The Scottish Government

Listen

SCOTTISH EXECUTIVE CENTRAL RESEARCH UNIT

General Research Findings No. 7

Retained, Auxiliary and Volunteer Firefighters in the Scottish Fire Service

This document is also available in pdf format (64k)

Main Findings

• The study covered 30% of serving rural or retained firefighters, and 12% of those who had left within the last two years for reasons other than age retirement. Seventy-three percent of respondents reported being retained firefighters, 12% were volunteer firefighters and 14% were auxiliary.
• The main reasons quoted for joining the rural and retained Fire Service, were 'helping the community' and 'doing something worthwhile'. About 75% of questionnaire responses highlighted these factors.
• Overwhelmingly, those responding to the survey were extremely positive about their experience of serving in the Scottish Fire Service, and the main sources of satisfaction for rural and retained firefighters stem from their feeling of helping the community, the excitement of the work, the training they receive, and the camaraderie of working in a close-knit team.
• The concerns of rural and retained firefighters are focused around the extent to which their Brigades and other types of firefighter appreciate their commitment and contribution to the Service. Auxiliary and volunteer firefighters tend to compare themselves to retained firefighters, while retained firefighters, in turn, draw comparisons with those in the wholetime service.
• Only a third (34%) of those who had recently left the service had done so for reasons related to negative experiences of the service.

Introduction

Rural and Retained firefighters are essential to the Scottish Fire Service, and the catalyst for this research was the concern of HM Chief Inspector of Fire Services over their role and responsibilities, and how this impacts on their recruitment and retention. The study was therefore commissioned by HM Inspectorate of Fire Services in Scotland at the beginning of 2001 and was undertaken by Lambda Research and Consultancy Ltd.

The aims of the study were to examine the characteristics, roles and aspirations of rural and retained firefighters with specific reference to their recruitment, retention, management and development.

Although the report refers to rural and retained firefighters, this title encompasses all three categories of non-wholetime firefighter: retained, auxiliary and volunteer.

• Retained firefighters are paid an annual retainer fee, for which they provide agreed on-call hours each day or week over the year. They are also paid for turning out in response to calls, for attending incidents and for attending training.
• Volunteer firefighters are not paid a retaining fee and do not contract hours of on-call cover, although they are available to respond to calls in many ways similar to retained firefighters. Volunteer units tend to be in very rural areas and are generally supported, when they are called out, by the nearest retained or wholetime unit.
• Auxiliary firefighters are a relatively new category, introduced in Highlands and Islands Fire Brigade. Auxiliary firefighters are volunteers, who receive some payments, but their level of equipment and training is similar to that of retained units. (Not all the auxiliary firefighters in the survey were from the Highlands and Islands.)

Methodology

This research consisted of four main strands: two surveys and two groups of interviews/discussions. A census approach was taken to the survey of current rural and retained firefighters and to the survey of those who had left the service within the last two years (not through age-related retirement). Questionnaires were sent out in February 2001 - 3812 to current firefighters and 390 to ex-firefighters - and the response rates were 30% and 12% respectively.

Following the surveys, face-to-face interviews and group discussions were held with 89 firefighters in 13 stations. The firefighters were drawn from those who had indicated willingness to participate further in the study and were selected on the basis of location - to ensure different types of area were represented and to cluster the sample so that each location had at least four participants. Seven group discussions were held in stations where interviews had also taken place, and these covered auxiliary and retained stations.

The fourth strand of research activity was a series of interviews with senior fire officers. The interviews covered all eight brigades in Scotland and included 2 Firemasters; 8 Divisional Commanders or equivalent; and 6 District Officers, Assistant Divisional Officers or equivalent.

Research Findings

Joining the Service

The median length of service of respondents was around 10 years, slightly more for retained firefighters and slightly less for auxiliary and volunteer. This means that many of the responses concerning recruitment procedures may have been outdated. However, a few significant themes did emerge.

Responses highlighted that many new recruits were surprised by the type of testing involved in the selection process, and by the content of the interview. This was reported to have caused stress for applicants, which may have been reduced if they had been fully informed about what to expect.

There was strong support from the firefighters participating in the survey, for probationary periods for new recruits - either formally or informally.

Experience of being in the Service

Rural and retained firefighters reported a high degree of satisfaction with their role and that most of their expectations on joining the service had been met. The overall picture was of a committed and dedicated workforce, who found being firefighters extremely fulfilling.

Around 90% of respondents had expected community involvement and to do something worthwhile, and of these, 85% and 94% respectively felt that these expectations had been met. The majority of firefighters also expected 'excitement' (69%) and to gain new skills (84%) and of those respondents, again the vast majority (83% and 84%) felt that these had been part of the experience.

