YOU might spend your days cleaning windows, working in an office or being a stay at home parent, but have you ever thought about adding firefighting to your CV?

West Sussex Fire and Rescue Service is launching a countywide campaign to recruit new retained firefighters, including for the fire station at Midhurst.

Retained firefighters are men and women who combine their day jobs or duties with being "on call" for the fire service, ready to respond to emergencies when they are needed.

They receive regular training to equip them with the skills to deal with fires, road traffic accidents and a wide range of other emergencies.

Retained firefighters receive an annual retaining fee as well as additional payments for any incidents or community safety events they attend.

Deputy Chief Fire Officer, Lee Neale, who began his career as a retained firefighter, said: “Becoming a retained firefighter offers people a fantastic opportunity to give something back to their community and get paid while they are doing it.

“There are also definite benefits for employers who support their local communities by having retained firefighters on their staff.

“If there are still lingering myths and misconceptions about the qualities we look for when we are recruiting, this is a good opportunity for us to dispel them.

“People sometimes assume it’s all about physical strength, but it isn’t. We’re looking for good communicators who can stay calm in an emergency situation.”

As well as at the Midhurst fire station, West Sussex has retained fire crews who respond from stations at Arundel, Billingshurst, Bognor Regis, Burgess Hill, Chichester, East Grinstead, East Preston, East Wittering, Haywards Heath, Henfield, Horsham, Hurstpierpoint, Lancing, Littlehampton, Partridge Green, Petworth, Selsey, Shoreham, Steyning, Storrington, Turners Hill and Worthing.

The fire service organised a ‘have-a-go-day’, at Horsham Fire Station on Saturday where people were able to ‘have a go’ with some hands-on experiences during the day. For more information on becoming a retained firefighter in West Sussex visit www. westsussex.gov.uk/fire