County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Service (CDDFRS) have recently appointed eleven apprentices, who this week have began an intensive three year apprenticeship programme aimed at preparing them to be firefighters of the future.
The seven male and four female apprentices, who are aged between 18 and 35, will spend the first 3 months of their apprenticeship undergoing their basic firefighter training where they will learn the fundamentals on how to be a firefighter.
As part of their programme, the new recruits will have the opportunity to spend time in every department across the Service, finding out about how CDDFRS operate.
This initial period culminates in 10 weeks of intensive training which will give the recruits the skills to deal with emergency scenarios; from fighting fires, dealing with Road Traffic Collisions, animal rescue and much more!
Following on from this they will each spend time at different fire stations and watches across the service area learning the role of a firefighter within the community.
The service launched its firefighter apprenticeship scheme in 2017. With this cohort being the seventh to have successfully run in partnership with New College Durham.
Chief Fire Officer, Steve Helps said: “I’m absolutely delighted to welcome our seventh group of firefighter apprentices to the service this week.
“We are extremely proud of our apprenticeship scheme which has been hugely successful with the service recognised nationally as 26th in the Top 100 UK employers of apprentices in the Country.
“My hope is the service will benefit from the individual skills and abilities our new apprentices will bring and that they as individuals will be well equipped to begin their career as a firefighter having spent time learning about all aspects of the service.”
Councillor John Shuttleworth, Chair of County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Authority said, “CDDFRS is a fantastic organisation which is recognised by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services, our success is due to the commitment and dedication from staff throughout the service who are focused on supporting our communities. I am confident that our new apprentices will bring skills and experience which will help them become outstanding firefighters.”
