ELEVEN firefighters were officially welcomed into West Sussex Fire and Rescue Service at a passing out parade attended by family members, friends and future colleagues.

Each recruit was presented with a certificate to mark the successful completion of their training course.

There was also a special award for firefighter Joe Barkley, who was presented with a silver axe for his outstanding performance throughout the course.

The ceremony is the culmination of a gruelling 14-week residential training course, undertaken at WSFRS’s in-house training centre at Horley Fire Station.

The recruits learned all the skills they need to begin their careers as firefighters, including core ladder and hose skills, technical and water rescue and breathing apparatus training.

They also successfully completed South East Coast Ambulance’s Immediate Emergency Care Responder course.