South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Authority (SYFRA) has appointed a new Assistant Chief Fire Officer.

Andy Strelczenie was appointed following a selection process which included a written application, operational assessment and three interviews – including a final one with members of the Fire Authority’s appointments committee.

Andy has worked within the fire and rescue service for 26 years, originally at Hereford and Worcester Fire & Rescue Service before transferring to South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue.

He was previously an Area Manager at SYFR and has been our Head of Emergency Response for three years, more recently overseeing Service Development, Business Fire Safety, HMICFRS inspection planning and our work with the National Fire Chief’s Council.

In his new role, Andy will lead on the delivery of South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue’s service improvement plan and community risk management plans.

Fire Authority Chair Cllr Tony Damms, said: “It’s incredibly important that our fire and rescue service is well led, which is why the selection process for senior roles such as this is so rigorous. The qualities Andy demonstrated during the process will all be needed to drive forward improvement across the organisation, enabling it to provide the best possible service to the communities it serves.”

Andy said: “I am incredibly proud of South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue and honoured to be appointed the service Assistant Chief Fire Officer.

“We aspire to become one of the UK’s leading fire and rescue services and I look forward to further supporting that ambition in my new role – working with our fantastic staff to make sensible improvements to the way we deliver our services whilst putting the needs of our communities first.”