EXCLUSIVE: Hero to zero? How Oliver Lee lit up West Midlands Fire Service but was undone
He's been suspended, resigned, withdrawn his resignation, and been 'terminated' - now he speaks about his seven months in charge of a 'service in crisis'
He was the decorated war hero who brought all his men safely home from the killing fields of Afghanistan, a man of undoubted charisma and integrity, and a Brummie to boot.
Royal Marine colonel Oliver Lee was the ideal candidate to lead the troubled 1,900 strong West Midlands Fire Service into a new era as it recovered from grief and scandal.
But after a tumultuous seven months and an extraordinary public spat with his erstwhile bosses, Lee has been forced out.
Also gone is the governing Fire Authority’s former chairman, Greg Brackenridge, who quit after a row over his ‘exaggerated’ military service. He’s now suspended and facing a Labour Party investigation into the claims.
The Home Office and the chief inspector of fire services are closely eyeing the service as it seeks to recover. Multiple investigations are under way, just as the service seeks a new leader. It’s hardly the best advert.
Anyone hoping the dust will quickly settle now is living in cloud cuckooland, however.
Damning, but utterly unsubstantiated, comments are reaching my ears, and his, alleging he has 'links to the Far Right’, hasn’t sufficiently protected the legacy of his predecessor, and was messianic in his approach.
In this exclusive and first interview since he was booted out, Oliver Lee talks frankly about the highs and frustrating lows of his turbulent time at the frontline service. It’s a story of frustration and ‘untruths’, tears and honour.
We also unpick the events that led to his rapid departure and explore what went so wrong - and hear from some who believe he is to blame for his own downfall.
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‘He’s the best thing to ever happen to West Midlands Fire Service.’ ‘The best leader the service has ever known’. ‘He always had our best interests at heart, I’m gutted.’
In a mark of the esteem in which he’s held, Oliver Lee has been swamped with thousands of messages just like these. A petition demanding his reinstatement is nearing 1,000 signatures-strong. It’s rare for someone in a public role like his to make their mark so indelibly in such a short time. I’ve only ever seen anything like it previously when someone’s died in office, which is an irony of its own.
But it's not all love and sadness. There have been other messages.
Some inside the service are delighted to see the back of him. He’s got a Messiah complex, says one. He’s ‘all about Oliver’. He’s ‘flouted rules and breached the Constitution’.
One said they especially fear he has ‘given credibility’ to people who have hounded members of the Fire Authority and Fire Service for months, including his predecessor Wayne Brown, who died in tragic circumstances in January.
There are claims he is unwittingly bolstering a Far Right narrative - Lee says he detests and has no truck with anyone opposed to equality and inclusivity. He was on the receiving end of Tommy Robinson-inspired anger when he decried Marine A’s actions in the infamous filmed killing of an injured Afghan insurgent, he says. It's not something he would ever encourage.
He acknowledges, however, that he has ‘walked a thin tightrope’ over speaking of his predecessor, aware of ongoing complaints and a pending criminal court case, while also mindful of the love and esteem he was held in by many. “I have constantly beseeched people to look forward not back,” he says.
Lee says he’s heard other whispers and complaints too. He says it was long overdue that the needs of firefighters and other staff were ‘put first’, that some senior leaders had become ‘too comfortable’.
“People are trying to defend the indefensible. It is not unexpected.”
It’s certainly been a torrid year at the the country’s second biggest fire service. Lee was appointed as interim chief executive of West Midlands Fire Service in March on a wave of hope and high expectation for a service reeling from the sudden death of his predecessor.
His CV reveals experience as a CEO at four organisations since his very public leaving of the military on principle over the case of Marine A. His natural instincts and values have been honed into a leadership philosophy that puts people first always, in the knowledge that operational excellence follows when personnel are truly valued and cared for.
But his direct experience in the public sector was limited. In his own words he was a ‘novice’ and ‘an outsider’. His military prowess, his reputation as a man of integrity, and his expressions of admiration for uniformed service gave him instant kudos with the troops, however. One describes sitting, starry-eyed, as he first addressed personnel in passionate tones.
From the get-go, Lee was clear that he was a man on a mission. An interim he might have been, but he was not here to babysit an ailing service. He wanted to transform a service in crisis, and that started with its staff.
“Jane, I tell you, these were often very difficult discussions. I saw dozens, not just a few, but dozens of people in tears. I think they felt heard and seen in ways they had not been.” Lee is describing some of his first encounters with the staff he met as he went on a series of road trips, criss crossing the vast region visiting fire stations, workshops, stores and offices that make up the fire service estate. Asked to give him their honest feedback, they confirmed what he feared - that the service was splintered into factions; that people were hurting; and that he needed to bring all his experience to bear to help make it whole again.
