Emergency services collaboration Collaboration
The Public Accounts Committee’s 2011 report, Transforming NHS Ambulance Services (46th Report of Session 2010/12, HC1353), found varying levels of collaboration between NHS ambulance, fire and police services and recommended that collaboration should be strengthened. The report also found that, although NHS ambulance services collaborate with fire and rescue services and police forces in some areas, there is scope for a more systematic approach to sharing procurement and back office services across the emergency services.
	In December 2012 the then Government commissioned Sir Ken Knight, the outgoing Chief Fire and Rescue Advisor (2007 to 2013), to conduct an independent review of efficiency in the provision of fire and rescue in England. His report Facing the future: findings from the review of efficiencies and operations in fire and rescue authorities in England, published May 2013, said: "Efficiency and quality can be driven through collaboration outside the fire sector, particularly with other blue-light services" and recommended that: "National level changes to enable greater collaboration with other blue-light services, including through shared governance, co-working and co-location, would unlock further savings."
	Since 2010, the Government has invested over £88 million in local blue light collaboration projects (Fire Transformation Fund, Transformation Challenge Award and Police Innovation Fund) and supports the Emergency Services Collaboration Working Group, formed in September 2014, which brings together senior leaders from the blue light services with the aim of improving collaboration. The group has stated: "with an increasing demand for some of our services, coupled with the current and expected restrictions on funding, collaboration provides opportunities to truly innovate and save money."5
	The group has compiled a national overview of collaboration6, which it updated in November 20167, and published research8 to build the evidence base. The research has identified a number of collaboration opportunities ranging in scale of complexity from the sharing of control rooms and estates through to joint training programmes and the merging of local emergency service budgets and governance structures.
	On 11 September 2015, the Home Secretary launched a joint Home Office, Department for Communities and Local Government and Department for Health consultation paper to seek views on proposals to improve joint working between the emergency services and enhance local accountability (House of Commons, Official Report, columns 22WS to 23WS). In a written ministerial statement on 26 January 2016 (House of Commons, Official Report, HCWS489), the Home Secretary set out the Government’s response to the consultation, including a commitment to bring forward legislation:
	introducing a high level duty to collaborate on the three emergency services to improve efficiency or effectiveness;
	enabling PCCs to take on the functions and duties of FRAs, where a local case is made (the proposed process for this is illustrated at annex C);
	where a PCC takes on the responsibilities of an FRA, enabling him or her to create a single employer for police and fire staff, facilitating the sharing of back office functions and streamlining management;
	enabling PCCs to be represented on FRAs, in areas where such authorities remain in place;
	bringing fire and rescue services in London under the direct responsibility of the Mayor of London by abolishing the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority.
	Chapters 1 to 3 of Part 1 of the Act give effect to these reforms.