Reporter Emily Burden tests out the hose. (Picture by Adrian Miller, 0573699)

A career with the Guernsey Fire & Rescue Service can offer you things not many other jobs can. On average, they get 1,200 call-outs each year, which range from fires, road accidents and flooding to animal rescues.

‘It is an adventurous career which is very active and rewarding. Each day you never know what task you may be faced with,’ explained training officer Martin Lucas.

‘You gain enormous job satisfaction and there are good chances of career development. And you have the confidence in knowing that you are working as part of a great team.’

There are two main ways in which you can join the Fire & Rescue Service – whole-time and retained (part-time).

The whole-time section is where personnel are employed full-time by the service. These posts mainly involve operational duties, but also include fire safety and control staff.

The part-time or retained section consists of people already in employment elsewhere, but who have agreement from their employers to leave work in order to attend an emergency call.

‘When a person has been selected we start the process of informal interviewing,’ said Martin.

‘We explain the various forms we hand out to be filled, these being medical, police checks and conditions of service. Then we invite them back to sit an entrance test that tends to last an hour and a half. Once that is complete, we invite them back for practical and physical tests and then we short-list them.’

In the fire service, incidents don’t always have a happy ending. Sometimes there are situations that can be distressing. When dealing with these the training takes over.

‘We send the whole-time members to the UK for a 12-week training course and fly them home every weekend. The retained staff are trained locally,’ said Martin.

‘Currently, we have 44 whole-time members of staff, 11 officers, five control room staff and 11 retained. We are looking to recruit another member of staff in October.’

Martin, who has been in the service for 18 years, has helped with some of Guernsey’s biggest fires but maintains that a career in the fire service isn’t just climbing ladders and squirting water.

‘People don’t realise that we have other career areas,’ he said.

‘One of them is fire safety – we have a fantastic school education programme in which we send staff out to educate students and the community to help in reducing risk.’

Martin’s advice for anyone considering a career in the Fire & Rescue Service is:

‘Just do it. Most people, when they try it, love it. So if you enjoy an active lifestyle and strive for great job satisfaction, a job in the fire service will probably be a good choice for you.’

• For further information contact the training department at Guernsey Fire & Rescue Service on 724491.
• Applications are invited from both men and women.