Tuesday 20
May
16.30
hours
Avon Fire &
Rescue Service is close to hitting new targets set out by the
department for Communities and Local Government (CLG) when it comes
to recruiting firefighters.
In January the
service started a new recruitment drive and is pleased to announce
that the top 23 people of the 895 who applied have been offered a
place on the latest training school, which will start this
summer.
Of the top 23,
20 are men (one of these is from the BME community) and three are
women.
New targets
announced by the CLG state that 15 percent of all new recruits need
to be female and three percent need to be from BME groups. This
means AF&RS has hit its BME target, with 4.3 percent, and only
just missed achieving its target for female recruits, with 13
percent.
Avon Fire &
Rescue Service Chief Fire Officer / Chief Executive Kevin Pearson
said: “We are delighted to be able to offer these 23 new recruits a
place on our forthcoming training school and look forward to
welcoming them to the service. This is a fantastic achievement for
these 23 recruits when you think about the competition for
posts.
“While we
haven’t achieved our target when it comes to female recruitment, we
are certainly heading in the right direction ensuring our service
reflects the community we serve.
“Although I am
delighted that we are close to achieving our targets this is by no
means our main motivation when it comes to recruitment. We have to
employ the best people for the job who meet the National
Firefighter Tests. In this case, of the 23 best people who passed
the rigorous selection tests, some are from groups that are
currently under-represented across the fire and rescue
service.”