CHESHIRE'S fire chief says that the brigade is 'making good progress but committed to doing better' after its latest audit report.

The brigade was below the national average for the number of malicious and equipment false alarms and the number of other incidents such as road traffic accidents.

The percentage of blazes in which the fire was kept in one room in urban and rural areas was well above average at 92 per cent in comparison with 78 per cent, and 95.9 per cent compared with 67 per cent.

The brigade was also shown to have a faster than average time to carry out inspections for a fire safety check.

Attendance standards showed an improvement on previous years but are slightly lower than the national average.

Steve McGuirk, Cheshire's fire chief, said: "Cheshire has a lot of chemical industries where the existing fire standards demand a very fast attendance of two fire engines in five minutes with a third one in eight. Because of the demand this standard places on us, it can have a negative effect.

"Our results overall are above the national average. The reason for this is the commitment of the fire authority and all our staff in delivering a quality fire safety and rescue service."