Vote Now in The Public Choice Awards
North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service is inviting members of the public to vote for their local hero in its 2023 Annual Awards.
The joint ceremony held by North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service North Yorkshire Police recognises outstanding work by officers, staff and volunteers of both organisations.
From bravery on the frontline to unsung heroes working behind the scenes to keep the people of North Yorkshire safe, the awards highlight the very best of our fire and police services.
The award ceremony will be held in November and will see awards presented in 27 categories across both organisations.
Voting for the Public Choice Award is now open, giving the opportunity for members of the public to decide who should win the coveted honour of being the people’s choice. The four finalists for each service have been selected from the 27 winners from both organisations.
Zoë Metcalfe, North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, said: “The Public Choice Awards remind us to recognise and highlight the extraordinary work that our brave Officers, Firefighters, volunteers and Police and Fire staff provide to go above and beyond for our communities, helping people to be safe and feel safe wherever they are and whatever they are doing.
“One of the priorities within both my Police & Crime and Fire & Rescue plans is to enhance positive culture, openness, integrity and public trust in Police and Fire services, with a personal pledge to work tirelessly to restore and renew that trust if confidence has been shaken.
“These awards present the opportunity to reinforce confidence by showcasing some of the amazing work being done across York and North Yorkshire, and I want to personally say thank you to North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service and North Yorkshire Police for continuing to work hard to protect us during challenging times.”
The winners of the Public Choice Award will be announced at the ceremony in November.
And the nominees are…
Youth Engagement Team
Our Youth Engagement Team have won our Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Award. The work may not be what you think of as being delivered by the Fire & Rescue Service but we are proud of the impact they make on our communities. It’s over to you to decide if they should win the Public Choice Award for North Yorkshire Fire & Rescue.
Our youth engagement team deliver significant, sometimes life changing, results for children and young people; not by entering fires, jumping into water or attending road traffic collisions, but by delivering early intervention programmes, Fire Cadets and BTEC Qualifications.
The team consists of Wholetime and On-Call Firefighters and Community Safety Officers working in addition to their roles, balancing work and home commitments around delivering additional opportunities for young people.
Many young people the team work with could be considered vulnerable, and additional needs, neurodiverse challenges or adverse childhood experiences are commonplace.
Through their work, the team seek to improve outcomes for young people by helping them develop practical, communication and teamwork skills allowing them to grow in confidence and develop resilience which supports them in daily life, assisting in progressing educationally and possibly with employment.
They achieve this by working hard to understand the young people as individuals and establishing themselves as trusted positive role models. The work is physically and emotionally challenging, yet they remain positive and motivated by the growth and achievements of the young people they are working with.
The Firesafe team blend specialist knowledge, patience, understanding and creativity to reach positive change in fire-related behaviours for young people who have had inappropriate interest in fire.
Do they change lives? The following are just a couple of recent life changing impacts:
A young person with autism was being bullied and not attended school since lockdown. He returned to school two weeks after our course feeling confident and wanting future choices. His youth worker stated, “he has pushed this himself, wanting to get used to school before September. I don’t know what you said or did, but you are all an incredible part of his journey!”
A child was the primary carer for a parent with life limiting conditions, was struggling with confidence, feeling devalued, lacking motivation and not attending school due to bullying. The child opened up through the course, becoming more optimistic and re-entered education the following week.
Capabilities Team
Our Capabilities Team have won our team of the year award. Do they have your nomination to be Public Choice Award winners for North Yorkshire Fire & Rescue? Read on to learn more about their work.
The team provides many vital functions that are rarely recognised, yet if they weren’t fulfilled it would mean, among many outcomes: a delay in payments to staff for overtime, the switchboard not being attended, invoices not being paid. They are a vital and trusted partner maintaining critical business as usual systems, whilst supporting service improvements and change.
Over the last 10 months the team has gone from strength-to-strength. They have brought ideas to the table to assist with training, the sharing of workloads and the skills and knowledge required to deliver on those workloads.
The role of the capabilities team is to complete supportive administration tasks for local districts, departments and IT systems. The teamwork that they exhibit is un-paralleled. Even though a lot of them work remotely, they make time to ensure that each member is looked after. They take time to train each other and mentor each other in each individual task and role.