To the troops on the ground, he was exactly what they needed. Despite some initial confusion, much of the service leadership bought into his vision too, How then, seven months on, has it all ended so badly?
The answer lies with the service’s Fire Authority. Lee too, has questions to answer.
A very public spat
A month ago, Oliver Lee took to his favoured social media channel, LinkedIn, to share an extraordinary message. In it he wrote that he would not be applying for his interim post on a permanent basis because the governance of the organisation was "wholly impossible". He described the oversight of the organisation as "lacking courage, transparency, care and honesty" - a pointed jarb at the Fire Authority and its statutory officers.
It was the start of a month of chaos.
September 15: The date of Oliver Lee’s controversial post announcing he would be leaving the organisation, not seeking to remain permanently. He wrote of his decision: “I find this very sad in what should be, and could be, a superb public sector organisation. I really hope that someone can take it forward. 1,900 good people deserve this."
September 17: In a massive backlash against the fire authority, service staff and unions demanded answers. I wrote about their anger in this story: 'Devastated' West Midlands Fire staff demand answers after boss steps down with damning message
In his response, Cllr Greg Brackenridge, authority chair, wrote: “While we are disappointed Oliver has confirmed he will not be applying (for the permanent post), he remains in post as Interim CEO...West Midlands Fire and Rescue Authority remains committed to good governance and in following due process in everything we do.” This subtle reference to ‘due process’ hinted at what was really going on behind the scenes.
October 3: Lee takes to LinkedIn again. He announces he will be declaring ‘a vote of no confidence' in those responsible for governing the region's 1,900 fire staff and stations. He was not acting alone. He had brought in two senior staff of his own in the preceding months, who he had worked with during a previous CEO position. Interim Section 151 financial officer Carolyn Simcox and Chris Payne, who was now assistant chief executive, were putting their own futures on the line too by joining him to say the Labour-led authority was 'not being held to account' and firefighters were threatening to quit because of concerns. Fire crew staff were asking him to 'tell us what to do,' he said.
October 3: It didn’t take long for the contents of Lee’s public show of dissent to reach Brackenridge and the authority’s monitoring officer Satinder Sahota. A private message was sent to Lee that night, instructing him to attend an urgent meeting the next morning. In an extraordinary next step, Lee published the contents of that message, and accused Brackenridge of ‘bullying’ him and issuing ‘a threat’. I understand he separately sent messages to Brackenridge. The cold war had turned hot.
October 4: Lee goes ahead and publishes the letter of no confidence. You can read it in full here.
October 7: The Fire Authority reveals that a Section 5 report will be presented to the Fire Authority the following week, accusing Lee of twice breaching the Fire Authority’s Constitution, acting ‘ultra vires’ (outside his powers). It revolves around his decision to suspend the service’s Section 151 officer and finance director back in May over her handling of financial affairs. He had done so without properly following process. Lee had also breached the Constitution by postponing a meeting of the authority’s risk and audit committee for two days. By this time he has also been sent a ‘cease and desist’ notice over his public posts.
October 7: I interview Lee for this piece. If by now there is any doubt about the breakdown in relations between him and the Fire Authority, he is crystal clear. He can 'no longer work with' Brackenridge or Sahota. He also hints he might reconsider his decision to walk away if they were no longer around. Essentially ‘it’s them or me’.
October 7: Oliver Lee is suspended. I understand his suspension is substantially linked to the events of October 3 and his public dissent and criticism of Brackenridge, including messages exchanged over it. His alleged breaches of the Constitution are also in play. “This is not something I had wanted to occur and is not a decision taken lightly by the Fire Authority. The Fire Authority sought external, independent advice before taking this decision,” said Brackenridge.
October 10: Oliver Lee resigns. In another defiant LinkedIn post he writes: "I have been threatened repeatedly, mainly to stay quiet on vital subjects in the public interest. I was threatened with an injunction from the High Court today. I will not be gagged. Nor will I destroy my family with vast legal bills. I have therefore resigned in order to do what is right." In a final barb: "West Midlands Fire Service will now sadly continue as it was when I inherited it: scared, cowed and not able to be itself. Viewing its leaders as selfish."
October 12: Cllr Greg Brackenridge resigns. Under scrutiny for exaggerating his military service, he quits as chair of the Fire Authority. Four days later, he was suspended by the Labour Party too and loses the whip at Wolverhampton Council.
