Fire Statistics

The statistics in this briefing note are compiled from data provided by Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service (DSFRS).

In 2015/16:-

• Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue (DSFRS) has 24 Fire stations (3 whole-time and on-call, 21 on-call only) in Somerset
• In Somerset, there were:-
• 7,118 emergency incidents reported to DSFRS
• 292 dwelling fires
• 2,230 Home safety visits and 132 schools talks made by DSFRS

The following detailed analysis looks at the period covering 2009-2012. Three key indicators are available; at county, district, ward and LSOA^[1]level:

• Dwelling Fires
• Accidental Dwelling Fires
• Deliberate Fires

Dwelling Fires

Between 01/04/2009 and 31/03/2012 there were 931 dwelling fires recorded by DSFRS in Somerset, of which 838 (90%) were accidental fires.

 The rate of accidental dwelling fires ranged from 4.2 per 1,000 households in West Somerset to 3.1 per 1,000 households in Sedgemoor. The reason for the high rate in West Somerset is likely to be due to the district’s relatively aged population: elderly people are more likely to live alone and people who live alone are more likely to be the victim of an accidental house fire.

 The Somerset LSOAs with the highest rates of dwelling fires (expressed as a rate per 1000 households) were in Taunton, Bridgwater and Yeovil. See table, below.

As can been seen, Taunton Halcon (West) LSOA had a relatively low proportion of its dwelling fires recorded as accidental; only 9 of 15 fires (60%) were accidental, compared to around 90% overall in Somerset.

The five LSOAs with the highest rates of dwelling fires (see table, above) all fall within the 10% most deprived areas of Somerset, as identified by the DCLG’s Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD) 2010.

This suggests that there is also a link between dwelling fires and areas with higher levels of deprivation.

*LSOAs have been ranked between 1 and 327, where ‘1’ represents the most deprived LSOA in Somerset and 327 represents the least deprived LSOA.

Deliberate Fires

 Between 01/04/2009 and 31/03/2012 there were 1,916 deliberate fires recorded by DSFRS in Somerset.

 The rate of deliberate fires ranged from 10.3 per 1,000 households in Taunton Deane to 6.9 per 1,000 households in Sedgemoor.

 Three of the top five LSOAs in terms of the rate of deliberate fires were in Taunton, including the Taunton Halcon (West) LSOA (see table, below). These areas of Taunton have high levels of deprivation, as identified by IMD 2010. It is notable, however, that the remaining two LSOAs are not associated with deprivation. Chard Avishayes (North) LSOA and Beckington and Rode (South) LSOA are predominantly rural areas on the outskirts of Chard and Frome respectively

It should be emphasised that these figures represent a three-year period and absolute numbers are relatively low; in fact, the number of deliberate fires has been declining nationally year-on-year for the last decade^[2]. It is possible that a short episode of criminality in a particular area can have a significant impact on the rate of deliberate fire setting.

Further Information

Fire statistics dashboard

IMD 2015 

Population estimates and projections