BAFE backs fire safety competition aimed at boosting skilled engineers cohort

Competitors who’ve successfully navigated the initial stages will now undergo intensive training ahead of the national final, which is to be held at Barking & Dagenham College in November. The winners will then be revealed by journalist and television presenter Steph McGovern in a special live edition of the popular Channel 4 show Steph’s Packed Lunch at the end of that month.

The competition is designed to boost the number of skilled engineers in the fire industry. While the fire competition has been running alongside the security competition as part of the established Engineers of Tomorrow programme, WorldSkills UK and Skills for Security are determined to raise competition standards and bring it to the national stage.

The Fire Detection and Alarm Systems Competition is backed by leading fire industry organisations BAFE and FireQual, with support from the British Security Industry Association and CSL in the security arena. In essence, it will assess an individual’s knowledge, employability and practical skills in a competitive timed environment.

WorldSkills UK’s competition-based programmes help young people grow personally and professionally by developing their technical and employability skills, as well as shining a light on the amazing skills potential in the UK.

97% of previous entrants say the programme improved their technical skills, while 93% stated that they’ve improved their personal and employability skills.

Life-changing experience

WorldSkills UK deputy CEO Ben Blackledge commented: “We’re delighted to have launched the Fire Detection and Alarm Systems Competition along with Skills for Security. New for 2022, the competition will help to boost the number of skilled engineers in the industry as it continues to confront the aftermath of the Grenfell Tower tragedy.”

Blackledge added: “Taking part in WorldSkills UK competitions can be a life-changing experience. Our competition-based programmes offer students and apprentices the opportunity to pit their skills against the ‘Best of the Best’ here in the UK and even on the global stage.”

BAFE’s managing director Justin Maltby-Smith (pictured above, right, with Skills for Security’s managing director David Scott) responded: “The scrutiny of an individual’s competency within the life safety arena has been a major area of focus following the Grenfell Tower tragedy. There is a clear necessity that any individuals entering the market need to be appropriately skilled for the works they will eventually perform on an unsupervised basis.”

Maltby-Smith concluded: “BAFE is proud to be a partner of the new WorldSkills UK fire competition, which will undoubtedly assist in developing a workforce that’s stronger and even more competent going forward.”

The new fire-focused competition builds on WorldSkills UK’s Electronic Security Systems Competition. Also run in conjunction with Skills for Security, the latter was launched back in 2019.