Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service Holds Second On-Call Firefighter Conference

On Sunday, April 6^th, Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service (MAWWFRS) held its second On-Call Firefighter Conference, at the Members Pavilion on the Royal Welsh Agricultural Society’s Showground in Builth Wells.

The aim of the conference was to highlight the work being done within MAWWFRS and further afield to improve the On-Call Duty System, as well as to provide updates on Service initiatives, such as the Community Risk Management Plan, and to discuss recommendations and concerns on improving the recruitment and retention of On-Call Firefighters within MAWWFRS.

Speakers included several members of MAWWFRS personnel, including Chief Fire Officer Roger Thomas KFSM, Assistant Chief Fire Officer Craig Flannery who also compered the event, Group Manager Richard Felton and Group Manager Phil Morris, as well as external speakers including Dr Steve Sadler from Re-enkindle and Claire McMinn from the Fire Fighters Charity.

Later in the day, there was the opportunity to for the Service’s On-Call Firefighters to learn more about the specialist equipment and appliances that MAWWFRS has within its fleet, as well as a question-and-answer session with the conference’s speakers.

The improvements to On-Call Firefighter recruitment and retention that have been identified and implemented within MAWWFRS over the past few years have so far achieved a 2.3% increase in availability across the Service.