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Part-Time Firefighters

CHAPTER THREE: DEFINING THE ROLE OF A PART-TIME FIREFIGHTER

This chapter examines the role of part-time firefighters operating within the Fire Service and identifies various drivers of change that have impacted, or have a capacity to impact, upon the role of a part-time firefighter.

The Local Community

3.1 The Fire Service of today operates under a much stronger fire prevention ethos, with a shift from heavy involvement in firefighting towards fire prevention, through education and enforcement activities. As one element of this changing emphasis, respondents noted a need in the first instance to reassess the role played by part-time firefighters. Rather than focusing on the historic roles and responsibilities related to firefighting, stakeholders commented on the need to examine the role to be played by firefighters within the context of the local community. By focusing on the local community, part-time firefighters can ensure that the service provided meets with the needs of the community in which they serve.

"We've just got to get people out of the thought process whereby, when they join the Fire Service, they've joined to put fires out. That's not what we're here for. There are some brigades going down an approach at the moment where, when we put fires out, that's actually seen as a failure because our community safety messages have actually not worked. And the retained, at this moment in time have not got a wide community safety involvement within their communities, and I think that's criminal … because they are there to provide safe resources for that particular community. Who better to deliver that message?"

(Stakeholder)

3.2 This sentiment was echoed by senior personnel involved in the Fire Service and, to a lesser extent, firefighters themselves. While firefighters acknowledged the importance of the community in their decision to join the Fire Service, most did not see themselves as wanting to play a more strategic role in development of community planning. All respondents also commented that community needs can change enormously across Scotland depending on a number of factors such as geography, location, prevalence of specific types of incident and so on.

3.3 Some firefighters - primarily retained - claimed to have joined the service specifically because of a desire to be involved in firefighting, and had a degree of antipathy towards fire prevention as an alternative element of their job, although most agreed on the importance of fire prevention and the need to deliver messages related to fire safety. The key criteria for most volunteers for joining the Fire Service related to a desire to do "something for the community" rather than simply fight fires. However, a number of firefighters also commented that they already have an involvement in fire prevention, although this is generally on an informal level at present. Most part-time firefighters commented that they do not have enough time to take on a more formalised community safety role. Examples cited of the ways in which retained firefighters become involved in the local community were attendance at local school fairs or fire station open days where elements of fire prevention are covered and the general public can be provided with information as to how the Fire Service operates.

3.4 Almost all stakeholders and senior management cited the need for the Fire Service to play a role in development of the community planning process and in assessing the needs of the local community in relation to fire prevention. While firefighters perceived themselves as playing an important role within the community, most considered that a role in community planning would need to come from senior management within the Fire Service. However, there was general agreement that part-time firefighters are perceived to be in an ideal position to influence and support their local community because they are all recruited from within this community and will have an understanding of local issues.

3.5 This involvement in the local community is seen to be at the core of defining the role of a part-time firefighter by stakeholders and senior managers. It is only once the community needs have been assessed that the specific role(s) to then be adopted by part-time firefighters can be determined.

Meeting the Needs of the Community

3.6 Almost all stakeholders participating in the qualitative research referred to a need to conduct integrated risk management assessments for each local community in order to ensure that the service provided by part-time firefighters meets with the skills required from them by the local community. As the following quotation illustrates, there are many different types of incident with which a part-time firefighter may be required to deal, including an incident at a nuclear power station, a major road traffic accident, a fire on a farm and so on. Some respondents questioned the need for part-time firefighters to receive training for every type of incident on the basis that, for many, this training would never be utilised. The issue of training for part-time firefighters is particularly important, given their limited availability for initial and ongoing training and development. This issue will be discussed further in the following chapter on training provision for part-time firefighters.

" I agree that basically they should be of the same competence standard. However, what I would look at is local conditions and if I give as an example that a whole time firefighter in Glasgow may be trained to respond to Glasgow airport or Glasgow underground - you couldn't justify having a firefighter in the Highlands trained to the same standard because there's no possibility of them ever ending up there. But road accidents, they both have to be trained exactly the same because they both attend a road accident. So you do look at localised training and centre it on what their main risks are and some of the other stuff you can dispense with because they're never going to have to respond to that."

(Stakeholder)

3.7 Senior personnel within the Fire Service also emphasised the importance of conducting risk assessments in line with each local community in order to ensure that the cover provided meets with the needs of each community. In an ideal world, all firefighters would receive the same levels of training and be competent to deal with any type of incident that could occur. However, there was a pragmatic acceptance that budgetary restraints, lack of equipment and time available for training and development is limited and that, at present, it is not practicable for all firefighters to receive the same level of training. A focus on the types of incident most likely to occur in an area allows firefighters to develop the skills and experience they are most likely to need in carrying out their job.

