Name: Andy Hearn
Job: Station manager - Training planning and projects team
Joined: May 2001
I transferred to London Fire Brigade from Humberside where I’d joined soon after turning 20. Up until then I’d done a couple of college courses and worked at the local steelworks.
I became a firefighter as I was attracted to the active and exciting career that was on offer. Working for the London Fire Brigade has given me a wide range of experience and opportunities that other jobs seldom provide. Apart from the variety of interesting and challenging incidents that I have attended over the years, whilst being the Station manager at Soho Fire Station we hosted the Brigade’s first ever celebration of the Chinese New Year and the London gay pride. For both of these events we opened the doors of the station to the local community and due to their success they have become a regular feature in the Brigade’s annual calendar.
As well as working at different levels on fire stations I have also worked in the training department and the Fire Service College at Moreton in Marsh as a trainer. I have been able to pursue the achievement of outside qualifications by receiving some funding from the Brigade towards the achievement of a Masters degree.
In my current job in the training department I work as a project manager and take a key role in implementing authority training and development solutions. If a certain type of training is required for people within the organisation I manage the design, delivery and evaluation of the resulting training course. Although my day to day job is primarily office based, I still derive a great deal of satisfaction from attending emergency incidents when on call.
In the future I intend to continue with my career progression and hope that the years to come are as enjoyable as those in the past.
