This evening our Team Leader Garry Rhodes MBE in the company of Mick Nield, Team Leader of Oldham MRT, Andrew Simpson, Team Leader and Peter Goble, Team Training Officer both of Rossendale and Pendle MRT, met with Andrew Brookes, Area Manager (Operations) Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service, at GMFRS HQ at Swinton for a meeting to discuss developing the existing relationship all three teams have with the Fire Service and exploring further areas of mutual operational working.

An action plan was agreed between all present to achieve these aims including;

• Establishing quarterly meetings between the three MRTs and GMFRS to discuss items of mutual interest and inter-operability.
• Reinstating the MRT awareness presentations to the various GMFRS Control Room Duty Watches.
• Informing the GMFRS ILOs (Inter-agency Liaison Officers) of the capabilities, resources and roles of MRTs.
• Publicising the work, capabilities, resources and roles of MRTs in the GMFRS in house publication ’In the Loop.’
• ’Tagging’ certain incident types within the GMFRS dispatching system, where mountain rescue may be able to lend its assistance, either in part or whole to GMFRS.
• Expanding and revising the existing Memorandum of Understanding between GMFRS and Bolton MRT / Rossendale and Pendle MRT / Oldham MRT.
• Circulating MRT Training and Events programmes within GMFRS, with an invitation for GMFRS personnel to attend suitable activities.

All three MRT Team Leaders welcomed the opportunity this meeting presented to further strengthen the existing relationship which exists between the three MRTs present at this meeting and GMFRS.

Please also see website ’news’ article dated Tuesday 20th July 2010.