Fire and rescue services workforce
Published
- 1. Navigate toMain facts and figures section
- 2. Navigate toThings you need to know section
- 3. Navigate to By ethnicity and type of role section
- 4. Navigate to By ethnicity and type of role over time section
- 5. Navigate to By type of role within each ethnic group section
- 6. Navigate to By ethnicity and area (firefighters only) section
- 7. Navigate to By ethnicity and duty type (firefighters only) section
- 8. Navigate toData sources section
- 9. Navigate toDownload the data section
1. Main facts and figures
- in 2022, 94.4% of all fire and rescue staff in England were white (out of those whose ethnicity was known)
- for comparison, 80.7% of working age people in England (aged 16 to 64 years) were white at the time of the 2021 Census
- from 2011 to 2022, the total number of fire and rescue staff went down from 54,261 to 44,350
- from 2011 to 2022, the percentage of firefighters who were white went down from 96.5% to 95.0%
- from 2011 to 2022, the percentage of firefighters from mixed ethnic group went up from 1.2% to 2.3% and for Asian ethnic group from 0.5% to 0.7%
2. Things you need to know
What the data measures
The data shows the number and percentage of people working in fire and rescue services in England, by ethnicity. It is a headcount of all full-time and part-time staff employed on 31 March 2022.
People whose ethnicity is not known are included in the figures for ‘All’.
Percentages are rounded to 1 decimal place. They are worked out using unrounded numbers. For this reason, some totals in the charts and tables may not add up to 100%.
The ethnic groups used in the data
Data is shown for the 5 ethnic groups used in the 2001 Census.
Percentages are based on staff whose ethnicity was known. Ethnicity was not known for 8.7% of staff in 2022.
Methodology
Read the detailed methodology document for the data on this page.
‘On-call’ firefighters (also known as ‘retained’ firefighters) may have more than one contract of employment. In this case, they are counted more than once in the workforce statistics.
Population data is from the 2021 Census. Read more about how we use Census data and some of the problems involved.
3. By ethnicity and type of role
| Fire Control | Firefighters | Support Staff | Total Staff | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ethnicity | Fire Control % | Fire Control Number | Firefighters % | Firefighters Number | Support Staff % | Support Staff Number | Total Staff % | Total Staff Number |
| All | 100.0 | 1,157 | 100.0 | 34,960 | 100.0 | 8,233 | 100.0 | 44,350 |
| Asian | 0.4 | 4 | 0.7 | 231 | 3.1 | 237 | 1.2 | 472 |
| Black | 0.8 | 8 | 1.4 | 451 | 2.8 | 214 | 1.7 | 673 |
| Mixed | 2.0 | 21 | 2.3 | 721 | 1.7 | 127 | 2.1 | 869 |
| White | 96.7 | 997 | 95.0 | 30,271 | 91.6 | 6,972 | 94.4 | 38,240 |
| Other including Chinese | 0.1 | 1 | 0.6 | 179 | 0.8 | 64 | 0.6 | 244 |
| Unknown | NA | 126 | NA | 3,107 | NA | 619 | NA | 3,852 |
Download table data for ‘By ethnicity and type of role’ (CSV) Source data for ‘By ethnicity and type of role’ (CSV)
Summary of Fire and rescue services workforce By ethnicity and type of role Summary
The percentages in this section are based on fire and rescue staff whose ethnicity was known.
