Number of fire-related fatalities in Great Britain 1981-2023

There were 321 fire-related fatalities in Great Britain in the 2022/23 reporting year, a decline on the previous reporting year when there were 335. In the early 2000s, the annual number of fire fatalities was consistently over 500, with numbers gradually falling throughout that decade. In 2011/12 the number of fatalities related to fire fell below 400 for the first time, and has remained below 400 since that point. 

Incidents rise as workforce shrinks

Although there has been a net decrease in the number of incidents attended by fire and rescue services since the early 2010s, the current trend from 2014/15 onwards has been one of increase. In 2022/23, there were 759,456 incidents attended by the fire service, which was the most in a reporting year since 2010/11. Like many other public services, the fire service cut significant numbers of staff during the 2010s, with the number of fire and rescue workers in England falling by around 10,000 between 2008 and 2018. In a similar time period, expenditure on fire-protection services in the UK was cut from 3.11 billion in 2009/10, to just 2.72 billion in 2018/19. 

Workplace fatalities also declining

The fall in fire-related fatalities since the 1980s is evidence that the UK has become an increasingly safe society in recent decades. The significant fall in workplace deaths is also evidence of this, with fatal injuries at work declining from 651 in 1974 to just 135 by 2023. Injuries to workers have also fallen, with incidents almost halving between 2000/01 and 2022/23. The large shift from more dangerous jobs in manufacturing, production, and agriculture to service-orientated roles also certainly play a role in this decline as well.