Chief Fire Officer Peter Heath

Our commitment to you

We’re here to keep Tyne and Wear safe for everyone, 24 hours a day.

Equality, diversity and inclusion are at the heart of what we do. We work to promote fair treatment for all, for both our employees and the communities of Gateshead, Newcastle, North Tyneside, South Tyneside and Sunderland.

Our 17 fire stations are staffed by highly trained firefighters and our work is supported by corporate staff and community volunteers.

Our vision: Creating the safest community

Our mission: To save life, reduce risk, provide humanitarian services and protect the environment

Find out more about what we do.

Our values

All of our employees have a responsibility to uphold these core values:

We value service to the community by:

• working with all groups to reduce risk
• treating everyone fairly and with respect
• being answerable to those who we serve
• striving for excellence

We value all of our employees by practising and promoting:

• fairness and respect
• recognition of merit
• honesty, integrity and mutual trust
• personal development
• co-operative and inclusive working

We value improvement at all levels of the service by:

• accepting responsibility for our performance
• being open minded
• considering criticism thoughtfully
• learning from our experience
• consulting others

We value diversity in the service and community by:

• treating everyone fairly and with respect
• providing varying solutions for different needs and expectations
• promoting equal opportunities in employment within the service
• challenging prejudice and discrimination

Code of Ethics

The National Fire Chief’s Council sets out a code of ethics for all fire and rescue services in the UK.

With our values in mind, we will always:

• put the interests of the public, the community, and service users first
• act with integrity including being open, honest, and consistent in everything that we do
• treat people with dignity and respect, making decisions objectively based on evidence, without discrimination or bias
• be positive role models, always demonstrating flexible and resilient leadership. And be accountable for everything we do and challenge all behaviour that falls short of the highest standards
• recognise and promote the value of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, both within the Service and the wider communities in which we serve.

We stand against all forms of discrimination, create equal opportunities, promote equality, foster good relations, and celebrate difference.

Positive Action Statement

There is often confusion between positive action and positive discrimination, but it’s crucial to understand the distinction.

Positive action involves proactive measures to encourage and support underrepresented groups to apply and succeed in recruitment processes, such as offering targeted training and outreach programmes. It aims to level the playing field and ensure equal opportunities without compromising standards.

On the other hand, positive discrimination, which is illegal, means selecting candidates based solely on their characteristics like gender or ethnicity, regardless of merit. Positive action is about fairness and inclusivity, ensuring the best candidates are chosen from a diverse pool, whereas positive discrimination undermines meritocracy.

Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service is committed to positive action to build a diverse, capable, and equitable workforce.

Awards and Accreditations

We are exceptionally proud of our people and the first class service we provide to the community of Tyne and Wear, as well as the support and leadership we provide nationally.

His Majesty’s Inspectorate for Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS) judged us as ‘Good’ in all three areas of inspection.

In addition, we have a number of accreditations and awards, demonstrating our commitment to continuous improvement and providing the best possible service.

Celebrating 50 years of Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service

This year we are proud to celebrate the Service’s 50th anniversary year, and to mark this occasion we have produced a special brochure which covers and documents a number of major landmarks and achievements from over the past five decades.  The brochure can be viewed by clicking the photograph below.