October 13: Oliver Lee withdraws his resignation. He reaches out to the Fire Authority to say that in light of Brackenridge’s decision, he would like to continue in his interim role, pending a permanent appointment. He describes it as his first ever u-turn.
October 14: The Fire Authority meets to discuss Lee’s suspension, the Section 5 report, Lee’s resignation and his request to withdraw it, and Brackenridge’s departure. A four hour-plus meeting only includes short sections in public, the rest in private. We learn that members support the Section 5 report recommendations. Lee has admitted two ‘unintentional’ breaches of the Constitution. At the close the Authority refuses any interviews, and members are ushered off the premises without commenting. I ask if Oliver Lee’s resignation has been confirmed, and get a firm ‘no comment’.
October 14: I turn to LinkedIn - by the time I’ve driven from Fire Service HQ in Nechells to our office in the centre of the city, Lee has posted confirmation that his original resignation has been accepted. His tenure is over, his employment ‘terminated’. Hasta la vista.
A flurry of activity has been triggered as a result of this very public war. HM Inspectorate of police and fire services are ‘significantly concerned’ by what they have seen and heard about the breakdown between Lee and the Authority. The service is due for its first major inspection in three years, and will now include a separate governance review. A separate rapid independent investigation is being done by the Fire Authority, reporting next month.
It’s a mess. Thankfully, fire operations have been unaffected. Crews are still regularly risking life and limb to fight fires, deal with crashes, carry out rescues and keep people safe.
Acting chief Simon Barry says of the service: “Senior leaders have been out around the stations, checking in with staff, and there is a sense of sadness over Oliver’s departure. But people are also getting on with their jobs; they have never lost sight of that through all of this. I asked staff if I could honestly tell the Home Office that whatever was going on around the authority, the service was working as normal, and they agreed, that was the commitment from stations. The service the public see will be no different,” he added.
We are conversing by phone, Lee in his family home in Oxfordshire, me in Birmingham. For the first time in the few weeks I have been speaking with Oliver Lee, I sense weariness.
Even for a man of his undoubted resilience, months in the fire service have taken their toll. Many would say he’s been a relentless warrior for the truth; others that every adversity he’s enduring right now has been self inflicted because he’s been unwilling to compromise, keep his counsel or follow procedures.
Since the news of his departure came out on Monday, he has been innundated with inquiries for interviews and discussion, he tells me. “A lot of people seem to want my views on all sorts of things, not just the fire service.” No wonder.
Few people in politically neutral positions in publicly funded organisations like the emergency services have ever given much away on departure, beyond bland phrases of thanks. Even if they have overseen abject failure or been embroiled in disputes, their exit is traditionally sealed with a golden handshake and/or a non disclosure agreement, and they head off to their next post.
Oliver Lee doesn’t fit that mould.
He has no hesitation when asked to recall the most difficult moment he has endured in his life. The suicide of his younger brother Adrian, who died 21 years ago, was the worst of times.
“I adored him and of course still do, wherever he is,” he wrote in a heart wrenching LinkedIn post earlier this year. “He was terrific - kind, decent, thoughtful and seriously gifted on a sports field. He was also horribly good looking, yet he carried it all so lightly that nobody ever resented it. His photo is a bit battered by the years and the sun, but it is fully Adrian.”
The second worst moment was his decision to resign from the Royal Marines after 18 years in the wake of the furore around Marine A. (This Guardian article from the period provides a decent summary) It meant walking away from the ‘band of brothers’ that he had served alongside through war and death, joy and comaraderie but it was ‘needed, on a matter of principle’. There are echoes of Lee’s stance then in what has unfolded in recent weeks.
The third is ‘right now’, said Lee. It is less than 24 hours since Lee learned, in an email, that his employment with West Midlands Fire Service was ‘terminated’.
Leading the organisation had been, without question, ‘one of my life highlights’, said Lee. “It’s been special. I was very humbled that the organisation was prepared to accept a complete novice and outsider to their world, and embrace so much of what I was asking of them,” he says. “The messages I have received, which I am working through responses to, are very much appreciated. But leaving like this has been a low point.”
‘Uncovering the truth’
When Lee arrived at West Midlands Fire Service, he knew he was walking into a service in some disarray. “I was told to ‘be prepared’ - that the service had been through an extremely difficult year and that was I was walking into was not straightforward. That turned out to be unquestionably true.
