South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Authority has appointed Jamie Courtney as the county's new chief fire officer.

Mr Courtney, 49, has been in the role on an interim basis since April 2011 following the departure of Mark Smitherman.

He joined South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue in November 2006 and has held a number of high-level roles including deputy chief fire officer, area manager − head of emergency response and assistant chief fire officer for service delivery.

Mr Courtney started his career with Merseyside Fire and Rescue and has spent a year at Her Majesty's Fire Service Inspectorate.

He said: "It is a great honour to take up the role of chief fire officer for South Yorkshire on a full-time basis. During the last ten months I have been delighted to lead the service through a very challenging period and I look forward to continuing this for the foreseeable future.

"I am under no illusions that with the current economic climate we face testing times to find ways of making the savings in our budget. However, we have an extremely skilful and hard working team across South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue and alongside the fire authority, community partners and members of the public I believe that together we can overcome the difficulties which face us."

Jim Andrews, chair of South Yorkshire Fire Authority, added: "We are pleased to appoint Jamie Courtney as chief fire officer. He has done a superb job in the role during the past months and we feel he has the credentials to continue this excellent work.

"This is a hugely important and prestigious position for the county and one which will provide many challenges over the coming period. We are confident that Mr Courtney will lead the fire service during this critical time with the same professionalism and determination he has already shown."

 

Posted February 8th, 2012 at 1015 by Andrew. Comment by emailing: andrew.lynch@pavpub.com