Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service (LFRS) is looking to recruit new whole-time firefighters and are taking the challenge out to the people.
Raising public awareness and generating good public engagement can be a bit of a challenge, so this time, instead of inviting people to fire stations to get a feel for what they do, LFRS have decided to hit the road.
Group Manager Liam Wilson said, "Instead of inviting people to the station to run through some drills, we decided to visit a number of community venues to show people what we do and how we do it”.
The crews will be taking their roadshow to several venues around Lancashire and will be visiting Lancaster on Saturday 18th September and they are inviting those interested to join them at Central Lancaster High School at 10am. The recruitment window opens on the 1st November.
Group Manager Wilson, who's also been heavily involved in bringing these events to fruition said: "We're hoping to use this opportunity to engage with people across the county and show them what the role of a modern firefighter involves. This includes the operational and preventative activities that we undertake. During the Have a Go events, we will be looking to carry out some of the activities that people can expect to do as part of the recruitment course, such as hose running, equipment carrying and dummy dragging as well as the more light-hearted 30 second fire kit challenge, which usually generate a competitive spirit and more than a few laughs”.
GM Wilson went on to say: "We appreciate it can be quite a daunting prospect to put yourself out there and come to a station to meet the crews and do the bleep test, so we're trying to create an informative but fun feel with these events. People are sometimes reluctant to join us as they can be intimidated by the physical aspect of the role, however a modern firefighter is so much more than just fighting fires. For us it’s a win-win situation, who knows, people may find that they are perfectly suited to the role”.
LFRS recognises that the best way to engage with our communities is to be truly reflective of them. We want people from all backgrounds to come down and have a go".
We hope people will feel more comfortable joining us at a community venue. They can even bring their friends along and enjoy themselves without any pressure.
If you have the desire to make a difference and fancy having a go, join us at one of our events. You never know, you might find that you've got exactly what it takes to become a modern firefighter in LFRS.
More information on the Have A Go days or FAQ’s about recruitment can be found at www.lancsfirerescue.org.uk/have-a-go
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