Report finds Gloucestershire Fire and Rescue Service institutionally racist from 1991 to 2018

The chief fire officer of Gloucestershire Fire and Rescue Service has issued an apology for the organization after a review concluded it was institutionally racist during the period from 1991 to 2018. West Midlands Employers (WME) spearheaded the independent investigation into claims of bullying and racism within Gloucestershire Fire and Rescue Service (GFRS), with support from Gloucestershire County Council (GCC). WME engaged with 40 current and former employees and examined over 4,500 documents. The resulting report detailed distressing experiences and instances of unacceptable behaviour. The nephew of a GFRS firefighter, who passed away in 2017, informed the BBC that his uncle had been “bullied” and that the review was “long overdue.” Mark Preece, the chief fire officer who initiated the report in 2023, stated his “full acceptance” of its findings, noting that “there is still work to be done.” Avanos Biney, who departed his position in Gloucester in 2001 and died in 2017, experienced being called offensive names, having glass placed in his shoes, and swastikas put in his kit during his employment with GFRS. Curtis Biney, Avanos’ nephew, who resided with him when the abuse occurred, recounted: “He was subjected to bullying and segregated from everybody else. “People doing things to his locker, there were things said in front of him. Things said about him. “In the long and short it came down to a group of people who felt they were able to do these things without any kind of reprimand.” Mr. Biney commented that the report was “long overdue.” He further stated: “There’s no path to stopping it [racist abuse]. You deal with it on your own, you get up you go to work and do your job, and keep quiet. That’s horrendous.” The report observed: “While GFRS is not institutionally racist today, racism still exists, and the service continues to grapple with the legacy of its past failings across the service.” Among its principal findings were detrimental work cultures impeding integration; leadership that emphasized operational competence more than people management and inclusivity; an absence of psychological safety for raising concerns, coupled with ineffective grievance procedures; and prevalent historical misogyny. A significant number of the report’s 14 recommendations pertain to areas the fire service had already recognized as requiring improvement, with efforts to address them already in progress. Additional recommendations from the report will be incorporated into the service’s current transformation programme. Mr. Preece praised the courage of individuals who shared their experiences, asserting that their input would assist the fire service to “learn, grow and improve.” He declared: “I want to apologise to our firefighters and staff past and present that have been subjected to the horrendous acts of discrimination, or witnessed, whistle-blown and tried to support victims as best they could with little or no support.” He continued: “As we grapple with this legacy, I must stress that in accepting the report and its findings I am not suggesting in any way that all past or serving firefighters and staff were or are racist but nor am I saying that racism, misogyny and bullying have been eradicated. “There is still work to be done.” The council stated: “We will ensure the service has the necessary funding at its disposal so it can make the further improvements outlined in the recommendations of the report.”