Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service is looking for young people from the Swindon area to join its Fire Cadet programme.
The aim of Fire Cadets is to support the development of young people by providing a positive role model and giving them opportunities to participate in a wide range of activities.
The Service is keen to recruit young people between the ages of 12 and 18 to take part in this rewarding training scheme. As well as being fun and enjoyable, the scheme gives the cadets the chance to learn new personal and social skills, and obtain a Level 2 BTEC qualification, the National Fire Cadet Level 1 Award and an AQA Award.
The programme, linked to the National Fire Cadet model, is delivered by firefighters and Fire and Rescue Service staff, and will last for 38 weeks within the academic year of 2018/19. The next course starts on Monday 3 September.
Drills will take place on a Monday evening at Swindon Fire Station, Drove Road and will involve practical and theory elements along with community based social action projects.
The course is designed to be fun but it also challenges and develops the participants by getting them to:
- Work co-operatively within a team environment
- Gain self-esteem and self-confidence and improve communication skills
- Adopt a new set of personal values
- Understand the importance of safety issues and the consequences of anti-social behaviour
- See the advantages of improving their learning and performance
Watch Manager Mark Evans, who runs the Swindon scheme, said: “Those taking part benefit in a number of areas, including team building skills, gaining a portfolio of achievements and accreditation, increased fire safety awareness, development of practical skills and greater community awareness. This will be the second year that we’ve run the Cadets course in Swindon and we expect there to be a lot of interest, so there will be an application and interview process.”
Potential recruits are reminded that commitment to the programme is required and the expectation is for cadets to attend every drill night. Applicants should therefore bear this in mind if they are about to start an examination year (GCSEs or A levels).
To register an expression of interest in the scheme, please email Mark Evans at [email protected] as soon as possible.