The specific concerns raised by firefighters indicate a broad theme of desire for recognition of their commitment and contribution to the service, both by brigades and by other types of firefighters. Some of the main points raised were: the need for appropriate equipment and accompanying training; concern over the inaction of brigades in encouraging employers to release firefighters for duty; the lack of brigade contribution to or recognition of retirement, social events and family support; and the desire for greater involvement in brigade decision-making with the potential for promotion.

Training

The average time spent training each week was 2 hours, although not all firefighters received this much, and some volunteer firefighters reported receiving around 2 hours training per month. In some units, the training time allocation has been increased to 3 hours per week recently.

There was concern with the tendency for training time to be eroded by administrative and maintenance tasks. These tasks can take up to a quarter of allocated training time.

Firefighters in some units reported irrelevant training. However, the current introduction of training based on risk assessments at particular stations, should alleviate this problem.

There were three main ways in which training tended to be provided. These were using centrally based trainers, using district officers or having more local (unit-based) training.

Management perspective

A volunteer service, like the rural and retained firefighters, requires a particular kind of management style, at both brigade and unit level, and this was not always in evidence.

Regular brigade visits to rural and retained stations were appreciated by rural and retained units as an acknowledgement of their value to the Scottish Fire Service.

Issues for Further Consideration

Management

• Brigades could consider the provision of training specifically related to management of a volunteer resource and could also be aware of the differences between different types of rural and retained firefighters.
• Mechanisms to enable rural and retained firefighters to contribute to brigade decision-making could be developed. An option for consideration would be a rural and retained advisory group in each brigade.
• The development of promotion routes for retained Sub Officers and Station Officers could be examined.
• Brigade-wide Intranet systems may be of value to rural and retained firefighters to provide reference materials with ease and efficiency, to reduce paperwork, and to make the rural and retained stations feel more a part of the brigade to which they belong.
• The research also highlighted the continuing need to review attitudes to women firefighters within the service.

Recruitment

• It may be beneficial to allow potential candidates to meet the staff at the unit they wish to join (on training evenings for example) and to have a short probationary period at the beginning of their appointment.
• Further involvement of units in the selection process would be welcomed, both in the form of accepting feedback from existing teams, and by allowing officers in-charge of fire stations to participate in interviews. Whatever the role of units in selection of new team members, this could be officially recorded, to prevent misunderstandings.
• The encouragement of partial and cross retention, as well as allowing wholetime firefighters to serve as rural and retained when off duty, may help increase numbers of new recruits. It may also help extend the availability of existing firefighters
• The issue of the entrance standards for men and women could be considered thoroughly.
• For all applicants, more information about what to expect from the selection process would be welcome, and could reduce unnecessary anxiety.
• Attention could be given to targeted advertising for new applicants. This could emphasise the breadth of skill, rather than physical strength, required by the Fire Service. Delays in the recruitment process could also be reduced.

Pay and Conditions

• The anomalies in financial remuneration to different types of rural and retained firefighter could be addressed, and the issues surrounding pension schemes need to be resolved.

Employers and employment

• Brigades could take a pro-active approach to encouraging local employers to release firefighters for duty. This could include provision of an information pack, contacting employers to thank them for their contribution, publicly recognising their contribution, or even offering financial compensation of some kind.
• At present, brigades as employers are not setting a good example in this respect. Both brigades and Local Authorities could encourage their own staff to serve as rural and retained firefighters.
• Brigades could provide support to firefighters experiencing problems with their employers by offering to contact employers directly.

Family

• Brigade recognition of the support given by the families of rural and retained firefighters would be welcomed through, for example, contributing to a social event or encouraging participation in open days.
• The establishment of 'friends of the fire station' groups may encourage greater involvement of families of rural and retained firefighters. This may also be beneficial to the Fire Service by raising the community profile of stations and by helping with fund-raising.

Training and skills

• Joint training between neighbouring units and between units of different types would be advantageous in preparation for actual fire fighting and to reduce prejudice between groups.
• The role and frequency of attendance of training officers could be made clear and the performance of training officers could also be monitored.
• Units could be encouraged to develop training scenarios based on local buildings, where facilities are otherwise limited.
• The establishment of brigade-wide Intranet systems (as mentioned above) may be a way to make optimum use of information and communication technology. There would also be advantages to extending the use of computers with CD-ROMS/DVDs to provide audio-visual training support, rather than only using them for administrative purposes.
• There may also be a need for training directed towards Leading Firefighters, Sub Officers and Station Officers in the particular skills needed for developing and managing an effective volunteer team.