MORE than 11,000 people have signed a petition calling on Surrey County Council to scrap planned cuts to night-time fire coverage.

The petition, which was started by Save Our Services in Surrey (SOSS), follows the launch of local fire authorities’ Making Surrey Safer scheme.

Bosses are proposing a shift of resources into fire prevention education, which would involve sending firefighters to institutions such as schools and care homes to provide people with “lifelong” safety training.

They claim however that funding the scheme would have to be paid for by removing night-time fire services in Banstead, Egham and Painshill, while also significantly reducing night cover in Camberley, Fordbridge, Guildford and Woking.

Surrey Fire and Rescue Service chief officer Steve Owen-Hughes said the plan was about bringing firefighters closer to the local community, saying: “This will help us make the best use of our resources — we’d still have the fire cover we need to keep Surrey safe during the day and night.”

But FBU Surrey secretary Lee Belsten called the proposals “incomprehensible,” adding: “The council’s claim that these cuts are ‘risk-based’ is ludicrous.

“Slashing night-time cover leaves the public exposed when they are most at risk of fatality.

“The residents of Surrey deserve better.

“The council have relentlessly cut life-saving public services, while increasing council tax year on year.

“The public are being short-changed, receiving a less effective, less efficient service that costs more while leaving them at greater risk.”