Gloucestershire's move to a single unitary authority could be a chance to rethink how fire, security and compliance are managed across the county, according to Gloucester-based specialist Severnside Security.
Bringing Gloucestershire's seven existing councils together will mean combining different estates, fire and security systems, maintenance contracts, asset registers, compliance records and working practices.
Severnside's view is that simply transferring those arrangements into the new organisation would miss a chance to examine how critical systems are managed – and whether better information and digital oversight could make compliance more consistent across Gloucestershire.
What Gloucestershire council reorganisation could mean for fire and security compliance
Whatever happens to organisational structures, the fire and security responsibilities attached to council buildings will continue throughout the transition.
Fire alarms will still require servicing, faults will need attention and CCTV, access control and other security systems will need maintaining. Outstanding remedial work will also need to remain visible, assigned and completed.For Severnside, one of the key challenges will be establishing exactly what the new authority is inheriting: what assets exist, where they are, when they were last serviced, what remedial work remains outstanding and which contractors are responsible.
Vikki Kirkwood, the new growth and partnerships lead at Severnside Security, said: 'The creation of one Gloucestershire council is a real opportunity to look at fire and security compliance afresh rather than simply transferring existing arrangements into a new organisation.
'Digital transformation has an important role to play, but it has to start with getting the fundamentals right. You need to understand the assets you have, the information you need to manage them and where the risks and gaps currently sit before technology can genuinely improve anything.'
The company says adopting common standards for areas such as asset information, servicing, remedial work and contractor reporting could give the future authority a clearer picture of compliance across its estate.
How digital technology could support fire and security compliance
Severnside cautions against starting the process by choosing a new digital platform.Instead, it says the priority should be establishing what information is needed to manage fire and security compliance properly, then assessing the quality of the records already held across the existing authorities.
Its proposed approach starts with mapping the estate and identifying gaps or inconsistencies, followed by standardising the way assets and compliance information are recorded.
Only then, Severnside argues, should technology come into play – bringing reliable information together so property and compliance teams can more easily see servicing status, outstanding remedial actions, asset condition and areas requiring attention.
John Trickett, Severnside's head of digital and technology, said: 'Good digital transformation starts with good information. A dashboard is only valuable if you can trust the data sitting behind it.
'For fire and security compliance, the important work is understanding what assets exist, what information needs to be held against them and how that information supports operational and compliance decisions.
'Once that foundation is right, technology becomes a powerful tool for improving visibility and helping teams focus their attention where it is most needed.'
Better visibility, the company says, could also help the future authority make informed decisions about investment, contractor performance and maintenance arrangements across the county.
Why Severnside says Gloucestershire councils should prepare early
With a substantial amount of information to reconcile, Severnside says there is work existing authorities can undertake before the new council is established.That includes reviewing the quality of fire and security asset data, identifying missing records and outstanding compliance actions, checking contract expiry dates and establishing where responsibility for particular systems or actions is unclear.
Crucially, Severnside says this need not involve making decisions that belong to the future authority. Instead, the aim would be to give those responsible for making them accurate information about the estate they are inheriting.
As a Gloucestershire-based business working with fire and security systems across complex, multi-site estates, Severnside says it wants to contribute its experience to the discussion as the county prepares for reorganisation.
Vikki added: 'If Gloucestershire starts that work early, there is an opportunity to create a much clearer and more consistent approach to fire and security compliance across the county.
'As a local fire and security specialist, that is exactly the type of challenge we want to help organisations navigate.'
