THE alarm has been raised over the state of the Largs area's ageing fire stations – with an MSP claiming they are falling apart and putting the public at risk.

Katy Clark, Scottish Labour's spokesperson for community safety, uncovered shock details showing the conditions and suitability of 356 buildings across Scotland.

The report, obtained from the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) under Freedom of Information, also raises major concerns about the stations serving Largs, Millport and Skelmorlie.

It describes both the conditions and suitability of Skelmorlie as 'poor'.

While the condition of Largs was said to be satisfactory, its suitability is described as bad.

The condition of Millport station was rated as satisfactory, but its' suitability for firefighting assessed as poor.

None of the three stations are operated full-time, but instead operate as on-call facilities.

Ms Clark, who is also a West Scotland regional MSP, commented: “It is astounding to see the extent to which Scotland’s fire estate is falling apart.

“Firefighters, who work so hard to ensure the safety of people in our communities, need to be well equipped, well-resourced, well protected and well paid to do the job they do.

"The Scottish Government has had 15 years to modernise the estate. The real terms cuts in that time do not occur in a vacuum – they affect response times to emergency incidents, putting the public at risk.

“These figures must be a wake-up call – it’s time to modernise Scotland’s crumbling fire estate.”

In the SFRS report half of Scotland stations are described as being in “bad” or “poor” condition, with a further 47 percent assessed as being of “bad” or “poor” suitability.

The report also found that one in four stations across Scotland did not have shower facilities for female firefighters.

While Largs, Millport and Skelmorlie has the necessary facilities, Millport did not have an area where firefighters could dry off between calls.

The report also found that 40 per cent of Scottish fire stations are 50 years old or more, with Millport having opened in 1973 and Skelmorlie and Largs in 1980.

Iain Morris, Scottish Fire and Rescue Service acting director of asset management, said:"The safety and welfare of our staff who serve communities across Scotland remains a priority for us.

"We are fully committed to addressing any challenges around the repair and maintenance of our buildings as we work tirelessly to balance our budget.

“We recognise that there are a number of fire stations where there are limited welfare facilities, these are already identified within our ongoing capital investment requirements and plans."

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “Effective fire safety remains a priority for the Scottish Government and we have continued our commitment to support service delivery and reform with an increase of £14.4m in budget cover for SFRS in 2023-24.

“Decisions on the allocation of resources from the Scottish Government are a matter for SFRS and we will continue to work closely with them to identify the funding they need.”