Firefighter and LGBT champion awarded BEM

Charlotte Stacey became an on-call firefighter in 2019

A firefighter and LGBT champion has been awarded a British Empire Medal in the New Year Honours list for services to the community.

Charlotte Stacey, 43, from Oxford, became an on-call firefighter in 2019 and has been a proud advocate for LGBT communities.

She also manages Oxfordshire County Council information services.

Ms Stacey said the award made her reflect on "all the positive things we have done".

For a decade, Ms Stacey has been a diversity champion for the council.

She established and chaired its LGBT colleagues and allies’ network and helped set up others.

"My aim is to build understanding as I’m a strong believer that there is more that unites us than divides us, and we have so much to learn from one another," she said.

Ms Stacey is also keen to tackle hate crime, having been attacked twice since moving to Oxford, which motivated her to "actively promote standing up and speaking out".

She said she was "immensely proud" to have been awarded the medal.

"It makes me reflect on all the positive things that we have done," she added.

"That's reinforced when someone just comes up to you and says 'I'm glad it's there, I don't need to be seen or I don't need to wave a rainbow but I'm so glad you're there'."

'A huge difference'

Oxfordshire’s chief fire officer Rob MacDougall said the service was "thrilled" about Ms Stacey's award.

"Her commitment has been driven by a desire to ensure that LGBT+ communities have a voice, whether this is residents or staff," he said.

Councillor Nathan Ley, member for public health, inequalities and community safety, said she and her fellow on-call firefighters made "a huge difference to the lives of so many people in our county".

"In this instance we're especially proud of Charlotte," he said.