They have an overview of the workings of the Fire Service and always look for ways in which to help improve the service. The team has pushed innovation by reassessing and reformatting essential business processes and refining them to ensure efficiency. They have been pivotal in supporting the addressing changes in Fire & Rescue’s systems, going between departments, individuals and external agencies to ensure that information is correct. This has been frustrating and foundational work. Their work can also be incredibly reactive, and the team always meet new demands with open arms.
They are welcomed on stations and are often an empathetic ear to those around them, maintaining confidentiality and supporting their colleagues in some difficult situations.
The leadership of Interim Senior Manager Sian Davies and Watch Manager Sophie Brownridge, has steered the department to become a valued and respected source of support, undertaking a wide and varied spectrum of work.
There is so much of the organisation that relies on the invaluable work that the team completes daily. We would be lost without them.
Temporary Crew Manager Jon Hancock
Jon has won our Firefighter of the Year award. Does he also get your vote for the Public Choice Award for North Yorkshire Fire & Rescue? To help you decide please read more about Jon.
Being a firefighter is about more than running into fires, saving people from water or attending road traffic collisions. A big part of the job is the wider support that is provided to colleagues and the community, and we believe that Jon embodies what it is to be a role model firefighter.
He has undertaken the role of lead instructor for Richmond’s fire cadets for the past two years mentoring 12 students through their BTEC qualification in ‘Fire and Rescue Services in the Community’.
In addition to his on-station work, Jon has organised and supported the students to undertake other activities including numerous charitable fund raisers and service community safety events:
- Raising over £2,500 for charities such as The Fire Fighters Charity, Muscular Sclerosis UK, Ukraine Aid Appeal and other local charities.
- Completed a charity ladder climb to the equivalent height of Mount Everest raising £600 for Yorkshire Air Ambulance and The Fire Fighters Charity.
- Water and road safety campaigns at several events including Hunton Steam Gathering and Richmond Emergency Services show.
Jon has also been heavily involved with youth engagement within the district. He planned and organised a week’s work experience programme for two Fire Cadets, who have ambitions to become on-call and eventually wholetime firefighters.
He has organised and delivered several ‘day in the life’ courses to The Prince’s Trust. An organisation which is dedicated to delivering essential life skills to children and young adults looking to gain the necessary tools and experience for gaining employment.
He has also organised an ongoing Christmas toy appeal with local shops, communities and schools to supply presents to underprivileged children in the area. Part of this involved created a Santa’s Grotto experience within the station for the local children to receive their gift.
Jon seeks to go beyond the job description of a firefighter to seek out opportunities to engage and support the local community. He is a great role model for the service.
Shelley Mattocks, Operational Training Administrator
Shelley Mattocks has won our 2023 Lifetime Achievement Award for Staff. She is also a nominee for the Public Choice Award. You can read more about what makes Shelley such a special colleague and then decide if she has your vote.
Shelley has been in role as Operational Training Administrator at Training Centre for two years and was previously Team Leader in the Central Admin Office Human Resources Team. She has worked for North Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Service since 2007 and previously at Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service. is nominated not only for how she operates in her current role but for the impact that she has had on so many colleagues over so many years.
We’ll let the multiple nominations speak for themselves:
“In all the roles I’ve had throughout my time with the service, I’ve had interactions with Shelley. If one thing stands out above all else, if you’re in a fix, unsure what to do, not sure where ‘that form’ went, can’t remember what course you booked, a voice in the room will always say…” Give Shelley a ring”.
“Shelley will always do her upmost to help anybody out. Her knowledge about the inner workings of the fire service is extraordinary and I’ve had to call upon Shelley’s expertise on many occasions. Her knowledge of the service enables her to signpost and help, and consistently benefits those she interacts with.”
“Shelley is truly one the NYFRS’s unsung heroes…she works hard and goes over and above her role on a daily basis and is a credit to the service and people we serve in North Yorkshire.”
“She very rarely says no to individuals who need assistance as she wants to help and assist towards the service’s vision of being an exemplary service, by supporting crews and enabling them to achieve the service’s priorities.”
Shelley embodies our services values, continually supporting and putting the crews and individuals first. She overcomes obstacles to reach the desired outcome, not only for the individuals, but also the service, ensuring colleagues are listened to. She finds solutions where others may have given up.
Thank you for your interest. Voting is now closed! The winners will be announced at our Annual Awards ceremony on 24 November 2023.