“To be frank, I believe I was actually told about 10% of the reality. What I found was an organisation unlike anything I had ever seen or been involved in previously as Chief Executive.”
On paper it appeared in robust good health. Inspections by HMI regulators had provided ‘good’ and ‘outstanding ratings. Its performance was not giving cause for concern.
He knew the sudden death of his predecessor Wayne Brown was an open wound in the service, and was aware of speculation around his predecessor’s performance, his conduct in office, his private life, allegations about his qualifications, and other concerns. He was also warned that morale among staff was low.
Much too was made of the service facing ‘persistent external attacks’ aimed at individuals and the service in general. “I was told that the appointment of Wayne Brown as chief fire officer, the first black fire officer in the whole sector, had made the service a particular target for those who adjudged the fire service had become ‘too woke’. Reference was made to people like Tommy Robinson and his ilk, people who dislike any signs of inclusivity, equality, LGBT, and so on.”
Allowing for all of that, what Lee found troubled him hugely. He found ‘a service on its knees’.
In the first weeks in office, he embarked on a tour of the fire stations and other facilities operated by the service. He announced this would be a regular feature of his tenure - triggering what he called ‘some very difficult conversations’ with some senior collegues. Many embraced this new style of working - some were unconvinced. “I was told I was breaking the rank structure, it did not go down well with some.” Lee was confident in his purpose, and ‘travelled like a demon’ in his quest to speak to as many personnel as possible across the region.
Some stations hadn’t seen their CEO in person for months, years even. “I did not turn up with an entourage, as I was advised to - it was just me, Oliver, asking people to gather and ask me anything and tell me anything. Slowly people began to open up.
“Over time the same themes and issues emerged. It was alarming. Repeatedly I was hearing people saying ‘I can’t speak out’, ‘I can’t be myself at work,’ ‘I’m ignored by senior people’, ‘my case has been unreasonably handled,’ and the unions representing staff were telling me the same things.
While he was racing around the region, he learned that members of the Fire Authority - the board overseeing the service - were rare visitors to ‘the front line’. He learned too that there were concerns at all levels about how the fire service was run, its priorities, and its lack of care. “There was a serious trust deficit, and a perceived lack of decisive leadership and care,” he found.
He also discovered critical concerns around the service’s financial state. Lee reported his concerns to the Fire Authority and also to the Home Office.
Used to reporting in previous CEO roles into a Board of professionals, each with a tight grip and understanding of their briefs, he says he was dumbfounded by the lack of expertise and challenge he encountered on the Fire Authority that oversees the service.
“I walked into a service of 1,900 people who I quickly learned were overwhelmingly profoundly unhappy with the fire service.” He needed to know how things had reached this point, and what was being done about it.
“This was my fourth time taking on an organisation of this scale and there are things I seek to hear about very quickly. I want straightforward information including what are its key performance indicators, how is it performing, how is it doing financially, what are its rates of sickness, long term absence, how many mental health first aiders does it have, what do staff feel about the service?”
According to Lee ‘little of this was available.’ Fire Authority members were largely ignorant of information. “There had not been a staff survey done, no proper staff engagement, and the service could not answer requests for basic information. Its financial predictions appeared to differ wildly from reality.”
On this latter point, Lee was alarmed to discover early in his tenure that the service’s ‘year end’ financial position was dramatically different to the forecast that had been presented to members mere weeks before.
Stick with me as I unpick this a little, because it was the catalyst for much of what followed.
Lee described his findings in an emergency message to Fire Authority members, soon after he arrived, telling them: “A serious matter has arisen…it has come to my attention that the year-end (financial) position for 2023-24 differs dramatically from the previously reported forecast/budget. Only one month ago the reported position was very different…following a thorough review and independent verification from the newly appointed financial consultant, there is now a reported underspend of £6 million from last year…our capital expenditure also shows a significant underspend of another £6m. This is significantly different from the previously forecast £500k underspend…it casts doubt over some of the strategic decisions we have taken, and the implications for our people and communities.”
Lee was ‘stunned’ at this finding suggesting an £11.5m ‘gap’. He believes it explains why his predecessor Brown was looking to cut costs, including a plan to reduce crewing levels on fire appliances attending some fires, which one fire union has described as ‘a massive potential danger’ for crews and public. Lee reversed the cuts.
It was also the trigger for a breakdown in his relationship with the Section 151 financial officer at the service. In May he decided to suspend her. He was later to learn it was not in his gift to suspend a fellow accountable officer. He had acted ‘ultra vires’.
