c


Y 

c



  /M
Social/demographic 
Technolo
gical 
Economic /

Environmental/Natural 
Political 

Legal 
Ethical 
[]

c
c 





SPESTLE:

 S = Social (e.g. changes in social behaviour that might impact product / service
selection);
 T = Technological (e.g. rapid development in cheaper components that will affect
product prices or performance);
 E = Economic (e.g. non -Euro exchange rates affecting key imported supplies);
 E = Environmental (e.g. waste re -cycling legislation and penalties on producers);
 P = Political (e.g. government directives on certification or subcontracting);
 L = Legal (e.g. changes in employment laws)
 E = European (or International) (e.g. World Trade Organisation agreements affecting
market dynamics and competitors)

ü summary of the STEEPLE ünalysis can be used to check the reasonableness and
validity of your overriding Business Strategy and Targets. üny resultant issues should then
be turned into an action plan that will describe how and when you are go ing to resolve such
matters or mitigate the anticipated risks. For example, this might provide the rationale for
why and on what basis you need additional credit from your funding providers. This analysis
of the external environment, should be considered a nd applied when compiling, monitoring
and reporting your Business & Financial Plan.

ünalysis of the external environment: identification of issues and risks 'STEEPLE'

analysis

This analysis examines the context in which the üuthority operates. It ident ifies some of
the key issues that exist (or are emerging) in the external environment and suggests how
these will or might impact on future strategy and resources. These are listed under seven
main headings (factors):

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Ref
Issue/Risk Strategic Level Action
No
Major demographic changes in local Continually assess the impact on of both
SO1
communities can impact on strategic and local plans (especially designated
 Åampshire¶s risk profile and therefore major development areas MDAs) and identify
the effectiveness of our IRMP and the scale and timing of any implications for
actions. our IRMP and associated actions.
Review our internal processes to ensure that
all local planning consultation documents are
reviewed (at both SMT and Group
Management levels) and that our comments
are fed back to the relevant stakeholders.
Increases in the number of older and
Ensure, by working in close collaboration with
other vulnerable people living alone in
partner organisations and other agencies, that
the community (including those under
our information on these µat risk¶ groups is up
SO2 µcare in the community¶
to date and that our priorities for action
arrangements) will continue to pose a
(including the targeting of home safety visits)
specific risk to our plans to reduce fire
are regularly reviewed.
deaths and injuries.
National increase in the incidence of
arson particularly in relation to
vehicles and schools. Both pose a Through careful analysis we will target those
considerable risk to our plans to segments of the population most likely to start
SO3 reduce arson. In the case of vehicles, such fires; and, working with partner agencies,
the increase is likely to be attributable, remove or reduce the opportunity for such
at least partly, to the impact of EU incidents.
environmental regulations and the cost
of disposal of scrap vehicles.
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Ref
Issue/Risk
No
Transition from local control rooms to
the new regional control centres
should realise a significant
improvement in the information and
communications technologies (ICT)
available for mobilising resources
effectively. The net cost to the
TE1 Authority of the new centres is
currently not known. Additionally, we
need to maintain the capacity and
resilience of the Authority¶s existing
and increasingly redundant control
room systems. To date a fully-costed
national business case has not be
produced by ODPM.
Reliance on ICT for the day?to?day
delivery and management of services
TE2 is at an unprecedented level ± and
likely to increase with further
technological innovation and
Strategic Action Level
Ensure, by active participation in the project
planning and specification processes for the
new control centres, that the Authority¶s own
mobilising policies and management
information needs are capable of being
satisfied by the new control centres; that
indications of future net costs / savings are
made available as soon as possible for
financial planning purposes.
Ensure, so far as is possible and practicable,
that arrangements remain robust for the
continued maintenance and support of the
existing control room¶s ICT± particularly that
support provided by third-party suppliers and
contractors.
As the Authority seeks to exploit opportunities
and tangible benefits for the improved delivery
of services through ICT application
development (including meeting
expectations/targets for e-government), ensure
 implementation. Major and/or
prolonged failures in our ICT
infrastructure and critical applications
could have serious and potentially
costly implications.
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that increased investment is made in
improving both the resilience and performance
of the Service¶s ICT infrastructure.
Ensure that sound maintenance and support
agreements are in place with all third-party
suppliers and contractors of our ICT services
so that our business continuity plans remain
robust and can be regularly tested.

