A SOUTH Gloucestershire fire station has welcomed an MP for a visit after a major funding boost.
Claire Hazelgrove, MP for Filton and Bradley Stoke, visited Patchway Fire Station to meet with Avon Fire and Rescue Service staff following a recent £15.6 million increase in funding.
The funding forms part of the Labour Government’s Fair Funding Review and represents a 27 per cent rise between 2024/25 and 2028/29, compared to a six per cent increase under the previous Conservative Government’s last multi-year settlement.
Ms Hazelgrove said: "It was good to meet again with Avon Fire and Rescue Service’s chief fire officer Matt Cook, and some of the brilliant crew members based here at Patchway Fire Station.
"I’m very pleased that just before Christmas our Labour Government’s fair funding review included an additional £15.6 million for Avon Fire and Rescue Service in their core spending power over three years.
"This supports them to stabilise funding challenges and plan for the future – and not just one year at a time.
"This is a significant more than 6x boost compared with the last multi-year funding settlement before the last Conservative Government stopped long-term funding.
"This decision then left them lurching from crisis to crisis each year, with late notice of funding for each year at a time, alongside cuts."
Last year, Ms Hazelgrove visited the station with Councillor Paul Goggin, chair of Avon Fire Authority, to discuss the service’s financial difficulties following the move to one-year funding arrangements and 14 years of austerity.
She also spoke with local Fire Brigades Union members in Parliament and raised their concerns with the Government during her campaign for longer-term investment.
Ms Hazelgrove said: "Of course, this cash injection won’t resolve everything and there’s always more to do, but I am very pleased that our joint effort calling for further investment in this vital service has been heard and delivered on by our Labour Government.
"I was glad to be able to thank the team again personally for their hard and invaluable work our community."
