200 homes in Derbyshire set for free fire sprinklers
SCORES of Derbyshire homes will get free sprinkler systems in a bid to cut the county's alarming fire death rates.
Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service will use a hi-tech system to identify homes that are most at risk of being involved in blazes.
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The tragic fire at Hulland Ward in which four children died has been cited as one reason why homes should get sprinklers
Local authorities are then set to select sprinkler firms to begin fitting the life-saving devices.
The scheme is just one part of the fire service's work to promote sprinklers in the county after the deaths of 18 people in house fires in the past two years.
Most shocking was a blaze in January last year which killed four young children at their home in Hulland Ward.
Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service group manager Sean Wells said: "We are talking about targeting the very high-risk properties.
"Having a sprinkler is like having a firefighter in every room."
The fire service already has £200,000 from Derbyshire Fire Authority to spend on installing 100 sprinklers and talks are under way for the same amount again for another 100 to come from the county's county, city and district councils.
Each sprinkler system would cost £2,000 to fit.
Mr Wells said the homes would be selected using a computer system which would zero in on properties considered most at risk.
This would take into account data such as previous fires, information on if occupiers were disabled and deprivation statistics.
Mr Wells said: "In areas of high deprivation, you're more likely to find people have other things to worry about than spending money on alarms or sprinklers."
The fire service is already campaigning for people to sign an online petition calling for sprinklers to be made compulsory by law in all new dwellings. This has 1,248 signatures nationwide so far and is open until August.
Mr Wells revealed that the fire service has also asked the county's councils to make changes to the way they deal with planning applications so that new homes are more likely to have sprinklers.
He said these could see authorities having to consider whether sprinkler systems are included in plans when picking a developer to take on a major project.
Mr Wells said the fire service also wanted local authorities to work with developers to persuade them to make new homes "sprinkler-ready".
This, he said, meant that the homes mains water would have to be pumped around the new homes at a pressure which meant they could have sprinkler systems fitted without modification.
A spokeswoman for Derbyshire Dales District Council, which has Hulland Ward in its area, said the £20,000 for which it had been asked could come from the new Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL).
This sees developers charged a certain amount of money for community investment per home for which they get planning permission.
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