Fire chief cuts own salary as recruitment drive starts

Jobs advertised for first time in five years

FIRE crews in the borough could get extra personnel thanks to the first recruitment drive in five years.

Leicestershire Fire and Rescue Service want to fill 25 positions thanks to a stunning turnaround in its financial fortunes.

Last year there fears of cut-backs redundancies but were and belt- tightening and natural ‘wastage’ has ensured savings have been found sooner than expected without the pain.

A recent Combined Fire Authority report revealed the reduction of an area manager post, review of directors’ pay, renegotiation of protective equipment contract and reductions in admin roles had all contributed.

Plans to slash the fire service, prompting threat of redundancies, has been achieved through natural departures and secondees staying with their alternative service.

Chief fire officer Steve Lunn has been praised for his role in the reversal, particularly his decision to cut his own salary from £148,220 to £126,260 and refuse a top-of-the-range Land Rover Discovery on a £6,180 a year lease as his company car, opting for a £3,150 a year mid-level Ford Kuga instead.

Reflecting the reduction in the top man’s pay the two assistant chief fire officers have also accepted lower salaries, from £113,000 to just over £100,000.

The post of deputy chief fire officer has been axed with a senior and middle management team now comprising 32 staff compared to 53 in 2010.

While the final recruitment won’t take place until the autumn the brigade is launching an ‘aspirational to inspirational’ campaign to reach out to under-represented groups in its ranks.

Women and black and ethnic minorities are particularly welcomed.

Stations across the county, including Hinckley, will be holding ‘have a go’ taster sessions to offer people an insight into what it takes to be a fire and rescue crew member.

Steve said: “This is a real opportunity for people looking for a new job or even a change in their career. We hope to be in a position by late September to welcome a new intake of 25 firefighters of the highest calibre, hopefully better representative of our diverse local communities.

“We hope people take up the opportunity to attend one of our ‘have a go’ taster days to get a better insight into what being a firefighter entails and to hopefully encourage them to take that step further to apply.”

The taster sessions are happening over the next few weeks and the formal application process for firefighter recruitment opens at 9am on Monday April 10 and close at 9am on Monday April 17.

For more information on the recruitment campaign or to take part in one of the taster days, visit www.leicestershire-fire. gov.uk/recruitment