FIREFIGHTER INTERVIEW GUIDE

Working with Others

Building effective working relationships with colleagues and the public, and noticing what other people need without being asked.

Firefighters work in small teams under time pressure in dangerous conditions. This PQA is not about being likeable. It's about whether the team functions better because you are in it.

What a panel is listening for

• You noticed someone needed support and acted without being asked
• You built working relationships beyond your closest colleagues
• You put the team's outcome ahead of your own preference
• You represented the service well in a public-facing moment

Questions you might be asked

• Tell us about a time you worked in a team that was not functioning well.
• Describe a time you supported a colleague who was struggling.
• Tell us about a time you put the team's needs ahead of your own.

How people lose marks

"We" instead of "I". This is the single most common reason a strong story scores badly. You describe a genuine team success in the plural, and the panel finishes the answer with no idea what you personally contributed. Say what the team was doing, then switch to "I" for everything you did.

Choosing an example where you led. Leadership is not what's being assessed at this level. Being a good team member is.

No conflict, no difficulty. A team that got on well and succeeded is a nice story with nothing to mark. The evidence lives in the friction.

How to answer it

Write your answer, then read it back and count the first-person verbs in the middle section. If there are fewer than four, the panel cannot mark you.