25 May 2009

More than 1,000 people showed their interest in joining Buckinghamshire Fire & Rescue Service as firefighters during the first stage of a recruitment campaign last week.

Application packs were available for limited periods at three fire stations - Aylesbury, where 498 people collected them, Marlow (149) and Bletchley (409). Completed application forms must be returned by midday on Friday 29 May.

Group Manager Mick Martin said: “We would like to thank all the people who attended these recruitment events. I think this shows the high regard in which the fire service is held both locally and nationally.

“One of our aims is for our workforce to reflect the make-up of the community we serve, and we are delighted to have attracted applicants from a wide cross-section of that community.

“This was the first phase of an intense and demanding process, and at the end of it we will have a pool of applicants who have successfully completed the initial stages.”

Applicants who go on to be selected for training will start a series of courses later in the year. The first firefighters to complete the training are likely to start work at their fire stations early in 2010.

Although the deadline has now passed for people interested in becoming wholetime firefighters to pick up application packs, Buckinghamshire Fire & Rescue Service is still recruiting Retained Duty System, or on-call, firefighters. Click here for more details.