8.1 Of the brigades which responded to the survey only one said that it did not train its officers in fire investigation. The remainder confirmed that such training had been undertaken within their brigades and stated that training had also been given to officers in preservation of the scene of the fire.

8.2 The means of training fire-fighters in such techniques vary as does the type of instruction given and the regularity of such initiatives. Although many brigades provide some form of in-house training for officers, some 31% do not currently provide instruction on a regular basis. Of the remaining brigades, a number regularly send officers to the Fire Service College for training in fire investigation although 18% replied that they did not currently do so, primarily for financial reasons.

8.3 A number of brigades reported that they undertook some form of co-operative training initiative, citing contacts with the local police force, Scene of Crime Officers and explosives experts amongst others.