Satinder Sahota, the authority’s monitoring officer, was alerted. He was concerned a potentially unlawful breach of the written constitution had occurred, to the detriment of a substantive officer, and investigated discreetly, in line with his required legal duties. Lee says he asked repeatedly for updates on the situation - so when he found out much later that Sahota was quietly producing his draft report, with legal advice, he was furious. It was, he believed, a betrayal, and an underhand act.
Lee has since pored over the Section 5 notice. In his official rebuttal, he says the breaches were not intentional, and that decisions were made ‘multilaterally’ and ‘with great care and thought’. The then authority chair Brackenridge chair signed off the decision, which was eventually presented to the fire authority. The Constitution itself is outdated and due an overhaul, he said. It was an honest mistake, made by a man unaccustomed to the vagaries of public sector governance.
But experts in the field say these claims of naivety about the Constitution details are irrelevant. “He was a statutory officer. It is his (highly paid) responsibility to know what he can and cannot do lawfully. He breached the rules, and the suspension he imposed was unlawful. That is a serious error, a gross error.”
Saviour or disruptive force, or both?
Not everyone thinks Lee was the bee’s knees in the service either. Some believe he was ‘messianic’ in his approach. He swooped in and acted on the word of staff who complained they were being treated badly, failing to appreciate the negative impact of a narrative that seemed to confirm they needed ‘saving’ from their line managers. “He wanted to be seen as the saviour, completely ignoring the chain of command, sending out messages demanding we did x or y today, without delay, with little concept of what other priorities existed,” said one.
Messiah Complex: Also known as a savior complex, is a mental state where someone believes they are destined to save others. People with a messiah complex may have good intentions, but their actions can have negative consequences for themselves and others…someone who has an exaggerated sense of their importance, power, or identity.
There are examples of this, said one senior staff member I spoke to. They cite Lee’s decision to ‘allow firefighters to wear shorts’ as one.
During one of his visits to a fire station this summer, Lee was told of an ongoing complaint from firefighters around a ban on wearing shorts at work. For successive years, they had lobbied without success for the right to wear shorts to work on hot days.
Previous chiefs had seen that as a lowering of standards in a uniformed service, a potential health and safety risk, and more. To Lee it was a reasonable request that was being resisted unnecessarily.
Leave it with me, he told the crews. It was rapidly enacted. One fire union representative told him he would ‘be given the key to Birmingham’ for sorting out a long running sore. Says Lee of the matter: “It struck me as perfectly reasonable for crews in stations without air conditioning to be permitted to wear shorts. It was not something that happened overnight - frustratingly it took four months to sign off through health and safety, safeguarding and HR.”
A senior colleague has a different take. ‘There were good reasons why this had been refused before, but Oliver wasn’t interested in that, he wanted the crews on side.’
Another example is presented to me, in which Lee turned up at a station where crews complained of abandoned old trucks being left ‘for months’ in their yard, taking up precious training space. Nobody is doing anything about it, he was told. With a single call from Lee, tow trucks were on their way. To his critics, it was ‘gesture politics’ to win over the troops and undermine the priorities of line managers, who had the issue in hand - to Lee it was a perfectly valid example of listening and acting. “I don’t frankly understand why that is a point of criticism,” he said as we discussed it.
He was also eager for troops to know they could ‘come to me direct’ - including those with mental health concerns or worries. This personal touch extended to sharing his home address. Many admired him hugely for that, and I know of few bosses in large organisations who would do the same.
Lee bridles at the suggestion that by doing any of these acts he was trying to foment a ‘cult of Oliver’, as one described it. “It is absolutely ridiculous and really gets to the heart of the problems really. I inherited a crisis, and rock bottom morale was part of the problem.
“While I certainly upset some senior staff who had been quite content with how things had operated in the past, I stand by my actions. To suggest I was messianic is nonsense. I may have many weaknesses, but putting myself before those I serve is not one of them.”
The critical commentary I share back with Lee also triggers further reflections from him. He acknowledges that some people inside the service, and the Authority running it, did not grasp why his focus on people was absolutely critical to their collective mission to drive up operational excellence.
It’s not a ‘nice to have’ to put the needs and comfort of staff first - it’s the most critical thing. “Not many officers brought their entire command home safely from Afghanistan, but I am very proud and thankful that I did. It was unprecedented, and one of my proudest achievements,” he says.
Like in the military, and many other public service organisations, human endeavour is at the heart of the fire service. Some 80% of the service’s income is spent on humans, they ARE the organisation, he says. If those 1,900 people do not feel good, and cared for, and listened to, the organisation can never reach operational excellence.