The data shows that, in 2022:
- 94.4% of all fire and rescue staff in England were white
- 95.0% of all firefighters were white
- firefighters from mixed ethnic backgrounds made up 2.3% of all firefighters – the second largest ethnic group out of all groups
- at the time of the 2021 Census, 80.7% of working age people (aged 16 to 64) in England were white, 10.1% were from the Asian ethnic group, 4.4% were black, and 2.5% were from mixed ethnic backgrounds
- 8.4% of support staff were from the combined Asian, black, mixed, and ‘other’ (including Chinese) ethnic groups – the highest percentage of staff from these groups out of all types of role
4. By ethnicity and type of role over time
| Fire Control | Firefighters | Support Staff | Total Staff | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ethnicity | Fire Control % (2011) | Fire Control Number (2011) | Fire Control % (2022) | Fire Control Number (2022) | Firefighters % (2011) | Firefighters Number (2011) | Firefighters % (2022) | Firefighters Number (2022) | Support Staff % (2011) | Support Staff Number (2011) | Support Staff % (2022) | Support Staff Number (2022) | Total Staff % (2011) | Total Staff Number (2011) | Total Staff % (2022) | Total Staff Number (2022) |
| All | 100.0 | 1,556 | 100.0 | 1,157 | 100.0 | 43,357 | 100.0 | 34,960 | 100.0 | 9,348 | 100.0 | 8,233 | 100.0 | 54,261 | 100.0 | 44,350 |
| Asian | 0.3 | 5 | 0.4 | 4 | 0.5 | 212 | 0.7 | 231 | 2.6 | 224 | 3.1 | 237 | 0.9 | 441 | 1.2 | 472 |
| Black | 0.6 | 8 | 0.8 | 8 | 1.3 | 519 | 1.4 | 451 | 2.5 | 215 | 2.8 | 214 | 1.5 | 742 | 1.7 | 673 |
| Mixed | 1.2 | 17 | 2.0 | 21 | 1.2 | 473 | 2.3 | 721 | 0.9 | 82 | 1.7 | 127 | 1.2 | 572 | 2.1 | 869 |
| White | 97.7 | 1,407 | 96.7 | 997 | 96.5 | 38,063 | 95.0 | 30,271 | 93.3 | 8,143 | 91.6 | 6,972 | 96.0 | 47,613 | 94.4 | 38,240 |
| Other including Chinese | 0.2 | 3 | 0.1 | 1 | 0.4 | 174 | 0.6 | 179 | 0.7 | 60 | 0.8 | 64 | 0.5 | 237 | 0.6 | 244 |
| Unknown | NA | 116 | NA | 126 | NA | 3,916 | NA | 3,107 | NA | 624 | NA | 619 | NA | 4,656 | NA | 3,852 |
Download table data for ‘By ethnicity and type of role over time’ (CSV) Source data for ‘By ethnicity and type of role over time’ (CSV)
Summary of Fire and rescue services workforce By ethnicity and type of role over time Summary
The data shows that, between 2011 and 2022:
- the total number of fire and rescue staff went down from 54,261 to 44,350
- the percentage of all fire and rescue staff from the mixed ethnic group went up from 1.2% to 2.1%
- the percentage of fire and rescue staff who were white went down from 96.0% to 94.4%
- the percentage of firefighters from the mixed ethnic group went up from 1.2% to 2.3%
- the percentage of firefighters who were white went down from 96.5% to 95.0%
- the percentage of support staff from the mixed ethnic group went up from 0.9% to 1.7% – the percentage for the Asian ethnic group went up from 2.6% to 3.1%
5. By type of role within each ethnic group
