Job Title: Policy, Training, Projects and Business Engagement Manager
Salary: £50,269 – £53,460
Working Hours: 37 hours per week (Green Book)
Location: Service Headquarters – Kelvedon Park*
Contract: Permanent
Closing date: 10th July 2026
*We are open to discuss working arrangements including flexibility over hours and location.
The Role
Within the Protection department for Essex County Fire and Rescue Service (ECFRS), we are passionate about fire safety. In the role of our Policy, Training, Projects and Business Engagement Manager, you will be responsible for overseeing key areas within the team, including Training and policy, external business engagement activity, internal quality assurance process, and the management of our Primary Authority Scheme (PAS) partnerships. This role will include the need for close liaison and collaboration with internal and external stakeholders, local/national business representatives, as well as other regulatory bodies.
What You Will Be Working On
· Manage business partnerships, to enable greater compliance with relevant fire safety legislation.
· Manage the attendance of ECFRS Business Engagement Team at business engagement events, in collaboration with local Protection Officers. Develop Protection Officers’ knowledge and skills to continually improve business engagement. Represent ECFRS at external business events.
· Manage the engagement of various business groups from our communities in a range of activities, promoting fire safety in their premises, depending on the risk from their trade/sector. Set objectives that ensure the education of these groups on the benefits of their engagement with ECFRS.
· Monitor unwanted fire signals (UwFS), analysing data and directing your team to engage with premises with high UwFS, to reduce unnecessary ECFRS attendance, thereby reducing both risk and cost to the Service. Develop and implement initiatives to raise awareness of the issue of UwFS, the dangers associated with them, and the benefits of reducing them.
· Engage with Local Authorities and act as point of contact for them, and other agencies, should concerns be raised in relation to premises. Manage ECFRS response to attend such premises to ensure fire safety, either as part of a multi-agency exercise or as an alleged fire risk under the relevant fire safety legislation.
· Act as a point of contact for Business Engagement and for other agencies in relation to Local Authorities.
· Collaborate with the Service’s Corporate Communications Department on behalf of the Protection Department to develop engagement initiatives to assist in promoting Protection initiatives and messages.
· To plan and deliver the Protection training strategy through co-ordination and provision of training packages, delivering such training as necessary. To source relevant training, work with training suppliers, and assist with the tendering process for external providers.
· To support internal Protection Quality Assurance processes, as aligned to the Protection Quality Assurance Policy.
· To co-ordinate and support ongoing internal Protection CFRMIS development, as aligned to the services Risk Based Intervention Programme (RBIP).
· To manage ECFRS Primary Authority Partnerships, ensuring assured and consistent regulatory advice is provided to partners to ensure continued compliance to recognised fire safety legislation.
What Are We Looking For?
This role will be perfect for you if you are passionate about fire safety and are motivated by what you can bring to ECFRS and those responsible for fire safety within their business. You will ideally have a training background and experience in fire safety, including a detailed understanding of relevant legislation. You will have a strong desire to seek continuous professional development, including through self-development. You will need to have strong interpersonal skills, as well as experience of supporting others, both internally and externally as a representative of the organisation.
Eligibility
· It is desirable that the successful candidate hold a higher-level training qualification, as well as relevant Fire Safety competency and experience**.
· Full driving licence.
· No current live disciplinary or performance warnings, nor are you subject to any informal management for reasons of conduct or performance.
· For internal candidates, it is expected that you will have had a conversation with your line manager about your aspirations and career and development and your intention to apply for this opportunity prior to submitting your application. As part of the process, we will be confirming you have discussed your application with your line manager.
** Please note that although the Level 4 Diploma in Fire Safety is desirable at the point of recruitment, it is an essential requirement for the role. The successful candidate will therefore be expected to achieve the qualification within a reasonable timeframe after appointment.
How to Apply
Internal candidates in either the LRS development or resource pool
If you meet the essential criteria listed above, you should express an interest for the role by uploading a statement confirming your LRS status before clicking Apply in the Recruitment Portal.
Internal candidates who are not in either the development or resource pool
Please submit a supporting statement of up to 1000 words via the Recruitment Portal, explaining how you meet the essential criteria listed in the Person Specification
This statement will be used for shortlisting, so include clear evidence of your suitability. Make sure your statement is uploaded before clicking “Apply.”
External candidates
You will be required to submit your CV and supporting statement (no longer than 1000 words). explaining how you meet the essential criteria listed in the Person Specification This statement will be used for shortlisting, so include clear evidence of your suitability. Make sure your statement is uploaded before clicking “Apply.”
Assessment and Selection
Interview and presentation – If successfully shortlisted, the final part of the recruitment process will include a presentation and interview
Presentation – You will be required to provide a short presentation (no more than 15 minutes), detailing your understanding of the positive impact of Business Engagement in ensuring that responsible persons are aware of their fire safety duties.
Formal Interview – Six questions in which to explore competency, values, behaviours, safeguarding and core code of ethics
Assessments will be made against positive indicators taken from the Code of Ethics, ECFRS Safeguarding and the NFCC Leadership Framework.
NFCC_Leadership_Framework_Final.pdf (nationalfirechiefs.org.uk)
Core Code of Ethics England Guidance May 21 V0.pdf (ukfrs.com)
Essex Fire – Safeguarding Statements
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 opportunity, Disability Confident, employer who welcomes applications from all backgrounds. We value diversity and are committed to creating a workplace where everyone is treated with dignity and respect. Applications are considered solely on merit.
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