Children's and youth fire departments booming in Lower Saxony

Children's and youth fire departments in the German state of Lower Saxony are witnessing a surge in participation, continuing a positive trend observed in previous years. The number of young members has climbed to 54,689, marking a 2.5 percent increase, or 1,349 more boys and girls compared to 2024.

Matthias Düsterwald, the state's children and youth fire warden, described the development as "impressive" and indicative of the high appeal these organizations hold for young people. The figures were recently presented at the Interschutz trade fair in Hanover. At the end of the year, Lower Saxony counted 1,246 children's fire departments and 1,920 youth fire departments.

Children aged six to ten can join the children's fire departments, which focused on playfully introducing topics like fire safety. For the youth fire departments, catering to older children, there were 32,205 members. Approximately 37 percent of all members across both children's and youth fire departments are girls. While actual fire service operations are not part of the training for these younger groups, many local fire departments aim to recruit future firefighters through their youth programs. From the age of 16, young people are often permitted to join the operational units of fire departments.

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This development is impressive and shows how attractive the children's and youth fire departments in Lower Saxony are for young people.