| Fire Control | Firefighters | Support Staff | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ethnicity | Fire Control % | Fire Control Number | Firefighters % | Firefighters Number | Support Staff % | Support Staff Number |
| All | 2.6 | 1,157 | 78.8 | 34,960 | 18.6 | 8,233 |
| Asian | 0.8 | 4 | 48.9 | 231 | 50.2 | 237 |
| Black | 1.2 | 8 | 67.0 | 451 | 31.8 | 214 |
| Mixed | 2.4 | 21 | 83.0 | 721 | 14.6 | 127 |
| White | 2.6 | 997 | 79.2 | 30,271 | 18.2 | 6,972 |
| Other including Chinese | 0.4 | 1 | 73.4 | 179 | 26.2 | 64 |
| Unknown | 3.3 | 126 | 80.7 | 3,107 | 16.1 | 619 |
Download table data for ‘By type of role within each ethnic group’ (CSV) Source data for ‘By type of role within each ethnic group’ (CSV)
Summary of Fire and rescue services workforce By type of role within each ethnic group Summary
The data shows that, in 2022:
- 83.0% of fire and rescue staff from the mixed ethnic group were firefighters, compared with 79.2% of white staff, 73.4% of all staff from the ‘other’ ethnic group, 48.9% of Asian staff and 67.0% of black staff
- 50.2% of Asian fire and rescue staff were in ‘support staff’ roles, compared with 31.8% of black staff, 18.2% of white staff, 14.6% of staff from the mixed ethnic group, and 26.2% of staff from the ‘other’ ethnic group
- 2.6% of white fire and rescue staff were in ‘fire control’ roles, compared with 2.4% of staff from the mixed ethnic group, 1.2% of black staff, 0.8% of Asian staff, and 0.4% from the ‘other’ ethnic group
6. By ethnicity and area (firefighters only)
| Asian | Black | Mixed | White | Other - Including Chinese | Unknown | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| geography | Asian % of firefighters | Asian Number of firefighters | Black % of firefighters | Black Number of firefighters | Mixed % of firefighters | Mixed Number of firefighters | White % of firefighters | White Number of firefighters | Other - Including Chinese % of firefighters | Other - Including Chinese Number of firefighters | Unknown % of firefighters | Unknown Number of firefighters |
| Avon | 0.0 | 0 | 0.8 | 5 | 1.5 | 9 | 97.0 | 583 | 0.7 | 4 | NA | 62 |
| Bedfordshire | 0.2 | 1 | 1.4 | 6 | 3.5 | 15 | 94.8 | 401 | 0.0 | 0 | NA | 14 |
| Berkshire | 0.2 | 1 | 0.2 | 1 | 0.7 | 3 | 98.6 | 431 | 0.2 | 1 | NA | 0 |
| Buckinghamshire | 1.1 | 4 | 0.5 | 2 | 2.5 | 9 | 95.6 | 350 | 0.3 | 1 | NA | 33 |
| Cambridgeshire | 0.0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 1.5 | 7 | 98.1 | 456 | 0.4 | 2 | NA | 18 |
| Cheshire | 0.6 | 4 | 0.5 | 3 | 0.9 | 6 | 97.4 | 626 | 0.6 | 4 | NA | 19 |
| Cleveland | 0.2 | 1 | 0.2 | 1 | 0.7 | 3 | 98.6 | 415 | 0.2 | 1 | NA | 6 |
| Cornwall | 0.0 | 0 | 0.5 | 2 | 1.1 | 4 | 98.4 | 369 | 0.0 | 0 | NA | 204 |
| Cumbria | 0.5 | 2 | 0.0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 99.1 | 429 | 0.5 | 2 | NA | 167 |
| Derbyshire | 0.3 | 2 | 0.0 | 0 | 0.9 | 6 | 98.5 | 668 | 0.3 | 2 | NA | 24 |
| Devon and Somerset | 0.0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0.7 | 12 | 99.1 | 1,591 | 0.2 | 3 | NA | 71 |
| Dorset and Wiltshire | 0.2 | 2 | 0.3 | 3 | 1.4 | 13 | 98.0 | 909 | 0.1 | 1 | NA | 58 |