"What you need to do is carry out risk management assessments to work out what is needed in your local area and focus on those in the first instance. We've done something like this in the past - a sort of competence training combined with risk assessment."

(Senior Personnel)

3.8 Firefighters themselves were less positive about conducting risk assessments in the first instance and placed an importance on being able to deal with any type of incident that may occur. An example quoted by some was the Lockerbie air disaster where, in theory, the brigades that were closest to the scene of the incident would not have had much airport training, given their distance from any major commercial airports. When the incident actually occurred, firefighters were pulled in from a large area. However, this was a very rare incident and the frequency with which this type of incident occurs needs to be taken into consideration when conducting risk assessments. In reality, it appears that the training provided to many part-time firefighters is selective in that most officers providing training - at least in the first instance - focus on the core skills that are most likely to be needed before providing wider coverage over a number of other types of incident. This issue will be further discussed in the later chapter on training.

3.9 With the increased emphasis on fire prevention, rather than firefighting, there were suggestions that a number of other roles in relation to fire prevention within the community should be adopted by part-time firefighters. These could include adoption of a community safety role, delivering talks to local schools; providing fire prevention advice to local businesses and so on. Again, these will be discussed further in the later chapter on interchangeability and flexibility.

Distinctions Between Firefighters

3.10 Another factor impacting on the role of the part-time firefighter today is the historic distinction between Retained, Auxiliary and Volunteer firefighters. The literature review carried out as the first element of this programme of research identified a number of key differentiators between the categories of firefighter - whole-time, retained, auxiliary and volunteer firefighters. Whole-time firefighters are full-time career firefighters operating largely from urban centres, while the remaining types of firefighter operate on a part-time basis, primarily within more rural areas. Whole-time firefighters enjoy benefits generally associated with full-time work such as pensions, paid leave, sick pay and so on, that are not enjoyed by part-time firefighters. Additionally, whole-time firefighters have an enhanced career structure and account for all of the senior Fire Service officers.

3.11 In assessing the role of part-time firefighters, it is important to examine the relationship between the different categories of part-time firefighter. and Ddiscussions with key stakeholders suggested that the distinctions between these categories have become blurred in recent years in many Scottish brigades. Some stakeholders have suggested that, wherever possible, there is a need for similar levels of training and development across each of these three categories (retained, auxiliary and volunteer). As shown in the following quotation, in some Scottish brigades, the role of each has started to change in recent years. For example, in some areas of Scotland, volunteer firefighters (who historically have been developed to a lesser extent than other part-time counterparts) are now being developed to the level of an auxiliary firefighter and are able to deal with a greater number of types of incident than in previous years. This will be discussed in greater detail in the following chapter on training and development needs.

" As the years have moved on, they've (part-time firefighters) become more integrated into the main fire fighting force if you like. A lot of that was brought about by Health & Safety legislation. They now are provided with the same equipment, the same protective gear and we are now trying to get their training up to the same high standards. Now the difficulty is their availability for very short periods of time and getting them to the same standard in such a short time is a little - currently our retained receive three hours training a week which clearly is quite a short period to get a lot of the technical information across to them …. There are distinctions between them in terms of service, conditions and suchlike but they are becoming less clear and more blurred if you like …. "

(Stakeholder)

3.12 Senior management and firefighters themselves also agreed that distinctions between different types of firefighter have become blurred in recent years. For example, one firefighter cited an example where volunteer firefighters have been upgraded to auxiliary; another firefighter thought that a number of auxiliaries in his brigade had been upgraded to retained. Additionally, there was also a degree of confusion even among firefighters themselves as to the precise differences between retained, auxiliary and volunteer firefighters. Some firefighters thought that the position of volunteer firefighter had already been erased from the Fire Service in Scotland.

"I don't think there are any more volunteer firefighters in Scotland - they are all retained or auxiliary these days."

(Retained Firefighter)

3.13 In line with these changes, some respondents spontaneously referred to the need for a merged and autonomous part-time firefighting service that does not distinguish between different categories of part-time firefighters. As one means of achieving a greater consistency across all part-time firefighters in terms of the service delivered, training received, equipment levels and so on, some respondents also identified a need for a change in terminology so that there is only one category of firefighter within the Fire Service - the only differentiator being that some firefighters would be full-time and others part-time.

