CLEVELAND fire chiefs were given a grilling by a pensioners' pressure group which wanted to be reassured that senior citizens are in safe hands.

Members of the Cleveland Pensioners Convention Forum met fire chiefs at Eston Town Hall on May 2 along with Coun Brenda Forster, chairman of the Cleveland Fire Authority.

Mike Findley, the group's secretary, asked fire chiefs to reassure members at a time of industrial unrest for firefighters, who are threatening strike action over moves to share a control room facility with the police and ambulance service.

Mr Findley said: "Half a million people in Cleveland, many of them senior residents, want to be reassured that their safety is of prime importance to fire chiefs. Pensioners include some of the most vulnerable members of our community and we need to know that firefighters still care about them.

"We asked brigade bosses to talk to us and listen to what we have to say about the issues we are hearing about in the press. The fire brigade is held in very high public esteem in Cleveland and we want it to stay that way."

He added: "Any differences between managers and the firefighters unions should be put right without any risk to public safety. They should keep talking, but not about a strike."

Executive Director Ian Hayton said: "We are aware of public concern about the fire service at this time. Cleveland is a high-risk area and our senior residents are quite right in demanding that we take their safety seriously.

"We wanted them to know that managers at Cleveland Fire Brigade and members of Cleveland Fire Authority are doing everything in their power to prevent disruption to the fire service we provide.

"We are urging firefighters and the Fire Brigades Union to avoid a damaging dispute.

"We want to keep talking until we negotiate a reasonable solution, through proper arbitration."