| Durham | 0.0 | 0 | 0.9 | 4 | 0.9 | 4 | 98.2 | 435 | 0.0 | 0 | NA | 31 |
| East Sussex | 0.4 | 2 | 0.2 | 1 | 2.8 | 16 | 95.4 | 537 | 1.2 | 7 | NA | 33 |
| England | 0.7 | 231 | 1.4 | 451 | 2.3 | 721 | 95.0 | 30,271 | 0.6 | 179 | NA | 3,107 |
| Essex | 0.5 | 4 | 0.6 | 5 | 1.9 | 16 | 96.8 | 827 | 0.2 | 2 | NA | 313 |
| Gloucestershire | 0.6 | 2 | 0.6 | 2 | 1.8 | 6 | 96.7 | 321 | 0.3 | 1 | NA | 97 |
| Greater London | 2.0 | 87 | 5.9 | 261 | 5.4 | 239 | 85.1 | 3,763 | 1.7 | 73 | NA | 95 |
| Greater Manchester | 0.8 | 10 | 1.2 | 15 | 3.9 | 48 | 93.7 | 1,167 | 0.4 | 5 | NA | 148 |
| Hampshire and Isle of Wight | 0.2 | 2 | 0.2 | 2 | 0.7 | 9 | 98.6 | 1,217 | 0.3 | 4 | NA | 180 |
| Hereford and Worcester | 0.2 | 1 | 0.2 | 1 | 2.2 | 13 | 97.5 | 583 | 0.0 | 0 | NA | 12 |
| Hertfordshire | 0.2 | 1 | 0.5 | 3 | 2.6 | 17 | 96.0 | 626 | 0.8 | 5 | NA | 23 |
| Humberside | 0.0 | 0 | 0.5 | 4 | 0.9 | 7 | 98.5 | 742 | 0.0 | 0 | NA | 13 |
| Isles of Scilly | 0.0 | 0 | 2.4 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 97.6 | 41 | 0.0 | 0 | NA | 0 |
| Kent | 0.2 | 2 | 0.3 | 3 | 1.1 | 11 | 97.6 | 953 | 0.7 | 7 | NA | 217 |
| Lancashire | 1.5 | 15 | 0.2 | 2 | 0.9 | 9 | 97.1 | 980 | 0.3 | 3 | NA | 23 |
| Leicestershire | 0.7 | 4 | 0.7 | 4 | 2.8 | 15 | 95.0 | 514 | 0.7 | 4 | NA | 38 |
| Lincolnshire | 0.0 | 0 | 0.2 | 1 | 0.5 | 3 | 99.2 | 615 | 0.2 | 1 | NA | 4 |
| Merseyside | 0.3 | 3 | 1.0 | 9 | 4.0 | 37 | 94.0 | 863 | 0.7 | 6 | NA | 21 |
| Metropolitan fire and rescue authorities | 1.5 | 152 | 3.5 | 362 | 4.3 | 439 | 89.6 | 9,146 | 1.1 | 110 | NA | 393 |
| Non Metropolitan fire and rescue authorities | 0.4 | 79 | 0.4 | 89 | 1.3 | 282 | 97.6 | 21,125 | 0.3 | 69 | NA | 2,714 |
| Norfolk | 0.3 | 2 | 0.3 | 2 | 0.5 | 3 | 98.9 | 653 | 0.0 | 0 | NA | 104 |
| North West Fire Control | NA | 0 | NA | 0 | NA | 0 | NA | 0 | NA | 0 | NA | 0 |
| North Yorkshire | 0.5 | 3 | 0.0 | 0 | 0.7 | 4 | 98.6 | 565 | 0.2 | 1 | NA | 64 |
| Northamptonshire | 0.3 | 1 | 1.0 | 3 | 1.7 | 5 | 96.3 | 288 | 0.7 | 2 | NA | 157 |
| Northumberland | 0.0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0.7 | 1 | 99.3 | 143 | 0.0 | 0 | NA | 140 |
| Nottinghamshire | 0.5 | 3 | 0.9 | 6 | 3.1 | 20 | 95.3 | 608 | 0.2 | 1 | NA | 29 |
| Oxfordshire | 0.0 | 0 | 0.2 | 1 | 1.4 | 7 | 97.5 | 503 | 1.0 | 5 | NA | 51 |
| Shropshire | 0.3 | 1 | 1.1 | 4 | 0.3 | 1 | 98.3 | 345 | 0.0 | 0 | NA | 124 |
| South Yorkshire | 0.1 | 1 | 0.9 | 6 | 1.8 | 12 | 96.6 | 655 | 0.6 | 4 | NA | 0 |
| Staffordshire | 1.7 | 11 | 1.7 | 11 | 0.3 | 2 | 95.8 | 610 | 0.5 | 3 | NA | 0 |
| Suffolk | 0.2 | 1 | 0.2 | 1 | 1.9 | 8 | 97.6 | 415 | 0.0 | 0 | NA | 168 |
| Surrey | 0.9 | 5 | 0.4 | 2 | 1.6 | 9 | 97.1 | 545 | 0.0 | 0 | NA | 24 |
| Tyne and Wear | 0.5 | 3 | 0.2 | 1 | 1.7 | 10 | 97.1 | 569 | 0.5 | 3 | NA | 42 |
| Warwickshire | 0.6 | 2 | 0.6 | 2 | 0.6 | 2 | 98.3 | 346 | 0.0 | 0 | NA | 77 |
| West Midlands | 2.2 | 30 | 4.9 | 67 | 5.6 | 76 | 86.5 | 1,174 | 0.8 | 11 | NA | 27 |
| West Sussex | 0.0 | 0 | 0.2 | 1 | 1.4 | 7 | 98.0 | 485 | 0.4 | 2 | NA | 116 |
