Cultural Development Programme
In early 2023, West Sussex Fire & Rescue Service (WSFRS) commissioned 31ten to design and deliver a comprehensive cultural improvement coaching programme. Following a critical assessment by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) in 2018/9, WSFRS recognised the need for significant cultural improvement within the service.
Supporting their wider culture improvement programme, our objective was to identify strengths and areas for improvement across all teams within the Service and foster long-term cultural and behavioural change. Our bespoke engagement sessions with managers, teams, and individuals enabled participants to discuss and positively challenge behaviours in a team environment and take ownership of their own cultural expectations.
The Role
We designed and facilitated a Service-wide series of team-based, face-to-face coaching sessions which promoted open and honest dialogue and addressed cultural issues at the team level. This was complemented by targeted bespoke support for managers, which prepared them to lead culture-based conversations and drive change within their own respective teams.
Our programme was delivered in three phases: Discovery and Design, Coaching Sessions and Targeted Follow-up Sessions. The coaching involved:
- 76 Team sessions (face-to-face)
- 16 Manager sessions (hybrid)
- 2 Service Delivery Station Managers (face-to-face)
- Follow-up sessions for both individuals and teams (face-to-face and hybrid)
Our agile delivery approach allowed us to review, learn, and adjust between waves of coaching sessions, ensuring our methods remained effective and responsive to the needs of WSFRS. This iterative process included providing the Service with key themes and insights gathered from the ongoing sessions, prioritising actions and recommendations to support cultural improvement, and designing follow-on initiatives to sustain and build upon the progress made.
Key Outcomes
Based on the themes and observations from the coaching sessions, we were able to provide insights on the impact of the cultural improvement coaching programme and several key outcomes emerged:
- Increased Engagement: Feedback gathered from participants showed that the vast majority would recommend the team coaching session to a colleague, indicating that the limited pockets of initial scepticism diminished, and the time was seen as valuable. Participants expressed value in the face-to-face discussions held at their regular places of work, leading to a greater willingness to engage in cultural improvement efforts.
- A Shared Ambition for Cultural Improvement: Throughout the programme, both leadership and staff demonstrated a growing support for a culture that encourages constructive challenge of decisions and behaviours. The programme shifted focus from past experiences to future-oriented thinking, with meaningful discussions about future ways of working emerging, especially among the service delivery station manager cohort.
- Improved Understanding of Ethics: Participants reported a better understanding of the Ethical Principles and how they translated from “a poster on the wall” to day-to-day behaviours both individually and as teams.
- Leadership Visibility and Role Modelling: Our sessions emphasised the importance of visibility and role modelling from Service leadership. We identified influential individuals within the manager cohort to act as culture change advocates, piloting specific initiatives and helping to embed cultural change efforts.
- Tools for Ongoing Assessment: Our work captured quantitative and qualitative data that serves as a cultural baseline from which the Service can measure progress. We also provided a series of tools and approaches for WSFRS to implement, enabling a more effective transition.
Through this programme, WSFRS has taken significant steps towards a more open, ethical, and forward-thinking culture, supported by strong leadership and an engaged workforce.
