Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service (RBFRS) is looking to recruit more on-call (retained) firefighters to help serve local communities across the County.
RBFRS is looking for men and women from all backgrounds to become firefighters in Crowthorne, Hungerford, Lambourn, Maidenhead, Mortimer, Pangbourne and Wargrave Fire Stations. To find your local station please visit this page.
In an effort to encourage more people to consider applying, a number of “Have a Go” days have been set up, both to give people an opportunity to try out some of the physical and written entry tests that potential firefighters need to pass and to meet some of the local firefighters who are already serving.
For the first time, these “Have a Go” days will be held at local stations (or at a nearby community venue if required). Two events will be held at each station per year.
Below is a list of planned events for 2017/2018.
All events will be held from 10am – 2pm unless specified otherwise.
Wargrave Fire Station:
- 17 February 2018
- 26 May 2018
Pangbourne Fire Station:
- 16 December 2017
- 11 August 2018
Mortimer Fire Station:
- 13 January 2018
- 21 July 2018
Lambourn Fire Station:
- 24 March 2018
- 20 October 2018
Hungerford Fire Station:
- 14 April 2018
- 15 September 2018
Maidenhead Fire Station:
- 9 June 2018
- 17 November 2018
Crowthorne Fire Station:
- 28 April 2018
- Further date to be confirmed
What is an on-call firefighter?
On-call firefighters provide emergency cover from either their home or their work base, which needs to be within 6-8 minutes of their local fire station.
As part of the role, on-call firefighters receive an annual wage plus additional payments for attending drill nights, training and any incidents. On average, On-Call firefighters provide between 40 and 120 hours cover per week to help serve their local community.
Depending on the type of cover they are able to provide, an on-call firefighter may respond from home or work, day or night. They may be self-employed, stay at home parents/carers or have other full time or part time careers. When the emergency call comes, they stop whatever they are doing and become part of a dedicated team trained to deal with fires, floods, road traffic collisions, chemical spills and much more.
To apply, you must:
- Be able to reach your local fire station from where you live or work within 6-8 minutes depending on the station. This is because you have to be able to get there within a few minutes of an emergency call.
- Have patience, understanding, empathy and enthusiasm.
- Understand and respect the diversity of your community.
- Have support from your employer if providing cover from work.
- Be over 18 years – but there is no upper age limit.
- Have a good level of fitness – but support will be available to help you reach this level.
- Be ready to take on a challenging but rewarding role.
Our Service promotes equality and values diversity. We welcome anyone who fits the above criteria.
If you think you’ve got what it takes to join the team, contact your local fire station for further information or if you have a specific recruitment enquiry: email: recruitment@rbfrs.co.uk
Please also feel free to call in at your local station on a Monday night at 7pm, where you can talk to the people already doing the job and find out what life as a firefighter is really like.