Ref
Issue/Risk
No
Weather-related incidents (eg
flooding, storms) and major
chemical/biological incidents can have
EN1 a sudden and dramatic impact on our
resources - both in terms of our ability
to respond to them and the resultant
financial cost.
Given the Authority¶s role in helping
to protect the environment, it would be
highly embarrassing, damaging to our
reputation, and potentially costly in
EN2
financial terms, if our own operational
and management practices
contravened environmental legislation
and expected good practice.
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Strategic Level Action
Regularly review and test plans for dealing
with such incidents - including, where
appropriate, participation in realistic exercises
with all other relevant civil protection
agencies.
Based on local experience and from
information gathered from other fire and
rescue authorities, ensure that the Authority¶s
own business contingency plans and financial
reserves / balances are assessed annually and
that the provision made is soundly based and
realistic.
Conduct an environmental/sustainability audit
of our day-to-day operational and management
arrangements (particularly those relating to
policies and procedures on our own sites) so to
ensure that we eliminate any poor practices
and that the Authority can be regarded as one
that actively promotes environmentally
sustainable activities wherever possible.
Repeat these audits at three-yearly intervals.



Ref
Issue Risk Strategic Level Action
No
Now that the Authority is a
Each year the Authority will assess the
µprecepting authority¶ it has to ensure
adequacy of its reserves and balances based on
that it makes adequate provision (ie
information contained in the risk register,
reserves and balances) in its budget
other business plans and specific reports
for the financial consequences of the
(including, in particular, the forecast provision
EC1 strategic and volatile risks highlighted
required for the firefighters¶pension
in this analysis, those identified in
scheme).Insurance arrangements (cover and
other business plans, and for any areas
premiums) will continue to be formally re-
of uninsured risks. Failure to do so,
tendered every three years and selectively
could result in the Authority having to
market-tested annually.
resort to: major cuts in its budget
 and/or unplanned borrowing and/or
subsequent and unacceptably high
increases in Council Tax levels. In
turn, this would increase the risk of
Government intervention and
µcapping¶ (leading to further
unplanned cuts in expenditure).
The Authority, in common with all
local authorities, is expected to
As part of its budget planning and monitoring
demonstrate that it strives for Best
processes, the value of any efficiency savings -
Value in delivering its services to the
both ³cashable´ and ³non-cashable´ will be
EC2 public and there are clear expectations
logged in reports and a record of the
(targets) to achieve year-on-year
cumulative impact on resources will be
efficiency savings. Failure to respond
maintained.
positively to this expectation could
result in Government intervention.
We will continue to ensure that sound Internal
As with all public sector bodies we are
(and workplace) audits processes are in place
required to ensure that public funds
and that all budget holders and managers are
EC3 are managed with probity and to guard
fully aware of the Authority¶s financial
against fraud and misuse and to ensure
regulationsand codes of practice relating to
best value is achieved.
contracts.
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Ref
Issue/Risk Strategic Level Action
No
The Government¶s expectations for
greater collaboration between fire and
The Authority is already leading on
rescue authorities at the regional level
developing a regional approach to human
- through the Regional Management
resource management, and is actively involved
Boards (RMBs) - will have an impact
in key aspects of the planning processes for the
on both the approach to and way we
new regional control centres.
manage and deliver some key services
PO1 (including regional control centres
This level of engagement - and opportunities
mentioned above). Failure to fully
to exert further influence by both Members
embrace and influence the
and senior officers - needs to be sustained and
development of the µregional agenda¶
exploited so that the Authority can be
could lead to the Authority becoming
reasonably assured that its best interests are
politically isolated and vulnerable to
promoted and any risks to it are minimised.
decisions made that are not in its best
interests.
Members of the Authority are also Proposals for change (arising from the IRMP)
members of one of the three that directly impact on the delivery of services
constituent authorities (Åampshire in local communities need to be well presented
PO2 County Council; Portsmouth City and the benefits of change (and its
Council; Southampton City Council); implications) communicated effectively during
some are also members of district periods of consultation. Members will need to
councils and other public bodies (eg be satisfied that local concerns have been
 the Police Authority). As local properly anticipated and taken into account in
councillors they will also be presenting business cases for any proposals for
representing the interests of the change so that they can have confidence in the
electorate in their Division/Ward. It is thoroughness of the consultation process when
important to recognise that this will, decisions need to be made.
on occasion, cause inevitable tensions
for Members who may need to satisfy
or respond to different and sometimes
opposing views/priorities when
