About us

Covering the whole of Suffolk, we have a budget in the region of £20 million, where we employ around 675 people and have 35 Fire Stations.  In addition to attending fires and road traffic collisions we also prepare to respond to a wide variety of emergencies, including serious flooding and dealing with the aftermath of terrorism.  Another highly important area of work is Prevention which keeps homes safe; our practitioners and our network of volunteers visit elderly and vulnerable people in the county offering home fire safety advice. The Prevention department also understands the importance of educating and developing young people, whether this be via road traffic collision reduction packages, Emergency Services Cadets or our School Fire Liaison Officers. The Protection department carry out audits to ensure that commercial premises have the correct level of fire safety in place and enforce The Regulatory Reform Fire Safety Order.  As society is today, we are also continually exploring how we better collaborate with other emergency services and we frequently share premises, work and train alongside our emergency service colleagues. 

One of the most important factors of any successful organisation are the people who make all the above happen. You may be surprised to find that behind the flashing blue lights and the excellent work that both whole time and on call Firefighters do, day in and day out, we have teams of people who also play a vitally important role in making Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service, function effectively. We have our own workshops whose engineers ensure the wide range of vehicles are maintained and available. Our IT department works hard to ensure that all the communication and recording systems function and are developed.  Business Support staff play an equally important role in ensuring that Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service keeps the people in Suffolk safer, throughout the year. 

So, if you are thinking about our Emergency Service Cadet scheme or taking your first steps into employment you may now want to consider a rewarding career with Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service.   All current vacancies, apprenticeships and volunteering opportunities are listed here: https://www.suffolk.gov.uk/suffolk-fire-and-rescue-service/working-and-volunteering-for-fire-and-rescue/

Work with us

You can help and be a part of the Suffolk Fire and Rescue service in many ways, including:

Emergency Services Cadets

The scheme combines the skills and positive attitudes of the Fire and Police Services to support and develop young people in Suffolk. The scheme is currently operating in Haverhill, Lowestoft and Bury St Edmunds for up to 25 cadets, aged between 13 and 18, meeting for 2 hours a week.

This scheme:

• Gives young people the chance to be a part of a team.
• Encourages and promotes good citizenship.
• Inspires young people to make a positive contribution to the community.
• Promotes a greater understanding of the Emergency Services.
• Builds confidence and self-esteem in young people.
• Develops key skills in support of youth development.
• Encourages a healthy and active lifestyle.

Becoming an On-Call Firefighter

On-call firefighters are a vital part of Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service; working in small towns or villages from home or their place of work. On average, you could be called out 2 or 3 times a week for a couple of hours. It's not a problem if you aren't available all the time.

Who can apply?

• You must be 18 or older, and live or work within 5 minutes (or possibly up to 10 minutes) of a fire station.
• You'll need enthusiasm, willingness to work in a team environment and a desire to support your local community.
• We need you to get employer consent to be available when you're working.

What you'll receive

• £5,000 per year (approximately) for attending calls, any training undertaken and for maintenance work carried out on the fire engine and at the station.
• Retaining fee for the hours that you agree to provide cover for, and training to handle emergencies and help your community understand the importance of fire safety.

To find out more about becoming an on-call firefighter please visit our website.

Becoming a Wholetime Firefighter

A firefighter’s role can involve a range of challenging situations and, to help you decide whether this is the job is for you, we have prepared a pre-application checklist for you to complete.

Are you:

• trustworthy and reliable?
• able to understand and respect diversity and adopt a fair and ethical approach to others?
• open to change and actively seek to support it?
• an effective communicator (both verbally and in writing)?
• willing to work scheduled shifts including nights, weekends and public holidays?
• able to drive or, work towards a full driving licence?
• able to understand, retain, apply and adapt relevant information in an organised, safe and systematic way?
• able to work effectively with others, both within the fire and rescue service and the community?
• able to maintain an active awareness of the environment to promote safe and effective working?
• committed to work and able to develop yourself and others?
• able to adopt a conscientious and proactive approach to work to achieve excellent standards?
• able to maintain a confident and resilient attitude in highly challenging situations?

When you are appointed to the role of whole time firefighter, you will attend a specially-equipped training centre, you will be taught basic firefighting skills, ladder safety, hose laying and the use of breathing apparatus.

It takes about three months to complete the basic whole-time training course at a specially-equipped training centre.

Probation period: You'll be on probation for your first year and in development until you demonstrate to your manager that you have achieved the correct level of knowledge, skills and performance in your role as a firefighter.

To find out more about becoming a wholetime firefighter please visit our website.

Becoming a Community Fire Volunteer

We're looking for enthusiastic and caring people who want to make a difference to their community and improve lives through sharing fire safety advice.

What's involved?

After training, you'll have the opportunity to visit the elderly and vulnerable in their homes (always in pairs) and undertake a Safer Home Visit for them, fitting smoke alarms if required and offering fire safety advice.

Our volunteers also attend community events and fairs and give talks to community groups about fire safety or educate young people at Crucial Crew events..

To find out more about becoming a volunteer please visit our volunteer page.