Potential paramedics queue up in Shrewsbury

The open night, at Montgomery Waters Meadow, was specifically targeted at people from Shropshire as part of West Midland's Ambulance Service's drive to widen its net in filling vacancies.

. They are looking to fill up to 500 student paramedics where trainees will learn on the job whilst being paid and working towards a full qualification in paramedic science and becoming a registered paramedic.

Recruitment manager Louise Jones said not only were they looking to widen recruitment to the whole region, including Shropshire, but also for people who haven't necessarily just finished college, but may want a career change where they can earn whilst learning the job.

She said: "We have been actively recruiting for 12 years but previously it has been quite West Midlands and Birmingham based where we actually cover 5,000 square miles as a region and now we are looking for people who live and work in Shropshire and other areas but be based in those areas from day one of their training.We want people from those areas to live, work and serve their community

"One of the advantages of these roles is that although recruits spend 18 weeks initial training at headquarters, then they go off to their individual hubs so only four and a half months out of the 42 months training will be spent outside the area where you have been recruited.

"They will be part of the crew from an early stage of process and will be treating people and doing everything a trained paramedic does whilst under supervision - it really is a great opportunity to learn on the job whilst being paid and

Holly Jones, a sixth form student from Shrewsbury School said she had come to the event to learn more about the apprenticeship route as she had always had the ambition to become a paramedic from an early age.

She said: "This open event has given me the chance to speak to people who do the job and to see first hand what it involves. It is going to be hard work, a lot of heavy lifting, a lot of pressure but it is something I am ready for.

"This will be a different type of learning from the classroom - I already have the A level I need to apply in Health and Social care and I am sitting Biology and Psychology and learning to drive which you need but the apprenticeship route will mainly be learning on the job which is attractive to me after being at school."

She said part of her motivation was because of the headlines she had seen around the ambulance crisis and that she thought she could help out.

Other recruitment events are being held across the region, for more details visit www.wmas.nhs.uk.