The Fire Service College

London Road, Moreton-in-Marsh

Gloucestershire, GL56 0RH


Tel: +44 (0)1608 650 831

Operational Firefighter Apprenticeship - Level 3

The Operational Firefighter Level 3 Apprenticeship is a two-year programme directly linked to the Operational Firefighter Apprentice Standard technical knowledge, skills, and behaviours. It also includes the internationally recognised Firefighter Foundation Development Programme (FFDP) from the Fire Service College (FSC). It will be delivered by Capita Education & Learning and the FSC.

Who is it suitable for?

The programme is open to all fire and rescue services (FRSs) in England and to private sector organisations employing their own fire and rescue capability. Potential job roles include: whole time firefighter, on call firefighter and emergency rescue firefighter.

What this role involves

The broad purpose of the occupation is to deal with a wide range of emergency situations where problem solving and initiative are vital to resolve incidents quickly and calmly. An operational firefighter must adopt a sensitive approach to dealing with members of the public and casualties who may be distressed and confused. This may involve undertaking a wide range of emergency situations such as tackling fires, searching, rescuing and protecting people and animals.

Length of programme

What you can expect from this Level 3 apprenticeship

Key themes and qualifications

Length of programme

The apprenticeship runs for 24 months.

All of it must be completed in working hours with 20% of work time used to develop knowledge skills & behaviours.

The scheme starts with a two month (40 day) residential FFDP course at the FSC, equating to 13% of the requirement.

The remaining period of the apprenticeship takes place at the apprentice’s workplace.

Trainee firefighters with oxygen tanks
What you can expect from this Level 3 apprenticeship

The delivery methodology consists of four elements, all of which ensure your
apprentices gain a full understanding of the knowledge, skills and behavioural
components of the Standard. These are:

  • Delivery of professional qualifications
  • On-programme support
  • Personal development
  • End point assessment (EPA)
Harnessed firefighter up a ladder
Key themes and qualifications

Key themes

  • Breathing apparatus & fire behaviour theory
  • Community safety and legislation
  • Firefighting operations
  • Road traffic collision & trauma care
  • Hazardous materials & decontamination

Qualifications

At the end of the programme successful apprentices will:

  • be awarded a certificate from the Institute for Apprentices
  • gain a professional qualification for completing the FSC FFDP
  • be eligible for professional registration with the Institution of Fire Engineers (IFE) at Technician (TIFireE) Level
Firefighter trainees with fire hose
Trainee firefighters watching instructor
Why use the FSC?

Why use the Fire Service College operational firefighter programme

The skills and experience of the Fire Service College, combined with the experience and capability of one of the UK’s largest apprentice programme providers, offers all fire and rescue services in England, and private sector companies employing their own fire and rescue service, a cost-effective managed service that allows access to the apprentice levy to fund the training and developing of firefighters.

Being able to make use of the best training facilities in the country has been an amazing experience and I can happily say I’ve taken the opportunity with both hands and thrown everything at it. I’ve improved and learnt new and valuable life skills that will assist me with my career going forward.

Bradley Lawrence

Buckinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service

The costs

The scheme will cost £17,900 to deliver, including EPA costs. The maximum amount of levy that can be drawn down for each learner is £14,000, leaving a balance of £3,900 that FRS will be required to pay as a top-up fee. The top-up fee does not specifically represent a specific cost incurred in delivery of the scheme, but simply represents the funding gap between the levy amount and the cost to deliver the overall scheme.

Cost of the apprenticeship

£17,900

The scheme will cost £17,900 to deliver, including EPA costs.

Levy draw down

£14,000

The maximum amount of levy that can be drawn down for each learner is £14,000.

Balance you pay

£3,900

This is the small amount the contracting organisation then needs to pay.

Delegate Group Shot
Why use the FSC?

Benefits of the Capita - delivered apprenticeship scheme

  • Fire and rescue services can draw down from their apprenticeship levy to fund most of the training, resulting in a one-off cost of only £3,900 for training budgets for each learner, for the two-year duration of the scheme 
  • The programme has been developed by expert sector professionals and past apprentices ensuring a high-quality apprenticeship 
  • The scheme will be delivered with little or no additional burden to fire and rescue service management and training staff and in a manner that provides great value for money
  • It provides access to a curriculum specifically designed to meet the demanding requirements of the apprenticeship standards, but flexible enough for fire and rescue services to adapt to meet their own needs 
  • The apprentice will undergo a best practice residential Firefighter Foundation Development Programme course at the Fire Service College, with access to world-class training facilities and experienced, highly qualified instructors 
  • The apprentice will benefit from regular progression updates to identify any at-risk learners, with a development plan agreed to support them 
  • The flexible curriculum allows fire and rescue services to utilise their own internal learning pathway to blend into the apprenticeship programme 
  • The talent coach will support fire and rescue services to ensure that all mandatory requirements of the apprenticeship scheme are met in the most efficient manner 
  • Safeguarding will be at the heart of the programme with all instructors and mentors having completed a full range of safeguarding training, on-going safeguarding continuing professional development (CPD) and subject to electronic disclosure and barring service (eDBS) clearance Throughout the apprenticeship programme, the apprentice and their line manager will receive mentoring support from a talent coach who is an experienced and qualified firefighter, instructor, assessor and mentor 
  • Fire and rescue services will have access to a range of real time data reporting and will meet with the Capita operations manager and client partner on a monthly basis 
  • The delivery of the scheme will be monitored and quality assured by Capita. Quality assurance activity will include portfolio sampling activity, teaching and learning assessments and observations and interviews 
  • Learning will be supported and evidenced by the state-of-the-art learning management system, BUD, specifically designed to support the delivery of apprenticeship programmes. This allows the integration of social media, peer sharing, remote instructor intervention, anytime-anywhere access and many other features that provide an intuitive learning experience

Speak to Craig Lannie, UK FRS Sales Manager

Enter your details and Craig will be in touch to discuss how the FSC can support your organisation with fire fighter apprenticeships:

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