Derbyshire Fire & Rescue Service

Diverse Employers’ Guide

It is through improving and developing the services offered to the communities of Derbyshire and a commitment to the achievement of excellence that the organisation seeks to fulfil its vision
‘to make Derbyshire a safer place to live, work and visit’.

Derbyshire Fire and Rescue have fully embraced the National Fire Service core values
  • Service to the Community
  • Diversity in the Service and Community
  • Our people
  • Improvement at all levels of the Service
These core values underpin the strategic aims of the organisation

Community Risk – work together to minimise risk and maximise safety through intervention, prevention and protection.
Our People – Strive to improve through highly skilled, diverse and motivated people.
Communication – Engage with, and listen to our people and our communities.
Effective leadership – provide effective leadership to enable our people to develop safer communities.
Teamwork – Striving to create a safer Derbyshire though internal teamwork and external partnerships.

Community engagement has been a key focus for the Service in terms of promoting community fire safety and also seeking to profile the organisation as an employer of choice to more readily reflect the diverse community it serves.

Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service continues to work in partnership with other Fire & Rescue Services within the Region in relation to recruitment and selection, employment policy development and equality and diversity issues.

Employment

Through the work undertaken by Community Fire Safety workers and also the attendance at recruitment events throughout the County and positive action initiatives the Service has increased awareness of its job opportunities within the black and minority ethnic communities.

Awareness Days for under represented groups are held prior to recruitment for operational vacancies and participants are taken through the principles of the new National Fire Service Entry and Selection Tests.

The Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service aims to become the employer of choice for people with a disability and have therefore developed employment policies to support persons with a disability, within the workplace, encouraging recruitment and retention..

Derbyshire Fire & Rescue Service was the first Fire and Rescue Service in the country to pilot the new National Fire Service Entrance Selection Tests, the East Midlands region being the first to lead on regional recruitment. The new tests are equality and diversity compliant and therefore there has been an improvement in the number of successful black and minority ethnic applicants.

We have now implemented a new Assessment and Development Centre (ADC), which is designed to identify the potential of individuals with a view to progression through the service, this is supported both nationally and locally by colleagues within the service.

Over the next five years the intention is to become an ‘Excellent’ Fire and Rescue Service, making a significant contribution to improving the quality of life across the diverse range of communities.

Email: [email protected]

Website: http://www.derbys-fire.gov.uk

[gs_logo]