Cornwall Fire & Rescue Service Newsdesk

at 13/04/2012 15:04

Cornwall Fire and Rescue Service (CFRS) is giving potential new firefighter recruits a second chance to apply after an overwhelming response saw 500 people apply online within just four minutes of the application window opening.

Those who wanted to apply for the latest round of wholetime firefighter recruitment were told the application window would close on Friday 13 April or when 500 applications had been received – whichever was reached first.

An unprecedented amount of online applications within the first four minutes meant this limit was reached soon after the application window opened on Tuesday 10 April.

“This is the fastest response we’ve had to any recruitment campaign,” said Tim Bossenger, Resourcing Manager from Cornwall Council’s Human Resources Service. “We are aware that some applicants emailed their form at 9am and it wasn’t received by us until later in the morning. These are issues that are clearly beyond our control, but are our responsibility to fix.

“To ensure the recruitment process is fair we are now giving applicants a second chance to apply. We will be contacting everyone who has previously applied to explain that they do not need to submit their application again, but if they want to make changes to their application and resubmit, they can do.”

Applications will now be accepted between 9am on Tuesday 24 April and 5pm Thursday 26 April. Completed forms can be submitted online, by post or in person at New County Hall in Truro.

“We are really pleased that so many people are considering a career with Cornwall Fire and Rescue Service,” said Steve Brown, Assistant Chief Fire Officer for CFRS. “We want our workforce to reflect the community we serve and to run a recruitment campaign that is open and fair ensuring that anyone who wants to apply can do. We have now removed the application limit and now all potential applicants have to do is make sure they submit their form between Tuesday 24 April and Thursday 26 April.”

For an application form visit www.cornwall.gov.uk/firerecruitment