Firefighters statistics and recruitment (FOI)

Request

The term ‘firefighter’ in all the questions below refer to those in the role of firefighter and all operational uniform staff roles (e.g., Crew Manager, Watch Manager).

The term also refers to both wholetime and on call staff. 

The questions also extend to Service Control when applicable. 

A

What is the total establishment of firefighters in your F&RS? 

B

What percentage of your firefighters are men? 

C

What percentage of your firefighters are women? 

D

What percentage of your firefighters are White men? 

E

What percentage of your firefighters are White women? 

F

What percentage of your firefighters are Black men? 

G

What percentage of your firefighters are Black women? 

H

What percentage of your firefighters are Asian men? 

I

What percentage of your firefighters are Asian women? 

J

What percentage of your firefighters are Mixed men? 

K

What percentage of your firefighters are Mixed women? 

L

How many firefighters are you aiming to recruit in your F&RS in the next 3 years (2022, 2023, 2024)?

M

Please provide any details of positive action initiatives your F&RS may currently have in place. 

N

Has your F&RS made any commitment to recruiting certain numbers from ethnic minority communities in the next 3 years (2022, 2023, 2024)? 

Recruitment and Promotion 

O

What firefighter recruitment processes have the F&RS scheduled for 2022? Please provide dates if applicable. 

P

What staff recruitment processes have the F&RS scheduled for 2022? Please provide dates if applicable. 

Q

What firefighter promotion processes are scheduled for 2022 (of all ranks)? Please provide dates if applicable. 

R

How many new firefighter recruits is your F&RS aiming to recruit in 2022? 

S

How many individuals are the F&RS expecting to apply to each promotion scheme in 2022? 

Response

As at 31st January 2022 the total funded establishment of firefighters is 107.

B

As at 31st January 2022 98% of firefighters are male.

C

As at 31st January 2022 2% of firefighters are female.

D to K

It is not possible to provide this breakdown as the organisation does not hold complete information on these areas above for employees. 

It has been estimated that the cost of extracting the data would exceed the cost limit provisions set out in the Freedom of Information (Costs) (Jersey) Regulations 2014. Article 16 (A scheduled public authority may refuse to supply information if cost excessive) of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 has been applied.

L

The F&RS is planning recruitment for nine firefighters before the end of 2022 to fill current and known upcoming vacancies. Recruitment levels for firefighters in 2023 and 2024 is not yet known.

M

No record is held of enduring or diarised positive action initiatives.  Article 10 (Obligation of scheduled public authority to confirm or deny holding information) of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law has been applied. The last dedicated positive action initiative was in March 2020.

N

No.

O

The F&RS is finalising a recruitment round begun in 2021 following the standard recruitment process and expect to begin a recruitment campaign in 2022.

P 

No processes beyond the standard recruitment process are scheduled for 2022. If and when vacancies arise there is an “always on” section on www.gov.je.

Firefighter recruitment (gov.je)

Q

There are no scheduled promotion processes for delivery in 2022.  There is a possibility that the process to promote some on-call (retained) firefighters to the rank of Crew Commander may commence in 2022.  This comprises an initial assessment of operational command competence and training (Fit to Command course – 1 week).  Additional stages are likely to be in 2023.

R

Nine new firefighters are planned for recruitment before the end of 2022.

S

Information is not held on how many applications are expected to be received in a given period. Article 3 (Meaning of “information held by a public authority”) of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 has been applied.

Articles applied

Article 3 - Meaning of "information held by a public authority"

For the purposes of this Law, information is held by a public authority if –

(a)     it is held by the authority, otherwise than on behalf of another person; or

(b)     it is held by another person on behalf of the authority.

Article 10 - Obligation of scheduled public authority to confirm or deny holding information

(1) Subject to paragraph (2), if –

(a) a person makes a request for information to a scheduled public authority; and

(b) the authority does not hold the information, it must inform the applicant accordingly.

(2) If a person makes a request for information to a scheduled public authority and –

(a) the information is absolutely exempt information or qualified exempt information; or

(b) if the authority does not hold the information, the information would be absolutely exempt information or qualified exempt information if it had held it,

the authority may refuse to inform the applicant whether or not it holds the information if it is satisfied that, in all the circumstances of the case, it is in the public interest to do so.

(3) If a scheduled public authority so refuses –

(a) it shall be taken for the purpose of this Law to have refused to supply the information requested on the ground that it is absolutely exempt information; and

(b) it need not inform the applicant of the specific ground upon which it is refusing the request or, if the authority does not hold the information, the specific ground upon which it would have refused the request had it held the information.

Article 16 - A scheduled public authority may refuse to supply information if cost excessive

A scheduled public authority that has been requested to supply information may refuse to supply the information if it estimates that the cost of doing so would exceed an amount determined in the manner prescribed by Regulations.