Norfolk Fire & Rescue Service launches On-Call Employers Charter
Norfolk employers are being recognised for their support for the county's emergency services, as part of a renewed call to recruit new on-call firefighters by Norfolk Fire & Rescue Service (NFRS).
In what is believed to be a UK first, employers in Norfolk can now formally commit to providing support for on-call firefighters within their workforce by signing the NFRS On-Call Employers Charter, allowing them additional unpaid leave to develop and maintain life-saving skills on essential fire service training courses, without missing out on family breaks.
Ceri Sumner, Norfolk Chief Fire Officer, said: "We're extremely grateful to all the businesses in Norfolk who support their communities by allowing their employees to be on-call firefighters. By launching the NFRS On-Call Employers Charter, we're aiming to recognise and strengthen our existing ties with Norfolk employers, but also to promote the benefits of employing on-call firefighters to other local businesses and organisations.
"The charter is a way for us to acknowledge the support they provide us, and how much we value that relationship, and we'll be aiming to speak to as many of them as we can over the coming months.
"Employing an on-call firefighter has numerous benefits, such as developing links with your local fire station and the wider community, and adding practical, life-saving skills to your workforce."
As well as gaining from the skillset of on-call firefighters, organisations who sign up to the charter will also receive a plaque and discounted fire and rescue training packages for their organisation.
On-call firefighters, who make up nearly 60% of Norfolk's rural fire and rescue cover, are not employed to be based at a fire station, but instead carry alerters and must be able to respond to their local station within five minutes of an emergency call. Many on-call firefighters work full-time jobs and make themselves available to attend fire and rescue incidents from their places of work as well as from their homes.
Other UK fire services have informal agreements with employers around benefits and commitments to on-call firefighters, but it is believed that this is the first time a fire service has offered the opportunity to sign up to such an agreement.
Pharmaceutical device manufacturers Bespak have a site in King's Lynn with more than 800 staff and are the first employer to sign up to the charter.
Kevin Reid, King's Lynn Site Manager for Bespak, said: "We always want to be at the forefront of everything we do with our local community and pledging our commitment to this initiative sets a great precedent for our on-call firefighters, both the ones who work for Bespak now, but also for aiding our recruitment in future."
Bespak currently employ two NFRS on-call firefighters, Phil Berry and Adam Wolfe, as manufacturing engineers, and they have previously supported Phil and Adam by reserving two car parking spaces to allow them to exit quickly if they get called to an incident while they are on shift.
Phil said: "I'm proud to be part of the first organisation to sign up. We're really grateful for what Bespak allow us to do with our on-call role, and the addition of the car parking spaces has been fantastic for us to allow us to respond as quickly as possible."
Adam said: "We're required to undertake additional refresher training every year, so to get extra time to do this is great, and helps remove some of the burden on our work life balance."
CFO Sumner said: "I'm delighted that Bespak have agreed to be the first to sign the charter and formalise our partnership, as they've been such a great ally to our service already, and I hope their involvement inspires other organisations to join them."
To find out more about the NFRS On-Call Employers Charter and how to sign up, check the NFRS website pages.
NFRS calling for community to consider joining on-call
The launch of the charter comes at a time when NFRS is refreshing their recruitment drive for on-call firefighters to join the service, with 30 stations across the county currently advertising vacancies.
Norfolk's on-call firefighter cohort is made up of a diverse range of the county's community, and as well as those who work for employers, NFRS also recruits those who are self-employed.
Jemma Raw runs The Sports Massage Cabin in Wymondham and joined the crew at the town's on-call fire station last year.
She said: "I'm on standby for 84 hours a week, which sounds like a lot but it's surprisingly manageable. I run my business at hours to suit me and then when I'm not working, I'm on-call - it's very flexible and it fits in with my life.
"I was welcomed as part of the fire family and it's been amazing. I've thoroughly enjoyed everything that I've done so far and it's a real buzz to be part of an amazing team of people who put themselves at risk to help and save other people."
The on-call role is paid and can be a useful income for retirees or those who are looking for work.
Bruce Holdroyd, 60, enjoyed a career in marketing and procurement in the aviation, hospitality and catering industries before retiring and moving to Cromer. Looking for something to do part-time, he saw on-call vacancies being advertised in the town and decided to apply.
Bruce said: "The flexibility of how it works is really good, and the ability to book on and book off at short notice is incredibly rare in any job. If you're looking to stop working full time and you want something to do part-time, it's perfect.
"There's lots to learn and the physical aspects are challenging, but it's also a great way of keeping yourself fit and healthy."
CFO Sumner said: "We are extremely grateful to people in the community that step up to become on-call firefighters to help us ensure the safety of their local area and we rely on this communal spirit to keep Norfolk covered. If you meet the entry criteria and think you'd make a good on-call firefighter, then please apply."
There is more information about how to become an on-call firefighter, what the role entails and the stations currently recruiting on the website: http://www.norfolk.gov.uk/oncall
