Wednesday June 4th 2025
Hawick Fire Station
Written by Local Democracy Reporter, Paul Kelly
Lives will not be put a risk if approval is given for Hawick Fire Station to become a daytime-only facility, a senior officer has assured townsfolk.
The commitment came when Scottish Fire & Rescue Service’s Deputy Assistant Chief Officer (DACO) Andrew Girrity addressed councillors’ concerns over controversial plans for the station.
There has been a fire station in Hawick for more than 200 years and the present base in Howdenbank was built in the early 1970s.
Now a proposal has emerged which could see it switch from being crewed round-the-clock to a day shift system – with some staff potentially being transferred elsewhere.
The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service says the review aims to match its resources to demand and a 12-week consultation over the proposals is about to be launched.
The service also needs to address the discovery of RAAC – a collapse-prone concrete – at the Hawick station.
At a meeting of SBC’s Police, Fire & Rescue and Safet Communities Board on Tuesday, June 3, Hawick & Hermitage Independent councillor Watson McAteer raised the issue of increased risk as a result of oncoming developments in Hawick – citing in particular a planned new Center Parcs holiday park.
He said: “We are about, hopefully, to have a Center Parcs located within a couple of miles of the fire station in Hawick that will attract 250,000 visitors a year, with 700 wooden lodges, so the risk profile from 2019 to 2023 through Covid to 2025 and on to 2029 is going to change significantly and I don’t know whether that has been built into the profiling.
“I don’t know whether a new care village to be built in Hawick in the next two years has been built into the profile. How do people know you’ve taken account of all this change with more to come?
“All of us as elected members have been contacted one way or the other by various people but the ones I’ve got, which I find really difficult to respond to, are from those professional members of staff who are based locally who are saying loudly and clearly, and I’m going to quote, that ‘this will compromise the level of emergency response, increase response times and ultimately put lives at greater risk’. That’s not a risk I’m happy to sit with.”
DACO Girrity responded by saying that Center Parcs management would be fully consulted over the proposals and that any buildings there would be regulated with fire prevention measures to be put in place.
He said: “I absolutely recognise the emotive subject and how staff are feeling and their perceptions. I don’t think we will compromise emergency response, we’ll still have an emergency response that matches similar areas with community risk and demand.
“I recognise it will increase response times, absolutely, I’m not going to lie it will increase response times but I don’t agree that we will be putting lives at risk. I don’t agree with that.”
Councillor Eric Small, Conservative for Tweeddale West, said: “I had 44 years service with the Fire Brigade and nobody likes change. Obviously the council at the moment is having to make radical changes and difficult decisions and I think Scottish Fire Brigade is in the same situation.
“But honestly with consultation and the meetings with the public these will all be addressed. I’m sure Hawick will be in a safe place at the end of this.”
Tweet Share on Facebook
