NORTH Yorkshire’s Chief Fire Officer Andrew Brodie is retiring from the fire service later this year.

Mr Brodie, who has been in the role since January 2019, is to move away from the area to take up a business opportunity beyond the fire service.

He will remain in post until the end of the summer.

He said: “Leading North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service is an immense privilege but, after 31 years working within and supporting the fire service across the country, I have an opportunity to take up a new challenge elsewhere in the UK in a completely different line of work which I am keen to pursue.

“Although today announces my intention to retire in the summer, there will be no let up from me in the priorities which have driven my time as Chief Fire Officer in North Yorkshire. We have achieved a huge amount but there is much more to do to ensure we are an innovative, financially sustainable and collaborative organisation which works to protect North Yorkshire and York every day.

“I am particularly proud of the way we are increasingly working alongside our partners in North Yorkshire Police. From the pilot of public safety officers in Craven to locating more of our teams together at the heart of the communities, our job is to keep people safe and feeling safe, and I look forward to continuing to work closely on that with Chief Constable Lisa Winward, the police, fire and crime commissioner and their teams.”