Shift patterns
The following crewing systems are currently in use:
Peak Demand
Peak Demand (PD) is a wholetime duty system that operates at Atherstone and Gaydon Fire Stations. It utilises a team of 12 staff to provide daytime crewing of a fire appliance. It provides an average working week of 42 hours, and after taking the full allocation of annual leave, staff work 151 day shifts per year. Each working shift is 12 hours duration between 7am and 7pm.
Staff are allocated to one of two shift groups (Alpha and Bravo) with each shift working seven days in every fortnight. There is occasional variation within this working pattern because staff have local flexibility to cover crewing deficiencies across both shifts.
Day Crewing Plus
Day Crewing Plus (DCP) is a wholetime duty system that operates at Leamington, Stratford and Alcester Fire Stations. It utilises a team of 12 staff to provide 24 hour crewing of a fire appliance. Operating in accordance with the principles of self-rostering, individuals programme a baseline of 151 shifts per year to ensure that planned crewing levels are maintained.
A shift on DCP is defined as a 24 hour period, starting at 7.30am and concluding at 7.30am the following day. Each duty shift is split into periods of Positive Hours and On Call Hours. During Positive Hours, staff are rostered for immediate operational and other duties appropriate to their role. During On Call Hours, duty staff remain available to attend emergency incidents as and when required, and are therefore required to be on, or in close proximity to, the station or appliance. Accommodation is provided at the station for use during the On Call period. There is an additional uplift of 25% on salary, which is remuneration for the On Call part of the role.
Self Rostering
Self Rostering (SR) is a wholetime duty system that operates at Leamington Fire Station. It utilises a team of 21 staff to provide 24 hour crewing of a fire appliance.
SR is team-based, flexible working with staff allocating their own shifts within an agreed rule set to ensure that planned crewing levels are maintained. It provides an average working week of 42 hours, and after taking the full allocation of annual leave, staff work 151 shifts per year, averaging 3.5 shifts per week, or between 14 and 16 shifts per month. Each working shift is 12 hours duration, with day (7.30am start) and night (7.30pm start) shift allocation in equal proportion.
Peak Demand Plus
Peak Demand Plus (PD Plus) is a wholetime duty system that operates at Coleshill Fire Station. It utilises a team of 12 staff to provide 24 hour crewing of a fire appliance. Operating in accordance with the principles of self-rostering, individuals programme a baseline of 151 shifts per year to ensure that planned crewing levels are maintained.
A shift on PD Plus is defined as a 24 hour period, starting at 7.30am and concluding at 7.30am the following day. Each duty shift is split into periods of Positive Hours and On Call Hours. During Positive Hours, staff are rostered for immediate operational and other duties appropriate to their role. During On Call Hours, duty staff remain available from home to attend emergency incidents as and when required. Essentially, PD Plus works in a similar way to DCP, except that the On Call hours are at home, rather than on the station. When operating on the PD Plus duty system, individuals need to be residing within five minutes of the fire station when carrying out the On Call hours. There is an additional uplift of 23% on salary, which is remuneration for the On Call part of the role.
Flexible Crewing
Flexible Crewing (FC) is a wholetime duty system that operates at Nuneaton and Rugby Fire Stations. It utilises a team of 21 staff to provide 24-hour crewing of a fire appliance. It provides an average working week of 42 hours, and after taking the full allocation of annual leave, staff work 151 shifts per year. Each working shift is 12 hours duration, being either a day shift (7.30am start) or night shift (7.30pm start).
Staff are allocated to one of four shift groups (Red, White, Blue, Green) with each shift working a pattern of two days, two nights, four off. Some variation occurs within this working pattern because staff have local flexibility to cover crewing deficiencies across all four shifts.