3.14 During the course of the workshop sessions respondents were asked to give consideration to the name that could be applied to part-time firefighters as one element of effective integration. While a number of suggestions were made, the key ones emerging were

• Fire Officer
• Firefighter
• Community Firefighter

3.15 One suggestion emerging from the workshop sessions was that rather than have a distinction between whole-time and part-time firefighters, the distinction should be between 'firefighters' (whether they are whole-time or part-time) and 'community emergency response teams'. The key differentiator would be whether they could deal with all incidents such as structural fires fight fires in structures (buildings) or carry out a limited range of functions other than structural firefighting, such as moorland and forest firefighting without BA and, attend road accidents and promote community safety. This distinction is seen to have a number of advantages and these are as follows

• It would remove the need for all categories of Fire Service staff to have BA training and equipment. This is particularly important given that in extremely rural areas in Scotland, there is not sufficient funding available to introduce BA for all existing firefighters.
• All existing fire stations and their staff could be retained maintained for their local communities, although some would operate on a 'community emergency response' basis only.
• This fits with the concepts of modular training packages and risk management, both of which are discussed in other chapters of this report.
• Before effective integration can take place however, most of the respondents participating in this research acknowledged a number of barriers which need to be overcome in the first instance in order to bring about one category of part-time firefighter. The main barriers cited were :
• budgetary restrictions - there was a widespread acceptance that it will not be possible, at least in the short to medium term, to create only one category of part-time firefighter, developed to the same level of expertise, provided with the same equipment and so on. Respondents focused on the need to effectively utilise existing budgets in line with community needs. There were also concerns from many firefighters that if there were a move to upgrade existing stations - which would be a costly exercise, some small and little used stations would be closed, and most firefighters placed a priority on maintenance of some form of fire service in areas where this currently existed. There were acknowledgements across all categories of respondent that to close down fire stations would be an extremely bad PR move on the part of the Fire Service and would severely damage community relations be politically sensitive and would test community relationships. If community emergency response teams were introduced at rural fire stations, there would still be a capacity to contain incidents and handle tackle non-structural fires.
• equipment provision - most respondents acknowledged that it would not be possible in the first instance to provide the same levels of equipment to all part-time firefighters and that there would be a need to focus resources in areas where they can best be utilised, on the basis of local risk assessments. As such, there would be a need to retain some volunteer or auxiliary stations in areas where the number of call outs in any one year is very limited and where it would be relatively expensive to upgrade equipment. Again, there was a pragmatic acceptance on the part of respondents that it will not be possible to provide all part-time firefighters with the same level of equipment in the first instance. Once again, firefighters placed an emphasis on ensuring a continuation of coverage to communities in the areas from which they currently operate.
• cultural and attitudinal differences - a number of stakeholders commented that the traditional differences between whole-time and part-time have led to a perception of a two tier Fire Service, with retained, auxiliary and volunteer firefighters being regarded by many working within the Fire Service as providing a second class service. This view was borne out by senior personnel and volunteer firefighters, although most retained firefighters perceived themselves as offering the same level of service as their whole-time counterparts. There are also some suggestions that junior officers within the Fire Service (whole-time and retained) are most guilty of perpetuating the view that part-time firefighters offer a second class service and this is covered in a later chapter of this report.

Respondents attending the workshop sessions also felt that there has been a great deal of inertia within the Fire Service but that things are slowly beginning to change, and that this is particularly the case with cultural and attitudinal differences. There was a view that cultural barriers can be broken by :

• changes to language (no differentiation between whole-time and part-time) and job titles
• introduction of IPDS (which allows for will see more fragmentation in terms of training and jobsroles)
• joint training exercises
• offering the same training modules and development opportunities to all firefighters (dependent on skills and abilities, rather than time served)
• offering the same basic levels of equipment to all firefighters

Allied to cultural issues, differences in training, equipment levels, career structures and so on have served to reinforce the view that part-time firefighters provide a secondary service. Similarly, there were comments that more senior part-time firefighters generally achieve their level of seniority through length of service rather than personal capabilities. This was viewed as unsustainable and this can cause resentment among whole-time firefighters who have had to take examinations in order to achieve promotion. Cultural and attitudinal differences are currently seen to be perpetuated by the attitude of many individuals, across brigades and roles, within the Fire Service. Again, things are perceived to be slowly changing. Training needs to be relevant to the individual and to their intended role and the local community that they serve. Additionally, recognition of the skills and abilities people bring in to the service is important. There is a perception that there is no need to start everyone off at the same point. Previous experience, relevant toof use to the Fire Service, should be taken into account.

"Some of the volunteer and auxiliary firefighters don't feel as valued as the retained, who then don't feel as valued as the whole-time firefighters, despite the fact that they're all doing their best to provide the same service."

(Stakeholder)

"The whole-time work in a completely different culture ….they don't tend to work too well with retained sometimes, alongside each other, at a station level. Now that's not the same on a fire ground where everyone mucks in …. But certainly, there is some antipathy at station management level when you have the two groups together. The whole-time tend to look down on the retained."

(Stakeholder)

"As whole-time firefighters we are offering, if you like, fully comprehensive insurance cover. The retained working from here are the equivalent of third party and don't offer such a good service. They can't do at present because they don't get the same level of initial training we have, nor do they spend the time we spend on training each week. Also, we have to sit exams to prove we can do a job properly, they don't have to."