considering their stance on policy
decisions ± particularly those affecting
their local area. These tensions could,
understandably, inhibit progress on
some aspects of the modernisation
agenda.
Failure to fully engage in local Crime
and Disorder Panels and Local
Strategic Partnerships (LSPs) could
result in the Authority missing out on The Authority is becoming a more active
opportunities (and sources of member of the Åampshire and Isle of Wight
additional funding) that could directly Local Authorities Association and in local
contribute to the achievement of its strategic partnerships and panels. There is
corporate aims ± particularly those scope however to increase the level of
relating to prevention and protection engagement and contribution made by
actions. There is a clear expectation on Members of the Authority and officers
PO3
all local authorities to exploit the (particularly the new Group Managers).
potential benefits andeconomies of Specific IRMP actions (such as the proposed
scale of taking cross-cutting initiatives pilot of deploying a vehicle and crew at the
and partnership working to improve Popley Fields Community Centre,
the delivery of services to the public. Basingstoke) will increasingly emerge as
The Authority would receive tangible examples of the benefits of
understandable criticism (particularly collaborative working.
through the CPA process) if there is
little evidence of collaborative
activity.
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Ref
Risk/Issue Strategic Level Action
No
The Fire and Rescue Services Act Direct experience gained from the much
2004 places on a statutory footing publicised case of µCapital & Counties v
µother activities¶ the Service has taken Åampshire County Council, 1990¶ serves as a
on over the last 50 years since the constant reminder of the potential and
previous legislation was put in place. significant impact of litigation ± and the
LE1
These go beyond firefighting and consequences of authorities standing their own
include rescue from road traffic insurable risks.
accidents, responding to serious
environmental disasters and the new In conjunction with its external insurance
terrorist threat. The scope for litigation advisers and brokers, the Authority annually
 being taken against the Authority has
therefore widened.
New legislation ± notably with the
enactment of the Regulatory Reform
Order (RRO) - will change the
emphasis of the fire and rescue
service¶s role in respect of fire safety
inspection and enforcement. The
Authority needs to ensure that it has
LE2 taken the necessary action to change
its organisational and management
arrangements to satisfy the
requirements of the RRO. Failure to
do so, will mean that our policies,
plans and actions aim at µProtecting¶
Åampshire will fail to deliver
measurable results.
The Freedom of Information Act 2000
has significant implications for the
way all public authorities manage
information ± both in hard copy and
electronic formats. From January
2005, members of the public have the
LE3 right to request access to any
information held by the Authority on
any subject provided it is not restricted
on the grounds of security or the Data
Protection Act. There are financial
penalties as well as public
embarrassment for non-compliance.
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As a public body we are expected to
embrace excellent ethical and moral
standards in all that we do. We are not
only expected to follow the letter of
the law, but also uphold the spirit of
ET1
the law by having in place policies and
practices that are beyond reproach.
Not to do so would leave the
Authority exposed to criticism on a
number of fronts.
reviews the adequacy of its insurance
arrangements and the provision for uninsured
risks.
In anticipation of the RRO, organisational and
managerial structures (and roles) have already
been reviewed and implemented.
A new fire safety risk database
and management information system is being
developed and implemented during 2004/5 and
2005/06.
Training programmes for fire safety officers
are in place to ensure that we are well placed
to respond positively to shift of emphasis
towards self-inspection/compliance (on the
part of building owners/users) and the need to
be more proactive in an 'audit-type' role and in
the enforcement of offenders.
The Authority has made good progress in
preparing to meet the requirements of the Act
and had it Publication Scheme in place well
before the relevant deadline. A policy
commitment to comply with the requirements
of the Act has been approved by the Authority.
Work is continuing to improve general
housekeeping ininformation management and
to improve systems of electronic document
storage and retrieval. Retention policies for
different categories of information are
continually being reviewed. Key personnel in
each functional area are being given training to
ensure that they fully understand the
requirements and implications of the Act.
Our employment policies and practices are
continually being updated and enhanced to
ensure that we do all we can to improve
fairness and dignity in the workplace; and, so
that we will be better placed to achieve the
ambitious equality targets, set by the
Government, for fire and rescue authorities.
During 2004/05 and 2005/06 will be reviewing
our procurement polices and practices (both in
the light of the Government¶s national
procurement strategy and in the context of
collaborative actions at regional level). We
 will do all we can to ensure sound and ethical
purchasing arrangements for goods and
services.
The Standards Committee ensures that
Authority¶s Standing Orders and Code of
Conduct relating to Members is strictly
applied and reviewed
?

