Compare fire statistics

Year ending 2026/03

Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service
vs
Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service
Remove comparison

Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service attended 3,849 primary fires in its latest reporting year, compared with 827 at Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service. Fatalities and non-fatal casualties from primary fires totalled 508 for Greater Manchester and 109 for Cheshire.

Average time from call to first appliance at a dwelling fire is 6:57 in Greater Manchester and 8:37 in Cheshire. Response times differ by several minutes, often reflecting geography — larger rural coverage areas mean longer average travel to incidents. On enforcement activity, Cheshire carried out the larger number of fire safety audits over the year (4,080 vs 3,562). Satisfactory-outcome rates were 56% for Greater Manchester and 91% for Cheshire, covering audits that closed without requiring informal action, formal notice, or prohibition.

Total Fires

Primary fires attended by fire and rescue services

3,849

Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service

827

Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service

Fatalities & Casualties

Deaths and non-fatal casualties from primary fires

508

Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service

109

Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service

False Alarm Rate

Proportion of all incidents that were false alarms

44%

Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service

45%

Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service

Fire Safety Audits

Number of fire safety audits conducted by the authority

3,562

Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service

4,080

Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service

Audit Outcomes

Results of fire safety audits: satisfactory, informal action, formal action

3,774

Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service total

4,116

Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service total

Average Response Time

Average time from call to first appliance arriving at dwelling fires

6:57

Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service

8:37

Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service

Response Time Distribution

Proportion of incidents by response time band

100%

Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service total

100%

Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service total

Deliberate Fires

Primary fires recorded as deliberate (arson)

5,588

Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service

784

Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service

About this data

Source: MHCLG Fire Statistics. Crown Copyright. Licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Figures compared here are drawn from the same MHCLG fire statistics release. Metrics reported on a "year ending" basis may use different reference months (September for incidents and response times, March for audits and outcomes). Headline figures on this page are for the year ending 2026/03.

View source data on GOV.UK