Herts Careline, Hertfordshire Fire and Rescue Service & Unicook have been announced as Finalists in the national Security and Fire Excellence Awards 2019

PR Date: Tuesday, 1 October 2019 - 2:00pm

The partnership will now strive for a winning place in the award category of Active / Passive Fire Project of the Year. The winner will be announced on 20 November 2019.

The nominated project celebrates the success of the three partners joining forces to pioneer the first-ever use of an innovative life-saving fire safety device – Stove Guard - connected to a telecare response centre in the UK.

Unlike smoke detectors which raise an alarm when a fire starts, the Stove Guard product prevents a fire from starting. The device cuts the power if a pan gets too hot, food starts to burn or a pan boils dry. This gives older and vulnerable people their independence to stay living in their own home whilst reducing their risk of coming to harm when cooking. When the device cuts the cooker off, an alert is sent to Herts Careline’s 24/7 Control Room based in Letchworth Garden City. This service is available from Herts Careline to anyone living in Hertfordshire, and Ickleford residents, Mr and Mrs Male are already finding it beneficial: "I think it’s a wonderful thing" said Mrs Male. "It’s such a reassurance and makes me feel confident I can cook safely again."

Councillor Gary Grindal, Executive Member, North Hertfordshire District Council, on behalf of Herts Careline said: "We’re delighted to be recognised for our pioneering project. We are always looking for new technologies to help the residents of Hertfordshire and Stove Guard provides a means of significantly reducing the risk of domestic fires and keeping people independent and safer in their own homes."

Steve Holton, Area Commander, HFRS, said: "Hertfordshire Fire and Rescue Service are honoured to be nominated in the prestigious Security and Fire Excellence Awards. These awards seek to highlight innovation and ground-breaking advances in the security and fire sector. We are extremely proud to have worked with our partners at Herts Careline and Unicook to pioneer a new fire safety device connected to a Telecare provider. Whilst traditional smoke and heat detectors raise an early warning of a fire they do not prevent a fire from starting in the first place. The Stove Guard revolutionises fire safety in the home by actually preventing a fire from starting, which ensures greater safety of the resident the building and firefighters".

Peter Holland of Unicook said: "We’re delighted to be included in the nominations and to support Herts Careline and HFRS in their endeavour to keep vulnerable people safe and independent. Their initiative resulted in an EN50615 system being connected to telecare for the first time in the UK, adding a further level of security for elderly residents. In preventing both smoke and fire from cooking, calls to the fire service are reduced, the resident’s dignity is preserved and relatives and carers are reassured."

Photos: Mr & Mrs Male at home with (L-R) Carl Holland, Assistive Technologies Officer, Herts Careline; Steve Holton, Area Commander Hertfordshire Fire & Rescue Service; and Peter Holland of Unicook.