Hi, my name is Leah Smith, I’m 43, I’m married and Mum to two young boys. I enjoy keeping fit, I run and weight train, and I’m currently learning Brazilian Ju-Jitsu. Hopefully not oversharing, but I’m also in peri-menopause.
I’m an operational Watch Manager and I joined the fire service when I was 25, so have been in the for 19 years. I have predominantly worked at wholetime (full-time) fire stations in the Bournemouth, Poole and Christchurch areas.
I have also worked in our Prevention team, engaging with our communities and promoting fire safety in the home, and I have worked in Protection, which is our commercial fire safety team. I currently work in our Learning and Organisational Development team, where I develop leadership opportunities and build positive culture. Alongside my wholetime roles, I spent seven years as an on-call firefighter at Wimborne.
I have absolutely loved my 19 years with DWFRS, I have had the pleasure of working with some of the most amazing people, who have supported, inspired and motivated me throughout my career. Working here has given me confidence, opportunity, resilience and a feeling of self-worth by making a positive impact in our communities.
I’ve volunteered to be a Buddy as I really want others to have the positive experience that I have had in the Service. It has given me so much, and I want to be able to dispel the myths and perceptions that people have about the fire service.
If you can relate to anything about me and would like to chat about how I’ve navigated various aspects of my life in the fire service, or want to know more about why I feel the Service has given me such incredible development opportunities, I’d love to be your buddy.