At a Glance
- Emergency services now involved at the earliest planning stages of new developments.
- Collaboration aims to improve road layouts, access, and neighbourhood safety.
- Protocol created with developers, councils and supported by the Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner.
- Designed to reduce crime, fire risks, delays in emergency response and long-term issues.
A trail-blazing Essex partnership is bringing police, fire and ambulance teams into the earliest stages of planning new developments, helping to shape road layouts, emergency access and key design decisions that keep people safe.
The collaboration brings together Essex County Fire and Rescue Service, Essex Police, the East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust, local authority planning teams and the Essex Developers Group (EDG), with support from the Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner for Essex, Roger Hirst.
It creates a shared approach to ensuring that as Essex grows, new neighbourhoods are designed with safety, accessibility and effective emergency response built in from the start.
Essex Police Assistant Chief Constable, Glen Pavelin | ECFRS Deputy Chief Fire Officer, Chris Else | EEAST Head of Business Relationships, Zoe May | EEAST Head of Collaborative Response, Thomas Barker | Essex Developer Group Chair, Mark Curle | Essex Developers Group Strategy Coordinator, Alastair Pollock
This earlier involvement allows emergency services to highlight practical design issues such as:
• Road widths, turning space and parking layouts that affect emergency access
• Lighting, sightlines and footpaths that influence how safe places feel
• Building design elements that reduce fire and crime risk
• Every-day details that help neighbourhoods work well for residents
The new protocol, launched at the Planning in Partnership Conference at ECFRS’s Kelvedon Park headquarters, was developed with support from the Essex Developers Group, which brings together developers, contractors, consultants, housing companies and councils.
Delegates at the conference also took part in a live planning exercise showing how small design choices, such as bollard placement, road layout or footpath connections, can significantly affect emergency response and overall community safety.
Ben Turner, Group Manager, Essex County Fire and Rescue Service, said:
“This project is about taking what we learn from real incidents and using it before communities are even built.
“It brings together the experience of all three emergency services to shape the design features that reduce crime, fire risks and accidents.
“Good design supports safer living in many ways, not just during an emergency.
“By being involved earlier, we can work with planners and developers to build neighbourhoods that are safer, easier to navigate and free from avoidable issues. It is a practical change that will benefit new communities across Essex for years to come.”
Long-term benefits for a growing county
With hundreds of new homes planned across Essex, this new way of working is expected to help create neighbourhoods that:
• Support quicker emergency response
• Reduce opportunities for crime, fire and accidents
• Feel safer and function better day to day
• Avoid preventable design problems emerging after construction.
Roger Hirst, Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner for Essex, said:
“Safe housing is not just about design; it’s about early intervention and risk assessment during planning, ensuring fire safety compliance and inspections, engaging communities to prevent crime, and fostering multi-agency collaboration to create truly secure environments.
“This partnership helps make that possible by involving our emergency services earlier in the planning process.
“It is a sensible, forward-looking step that will improve the way new developments work for the people who live in them.
“I would like to thank all those involved for their commitment to this work and for taking a lead in making our county safer.”
Neill Moloney, Chief Executive of the East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust, said:
“Every minute matters in an emergency, and the way communities are designed can make a real difference to how quickly we reach people when they need us most.
“By working closely with planners and developers from the outset, we can help create neighbourhoods that support faster access for our crews and safer environments for residents.
“This partnership is a proactive step that will save lives and improve wellbeing across Essex.”
Access the new guidance
The Emergency Services Planning Protocol is available at:
www.essex-fire.gov.uk/emergency-services-planning-protocol
It is also accessible via Essex Police and the East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust.