National union executive board role for Moray retained firefighter

A MORAY retained firefighter has been appointed to the executive board of a fire service union.

Crew Commander Dave Crawford was unveiled last year as the Fire and Rescue Services Association’s (FRSA) new officer for Scotland and has topped off a busy 12 months with the news of his new national role on the board.

It all came as something of a surprise for Mr Crawford, who is part of the retained firefighting team at Fochabers fire station and is also a civilian firefighter at RAF Lossiemouth.

He said: "It's a huge honour to be asked to sit on the national Executive Board.

"To be honest it was a bit of a surprise when I was asked to take on the role as I've only been in post as the Scottish FRSA officer for Scotland for a year.

"There're around 10 people serving on the board and we're basically there to make sure the union's values and policies are being adhered to. There're usually about four or five meetings a year. With Covid restrictions being lifted I'm not sure at the moment if we'll be going back to face-to-face meetings. The first board meeting I had was on Teams, so we'll just have to see how that goes."

The past year has certainly been a busy one for Mr Crawford as, among other priorities, he sought to raise the union's profile across Scotland.

"It's been a really busy but successful year for the FRSA in Scotland," he continued.

"There has been a big increase in our membership, which his really encouraging.

"I've been undertaking a lot of re-organisation in the way the union is run in Scotland and I've had a lot of help from my colleague Tim Kirk and FRSA chief executive Tristan Ashby.

"As a union we've been talking more to the management at the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service and it's been very positive. The FRSA is very positive about change and both our members and the management appreciate that approach.

"As a service we've got to change, we can't keep going on as we are at present."

Welcoming Mr Crawford to the Board, Mr Ashby said: "Our Scottish official, David Crawford has been appointed to the Fire and Rescue Services Association Executive Board, which is the national body that oversees the strategic operation of the union.

"David has been a Scottish Official for almost a year and has worked tirelessly since he has been in post. During the last 12 months David has forged a good productive relationship with senior managers within Scottish Fire and Rescue Service and made great strides in bringing retained and volunteer firefighter issues to the fore, something that has been missing in recent years.

"David is a valuable asset to the union and our members in Scotland and I am personally very proud to be able to welcome David onto the Executive Board, where I know he will make a meaningful contribution to the national agenda on behalf for our members in Scotland."

Anyone wishing to contact Mr Crawford on union matters can get in touch with him via hq@frsa.org.uk