Job Title: ICT Second Line Service Desk Technician
Contract: Permanent
Working Hours: 37 hours per week*
Salary: £31,022.00 to £33,699.00
Location: Service Headquarters, Kelvedon Park*
Closing Date: 12th March 2026
*You will be expected to attend the office 5 days a week and to ensure ECFRS business continuity however, there are plans to allow flexible working 1 day a week. There may be a requirement to provide cover outside of normal working hours (“Standby”)
The Role
Be the lifeline for our tech!
As the go‑to ICT responder for Essex Fire and Rescue, you’ll jump into action when colleagues need support—diagnosing issues, guiding users through fixes, and escalating complex problems to specialist teams. You’ll keep our critical systems steady and our frontline crews connected, ensuring the technology behind our life‑saving work never misses a beat.
You’ll also take a turn in our shared out-of-hours rota, so together we can make sure our critical systems and teams are supported 24/7
What You Will Be Working On
Act as an initial internal escalation point for other service desk technicians.
Respond and resolve more complex incidents and service requests within agreed operational target levels and escalate to 3rd level support teams within ICT and external suppliers.
Create, maintain and publish relevant support documentation to assist colleagues in the quick resolution of their incidents and service requests and enable users to become more self-sufficient.
Take ownership of issues by carrying out problem analysis to implement temporary or permanent fixes with the aim of restoring service to the customer as soon as possible; escalating incidents to other support teams where necessary utilising the ITIL framework.
Provide advice and guidance on best practice for using the ICT systems.
Take responsibility for all owned open calls with appropriate escalation where necessary.
Responsible for maintaining CMDB records in line with agreed process.
Logs all incidents or service requests received in the ITSM Tool following agreed procedures.
Logs and actions alerts in line with agreed procedure dependent on the priority.
Out of hours support to be provided in line with agreed local arrangements.
Positively contribute to a safe work environment ensuring compliance with Health and Safety, Risk Management, Business Continuity and Safeguarding policy and procedure. Protect all personal information in adherence with the Data Protection Act 2018.
Any other duties commensurate with the responsibilities and grading of the post.
What Are We Looking For?
We’re looking for someone who thrives on solving complex issues, supporting colleagues, and staying composed when the pressure rises. As a Second Line Service Desk Technician, you’ll take on escalated ICT queries, provide deeper technical troubleshooting, and work closely with specialist teams to keep our systems running smoothly.
A strong passion for technology and a logical, methodical approach to problem‑solving, Excellent communication skills, with the ability to support users confidently and clearly
Patience and a calm, reassuring manner, even during high‑pressure or time‑critical incidents
Confidence in following structured processes, documenting work, and using knowledge bases effectively
A collaborative, team‑focused attitude, with the flexibility to support colleagues when required
A full driving licence, with the ability to travel to sites when required. Work vans are provided for business use
If you are an internal candidate, you must have discussed your application with your line manager and confirmed with them there are no outstanding issues of conduct or performance. This will be verified prior to shortlisting.
How to apply
You will be required to submit a CV detailing a minimum of five years employment and / or education history, along with a supporting statement of no more than 500 words that demonstrates how you meet the essential criteria detailed in the Person Specification.
You may submit this either as a word document, pdf, or an mp3 (voice note) or mp4 (video), however the word count of your supporting statement should not exceed 600 words no matter which format you choose to present your application.
You may attach separate documents (such as qualifications) should you wish. Your CV and additional documents will be referred to in shortlisting to confirm eligibility (e.g., your current role and any existing qualifications).
Assessment and selection:
The assessment and selection approach will be:
Stage 1
Application & shortlisting (assessment of your supporting statement will be made against the essential criteria of the Person Specification)
Stage 2
Role specific panel interview
Interview with SD Manager and SD Supervisor
Assessments will be made against positive indicators taken from the Code of Ethics and the NFCC Leadership Framework.
You can find the NFCC Leadership Framework here: NFCC_Leadership_Framework_Final.pdf (nationalfirechiefs.org.uk)
And guidance around the Code of Ethics here:
Core Code of Ethics England Guidance May 21 V0.pdf (ukfrs.com)
Guidance on Safeguarding polices can be found here:
Essex Fire – Safeguarding Statements
Should you wish to have an informal discussion with regards to the role, please contact Vikesh Patel on Vikesh.Patel@essex-fire.gov.uk
Our Culture and Benefits
Here at Essex County Fire and Rescue Service we are committed to prioritising and promoting the wellbeing of our employees.
You can find out more about our benefits at https://www.essex-fire.gov.uk/recruitment/benefits
Important Information for Firefighter Pension Scheme Pensioners
If you are currently in receipt of a pension from the Firefighter Pension Scheme, please note that taking up this role may affect your pension. Under pension abatement rules, if your earnings in this role, when combined with your pension, exceed your pre-retirement salary (adjusted for inflation), your pension may be reduced.
For further guidance, please contact our Pensions team on 01376 576799 or email mailbox.pensions@essex-fire.gov.uk.
Safeguarding
Essex Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Fire and Rescue Authority is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults and expects all employees and volunteers to share this commitment.
It is our policy to require all applicants for employment to disclose if you are currently being investigated by any regulatory body or have any decisions or sanctions pending or in progress in respect of your suitability to work for the Service.
You agree to inform the Service within 24 hours if you are subsequently investigated by any agency or organisation in relation to concerns about your behaviour towards children, young people or vulnerable adults.
The information you provide will be treated as strictly confidential and will be considered only in relation to the appointment for which you are applying.
This role will be subject to a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check.
Disability Confident
We are an equal opportunities, Disability Confident, employer who welcomes applications from everyone and values diversity in our workplace. A commitment to promoting diversity and developing a work environment where all staff are treated with dignity and respect is central to our recruitment process and all applications will be considered solely on merit.
As part of our offer to support all our candidates to perform to the best of their abilities during our recruitment and selection processes and we would like to let you know about a couple of support options you can access, should you wish to, including our employee forums, who are keen and willing to support all of our potential colleagues.
Our employee forums and partners include:
Asian Fire Services Association (AFSA), BEING (our LGBTQ+ employee support network), Christian Fellowship, Ethnic Minority Forum, Men’s Forum, and our Women’s Forum. In addition, we also have a female firefighters operational group.
Further to the above, the Service has a Digital Accessibility Inclusion Group (DAIG) that supports all colleagues to improve their digital skills and provides additional support and guidance to colleagues with neurodivergent strengths and struggles as a result of dyslexia, ADHD, Autism, dyspraxia etc. We want everyone to thrive at work, and so we encourage and enable people to access digital tools to help them perform at your best. The DAIG is a group of colleagues from across the Service that unite to support others as a result of their lived experience and desire to make a difference. They support people with a range of visible and invisible disabilities to identify and access digital workplace adjustments and solutions and may be able to assist with your application too.
Should you wish to discuss support, or access further information, from one of these groups, please contact Equality.Diversity@essex-fire.gov.uk
You are also able to raise any queries or requests for support, including any adjustments you may require, at any stage of the process by email to recruitment@essex-fire.gov.uk
You can find out more about Essex County Fire & Rescue Service via www.essex-fire.gov.uk and about our vacancies and application processes via www.essex-fire.gov.uk/join-essex-fire