What a shame you simply looked at the job title on SCC’s website & didn’t read any further. No doubt you though such an editorial would strike a chord with your readership, another council ‘non-job’ being recruited to whilst the Fire Service, a ‘proper’ service, is making cuts.

The job description makes it clear that the person being sought for this ‘non-job’ will be:

“a Social Worker, first level Nurse, Occupational Therapist, Chartered Psychologist, with two years post qualifying experience and be registered with the appropriate professional body before commencing duty.”

They will be dealing with statutory obligations under legislation dealing with “authorising the deprivation of liberty of people who lack the capacity to consent to treatment or care in either a hospital or care home when it is needed”.

In other words, making a reasoned & balanced assessment that said person is not actually able to make the right decision for themselves.

That’s a real ‘non-job’, eh? Dealing with the care of some of society’s most vulnerable people? , I’d have thought you’d have been glad to see a trained professional being sought, rather than seeking a cheap, rabble-rousing headline. For sure SCC are getting plenty of things wrong currently, but you’ve picked the wrong target here.

If this is the standard of editorial we get from the Star these days, thank heavens you are confined to prattling off meaningless articles and aren’t in a real job, one where you have to deal with people’s real lives…

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Considerable savings could be made to the county’s education budget if secondary schools axed their numerous Deputy Heads along with their Senior Management Teams. The majority of those occupying these overpaid and supernumerary positions seem to be permanently away on courses or attending meetings. A total waste of money.

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Look at the expenses councillors claim for travel, meeting allowance and food, this information should be readily available on the councils web site, this is what we are paying these people to spend our money. then they want to cut back on essential services I would sooner have a fire engine available than 20 councillors stuck in a meeting room eating and drinking my hard earned council tax.

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Nicki C
It is clear that you are in the fire service in shropshire and you seem to have unresolved issues but why do you not name the station you are critisising? or would doing that blow your cover?

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I understand there is currently a recruitment freeze at Shropshire Council. This means only absolutely critical posts should be advertised. What Shropshire and many councils has done in relation to cuts is to take a broad brush approach. All departments have been asked to make similar levels of cuts. This means critical front line positions are being treated in the same manner as backroom functions. No account has been taken of economies of scale and the true impact of equivalent cuts. So parts of the Council struggling to meet their legal obligations (such as public protection) have been asked to take the same level of cuts as HR. The effect of this is a greater reduction in service standards in those areas whilst ‘less important’ and non statutory functions are getting off fairly lightly.

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Sending emergency personel out to beg for funds is not new I recall ambulance personel doing the same some years ago.

Let’s face reality most fire fighters, and I use that term loosely,do it for their own gratification … ‘the glory boys’ as they are more commonly known! by the real emergency services.

Everyone rings their praises and offers them medals for the menial of tasks and service, let’s get concrete, there are many people in this world who perform voluntary services above and beyond the call of duty and seek no reward, the fire service seek self gratification for just doing a job, and the chief’s earn a very high salary and pension as do many of the full time fire fighters.
I know because I have been there. Let’s face it you don’t have to be the brightest button on the shirt to, on the rare occasion, tackle a fire.

Retained fire people are confused locals who are brain washed into thinking that they are an emergency service…. No big deal really.

There will always be people willing to volunteer to be quasi military glory boys who are paid a pittance in return for some local community gratification, just a part of mr cameron’s big society.

Gary

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