I’m a firefighter on blue watch at Central fire station in Sheffield.

I’ve always wanted to help people and one day I got invited to South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue’s ‘have a go day’, having registered my interest in recruitment on the fire service website.

Once I tried it I knew this was what I wanted to do and I’ve never looked back.

I was looking for a job as a designer after spending some time away from the print industry, working in construction. I saw an advert for firefighters in the job centre and decided to give it a try. It took around six years and three applications before I was successfully appointed on a trainee course.

Twenty three years later, I am station manager at Elm Lane fire station in Sheffield.

My father came to the UK in the early 1960s from Jamaica and served three years National Service in the British Army, where he achieved the rank of Corporal. My Jamaican heritage comes from Browns Town, St Anns in Jamaica.

I am an e-learning coordinator, meaning I oversee the online training which helps to keep our staff competent and safe in their roles. Since joining the fire service, I’ve found it to be one of the best employers I have worked with.

I am proudly of Jamaican descent and owe my family everything I have achieved.

I am a strong advocate of women’s BAME and disability rights, care about my community and am passionate about accessibility to learning.

I’m an administrator within the service’s technical services team. This is an important function, because it oversees the operational equipment which firefighters use at emergency incidents. I joined the team in 2006, having first got a job with the service in 1998 as part of the corporate administration team.

I consider myself Black British, but my family roots are from Barbados in the West Indies. My parents came to Sheffield in the mid-1950s to start a new life and gain employment.

I joined the fire service only recently as a Human Resources Administrator, via a recruitment agency.

My parents are originally from Accra in Ghana and I come from a religious background.

Both of my grandmothers are considered queens in Ghana, so you could say I am descended from Royalty!

I am a firefighter, currently serving at Parkway fire station in Sheffield.

I joined the fire service in 1998, having been a Royal Marine for 10 years. Before that, I was a hairdresser, winning junior hair stylist of the year in 1987.

My dad was Jamaican and my mother was of English, Scottish and Irish descent.

Joining the fire service was a lifelong ambition of mine. On 18 Feb 1992 I was completing an assignment for my course at Sheffield Polytechnic University and needed to take a break. I picked up the Sheffield Gazette newspaper and there was an advertisement for recruitment to the fire service. I decided to apply there and then and I was successful.

I am a firefighter and each day there is something to look forward to. This job is fulfilling because you can save lives, but there are also times that it is ultimately physically, mentally and emotionally tiring.

I joined South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue as a firefighter in 2018, having looked online how to apply. I registered my interest and went to a ‘have a go day’. I then applied when the process was open and was lucky enough to be successful.

My father’s side of the family is Jamaican and my mother’s side is Scottish. I have been brought up with strong links to my culture and to always remember my roots.

I’ve worked for the fire service for 21 years- studying for a Business & Administration NVQ and working as a recruitment clerk. Two years later I moved to fleet management, maintaining the records and logistics for all fire service vehicles. After a restructure, I then moved into ICT, where I have been promoted to the post of ICT Technician. This means I service all the computers used across the organisation.

I grew up in Burngreave, Sheffield. My grandad came over from Jamaica during the Windrush era and settled in the city, working as a drayman. My dad worked in the transport industry, while my mum followed her family tradition as a nurse at Weston Park Hospital.

I’m a firefighter at Parkway fire station in Sheffield, having first joined the service in 1996. I had wanted to be a firefighter from the age of 11. It’s a great honour to serve people in the local community.

I was born at Nether Edge Hospital in Sheffield. My parents came to England from Jamaica in the 1960s.

I joined the fire service in 1978, rising to the rank of Station Manager before retiring in December 2005.

I’d previously worked in Germany and served in the Royal Air Force before joining the service.

My dad was Nigerian and my mother French.

My parents both came from, Jamaica and settled in the UK during the early 1960’s. They both worked, my Dad as a Steel Worker and my Mum as a Nurse. My previous occupation was as a welder and fabricator with various companies.

I joined South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue in June 1988, my first posting being Oaks Lane Fire Station near Rotherham, retiring in June 2018 having served my full 30 years’ service.

I served at a number of fire stations at each of the qualifying ranks and also within departments such as Training, HR, Health and Safety and Equality and Diversity. This enabled me to learn more and more from the incidents and experiences I attended to become a competent firefighter and officer.

During my last few years I served as a Station Manager at Rivelin, Stocksbridge, Royston, Barnsley, Elm Lane and finally Central fire Station until my last promotion to Group Manager as Head of The Community Safety Department.

My Interest in the fire service started after visiting family in Jamaica in 2009. I met some of my relatives who are firefighters in Jamaica.

I joined South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue in 2016. I work in the emergency control room; our main job is to take 999 calls dispatch fire engines to incidents. We ensure that there is adequate fire cover throughout the county and support crews at incidents.

I was born in Sheffield and I am from a mixed background. My Father’s side is from Jamaica and my mother is of Irish and Welsh heritage.

Before joining the fire service, I attended Hillsborough College to study Public Services and then received a BA honours degree from Sheffield Hallam University in Applied Criminal Justice.