A recruitment drive is underway by the Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue to find aspiring on-call firefighters to join their teams at 9 fire stations across the Island.
On-call firefighters – also known as retained firefighters – respond to their local station when alerted by pager with positions currently available at Newport, Cowes, East Cowes, Ryde, Bembridge (urgent), Sandown, Ventnor, Freshwater and Yarmouth. Firefighters come from all sorts of backgrounds and will deal with all sorts of emergencies alongside their wholetime colleagues.
The fire service is holding an event on 17th October to give applicants a chance to try out some of the physical tests and find out about other aspects of the role, such as community safety. Prospective applicants will also be given information on the recruitment process and will have the opportunity to speak to operational staff and ask questions.
The event will be held at Ryde Fire Station with 2 sessions at 10:00-12:30 and 13;00-15:30. To find out more and to book a space email [email protected].
On average, retained firefighters can expect to be called out 2 or 3 times a week for 1 hour. If you can’t be available all of the time it’s not a problem; the service are particularly keen to hear from people who are available during weekdays and weekends. You will also be required to attend a training session each week – known as drill night.
A basic annual payment (a retainer) of £2,383 is paid alongside fees for emergency response at £10.88 per hour during training; rising to £3,177 and £14.51 respectively on achieving competence and a disturbance allowance of £4.18 for each call out.
You will be required to attend a Safe to Ride Course which will be 12 days in duration, held at Ryde Fire Station. If you are successful in completing this course you will also be required to attend a Breathing Apparatus Course which will be of a similar duration within the subsequent 12 months.
For more information visit https://oncallfire.uk/ or https://www.iow.gov.uk/Residents/fire-and-rescue-service/Recruitment-Fire/Retained-Firefighter-Opportunities.
