North Yorkshire FRS Firefighter Recruitment Process

Our helpful guide to the North Yorkshire FRS Firefighter Recruitment Process is here to help you through the process of becoming a Wholetime Firefighter in this area!

You must be at least 17 years and six months old to apply to the North Yorkshire FRS Firefighter Recruitment Process?

Step 1 – Realistic Job Preview and Eligibility Questions

You’ll be asked in your initial online application to enter your personal details and answer some basic screening questions, designed to make sure that you understand and meet the basic job requirements.

You’ll need to have your National Insurance number available to be able to register as well as your correct e-mail address. You can only register once so please make sure all your contact details are correct!

Then you’ll be invited to complete an online Realistic Job Preview. This involves a series of multiple choice questions designed to check your attitude to the job and situations you might find yourself in as a firefighter.

Doing a RJP can also allow to get a better idea of whether the role is actually suitable for you, before you’re too far along in the process.

You’ll also be asked to disclose any unspent criminal convictions at this stage.

Step 2 – The Online Tests

If your initial application is successful you’ll then be asked to complete a series of online behavioural and psychometric tests. These are best completed on a tablet or computer, rather than on a smartphone.

You’ll be sent an email explaining how to log on to check the test – this will come from Apollo Online Assessment so remember to check your junk/spam folder too in case your email provider doesn’t recognise the email address.

There are five tests to complete in the North Yorkshire FRS process:

The questions will have multiple choice answers, and you’ll be given a specified amount of time to complete the reasoning and calculation tests.

Step 3 – Pre-fitness Test Questionnaire and Fitness Test

If you’ve successfully completed the online tests you’ll receive and email asking you to complete an online pre-fitness test questionnaire.

This will be reviewed by the Occupational Health Unit (OHU) who will contact you if they have any issues or concerns they would like to discuss with you.

The fitness test used will be the bleep test, with you having achieve a minimum level of 8.7 to pass.

This test involves you running between two lines 20m apart to a series of bleeps. The gap between the bleeps starts at 8kph and increases at each level.

Step 4 – Physical tests

If you pass the initial fitness test there are also various physical tests you’ll have to pass.

These are made up of activities designed to see how you cope with ‘on the job’ situations you might encounter, and to make sure your fitness, coordination and strength are of a good enough level.

You’ll receive an email with the time, date and location.

The physical tests include:

You’ll be supplied with the appropriate protective clothing.

Step 5 – The Interviews

If you make it through the fitness test you’ll be invited back to the assessment centre for a one to one interview.

In these types of interview you’ll be asked questions relating toy our behaviour on certain occasions or in specific circumstances, which you’ll then need to provide evidence for by using concrete examples from your past work and life experience.

This is your best chance to convince the panel that you are the candidate that they want to employ.

Again, it’s really important that you prepare adequately for the day – forewarned is forearmed!

Spend a bit of time thinking about what you might be asked, and write down your responses so that they’re fresh in your mind before the interview.

You’ll also be asked to prepare a short presentation as part of your interview, and will be given information on the topic in advance to allow you time to prepare.

You generally won’t have long to wait before the FRS informs you if you’ve got the job! They will let you know either way, but even if you haven’t made it on this attempt you’ve done amazingly well to get so far.

If you’re successful and have been offered the job, there are some final checks that the FRS will need to run.

Final Checks

You’ll be asked to attend a medical assessment with the Occupational Health department.

The medical is a general assessment to check that you’re fit for firefighter duties, and includes looking at your:

Prior to the medical you’ll be sent a Certificate of Visual Acuity Form which you must take to an Optician to complete to check your eyesight.

You’ll also be asked to complete a second fitness test to ensure you’ve maintained your levels of fitness throughout the process, this will take the form of the Chester Treadmill Test.

The final pre-employment checks will involve checking the information on your application form, contacting your references, and performing a standard criminal record check.