance driving.

However, it has also been identified that starting a new student on a fire engine does not
give them the best grounding for their future. 
In view of this many fire and rescue services throughout the UK have introduced,
more standard curtain sided vehicles in to their training fleet.

Humberside Fire & Rescue Service is no exception and they have introduced two new
Scania driver training vehicles, giving their students the best possible opportunities for
life on the road.  The pre weighted Scania 4 x 2’s have had a considerable amount of
work done, moving the standard sleeper cab away from the original role to that of a mobile learning centre. 

The beds have been removed and replaced with two seats that have work desks attached,
allowing the students to study the driving technique of other students and instructors. 
The vehicles are also fitted with CCTV facility which can be played back either in cab during
a training session or in the lecture room once back at the Training Centre.

The sharp eyed Community Protection staff at Humberside Fire & Rescue Service recognised
a large blank space on either side of the driver training vehicles that needed filling and
- with support from Kidde Safety - a graphic safety notice has now been placed on each of the sides. 

These messages are deliberately short and sharp to make them easy to read. 

The offside has a road safety message and the nearside carries a fire safety message. 
On the rear of the vehicle there is also a thought provoking road safety message...

A spokesman from Humberside Fire & Rescue Service said: “the reaction from the
general public has been positive and everyone is familiar with the message that
the truck are giving out whilst the instructors go about their daily work. 
In all we are indebted to Kidde Safety for their assistance with this project,
whilst the driver training vehicles are perfect for our need the addition of
a safety initiative makes it all worthwhile.”

Kidde Safety is committed to working in partnerships with fire and rescue
services throughout the UK and Ireland, supporting fire safety initiatives
and supplying smoke alarms as part of the home safety programme.