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Fire service staff in south Wales are sleeping in cars between excessive night shifts and have compared trying to run the control room to a Wetherspoons on a match day.

The damning findings were revealed in a report by Dan Stephens, Wales’ chief fire inspector, in response to the inquiry into the Grenfell Tower disaster in which 72 lives were lost.

His report criticised housing south Wales services in a shared police facility, with staff feeling like guests and struggling to hear emergency callers over the noise of police dispatchers

Mr Stephens warned 13.5-hour night shifts at the Bridgend headquarters breached safety guidance, leaving critical staff at risk of fatigue while handling life-saving calls.

Today’s report follows inspections of the joint fire control services for south mid and west Wales and the separate north Wales service in St Asaph between September and October 2025. Both fire control services are located within police facilities.

‘Extremely disruptive’

The inspection found the key concern was the shared south Wales base, where “extremely disruptive” police colleagues “shout over” fire service counterparts taking 999 calls.

Mr Stephens said: “The situation was described to me as: ‘…like trying to run fire control from Weatherspoon’s on a match day’. This has the potential to cause significant issues.” Conversely, he cautioned fire service alarms can be disruptive to police operations.

He warned rest facilities are inadequate and not of the same standard as at fire stations, with staff in south Wales preferring to sleep in their cars rather than the provided rooms. He added that the dangers of fatigue are compounded by long commutes.

He said: “Both fire controls work long-duration night shifts exceeding 12 hours which the Health and Safety Executive state should be avoided.

“The fatigue and risk implications are exacerbated by the fact that the nighttime rest period afforded to fire control staff in the best case is half that of their firefighter counterparts.”

The inspection found emergency workers have to sleep on single sofa beds/reclining chairs. And, on returning to the rest room after handling an urgent call, staff have found it occupied by police – with their personal belongings left in a corridor.

‘Highly distressing’

He explained CCTV from across the South Wales Police force area is visible to fire staff, with instances of workers observing “highly distressing” and “traumatising” events.

The Welsh Government’s chief fire inspector warned shared services worked in silos during the Ely riots, with police informing fire counterparts of what was happening hours later.

He also raised staff concerns about working directly below air conditioning units in winter – wearing hoodies, coats or both while wrapping themselves in blankets with hot-water bottles.

Mr Stephens found the majority view of fire staff was the working environment “left much to be desired” and damaged operational effectiveness as well as morale.

One 999 worker warned: “I feel like we are guests, staying in their [the police’s] living room.”

The review also revealed a “cycle of negativity” caused by chronic understaffing at the joint fire control, with high staff turnover leaving the service reliant on overtime.

‘Essential element’

The north Wales fire control was praised for its “exemplary” staff attitude and better integration between the two emergency services than its southern counterpart.

But the report warned low staffing levels are putting pressure on the service, with the chief fire adviser recommending an immediate increase to ensure the control room can cope.

Mr Stephens said “Fire Control is an essential element of providing fire and rescue services.

“Fire control staff receive emergency calls, mobilise resources to incidents, liaise with other responders and provide survival guidance – without fire control, it would simply not be possible to respond to emergencies effectively or at all.”

The chief inspector stressed: “The Grenfell and Manchester Arena incidents highlighted the importance of fire control and the absolute need for it to be effective.”

South Wales Fire and Rescue Service has been contacted for comment.