| West Yorkshire | 1.8 | 18 | 0.3 | 3 | 1.7 | 17 | 95.4 | 955 | 0.8 | 8 | NA | 60 |
Download table data for ‘By ethnicity and area (firefighters only)’ (CSV) Source data for ‘By ethnicity and area (firefighters only)’ (CSV)
Summary of Fire and rescue services workforce By ethnicity and area (firefighters only) Summary
The diversity of the population in each area should be considered when looking at these figures. The areas served by each fire and rescue service do not exactly match the geographical areas covered by Census data.
Percentages are based on firefighters whose ethnicity was known. The data shows that, in 2022:
- West Midlands had the highest percentages of firefighters from the Asian (2.2%) and mixed (5.6%) ethnic groups, and Greater London had the highest percentages from the black (5.9%) and ‘other’ (1.7%) ethnic groups
- 46.2% of people in London were from Asian, black, mixed and other backgrounds at the time of the 2021 Census
- Northumberland had the highest percentage of firefighters from the white ethnic group, 99.3%
7. By ethnicity and duty type (firefighters only)
| Full-time ('wholetime') firefighters | On-call ('retained') firefighters | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ethnicity | Full-time ('wholetime') firefighters % | Full-time ('wholetime') firefighters Number | On-call ('retained') firefighters % | On-call ('retained') firefighters Number |
| All | 65.2 | 22,781 | 34.8 | 12,179 |
| Asian | 87.4 | 202 | 12.6 | 29 |
| Black | 92.0 | 415 | 8.0 | 36 |
| Mixed | 87.2 | 629 | 12.8 | 92 |
| White | 65.6 | 19,853 | 34.4 | 10,418 |
| Other including Chinese | 80.4 | 144 | 19.6 | 35 |
| Unknown | 49.5 | 1,538 | 50.5 | 1,569 |
Download table data for ‘By ethnicity and duty type (firefighters only)’ (CSV) Source data for ‘By ethnicity and duty type (firefighters only)’ (CSV)
Summary of Fire and rescue services workforce By ethnicity and duty type (firefighters only) Summary
On-call firefighters are not based at a fire station. They carry a pager and respond to emergency incidents as and when they happen.
The data shows that, in 2022:
- 92.0% of black firefighters were full-time, and 8.0% were on-call
- 87.4% of Asian firefighters were full-time, and 12.6% were on-call
- 87.2% of firefighters from mixed ethnic backgrounds were full-time, and 12.8% were on-call
- 65.6% of white firefighters were full-time – the lowest percentage out of all ethnic groups – and 34.4% were on-call
- 80.4% of firefighters from the ‘other’ ethnic group were full-time, and 19.6% were on-call
8. Data sources
Source
Fire and rescue workforce and pensions statistics: England, April 2021 to March 2022
Type of data
Administrative data
Type of statistic
Official statistics
Publisher
Home Office
Publication frequency
Yearly
Purpose of data source
Ethnicity and gender data is used by fire and rescue services as part of diversity monitoring schemes.
9. Download the data
This file contains the following: Measure, Ethnicity, Ethnicity_type, Time, Geography, Role, Duty, denominator, count, value