HAMPSHIRE Fire and Rescue Service (HFRS) has been awarded £4million from the Government to improve frontline services and strengthen its partnerships with other emergency services.

HFRS has been awarded funding for two projects as the Government announced schemes that will be supported by the £75million fire transformation fund.

Around £2.6m will be used to provide a new joint fire and police service headquarters, as well as co-location of both services at some fire stations and progression of fleet maintenance partnerships with other public services.

A further £1.39m will be used to explore how HFRS can transform its on-call services, using early-intervention vehicles to deal with smaller incidents.

There will also be further collaboration with South Central Ambulance Service (SCAS) to attend more medical emergencies, building on the success of the co-responder scheme where retained firefighters support SCAS in providing a first response.

Deputy Chief Fire Officer Dave Curry said: "This announcement is great news for the Service, but most importantly for the communities of Hampshire.

"We are delighted to have secured this key Government funding and it will enable us to continue our collaborative work with Hampshire Police and other emergency services to do our work more efficiently and effectively, making our organisation stronger, and people in Hampshire safer."

Mark Ainsworth, operations director at SCAS, said: "We are really pleased for our partners at HFRS that they’ve secured the funding to enhance our successful co-responding arrangements and we look forward to continuing to work together to build on the successful arrangements we have already put in place."

Hampshire Police and Crime Commissioner, Simon Hayes, said co-locating senior police officers and support staff with HFRS was key to the successful delivery of his policing estate strategy.

"It is only by investing in joint-working initiatives such as this that I will be able to protect people and places, while ensuring that the police’s estate is cost-effective and fit for purpose despite significant economic challenges."