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The brigade was formed in 1884,
by a group of businessmen after they believed the efforts of the
''A History of Firefighting in Cambridgeshire''
(p.195) Huddersfield: Jeremy Mills Publishing, 2006
Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service
{{UK fire service Fire and rescue services of England Local government in Cambridgeshire Organizations established in 1884 Organisations based in Peterborough
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
the use of retained firefighters (who are part-time, but are paid when on duty) rather than volunteers is standard. The Peterborough Volunteer Fire Brigade, formed in 1884, is the only one of its kind remaining. Nowadays the Peterborough Volunteer Fire Brigade effectively functions as a retained fire station, except that its members provide their services unpaid.
The Peterborough Volunteer Fire Brigade operates as a private fire brigade under a special contract with the fire authority
In England and Wales a fire authority or fire and rescue authority is a statutory body made up of a committee of local councillors which oversees the policy and service delivery of a fire and rescue service. Prior to the Fire Services Act 2004 ma ...
and as such falls under the jurisdiction of the county chief fire officer, responding to calls as directed by the Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service
Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service is the statutory fire and rescue service for the non-metropolitan county of Cambridgeshire and the unitary authority of Peterborough.
Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service was formed in 1974 from the mer ...
. Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfor ...
Fire and Rescue Service also operate two wholetime ( Dogsthorpe and Stanground) and one retained ( Thorney) fire station in Peterborough
Peterborough ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in the City of Peterborough district in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Cambridgeshire, England. The city is north of London, on the River Nene. A ...
. The volunteer fire station, located on Bourges Boulevard, was built in the Brigade's centenary year. It aims to keep one full crew of six people on duty at all times.
Borth Volunteer Fire Unit, part of Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service
The Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service () is the fire and rescue service covering the Welsh principal areas of Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion, Neath Port Talbot, Pembrokeshire, Powys and Swansea.
The service was created in 1996 by the L ...
, Ceredigion
Ceredigion (), historically Cardiganshire (, ), is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the West Wales, west of Wales. It borders Gwynedd across the River Dyfi, Dyfi estuary to the north, Powys to the east, Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire t ...
command, operates on a similar basis.
History
The brigade was formed in 1884,
by a group of businessmen after they believed the efforts of the City of Peterborough
The City of Peterborough, is a district with City status in the United Kingdom, city status in the ceremonial county of Cambridgeshire, England. The district is named after its largest settlement, Peterborough, but also covers a wider area of o ...
Fire Brigade, as it then was, had been ineffective following a serious fire at the infirmary (now Peterborough Museum and Art Gallery
Peterborough Museum and Art Gallery houses the historical and art collections of the city of Peterborough in Cambridgeshire, England. Managed by Vivacity on behalf of the city council, it is part of the Greater Fens Museum Partnership.
Histo ...
).
The Fire Brigades Act 1938 ( 1 & 2 Geo. 6. c. 72) formally constituted municipal boroughs (and urban and rural districts) as fire authorities, taking the responsibility away from insurance companies. During World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, these fire brigades were combined into a National Fire Service
The National Fire Service (NFS) was the single fire service created in Great Britain in 1941 during the Second World War; a separate National Fire Service (Northern Ireland) was created in 1942.
History
The NFS was created in August 1941 by t ...
. After the war, the government passed the Fire Services Act 1947
The Fire Services Act 1947 ( 10 & 11 Geo. 6. c. 41) was an act of Parliament of the United Kingdom that reorganised fire services in the United Kingdom. It disbanded the National Fire Service and returned the responsibility for running fire ser ...
, which transferred fire-fighting from the NFS to brigades maintained by county councils. The Soke of Peterborough
The Soke of Peterborough is a historic area of England associated with the City and Anglican Diocese of Peterborough, Diocese of Peterborough. It was part of Northamptonshire, but was administered by Soke of Peterborough County Council, its own ...
Fire Brigade merged with Huntingdonshire Fire Brigade in 1965 and the Huntingdon and Peterborough Fire Brigade merged with Cambridgeshire and Isle of Ely Fire Brigade in 1974. Throughout these changes, the Peterborough Volunteer Fire Brigade remained a separate entity.
To mark its centenary in 1984, the brigade received the council's highest accolade, the freedom of the city.Baker, Eddi''A History of Firefighting in Cambridgeshire''
(p.195) Huddersfield: Jeremy Mills Publishing, 2006
See also
*Fire service in the United Kingdom
The fire services in the United Kingdom operate under separate legislative and administrative arrangements in England and Wales, Northern Ireland, and Scotland.
As of 2023, emergency cover is provided by 49 ''fire and rescue services'' (FRS) in ...
* History of fire brigades in the United Kingdom
The history of fire brigades in the United Kingdom charts the development of fire services in the United Kingdom from the creation of the United Kingdom to the present day.
19th century
Between the 17th century and the beginning of the 19th ...
* List of British firefighters killed in the line of duty
This article is a list of British firefighters killed in the line of duty since 1900. As such, it only lists those firefightersThe term ''firefighter'' is used as it is not gender-specific. Most deaths will have originally been reported as the ge ...
References
Footnotes
Bibliography
* Hillier, Richard ''Ready and Willing: A Centenary History of the Peterborough Volunteer Fire Brigade, 1884-1984'' Peterborough Volunteer Fire Brigade, 1984 () * Wallington, Neil ''110 Years of Fire and Rescue: A Celebration of the Work of Peterborough Volunteer Fire Brigade, 1884-1984'' Peterborough Volunteer Fire Brigade, 1994 ()External links
Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service
{{UK fire service Fire and rescue services of England Local government in Cambridgeshire Organizations established in 1884 Organisations based in Peterborough