West Sussex Chief Fire Officer Awarded King's Medal

Sabrina Cohen-Hatton, Chief Fire Officer for West Sussex Fire & Rescue Service, has been recognised in the King’s Birthday Honours for her commitment to the fire and rescue service.

It was announced on June 14 that Sabrina had received the King’s Fire Service Medal which is awarded for distinguished service or gallantry.

“I am absolutely delighted to receive this prestigious award. I am extremely proud to serve within the fire and rescue sector and being awarded for a job that I have genuinely loved doing for the last 23 years is a huge honour and a really special moment.” Sabrina said. 

Sabrina joined South Wales Fire and Rescue Service as an 18-year-old firefighter in September 2001. She decided to join the fire and rescue service after experiencing homelessness from the age of 15, and selling the Big Issue earned her enough money to rent a small apartment after a period of sleeping on the streets of Newport.

“I wanted to rescue people in a way that no one had rescued me,” said Sabrina.

During her time at South Wales, she became a Station Manager and was the project lead for Young Dragons, a partnership of Uniformed Youth Groups, of which HRH King Charles III (then The Prince of Wales) was the patron. She later took a secondment to the Welsh Government as the Assistant Fire and Rescue Advisor.

Sabrina studied psychology at the Open University, Middlesex University and then at Cardiff University, eventually completing a PhD in Behavioural Neuroscience whilst serving as an operational fire officer. She has since been awarded four honorary doctorates from UK universities and is an Honorary Fellow and Professor at Cardiff University where she co-supervises a small research group.

Her interest in decision-making research was sparked when, as a firefighter, she was sent to an incident where another firefighter had been badly burned. There was a one in four chance that it was her husband-to-be. For a long time Sabrina struggled with a sense of guilt for feeling relieved that her fiancé was uninjured, when her friend had been badly burned.

She then decided that she would do everything possible to improve firefighter safety. Her subsequent research into decision making for incident commanders has received many international academic accolades, including awards from the American Psychological Association, and has influenced policy change at a global level.

She is also a published author and an ambassador for a number of international organisations, including Homewards (a program founded by Prince William and the Royal Foundation aiming to demonstrate it’s possible to end homelessness), The Big Issue, and StreetVet.

Lord Bird, founder of the Big Issue, said:

“I am so pleased that Sabrina has been recognised for her vital contribution to the Fire Service with the King’s Fire Service Medal.

“Sabrina experienced homelessness from an early age and selling the Big Issue offered her a means by which to move off the streets and into a safe place to live. When she came to us back in 2019 to share her story, she shined a light on the ways that the Big Issue can change lives.

"We thank her for that and for coming onboard as an Ambassador, using her own incredible story to drum up support. She continues to be an inspiration and everyone here at the Big Issue would like to offer their congratulations to Sabrina for being recognised in this way.”

In 2015 Sabrina was appointed as a Deputy Assistant Commissioner in London Fire Brigade. She was also seconded to Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services as Chief of Staff and Inspection Development Lead. She briefly joined Surrey Fire and Rescue Service as the interim Deputy Chief Fire Officer before being appointed as the Chief Fire Officer here in West Sussex in 2019.

Throughout her career Sabrina has been a commander at several significant incidents, including the Westminster Bridge Terror Attack, Finsbury Park Terror attack and the aftermath of Grenfell Tower.

Today Sabrina serves as the National Fire Chief’s Council Improvement Chair and National Lead for Working Dogs, alongside her role as Chief Fire Officer.

“To anyone reading this, I would really love for you to read my story and wholeheartedly believe that anything is possible. No matter where you start in life, it doesn’t determine where you end up, only where you start from. Know that you can break with convention – and when you do, you’re no longer constrained by it either.” she said.

“The fire service offered me the opportunity for social mobility that I hadn’t previously thought possible and I’m incredibly proud to be a public servant. My career has certainly been a varied and rewarding one, but receiving this honour would not have been possible without the support of my colleagues and the patience of my family; particularly my husband and daughter, as well as the inexpressible comfort I get from my dogs after a difficult day.

“I feel incredibly humbled to see my name included in the King’s Birthday Honours list, and I don’t think it will sink in for quite some time.

“The ability to learn and research is a gift that I feel very privileged to have had, and I am truly grateful to the fire and rescue services that I have served with for embracing my passions, giving me opportunities to develop and being open to implementing change to create a sense of psychological safety among our firefighters that are trusted to make decisions in the most challenging of circumstances.”