Wholetime Firefighter

As a Wholetime Firefighter, you will work full-time at one of our Fire Stations throughout Northern Ireland. It is a challenging, varied and highly rewarding career.

You will deal with a full range of incidents including fires, floods, road traffic collisions, chemical spills and specialist rescues. You will also be involved in community education and fire prevention activities.

Trainee Firefighter

You will complete an initial training programme which currently lasts up to 18 weeks before being posted to a Station for operational duty. (Please note this is subject to ongoing review) You will continue training on Station, and complete specialist courses at our Learning & Development Centre.

Firefighter

You will continue to develop and maintain the skills that you have acquired through regular training and competency opportunities. You will also complete a development programme to demonstrate your competence in the role.

Here’s what our people have to say

“I am currently on a Temporary Promotion as Flexi Station Commander in Cookstown District.  

I feel so privileged to have a job that I love doing. I have the opportunity to be in contact and work with such a variety of people. From the Wholetime and On-Call crews who roll out the doors on the Fire Appliances to the fantastic people who make up the support structure that keeps our service moving forward.  I admire the enthusiasm that everyone puts into ensuring challenges have a minimum impact to our front line emergency service. We really are one big team. 

The most rewarding thing about working in NIFRS is opportunity to learn and develop in both my working life and also my personal life. I was a Firefighter in Central, part of the Specialist Rescue Team, General Instructor in Learning & Development Centre and Temporary spell in the Research and Development. I have loved every role and I use each as a learning and development opportunity. I ‘buzz of’ the opportunity that I get to test and challenge myself every day. We are part of a great big Fire Service and I would recommend everyone join, try different roles and meet as many of the fantastic people who keep our service running 24/7 365 days per year.”

“Coming from a mountain biking and hill running background, I have always maintained a high standard of cardio fitness. So my focus prior to starting the trainee course was to build strength and muscular endurance.

The role of a Firefighter is physically demanding, so having a level of physical fitness and commitment to training is vital. By keeping a positive mind set and working towards my fitness goal, I was able to make the most out of my experience in the Learning & Development Centre and I enjoyed every aspect of the course.”

“I was previously a Firefighter in Antrim and Lurgan, now I am an Instructor in the Learning & Development Centre.

I chose this role because I have a genuine passion for motivating others to learn and develop. I have a background in coaching both soccer and Gaelic football and feel a lot of these skills have been easily transferable. I firmly believe we can get the best from our people if we support and encourage them in their journey, as well as pushing them to succeed when required.

There is no better feeling than a student, a trainee or experienced firefighter, expressing their gratitude for a particular approach I took to teaching. The Learning & Development Centre team has some incredibly passionate and supportive mentors at the minute. I would encourage others with a similar passion to consider becoming an instructor.”