The Gift of Life
Firefighter Requirements
So what are the basic requirements needed to become a firefighter?
There are a few essentials:
- You must be over the age of 18
- You must have the right to live in the UK
- You must be eligible to work in the UK
You must also:
- Hold a full UK driving licence (though some FRS’s will accept you if you’re in the process of getting one – ask the recruitment team)
- Be confident in and around water, and have the ability to swim at least 100 metres unaided
- Have no known phobia of heights or enclosed spaces
- Pass the required medical health checks, including eyesight tests
- Meet the required physical fitness standards
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You’ll also have to pass a criminal record check before you can be offered employment.
It’s expected that you’ll be resident in the locality of the FRS you’re applying to, and be available to work antisocial hours and holiday periods, and cover for sickness and emergencies (sometimes at very short notice).
Qualifications
Most of the positions advertised will state that they expect you to be educated to GCSE level.
However personal qualities and life experience are very important to the recruitment team.
A good level of literacy and numeracy is an advantage however, as you will have to complete various psychometric tests during the application process.
It all may seem a bit daunting for those considering a change of career, or coming into the fire service at a later stage.
However if you can prove to the recruitment team in your application and interview that you meet the PQAs (Personal Qualities and Attributes) needed for the role this could in some cases get you further than paper qualifications.
There are various things you can do to make yourself a more appealing candidate – visiting your local station, volunteering, or doing a bit of homework and learning more about the fire service and the role of a firefighter.
We’re here to help you through every step of the process, and have products specially tailored to helping you with all aspects of recruitment – the application, ability testing and interview.
Want to find out more?
Plenty of people want to join the Fire Service. But what is it like once you are in? We asked around to get some behind the scenes insights, and found some surprising answers…
