Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service urges residents to ‘Stay Fire Safe’ as the cost-of-living increases
By Michael Chick, Senior Communications Officer, Greater Manchester Combined Authority
As the cost-of-living continues to rise Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) wants to help you to stay fire safe at home. If you’re thinking about doing things differently around the home to bring down the price of your bills, remember to do so safely.
You can find a wide range of advice to help keep you safe at home whilst the cost-of-living increases on our ‘Stay Fire Safe’ webpage here. This includes advice around safely heating your home, using candles and cooking.
GMFRS know that people will be looking at ways to reduce their bills, but you shouldn’t do this in a way that could put you in danger. This includes making sure you use heaters that are designed for indoor use in the home, checking the safety of electrical heaters and making sure heating appliances like wood burning stoves are used correctly.
To keep yourself safe you should make sure you have a working smoke alarm on every floor of your home, so you’re alerted quickly if there’s a fire.
GMFRS offers a free Online Home Fire Safety Check tool, where you can complete some questions to help identify fire hazards in your home and get advice on simple changes you can make to reduce the risk of a fire.
Once you have completed the online check, your answers will decide if you are eligible for a Home Fire Safety Assessment. If you are, you’ll be asked to submit your contact details and GMFRS will be in touch to make an appointment for a face-to-face visit. You can find out more by visiting the website.
If you do not have access to the internet, you can call the GMFRS contact centre on 0800 555 815.
Further advice to support you as the cost of living increases can be found on the Greater Manchester Combined Authority Helping Hand web pages here. This includes support and advice on areas such as mental health, housing, travel, and childcare.
