Northumberland's top firefighter has announced he will retire later this year.
Paul Hedley has been Northumberland Fire and Rescue Service's chief fire officer since 2016, but his overall service goes back decades.
He began working at Blyth and Cramlington fire stations 36 years ago, before being made assistant chief fire officer in 2009 and then promoted to deputy chief in 2013.
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Mr Hedley has also been involved with fighting wildfires on a national scale, and has been the wildfire lead with the National Fire Chiefs Council for the last 12 years. In 2020, he received the Queen's Fire Service Medal at Buckingham Palace for his services to the people of Northumberland and for his leadership on wildfires.
At Tuesday's meeting of Northumberland County Council's staff and appointments committee, members agreed to start the process to appoint Mr Hedley's successor. Councillors took the opportunity to pay tribute to the outgoing chief.
Deputy leader Coun Richard Wearmouth said: "I would like to thank the current incumbent for the absolutely brilliant job that he has done for so long. He has been an absolute pleasure to work with.
"He is really attentive to the needs of his team and the county."
Council leader Glen Sanderson added that an official thanks would be provided by the council "when the time comes".
The committee agreed that the incoming officer should receive a total remuneration package of £139,366 - the top of Band 17 of the council's pay scales. Chief executive Dr Helen Paterson explained why she felt this was the right thing to do.
She said: "The deputy chief fire officer is also in Band 17 so we need to go to the top so there's a definition between roles and responsibilities. We want this to be an attractive job, we want the best person to come to Northumberland."
Coun Wearmouth added: "It's a very important position and I'm sure it will help us recruit exactly the person we need."
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