Deputy Chief Fire Officer

Job title: Deputy Chief Fire Officer

Reporting to: Chief Fire Officer

Salary: £140,000 – £150,000 (depending upon experience)

Location: Service HQ, Kelvedon

Closing date: Monday 9 December 2024

The Role (Recruitment Information Pack)

As our next Deputy Chief Fire Officer, you will bring the best leadership to our organisation – Leadership that encourages new ways of thinking, collaborative working and an inclusive approach to everything we do. As an organisation, we have been on a journey of change, and you will play a leading role in continuing that cultural transformation and doing things differently – whilst understanding our history and the heritage.

The Deputy Chief Fire Officer will play a key role as advisor to the Police Fire and Crime Commissioner, and the Chief Fire Officer. This role is pivotal in creating a positive, safe and supportive organisational climate ensuring that the values of Essex County Fire and Rescue Service are fully embedded and visible in everything we do.

You will influence the future plan and direction for the organisation and will ensure the continued development of ECFRS. We are looking for a confident individual who can operate successfully in a corporate environment across organisational boundaries, enhancing our close working relationships with councils, other emergency services and wider partners.

The right person

We welcome applications from candidates with substantive experience of organisational transformation, strategic management and operational command.

To be successful you will be forward thinking with proven ability to provide top level coaching and mentoring to senior management team members to ensure their development and success.

With well-developed communication skills, you will establish and maintain effective partnerships with all relevant agencies and our communities, and you will have solid experience of developing and maintaining relationships with external stakeholders at authority, local, national and international levels.

You will be able to demonstrate an ability to embrace and lead change, to build effective partnerships at a strategic level and to deliver an inclusive leadership style across the service.

You will have previous experience within a Fire and Rescue Service working at Brigade Manager / Assistant Chief Fire Officer level. Operational experience is desirable as is proven experience of commanding operational incidents. You will ideally have relevant accreditation (e.g. MAGIC/ICL4) to be qualified to take responsibility for strategic (gold) command during a major incident or civil emergency.

The Role

Job Purpose:

To protect and save life, property and the environment by providing strategic leadership for our Prevention, Protection, and Response services. Shape and direct the activities of the Service. Proactively collaborate with partners to make sure best outcomes are delivered for the public of Essex.

Main Duties and Responsibilities:

To deliver activities against organisational policy which support our core mission of making Essex a safer place to work, live and travel:

·     Responsible for effective/ efficient and safe delivery of response services ensuring legal duties are achieved and identified performance measures met.

·     Responsible for effectively discharging responsibilities under the Fire Safety Act 2005 including the discharging of duties under the Building Safety Regulator and subsequent changes arising from the Fire Safety Bill.

·     Responsible for the effective discharging of legal responsibilities to prevent harm to the public through prevention activities inc compliance with Children’s Act and safeguarding

·     To make sure risk information is relevant, accurate and available to crews and effective arrangements are in place for exercising and familiarisation of known risk

·     To make sure effective relationships with other Category 1 responders and the principles of JESIP and Joint Operational Procedures (JOP) and National Operational Guidance are embedded within the Service

·     To act as principal advisor to the Chief Fire Officer (CFO) on matters of operational service delivery

Job purpose

·     In support of the Chief Fire Officer to lead, develop and manage services relating to the Fire and Rescue Service arrangements which deliver the Police Fire and Crime Commissioners priorities that fall within the postholder’s Directorate portfolio and in line with the Community Risk Management Plan – making Essex Safer Together.

·     To deputise for the Chief Fire Officer/ Chief Executive at a corporate, regional and national level as and when required and to represent.

·     Enhance and develop high quality relationships with internal and external partners to improve the value and impact of collaborative programmes and integrated service delivery for the benefit of our residents and communities.

·     This postholder leads on a number of key activities which will ensure that all residents, partners and businesses are safe. This requires the postholder to provide strategic and professional advice to the Chief Fire Officer, colleagues, partners and members on all matters relating to Fire and Rescue policy and strategy ensuring that all relevant strategic plans, policies and legislative requirements are designed, developed and implemented effectively.

·     The postholder will hold responsibility for the performance management and continuous improvement arrangements across the Fire and Rescue Service to enhance compliance with legislative requirements as well as identify best practice to meet Service requirements in delivering its priorities and strategic goals.

·     A number of duties will require activities to take place with local, regional or national partners to maximise joint resources and apply best practice and the post holder will be a participant in shaping and delivering activities which make the best use of the capacity working alongside these partners.

·     This postholder is expected to contribute to the national and regional networks within their remit which may involve leading some specific programmes and activities which enable all Fire and Rescue Services to learn from and apply best practice.

·     As the lead on strategic planning across the service the postholder will ensure that there are robust and effective arrangements in place to develop, implement and review strategic plans, policies and processes.

·     The service is subject to a national HMICFRS inspection regime and the postholder will lead strategic service arrangements to ensure that the service is fully prepared for external assessment and well placed to respond to areas for improvement, making sure that any learning and recommendations are addressed via the services performance and assurance framework. The postholder will also be responsible for the integration of support services and service delivery areas for improvement via the continuous improvement Board.

·     To play a full and positive role as a member of the Service Leadership Team ensuring the delivery of effective strategic direction, leadership and resource management (people, finance and other assets) and use of prioritisation to secure the delivery of public services across Greater Essex and maximise the Service’s role in finding ways of delivering services which provide best value for money.

·     To support the Chief Fire Officer/Chief Executive to ensure the Service is able to act proactively in respect of national policy changes to the services covered and advise the Chief Fire Officer/Chief Executive, Police Fire and Crime Commissioner in order to uphold best practice as a consequence of timely and effective horizon scanning and analysis. This is essential to help the Service review and revise its plans and priorities whilst delivering the overall vision and priorities in keeping people safe.

·     Lead by example and foster a culture across the Service, which engages all staff, stakeholders and partners in the development and delivery of services which meet residents’ needs and expectations.

Application process

To apply for this job please visit faerfield.co.uk/essex-fire-and-rescue and click on the Apply button at the bottom of the page. You will be directed to an application form – please fill out the requested information. When prompted, please submit your CV and a supporting statement (no more than two sides of A4 each). If you would prefer to submit your supporting statement in a video format, please send the video in an mp4 format to

rpowell@faerfield.co.uk, who will be able to confirm receipt and process.

With your CV, please also provide the names and contact details of two referees, one of whom should be your current or most recent employer. Referees will only be contacted if you reach the final stages, and we will not contact referees without your permission.

Your supporting statement should clearly set out your relevant skills, knowledge and experience and what you can offer that will make a difference to our Service and the communities that we serve. Please complete your application by midday on Monday 9 December 2024.

Application timeline

Closing date: Monday 9 December 2024 at midday.

Shortlisting takes place: Monday 9 December 2024.

Expected date for shortlisted candidates to take psychometric assessments: Tuesday 10 – Monday 16 December.

Selection and assessment date: Monday 16 December and Wednesday 18 December.

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.

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.

You can find out more about Essex County Fire & Rescue Service via www.essex-fire.gov.uk including information about all our vacancies, application processes and benefits.

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.

Any other questions?

For a confidential discussion about the role please contact:

Sean Anderson

Email: sanderson@faerfield.co.uk

Tel: 0121 312 3755

Roger Russell

Email: rrussell@faerfield.co.uk

Tel: 0121 312 3755

Roger and Sean can also arrange an informal discussion with Rick Hylton, Chief Fire Officer, and a site visit if required.

Find out more about our Service at essex-fire.gov.uk