A South Yorkshire recruitment campaign aims to change perceptions of women in the fire service.
South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue’s ‘A Firefighter Is A Firefighter’ campaign includes a new hard-hitting video, which highlights the fact that all firefighters meet the same standards and do the same job regardless of their gender.
Campaign to inspire women
At the same time, the service will be publishing a fresh episode of its official podcast, Shout, featuring women from across the service.
The service hopes the campaign can inspire more women across South Yorkshire to consider a role in the fire service.
Employing a diverse range of people
We want to be an organization that boasts a wide range of skills and delivers a first-class service to the public"
Chief Fire Officer - Chris Kirby, said, “I sincerely hope that women across South Yorkshire will listen to our podcast, watch our video, and consider registering their interest in a career with us."
He adds, “It’s hugely important that our workforce represents the communities we serve. We want to be an organization that boasts a wide range of skills and delivers a first-class service to the public, and we can’t do that without employing a brilliant, diverse range of people.”
Cultural challenges
The culture of the fire and rescue service has been in the news recently, with allegations made about the conduct of a minority of staff at services across the UK.
Chris Kirby continues, “Having worked in the sector myself for over 20 years, it’s extremely disappointing to hear about the poor experiences some people have had working in the fire and rescue service. While I am confident that the vast majority of staff in South Yorkshire are committed to our values and behaviors, we accept and acknowledge that we are part of a sector that has work to do."
Raising awareness about inclusivity
We have already taken lots of steps internally, in the wake of the recent national findings"
“We have already taken lots of steps internally, in the wake of the recent national findings and news stories, and something that I am keen to do is stress to people across South Yorkshire that we are an inclusive and welcoming organisation to join,” said Chris Kirby.
The campaign has been launched to coincide with International Women’s Day.
Women fire exhibition
In 2022, South Yorkshire became the first UK fire and rescue service to produce and display a ‘Women of Fire’ exhibition displaying a range of portrait photographs in person at the Winter Gardens in Sheffield, and online via a dedicated website.
Meanwhile, the service has a rich history when it comes to supporting International Women’s Day with its ‘Firefighter Mums’ and ‘Anyone Can Be Anything’ videos inspiring hundreds of women to register an interest in firefighting careers.