Recruitment

Submitted by MarkF on Sun, 04/06/2006 - 4:10pm.

Hutt Valley Fire Police are always on the hunt for suitable volunteers. The following will hopefully give you an insight into what opportunities there are within the Hutt Valley Fire Police Unit.

Pre-Recruitment Checks

Recruits are required to pass a Police Check and should be physically able. The fitness requirements of Fire Police are not as strenuous as that of a Firefighter, but you need to be able to move around an incident without difficulty and be able to carry a load appropriate to your body weight, etc. (Hoses, Road Cones, Generators, etc.) Fire Police do not wear Breathing Apparatus so the same level of Medical Certification is not required.

It should be noted that a full Class 1 (Car) Drivers License is a minimum prerequisite, and HVFP prefers applicants to be at least 20 years of age. You should also have your own vehicle.

Starting Out

Once appropriate checks have been carried out the candidate will be made a Probationary member for a period of 3 to 6 months. They will be issued with Uniform and Equipment to allow them to respond to working jobs, where they will report to, and work under the supervision of, the senior member present. The unit will attempt to ensure that the probationary member is exposed to as many facets of our operation as possible. At some stage during the members initial period of membership, they will also be sworn in as a Constable by a Justice of the Peace. This is the act that provides the members powers as a Constable in law, as defined in Section 33 of the Fire Service Act 1975.

Recruit Training

A new recruit will initially be briefed on how the unit operates with respect to protocols, turnouts and other basic matters. They will then join-in with our ongoing training regime, with appropriate guidance during the initial stages. HVFP Members are trained with a focus on their Operational Areas, with as much on-the-job exposure as possible. This is an ongoing process, even our existing members are required to continually maintain operational competence through our training programme, as well as responding to callouts.

In the initial stages, Trainee members are not assigned to a crew roster and instead respond to all callouts they are available to attend. This is in order to maximise their initial exposure to Fire Police operations. After an initial period of training and response, and once a base level familiarity in our procedures is gained, the trainee is attatched to one of the duty crews and will respond with them for all future calls as appropriate. On the fireground they continue to report directly to the senior member present and will generally be supervised by a full member at all times whilst at the scene of an incident.

Attaining Full Membership

After the 3 to 6 month period, assuming there have been no problems and that the candidates skills are up to standard, they will be subjected to a vote for full membership. A full member has the ability to work autonomously at an incident as required by the OIC of the Fire Brigade in attendance.

From all walks of life....

Amongst our membership we have a variety of employed people, including:

Security Guards
Retail Staff
Computing Professionals
Military Personnel
Drivers
Administration Staff

Each of our members shares a committment to our community and for the role which we fullfill within the Fire Service. Being a member of the Fire Police provides a unique way for us to give something back, and we're proud of who we are and what we do.