Ethical Guidelines

The purpose of the Barcelona Fire Brigade is to serve the population by preventing and resolving situations of risk, facilitating the return to normality after their intervention.

The objective of all its actions is to make life in the city of Barcelona safer, more habitable, more pleasant and more sustainable, as well as to preserve the city’s heritage and its urban and natural environment.

The mission of the Barcelona Fire Brigade is to ensure the safety of people, property and the natural and urban environment through prevention, firefighting and rescue.

The Code of Ethics and Conduct of Barcelona City Council is a key component of institutional integrity and enshrines the ethical values and the principles of action and good governance of this Council, guaranteeing integrity, efficiency and transparency in its management.

In accordance with this code, the Ethics Committee unanimously approved the Ethical Guidelines of the Barcelona Fire Brigade in June 2024.

Core values

The Barcelona Fire Brigade has a well-defined identity, which has remained unchanged throughout its history.

This identity is based on a willingness to serve and help citizens, institutional loyalty, commitment to the profession, teamwork and cooperation with other services.

The responsibility of the fire brigade is to offer a high-quality service in the most efficient way possible, protecting Barcelona’s residents, urban structures, facilities, and the natural environment, from situations of risk arising from incidents such as fires, explosions, accidents, spills, and weather events, in addition to those caused by deficiencies in buildings, infrastructure, transport or industry.

As an essential part of its work, alongside responding to hazardous situations, the Barcelona Fire Brigade seeks to promote prevention, raise awareness, and support public self-protection.

As part of their civil defence duties, the professionals of the Fire Brigade are also responsible for helping to detect situations of psychosocial risk such as energy poverty, gender-based and domestic violence or social abandonment.

The Fire Brigade also intervenes at the request of other institutions or agencies, both within and outside the city of Barcelona, and carries out solidarity initiatives at national and international level.

The interventions of the members of the Fire Brigade are not, therefore, limited to the resolution of emergency situations, but are aimed, first, at prevention, and subsequently, at supporting the return to normality of the people and environments in which they have intervened. To this end, they collaborate with social services, health services and police forces.

The values of the Barcelona Fire Brigade are:

• Public service
• Proximity
• Safety
• Loyalty
• Commitment
• Exemplariness

Good Practice Guide

The Good Practice Guide for officers of the Barcelona Fire Brigade is intended to be a practical document. It sets out guidelines for implementing ethical leadership and guiding the work of the different levels of command of the Barcelona Fire Brigade, in light of the provisions of the Code of Ethics and Conduct of Barcelona City Council and the Ethical Guidelines, insofar as it does not conflict with the said Code.

Leading entails a dual service: it is a service to the public –in line with the purpose of the fire brigade– and a service to the brigade –in line with the principle of institutional loyalty.