(Whole-time firefighter)

• the attitudes of all individuals employed by the Fire Service - there was an acknowledgement at the workshop sessions that attitudes are generally cascaded from the top of an organisation downwards and that there is an allied need to ensure that all senior management are promoting cultural and attitudinal similarities, rather than differences.

• the hours available for training of part-time firefighters - on the basis of current training and development provision, part-time firefighters have far less availability to attend initial 12-16 week training courses and maintain the same level of ongoing training and development as that enjoyed by whole-time firefighters.
• training provision, personal development and channels for delivery - there is a need to consider alternative means by which training can be delivered to part-time firefighters.
• differences across Scottish fire brigades - this fits with the need to assess the needs of the local community in relation to fire prevention.

3.17 Bearing these issues in mind, two key reasons are cited as to why there needs to be a change in attitude towards part-time firefighters. First, there is a perception that in an ideal world, both whole-time and part-time firefighters should be offering the same service to the communities in which they serve.

"I think it's necessary to provide an equal service, and to provide a consistently high standard of service. Obviously there are major implications there on the training and the time, and therefore the cost - because if people are going to be attending for extra training to make sure that they're at the same level as their whole-time counterparts, they're going to require to be paid for it."

(Stakeholder)

"There shouldn't really be any differences between different types of firefighter, other than some will be full-time and others only part-time."

(Senior Personnel)

3.18 Second, a number of communities are reliant on retained fire stations and these communities need to be assured that the service provided is not compromised by differences between whole-time and part-time firefighters. Usage of the term "part-time firefighters" or "community firefighters" - rather than retained - is perceived to be one way in which cultural and attitudinal differences changes can be reduced. This implies that the service provided is of the same standard across both types of firefighter but that one operates on a full time basis and the other on a part-time basis. Additionally, most respondents commented that the general public, in the main, are unlikely to be aware of differences between firefighters and have a perception that the service provided will be exactly the same, regardless of the status of firefighters responding to an incident. Other suggestions emerging from the workshop sessions for a title that could be applied to part-time firefighters included "Fire Officer" or "Firefighter". However, some respondents were against a name change other than simply dropping "part-time" from the title. One or two comments were also made that if the job title is to change, this will need to take into account the role now played in community safety. This will be commented on further in subsequent chapters.

3.19 Allied to these last two points, there are also fundamental differences between whole-time and part-time firefighters in terms of remuneration and benefits. The current pay system offers a perverse incentive to part-time firefighters in that they are paid to attend incidents and thus there may be some resistance to increased fire prevention such as adopting a community safety role. Part-time firefighters currently do not have access to pensions and other benefits that are offered to whole-time firefighters.

3.20 Given the constraints within which the Fire Service in Scotland operates, we would recommend operation of a two tiered part-time firefighting service. All auxiliary firefighters could be upgraded to retained, and volunteer stations could be allowed to remain, at least in the short term, in more rural and sparsely populated areas. However, as a minimum, all volunteer stations should be equipped with some basic form of appliance and these firefighters should not have to rely on their own transport to respond to an incident. As the following verbatim illustrates, there is a capacity, based on a risk management approach to maintain volunteer stations in rural, densely populated areas.

"Well the retained, I think, there is a certain level of training that they have to do. With a volunteer firefighter the training levels are less and the expectations are less as well, you know the competencies don't have to be as great and they tend to be in more rural areas where the chances of them being called out are very, very small and they only get called out for certain types of incidents. It is a kind of risk based approach but you can afford to have a look at the risks in that area. Whereas in the area that we serve, they can really deal with all types of incidents as the whole-time crews experience.

(Senior Personnel)

Management Within the Fire Service

3.21 Overall, there was a view that management within the Fire Service needs to be more strategic in its approach to the service offered to the community. The current structure is historical and based on what has evolved over time, rather than being based on the needs of the community. As such, there is a need to assess community risks/needs, to define the roles to meet these needs and then develop staff competency for these roles.

3.22 Allied to this, there needs to be a strategic review of fire station locations and the services each should offer. For example, it might be cheaper and more effective to fit domestic sprinklers in every property on a remote island rather than to maintain a fire station. However, existing firefighters on a remote island could still be employed on a fire prevention basis. This would offer basic fire prevention for a community while negating the need to support a fully equipped fire station. Community response teams could also cascade basic training within the community, for example to estate workers in order to increase the pool of labour to draw on for a big incident like a heath fire. One final suggestion was that alliances could also be set up with other organisations such as mountain rescue or the ambulance service, although careful attention would need to be paid to the legislative boundaries of the Fire Service.

3.23 This last point fits with suggested changes emerging from the workshop sessions in relation to funding for the Fire Service. At the moment, funding is only for operational activity and there was a perception that this needs to change in order for funding and pay to recognise the community safety role that should be adopted by firefighters. This point is covered further in the chapter on interchangeability and flexibility.

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