A helmetted firefighter shoots a big jet of water into a burning pile of recycling, which is glowing orange

Firefighters’ union joins call for government to take water into public ownership

By Michael Chessum
The Fire Brigades Union has joined calls for the government to bring water into public ownership to ensure clean and adequate water supply firefighters need to safely tackle fires. The findings contained in the final report of the Westminster and the Welsh governments’ “Independent Water Commission”...

Firefighter June July 2025

Cover of June July issue of Firefighter magazine featuring a dedication to Jennie Logan and Martyn Sadler
Firefighter commemorates Jennie Logan and Martyn Sadler, two firefighters who tragically lost their lives at a fire in Bicester on May 15 this year. Features in this issue include an update from FBU's annual conference in Blackpool, and a look at firefighting on the frontline in the town, which has...

Firefighter magazine
Frieda Lurken poses with heat strike campaign hat and sun cream

Strike while the weather is hot

Frieda Lurken, a climate campaigner with a background in public health, explains how firefighters can raise the alarm with the Heat Strike campaign A quick glance at recent UK headlines and you would assume that politicians are quaking in their boots as summer approaches. Spring in England the UK...
Firefighters fighting Buncefield fire with foam

Making visible the invisible

Australian firefighters have led the way in researching and preventing exposure to PFAS, known as forever chemicals, in firefighter foams. Firefighter reports  “Never tell a firefighter they can’t achieve something”. These words, uttered by Michael Tisbury of the United Firefighters Union of...
FBU conference 2025 delegates holding signs saying fund our fire service

Conference round up: 2025

Every year hundreds of delegates, elected from FBU brigades across the UK, travel to the union’s annual conference to democratically decide the union’s priorities, policies, and rules.  Firefighter reports on the main decisions and debates from the conference floor in Blackpool’s Imperial hotel this...
Group photo of campaigners and MPs outside college green

Zane’s Law Summit at Westminster: “Make toxic landfills safe!”

By Alice Dann
Campaigners calling for ‘Zane’s Law’, to protect communities from contaminated land, held a summit at the Houses of Parliament on the 11 June. The proposed law would improve transparency around historic landfill sites and clarify who is responsible for making these safe. It is named after seven-year...
Rebecca Lewington smiling at camera wearing FBU polo shirt

Mental health: your story matters

The FBU and University of Central Lancashire are calling for all serving UK fire service staff to fill out a survey of their experiences of mental health. Rebecca Lewington, control member and FBU regional secretary for the Eastern region, explains how taking part will help build the demand for...
FBU member holds up a sign reading 'crew deficient equals safety deficient'

Crewing: countdown to disaster

When fire and rescue services send firefighters out in crews of just three on a fire engine, lives are on the line. Firefighter reports.  A hotel is burning. People are still inside and need help to get out. Many of them don’t speak English as their first language and are panicking.  Your crew is...
Firefighter wearing a t shirt reading 'FBU demands safe homes for all' looks at the Grenfell memorial wall

Fire leaves Home Office as government accepts Grenfell recommendations

Government responsibility for the fire and rescue service moved from the Home Office to the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government on 1 April 2025. The FBU welcomed this as an important first step to repairing the damage done to the fire and rescue service by recent governments. In a...
A group of FBU members hold flags outside Gloucestershire county council building

Up to standard

The cover story of this edition of Firefighter will be familiar to many FBU members. In many areas, it is no longer guaranteed that there will be enough firefighters on a fire engine to safely tackle an incident. As we report in this issue, firefighters attending incidents as part of a crew of four...
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