London Fire Brigade Aptitude Tests - Verbal, Numerical, SJT Tests and Interview Preparation

In this PrepPack™ you will find preparation materials for your situational judgement test, personality profiling assessment, numerical, verbal, and mechanical tests. As well as this, you will gain instant access to our interview preparation and assessment centre materials. On top of this, there are video tutorials and study guides to help you out along your journey. 

The London Fire Brigade provides fire and rescue services to the whole of London. Recruitment to the brigade is carried out centrally, and takes place at specific times only. London fire brigade jobs are hard to come by, and you can only apply for a position when the recruitment window is open. Taking this into account, it is important that you take your application seriously and do your best on all parts. The recruitment process follows the national format, with some additional tests.

London Fire Brigade recruitment is as follows:

• Initial Application
• National Firefighter Ability Tests
• National Firefighter Questionnaire (NFQ)
• Interview
• Physical Tests
• Medical Checks
• References
  
  

The form itself is clear and simple – you are asked to provide your name, address, contact details, qualifications, driving license, fire service employment, and any previous criminal convictions. Accompanying the application form are some questions about some of the personal qualities and attributes (PQAs) that are required in all firefighters. This section of the application form is important, as through your answers you need to show you are a suitable candidate for the London Fire Brigade to take your application to the next stage.

If your application form meets the required standard, you are next asked to take three psychological tests. These tests are the ones set in the National Firefighter Ability (NFA) tests. You need to pass all three tests in order to move on to the next stage.

• Firefighter Maths Test - This National Firefighter Ability test you will take is the"working with numbers" test. In this test you are being tested for your ability to understand and work with numerical information. The questions are based on the sorts of information you will work with as a firefighter. There are 32 questions covering six scenarios. You need to be able to perform addition, subtraction, multiplication, division calculations, and estimations using numerical data. You have to be able to perform these calculations quickly and accurately and under timed conditions.
• Firefighter Understanding Information Written Test - This national firefighter selection test is a verbal reasoning test assessing your ability to read and understand the type of written information you will receive as a firefighter. In this test you will receive written sources such as fire safety details, memos, newsletters and extracts from a training manual. You are asked 25 questions on this information on six different scenarios. There are several challenging elements to this test. You need to be able to read information and understand it quickly and accurately to answer the questions. Whilst taking this test you will be under pressure to perform as this is your future at stake. If you are well prepared you have nothing to fear in any of the firefighter written tests.
• Situational Judgement Test - The National Firefighter Ability test situational awareness test tests how you use information to solve problems and ensure the safety of everyone around. You are given scenarios that you could come across as a firefighter, and asked questions about how you would act in that situation. Each question has four options, and you have to choose the one that most closely matches what you would do. There are 30 questions in total. No specific knowledge of the job of a firefighter is needed to take this test. You need to be able to put yourself into the job, and use the information provided to come up with the best solution. Taking practice situational judgement tests will help you understand how you react to different situations and how to identify the best outcomes.

The NFQ assesses your attitude and motivation. There are 127 questions based on seven Fire and Service Personal Qualities and Attributes (PQAs). These PQAs are:

• Working with others
• Commitment to diversity and integrity
• Confidence and resilience
• Commitment to excellence
• Commitment to development
• Situational awareness
• Openness to change

This test is essentially a personality test. Find out more about how to approach a personality test with JobTestPrep.

You will be interviewed by staff from the London Fire Brigade. Questions will be on topics such as your knowledge, skills and attributes so that they can assess your suitability as a fire fighter. You may also be asked questions about the information you have provided on your application form, so make sure you review your form ahead of the interview. Also make sure you do your research on the force, and the area you wish to work in, what they do, and the work that you will be doing as a firefighter. On top of this preparation, you also need to brush up your interview skills. JobTestPrep can help you with this one, with our online interview preparation package.

In the next stage, you will need to undertake a series of physical tests which will assess your fitness, confidence and ability to follow instructions. These tests follow the National Firefighter Selection tests, and are:

• Ladder climb – A test of your confidence up a ladder.
• Casualty evacuation – Testing your lower and upper body strength as you drag a heavy weight around a course, backwards.
• Ladder lift – Testing your upper and lower body strength as you lift a ladder over your head.
• Enclosed space – Test of your confidence in an enclosed space with a weight and limited visibility.
• Equipment assembly – Test of manual dexterity as you put together a piece of apparatus and take it apart again.
• Equipment carry – Testing your aerobic fitness as you carry equipment for various distances.

For more information about these tests, see our national fire and rescue service recruitment page.

Following these stages, you will have two rounds of final checks: a medical check, and a reference check. You must successfully pass all of these stages in order to be offered a job with the London Fire Brigade.

Recruitment with the London Fire Brigade happens at most once a year, so if there is a recruitment window, it is vital that you grab the opportunity to get a coveted role with the brigade, and to do that you have to make sure you do your best at each stage of the application process. This article has taken you through each stage of the application process, and given you information about how to prepare further in particular for the written tests and interview. We hope you have found this useful, and good luck.