Cheshire 2018

[Silvah098]

I am typing this up on my final shift in S&WM Fire Control and still feel like i'm doing this too early. But on my ninth interview I actually went and bloody passed it and got offered a job, well not initially but a week after everybody else. I had the same old unsuccessful email I have received many times, but, a week later I had a phone call asking me if I was still interested. To which I, of course, bit their hand off.

I am 23 now and started applying when I was 18. Starting with, funnily enough, Cheshire. I was unsuccessful with them 3 times.  2 times for West Mids (my local brigade and current employer.) As well as LFB, Humberside, West Yorkshire. 

I am on secondment in S&WM Fire Control from my retained role in Staffordshire and have been here for just over a year now. I had a particularly bad experience with interview for West Mids and decided to give applying for wholetime jobs a miss for a year and focus on my new job and also developing myself. And this was, honestly, the best decision I have made on this journey of trying to get this job. I had been using the same answers for the PQA questions for 4 years that I had been trying to improve on after every interview I had been a part of. However during this year off I took I decided I would put myself forward for anything and everything that I could possibly volunteer for (Hence why you will find my face on every video S&WM have released for the last year.)

So along comes my interview date and lo and behold its the same group commander who interviewed me last year. I remember this particular group commander because he absolutely grilled me last year especially on one particular question, which I had completely made my answer up to. I was actually pretty glad to see him. During the icebreaker I told him all about the year off I had had from applying. And how the grilling he had given me last year had made me want to come back with completely different and strong answers to their questions. I think this was the first time I had actually talked to my interviewers as people and definitely broke the ice and put me at ease. The interview went great. Most of the questions went well and I had really good pre-prepared answers that just fit the criteria they were asking for. There was a question about health and safety that I stumbled on but after enough babbling from myself and a bit of a conversation with the interviewers, who basically told me I was going way off track and to think about what I was saying and what the question was, I managed to get a reasonable answer out.

So onto the medical checks. Luckily I hadn't been consuming any illegal seeded bread. I was however worried about an ACL reconstruction I had in 2015 that I thought the doctors might want to talk about. But nope. breezed through it. I even asked the doctor on the day "Don't you want to look at my shoulder?" to which his reply was along the lines of "It's alright isn't it?"

I've got the time off from retained and I've had my kit and uniform fitting but I still don't think it's going to feel real until the 3rd of January when I start my recruits course.

[Luminoki]

Oh so thats you! 😂Congrats mate, two lads on my course were ex-cheshire and they spoke very highly of the service ( apart from the travelling ) enjoy the break before the january fun starts

[Silvah098]

That's me! Have I spoken to you on the phone before?

[Luminoki]

Probably to tell me who was being sent out where on a nightshift 😜

[Andy1]

Well done @Silvah098 nice read aswell about your journey and taking that year out. Good luck with your course. All the best mate 

[Lewis]

Congrats @Silvah098 Well done pal, good luck for the future!