2006 – 2026
Twenty years of protecting life & property.
CityFire started in Coleshill in 2006 with two engineers, five sites and a rule we have never broken: do the work properly and the next contract follows. This page is the story so far, and a thank-you offer for the organisations that keep us busy.
The numbers that matter
What twenty years looks like.
Figures from our job-management system, updated monthly.
The story
From five sites to eight thousand.
One renewed contract at a time, not one acquisition.
- 2006
Founded in Coleshill
Chris Bowden and Paul Glynn set up City Fire & Electrical Services Ltd with electrical and fire alarm backgrounds and five sites to look after. Company number 05667526 is registered in Warwickshire.
- Early years
The first housing and public-sector contracts
Work on local authority estates across the Midlands set the pattern the company still follows: planned maintenance done on the date promised, reactive faults fixed first time, and paperwork a regulator will accept.
- Third-party certified
BAFE SP203-1 across all four modules
Design, installation, commissioning and maintenance of fire detection and alarm systems, certified by NICEIC and listed on the BAFE register as organisation 301056. Membership of the Fire Industry Association (no. 2157) and ECA followed.
- Growth
From the Midlands to the whole of the UK and Ireland
National contracts, including a major international retailer across the UK and Ireland, took CityFire engineers to England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, run from one helpdesk in Coleshill.
- The group
Part of CIT-E Group UK Ltd
CityFire became one of three specialist businesses in the group alongside Lockdown UK Ltd (wireless lockdown systems) and Meta Housing Limited (development, construction and property).
- 2026
Twenty years. 8,071 sites. Zero salespeople.
More than 2,000 planned maintenance visits a month, a 24/7 helpdesk, every certificate in the client portal, and a new website to say so. Thank you to every client, engineer and supplier who got us here.
Twenty years of CityFire
Two engineers. Five sites. 2006.
8,071 sites and still no salesperson. 2026.
Chris Bowden and Paul Glynn started CityFire in Coleshill with electrical and fire alarm experience and one rule: do the work properly and the next contract follows. Twenty years on, the rule has not changed. Neither has the phone number.
20 for 20: a free compliance review for 20 new sites
To mark our twentieth year we are offering twenty organisations a free fire alarm and emergency lighting compliance review of one building, with a written report you can act on whoever you choose to maintain it. [Placeholder offer — confirm terms with Paul before launch.]
One review per organisation. UK mainland. Available to the first twenty qualifying requests received in 2026. No obligation to contract.
Thank you
To the people who got us here.
Clients who renewed, engineers who turned out at 3 a.m., suppliers who delivered on a Friday afternoon. Twenty years is a team effort.
[Placeholder. Replace with an approved quote from a housing or public-sector client: what the problem was, what changed, one specific number. Two to three sentences.]
[Placeholder. Replace with an approved quote from an NHS, care or education client about working in an occupied building.]
[Placeholder. Replace with an approved quote from a facilities manager or landlord about consolidating contractors or a call-out that went well.]
Get a quote
Tell us the postcode. We’ll tell you what the building needs.
Three fields. Acknowledged within one working hour, 08:00 to 17:00. Emergencies go straight to the 24/7 helpdesk on 01675 437337.