SHOCKED Kinver residents have expressed their outrage after it was announced that the village’s brand new £1.9million fire station could face closure.

Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service is proposing to cut the number of fire stations across the county from 33 to 15 – and Kinver’s recently-opened community station is not among the 15 listed.

A consultation period on the fire service’s New Delivery Model Community Safety Options 2015 has closed and Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Authority is now analysing the results which will be considered at a meeting on July 13.

Jenny Spaull, Kinver Parish Council clerk, said the council had received no communication or consultation from Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Authority regarding the proposals.

However, executive director Becci Bryant said all parish councils in South Staffordshire were written to.

“The consultation ran across 12 weeks to give residents and organisations plenty of time to contribute their views,” she added.

Outraged resident Bob Clarke said of the proposal: “A brand new fire station that has only just been built and they might close it? It’s incredible.

“This is a rural area and if we have a fire out in the sticks they would have to go through a number of country lanes.

“Closing the station is an absolutely stupid proposal and whoever is making these decisions needs to have a lesson in common sense.

“There could be a tragedy which comes from this because some woodentop has come up with a ridiculous proposal.”

Chief Fire Officer Peter Dartford said even though the New Delivery Model proposals would “present a complete change in strategic direction” as firefighters would no longer carry out community safety work, the Fire and Rescue Authority wanted to explore a range of options for the future running of the service “however radical they may be”.

Mr Dartford said: “The New Delivery Model option is to have 15 fire stations providing 24/7 cover rather than having the mix of whole-time and retained stations that we have now.

“Using specialist software the 15 fire stations have been identified to be in the best locations to cover the whole county.

“Should this option be progressed the stations not included, that have community facilities, would remain open for residents and our partners, however the emergency response would be removed from the building.”

The 15 “best-fit” stations have been named as Burslem, Cannock, Cheadle, Leek, Lichfield, Longton, Needwood, Newcastle, Penkridge, Rising Brook, Sandyford, Tamworth, Trent, Uttoxeter and Wombourne.

Kinver community champion Margaret Rogers said: “It would be a real shame and very sad for the village if the station was to have its fire service removed.

“We have a brilliant retained fire service who do a lot of work with the community, going above and beyond their duties as firefighters.”

South Staffordshire MP Gavin Williamson has also condemned the proposals. He said: “I entirely oppose what is being put forward on the grounds of the complete waste to the public purse.

“It is vital that constituents can rely on a fire service 24/7, especially in the more rural areas of the constituency.

“I have called on the Chief Fire Officer to reject these proposals and look forward to hearing that these ridiculous ideas have been thrown out.”