The IRS system will...

• provide more robust, relevant, and timely data, therefore improving policy evaluation.
• help to provide a better understanding and knowledge of how fire and rescue services operate using the collection of core information on all incidents attended. This will help quantify the real effort involved in attending incidents other than primary fires which has been missing up to now, reflecting the new statutory responsibilities, such as attending road traffic collisions.
• Simplified form entry – with only the relevant questions being asked. Improved data quality and reduction in time taken to publish statistics.

Electronic completion...

• will be quicker and easier. Collection has been designed so that 99% of questions are answered by selecting from dropdown lists.
• This change on completion of forms will improve accuracy meaning that fewer forms will be returned – currently 15% are queried nationally

IRS will...

• enable a common reporting format.
• increase data collection, specifically in special service data, allows comparisons with other fire and rescue services to improve operational performance.
• improve access to data for fire and rescue services – more data will be available with improved timeliness.

and will mean that...

• fire and rescue service staff will be in a better position to inform chief fire officers on how to best deliver integrated risk management plans (IRMPs) in their area.
• IRS will produce data required for Fire Service Emergency Cover (FSEC).
• Fire Stations will be able to access visual graphical report downloads of their incidents.