Photo Shoot for The Manchester College

Myself and apprentice Tony Maunder was asked to attend the Whitworth Street Campus last week. We took part in a photo-shoot to promote the fantastic opportunity that the Manchester College provides for apprentices and the ‘Good’ Ofsted result that they received this year. 

Meeting Leader of the Labour Party - Ed Miliband

Written by Business Fire safety Advisor Apprentice Laura Broughton 

On Monday, two lucky apprentices and I got the rare opportunity to sit down with the leader of the Labour Party Ed Miliband, to discuss the future off apprenticeships. It was nice to see that apprentices are being supported by government parties to expand the availability and amount on offer over future years. In front of several TV cameras, Ed asked us how we became apprentices and what sector we worked in. We even got a two second clip on Sky News!

On Tuesday, five apprentices were invited by Ed himself to attend the labour conference at G-Mex. The apprentices enjoyed the day away from their usual agenda to find out more about the Labour Party and find out how politics can and will affect all of our futures.

Apprentice Lee Waddicar said “I found it interesting. It was the first time I had ever attended any kind of political conference and it was an opportunity I would not have been able to experience had I not been working for Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service.”

Senior Staff Supporting Working With Young People

Written by Apprentice Business Safety Advisor Laura Broughton

Lee Waddicor and I attended an Eccles Prince’s Trust presentation evening and had the chance to catch up with Geoff Harris, currently Head of Transformation at GMFRS.

It was lovely to see his interest in the young people within Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service and the support that he gives to the Prince’s Trust teams. It really showed the support offered by senior members of staff and the commitment to supporting work with children and young people in the communities they serve.

Mike Meets Man Saved by Blackely Firefighters

Apprentice Michel Dunn got the chance to meet a man who was saved by fire fighters from Blackely station.

The man had come in to the station to thank the crews for saving his life and the life of his dog after he had his escape route blocked by a fire that had started in the stairwell of his flat. The fire fighters showed the man round the station and gave him a quick tour before having a picture taken with him as a lasting memory for him to take away. Michael got the chance to see first-hand what our crews do and the people that they save.

He stated, “It was great to see someone given the opportunity to thank the firefighters for saving their life as well as being able to see how much the crew appreciated his efforts to come and thank them.”

Pathways into Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service

As the weeks have gone by you have met a number of our new apprentices here at Greater Manchester Fire and rescue service and it is a pleasure to be working alongside them. The pathways in to the fire service are something very close to each of us. To us it means the things we’ve done to get to where we are today.

Out of the twelve apprentices currently working in Community Fire Safety and Business Fire safety two, including myself have come from our cadet units, two have come from our volunteers program and eight from the Prince’s Trust team programmes.

Princes Trust 12 Week Development Programme

Princes Trust is a twelve week program for people aged 16 to 25 that are unemployed. It consists of careers advice, work placements, a week of team building activities and a series of community based projects. The program gives the individuals the opportunity to build confidence and make a positive turn in their lives. It also gives them the ability to develop their skills and their CV to seek employment. Throughout the twelve weeks, each member of the team works towards a number of recognised qualifications and personal goals.

For further details or if you want to get involved go to;

http://www.manchesterfire.gov.uk/community_work/princes_trust.aspx

Volunteering

The Greater Manchester Fire & Rescue Service volunteer scheme invites people from 16 and above to ‘give us a hand in the community’. With a variety of different events to be part of, such as the Manchester Day Parade or even becoming a cadet instructor, there’s always something to do.
If you would like to know more about volunteering with Greater Manchester Fire & Rescue Service go to; http://www.manchesterfire.gov.uk/working_for_us/become_a_volunteer.aspx

Fire Cadets

Greater Manchester Fire & Rescue Service’s Community Fire Cadet Scheme started around 19 years ago and since then has had hundreds of young people pass through the scheme. Over the two year course the cadets complete a nationally recognised BTEC Award in Fire and Rescue Services in the Community and have the opportunity to compete in hose running drills at national and international camp. Once they have completed the two year course they can become junior cadet instructors and then have the chance to gain employment with Greater Manchester Fire & Rescue Service.
To find out more about cadets look at; http://www.manchesterfire.gov.uk/community_work/fire_cadets.aspx

Traineeships

Traineeships are a new 12 week program that Greater Manchester Fire & Rescue Service along with other partners has put together. Although none of the apprentices have been on the brand new scheme, we can see the fantastic potential it has to get young people in Greater Manchester into work. The 12 week provides 6-8 weeks with an employer outside of GMFRS, Level 2 qualifications in Maths and/or English and employability skills. If you would like to know more about this fantastic opportunity’s with a traineeship go tohttp://www.manchesterfire.gov.uk/community_work/traineeships.aspx