RESIGNATIONS of the top bosses of Avon Fire and Rescue Service have been called for in a damning report released by the government today.

In the investigation by the Home Office, Avon Fire Authority has been branded an ‘old boys club’, citing cases of bullying, cover-ups, financial irregularities and working to the benefit of senior leadership.

The full statutory inspection, the first of its kind, was launched in February following wide-ranging allegations over the authority’s governance in relation to spending, contracts, complaints, discipline and culture.

It also followed the authority’s repeated refusal to commission its own independent investigation into the claims.

Among the many failures listed in the report, author Dr Craig Baker highlights examples of bullying, secret meetings and the senior management repeatedly putting their personal interests before the needs of the taxpayer.

In one example of issues with governance,  the report explains how new members to the authority raised concerns about the service, but after a brief investigation, it was ruled that the matter was closed, with no further action to be taken.

The chair followed up the decision by writing to members, saying that the allegations made were part of a “malicious campaign to destabilize the fire authority” adding that “if any member feels unable to accept the will of the majority then they should seriously consider their position as a member of this authority.”

In another case, Dr Baker outlines a three-year cover-up of a laptop potentially containing “highly sensitive data about a large number of vulnerable children”.

Many criticisms are made throughout the report of chief fire officer Kevin Pearson, who took on the role in 2001, retiring in 2009, only to return the following day with his pension abated.

He then took a pay reduction of 22 per cent in 2001, but was able to bring it up to the former amount by drawing from his pension, as well as being given access to another pension on top of his £111,000 firefighter’s pension scheme.

He was also given a £10,000 pay increase two years ago, to £142,020 with no explanation.

The report also highlighted that despite a small number of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) staff, there had been a “disproportionately high number of complaints and grievances involving such staff over the last decade.”

One example given was of an employment tribunal giving a decision on a case in February last year, where a BAME staff member, who had worked for the authority for 28 years had been dismissed.

While the tribunal said that the grounds for misconduct were not unfair, serious criticisms were made of how the authority handled the incident, with the process to record accidents or issues likely to cause stress were “more aligned to a disciplinary process than a process designed to support an individual who has reported work related stress.”

Calling for the resignation of the authority’s top bosses, Dr Baker said in the report: “I believe lack of change amongst senior management has gone beyond the point of stability and continuity.”

“I conclude that it is now time for the leadership of the Authority to be revitalised in order to drive improvements in economy, efficiency and effectiveness.”

In response to the criticisms made by the report Councillor Donald Davies, chairman of Avon Fire Authority said: “There is no doubt this report makes difficult reading, particularly in relation to historic shortfalls in governance and management arrangements.

“Mistakes have been made in the past and they cannot be ignored which is why my focus is exploring the recommendations that have been made and taking practical steps to improve.

“The vast majority of our frontline and support staff will feel as upset and frustrated by this report as the local people we serve.”

He added that the authority had to accept and learn from the criticism, and demonstrate through its actions how it will improve, going on to say that he had already started to work with the management team to produce an action plan, and had called for an urgent meeting with policing and fire minister Nick Hurd, was seeking support of outside bodies including the National Fire Chiefs Council.