Positive Action is how we support under-represented groups
We aspire to understand and meet the needs of everyone we serve. Female firefighters, people from ethnic minority backgrounds, and LGBTQ+ people are under-represented in our Service, and we know that you can help move us closer to better understanding the needs of our community.
Your voice should be just as loud as any other, so we can learn and develop through your background, experience, life skills and culture.
We’re mindful, however, that you may not have the same access to opportunities as others and therefore may not believe a career with us is achievable. You may not have even considered working for us at all.
We want you to know that everyone is welcome in our Service, and it is our moral and legal obligation to meet your needs by helping to reduce or remove anything getting in your way.
The aim of our positive action work is to remove the perceived barriers that are often created through myths and stereotypes, and to educate people on what it is really like to work for us.
From the very outset, we will encourage you to tell us about your individual needs so we can help make accommodations for you and get the very best out of you. Here’s some of our positive action in practice:
Attraction and recruitment to help you feel welcome
- Buddy Scheme and Buddy Me Days – when we’re recruiting wholetime firefighters, one of our firefighters from our under-represented groups can share their experience with you and offer you a station visit with some activities.
- We advertise on a number of bespoke websites to reach you, and through partners such as Women in the Fire Service (WFS) and the Asian Fire Service Association (AFSA).
- We share a quarterly newsletter with community leads – this is cascaded across our Service area and can be translated into any language.
- We are a disability confident employer and also offer a range of reasonable adjustments.
- Our crews attend a wide range of community events, such as Pride, to meet as many of you as possible.
- Our under-represented colleagues act as ambassadors for our Service, both in our media activities and when we engage with young people.
- Our managers, and anyone involved in recruitment, must undertake unconscious bias training to help mitigate discrimination.
Retention and promotion to support you in the workplace
- We have staff networks for our neuro-divergent, ethnic minority, LGBTQ+ and female staff. These networks offer you support and are important drivers for positive change in our Service.
- As members of WFS and AFSA, we have access to a range of practical support to help develop you.
- As a White Ribbon accredited organisation, our male ambassadors and female champions are committed to challenging poor attitudes to women.
- Our ‘Safe To’ programme helps to reach all our staff with support to help you feel safe to be who you are, speak up when you need to, challenge poor behaviour, and lead yourself and others.
- Our DWFRS Guardians are colleagues who will listen to any concern you have, objectively and without judgement, and empower you with the information and tools to help you make an informed decision about how to approach it.
- Following our Independent Culture Review, we continue to develop and deliver our Culture Action Delivery Plan, scrutinised by our Culture Development Committee.
- We offer a wide range of training and development opportunities, including 1:2:1 coaching.
Don’t just take it from us though! Meet some of our on-call firefighters whose first language is not English or are living with health conditions, where they share their personal journeys and how they have broken down their perceived barriers.