OCC aims to rationalise resources, as volunteer staffing levels fall. A former member of the Eynsham crew puts the figures for 2022-2024 into context...
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Eynsham had plenty of crew members in this period but a shortage of senior officers. A fire engine cannot go out without an officer – and our one officer was fully employed at Banbury.
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The period also included the start of the Botley Road closure, when the Eynsham fire engine was being used by whole-time staff elsewhere, so our crew had no engine to take out.
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The response rate for the last 18 months is much healthier than in the report. Eynsham has responded to 25 incidents in the last 2 months alone.
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Four new recruits have joined and been trained in last 18 months.
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Availability for 2025 January to October was 47.5% for the fire engine and 74.5% for the Incident Support and Welfare unit (a critical additional service the Eynsham crew provides to the whole county - supporting firefighter safety, wellbeing and incident resolution). We are now ranked 14th out of 27 other on call fire engines in the county.
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Eynsham fire station provides other services such as visiting schools and centres to deliver safety talks, installing smoke alarms in your homes, and being a presence at numerous community events, as a glance at their Facebook page shows.
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At this time of massive growth plans for Eynsham, we need to be strengthening our fire station, not closing it. Please take 5 minutes to add your thoughts to the public consultation.
Watch Manager Laurence Jennings adds…
“We absolutely do not disagree that there are some changes that are needed to keep all residents of Oxfordshire safe and to ensure fire and rescue cover is robust and resilient. We encourage everyone to have their say about the proposed closure of Eynsham Fire Station. Meanwhile we're growing, thriving and continuing to provide a vital service to the village and county.”
An online meeting on Friday, 28 November from 13:00-14:30 will explain the proposals for Eynsham. Fill out the booking form.
DATELINE 29/10/2025: OCC is consulting on a range of proposals to ensure that its fire stations, resources and people are in the right place at the right time, as the county grows and changes.
On-call (part-time volunteer) staffing levels continue to decline, with a 36 per cent reduction in the number of full-time equivalent firefighters over the last 10 years. This is affecting response to emergencies when demand is highest, which is during the day, they say.
In Eynsham, between July 2022 and March 2024, the amount of the day covered by staffing was only 17 percent and 34 percent at night. Over five years, it responded to about 51 incidents per year across Oxfordshire. There are always vacancies.
For each of the proposals suggested, OCC sets out what it involves; what the benefits and impacts are; if a change could mean that incidents are reached more quickly or more slowly; and what it might cost.
