Well where do I begin!

Post by Apprentice CSA: Caitlin Alcock

I recently had the opportunity to complete a job swap as part of our involvement with the Brathay challenge. I was extremely excited and nervous for mine due to sending the request directly myself to someone so important in our organisation. It showed our apprentices great support, as well as myself having an excellent day as I was given a fantastic opportunity where I spent a full day with the Chief Fire Officer for Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service, Steve McGuirk. He was due to be on a borough visit in Oldham and kindly invited me along.

We started off at Chadderton Fire Station where we had a very warm welcome off a number of people in the station. We sat and talked as Mr McGuirk introduced me to various Team Leaders and other members of staff. Borough Commander Kev Talbot was good enough to give me a guided tour of the area whilst driving round his borough for the day. While I was there, Kev and the rest of the team at Chadderton station made me feel at home and I really enjoyed the experience. Based on my initial introductions and how welcome I was made to feel, this is clearly somewhere I would want to visit again.

During the morning we went from meeting to meeting where I gained a lot of knowledge of how the fire service works and how much planning goes into to the front line action. My little head was exploding with facts. We had discussions about the work that was going on within the community and how the fire service could become a pivotal part of a wider community.

After an extraordinary Chinese cuisine buffet we then journeyed to the front lines to meet the firefighters. This gave them the opportunity to ask any questions they had around the upcoming changes to the service. There were a lot of questions asked due to the major changes in the organisation brought about by budget cuts. I really enjoyed meeting up with the crews and could see how eager they were to find out what direction the service would be heading.

What a fantastic day it was and I can’t believe how much I learned. To be allowed the chance to work with the chief was brilliant, but don’t worry boss I won’t be replacing you just yet….

Thank you for the opportunity