In 2007, the Stoney Point Fire Department Board of Directors approved a five-year strategic plan outlining the steps for obtaining accredited status from the Commission on Fire Accreditation International (CFAI) and the Center for Public Safety Excellence (CPSE). This monumental goal was achieved and our initial accreditation granted in early 2012.

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Accreditation is a comprehensive self-assessment and quality improvement model that enables organizations to examine past, current, and future service levels and internal performance and compare them to current research and industry best practices. This process leads to more efficient and effective emergency service organizations.

CPSE’s Accreditation Program, administered by the Commission on Fire Accreditation International (CFAI), allows fire and emergency service agencies to compare their performance to:

• determine community risk and safety needs and develop community-specific Standards of Cover.

• evaluate the performance of the department.

• establish a method for achieving continuous organizational improvement.

• improve agency ability and the community’s citizen capability to effectively recognize potential fire hazards and other emergency protection needs.

• identify need for state-of-the-art resources and emergency service delivery systems.

• improve community quality of life.

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Local government executives face increasing pressure to “do more with less” and justify their expenditures by demonstrating a direct link to improved or expanded services. Particularly for emergency services, local officials need criteria to assess professional performance and efficiency. The CFAI accreditation process provides a well-defined, internationally-recognized benchmark system to measure the quality of fire and emergency services.

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Stoney Point is proud to be one of two volunteer fire departments in the United States holding CFAI accreditation. Currently, there are twenty-one North Carolina CPSE-accredited fire departments. Most are medium-to-large career or DOD agencies fully staffed with paid professionals. This prestigious list includes the fire departments of Asheville, Camp Lejeune, Cary, Charlotte, Durham, High Point, Jacksonville, Rocky Mount, Fayetteville, Fort Bragg, Gastonia, Greensboro, MCAS Cherry Point, Monroe, Morrisville, Shelby, Statesville, Village of Pinehurst, Wilmington and Wilson. As a volunteer agency, Stoney Point is the first and only North Carolina volunteer fire department to achieve this notable accredited status.

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The Stoney Point Fire Department constantly strives towards excellence and continuous improvement. Our department has proved exemplary in terms of the Cumberland County fire service. In April 2017, our department was re-accredited by CFAI, and we are already working toward re-accreditation in 2022. This goal will be realized and reflects the unsurpassed professionalism and outstanding capability of our organization.