?
STEEPLE
STEEPLE analysis considers the possible impact of broader factors on your industry and your
business. It is a simple framework used to identify factors in the business environment that might
impact on the organisation or a business area. Factors are identified in 7 areas.

STEEPLE is concerned with the key political (and regulatory), economic, social (and demographic),
environmental, legal, ethical and technological factors shaping industry change.

Identifying STEEPLE influences is a good way of summarising the external environment in which a
business operates -but it does not stop there - it must be followed up by considering how the business
should respond to those influences.

STEEPLE factors should be looked at in terms of the patterns emerging (do not analyse them
separately). ü good tip is to ask the 'so what?' question - c











 


These factors will identify threats and opportunities, which can then be addressed as part of the
strategic plan.

c 



 



 c Income distribution, Demographics, Labour/Social mobility, Lifestyle changes,

Work/life balance, Portfolio careers, Education, Fashion/fads, Health/welfare, Living
conditions, Poverty levels, Job security.

  Government spending on research, Governments and industry focus on

technological effort, New discoveries and developments, Speed of technology transfer, Rate
of technological obsolescence, Energy use and costs, Impact of changes on IT, Internet,
Mobile communications, IT spend, New communication channels.

  Global economy, Information/knowledge economy, Monetary policy,
Government spending, Unemployment policy, Taxation, Exchange rates, inflation, Stages of
the business cycle, Economic 'mood'.


  'Green ügenda', Global warming, Climate change, Carbon emissions,
Recycling, Environmental regulation/protection.

  General election result, Lisbon strategy, White papers e.g. üctions on
Competitiveness.

  Statutory and regulatory conditions, Corporate governance, Compliance, International

trade regulations, Compliance, International trade regulations, Competition regulation.


 Business ethics, Consent, Client confidentiality, Official Secrets üct, Security access,
terms of business/trade, Trust, Reputation.




 Focuses attention on some of the wider changes in the environment - even outside your own
particular market.

 Draws attention to some of the 'softer' issues, like the political (and regulatory), and the social.

 Helps to gain a better understanding for external conditions for growth in a market.

 Comprehensive and can cover any eventuality.

ó


  Sometimes merely highlights the obvious

 Doesn't tell you 'where you are now' (doesn't establish a stake in the ground)

 Too comprehensive - requires too much detail, therefore needs a lot of operational resource
to carry it out with accuracy.
?