FireSAFE Scheme

FireSAFE has been running since 1995 and is designed to advise children and young people with fire setting behaviour. Our trained advisors will help the child or young person to understand the results of their actions through a series of visits and educational exercises at the child's home, school or a neutral venue.

All of the advisors are Derbyshire Fire & Rescue Service staff and have various roles including qualified Youth Workers; Firefighters and non-uniformed support staff. They are trained to work with fire setters and, partnered with their fire and rescue service experience, achieve excellent results.

Children who play with fire do so for various reasons. These can include genuine curiosity, attention seeking, anger or revenge. Without help and guidance, fire setting behaviour can become increasingly serious and lead to injury, damage to property and tragically, death.

Getting help for a child or young person is easy. You can complete the referral form below and email it to Firesafe@Derbys-Fire.Gov.UK.

Referrals will usually need the consent of a parent or carer.

FireSAFE referral form (pdf 299.95 KB)

Tell-tale signs of habitual fire setting:

• Small burn holes in carpets
• Charred paper in sinks or waste baskets
• Matches or lighters hidden in your child's room, school bag or coat
• An unusual fascination with fires
• Unexplainable fires in the home

Advice for parents and carers:

• Is your home safe for your children?
• Ensure your home has at least one smoke alarm installed for each floor in the property
• Keep matches and lighters safely out of reach of children
• Never leave children alone in the house
• Explain the dangerous nature of fire
• Teach your children to stop, drop and roll if their clothes catch fire
• Contact the FireSAFE team by email Firesafe@Derbys-Fire.Gov.UK

You can download this information to print and distribute in our FireSAFE Scheme Leaflet

FireSAFE briefing sheet (pdf 529.62 KB)