“If people feel truly valued, and are shown what that looks like, they do not wait to be ordered, or for demands to be made on them…they reach for excellence by choice, because of their pride in doing so. The whole reason I care first about people is that I know that is the only way to achieve operational excellence.”
When things fell apart
A team of 15 councillors and Simon Foster, the police and crime commissioner, make up the West Midlands Fire and Rescue Authority, guided by statutory officers. They are drawn from among the councillors who sit on councils across the region.
In exchange for sitting on the Fire Authority, they receive an annual allowance, of around £4,000. Without casting aspersions on any of them individually, it’s fair to say that a seat on the Fire Authority is, at least in some councils, one of the last roles considered when representatives meet to divvy up responsibilities annually. In Birmingham, which has four seats on the Authority, the lead member is elected from the ruling Labour group by their peers, while the other three seats are nominated, often going to long serving, loyal members.
The chair, until recently Cllr Brackenridge, draws a special responsibility allowance of close to £25k, and greater scrutiny and insight is understandably expected of him.
Some members are exceptionally diligent and seek to master their brief, of course. Others turn up to meetings, hastily reading the papers, and rarely consider fire service matters in between times. Some rarely visit fire stations, or speak to the rank and file.
Lee found this an appalling way to govern a critical emergency service. “As individuals I am sure they are all excellent people. But we have an authority overseeing this vital service of 1,900 people who are wholly inexperienced to do so. They largely lack the financial knowledge, the understanding of the service, or the time, to hold the service properly to account.
“There is little robust challenge, and the chair tends to dominate proceedings. I believe he had an autocratic hold. Few incisive questions are asked,” he opined. He thinks the entire governance structure needs a rapid overhaul and hopes that is the outcome of current interventions and investigations.
Lee’s analysis of what is wrong inside the service is extensive. In a formal rebuttal to the Section 5 report, he writes of:
an abject lack of trust in the organisation, especially towards senior people.
Longstanding inadequacies in leadership approach and structures, and associated decision making.
Deep seated grievances felt in many quarters of WMFS as to the treatment of employees over many years.
A complete lack of grip over and understanding of WMFS’s finances.
Repeated deeply unpleasant and threatening external attacks against the organisation generally, as well as aimed at individuals.
An overwhelming body of long overdue work.
Wholly inadequate organisational transparency.
An organisation rooted in the past and with neither the hope nor the faith to look to the future.
A longstanding objective to deliver the Authority only good news.
That the (former) chair Brackenridge and his monitoring officer are ‘unable to consider issues free from the scars” of the last 18 months.
The constant criticisms from the Chair of the Authority towards the MO, and vice-versa.
He worries hugely still about the impact of an ‘unprecedented and statistically dumbfounding’ spate of bereavements impacting the WMFS family, he says. At least nine beloved staff, retirees or people close to the service have died this past year. Lee has spoken at two of the funerals occuring under his tenure, in moving terms. He does not believe Fire Authority members routinely mark such events, but ought to.
Lee is certain he has left the service, if not the Authority, in much better health than he found it. In his departing statement, he wrote:
“I wanted to reflect briefly on what we have done over these past seven months. It is of course about people.
”First, the physics: the work to emplace proper foundations for the organisation, to correct misguided previous decisions and to address long overdue challenges. Second, the chemistry: the determination to make 1900 people feel valued, safe, cared for, inspired, informed and able to contribute.
”Third, the headline of one team: one team of 1900 people pursuing excellence on behalf of communities numbering almost three million people. This has not been easy to lead, as it has been unforgiving and relentless.“It has taken a considerable toll. But it has been right. It has also shown a clear alternative to the disliked but longstanding status quo.
”Whilst this is often misunderstood, leadership is about service to others, as opposed to being about the leader. At the heart of this is selflessness, care and courage.
”I am truly grateful for all your help in driving this vital change in WMFS; hard though it is to do, I would not change it for the world.”
Oliver Lee heads off on holiday shortly he tells me, with his wife and one of his teenage children. There are some who believe there is still a way back for him to the fire service; others who say there is no chance.
Did those public LinkedIn posts help or hinder his cause? It’s certainly unprecedented, in my career, to see a senior boss so publicly attack the people who hold his future in their hands.
If his intent was to force the hand of people in the Home Office, the Inspectorate, and other local politicians to heed what was going on, he has succeeded. Could he have done so in more subtle ways? Yes - but not necessarily with the results he craved. Would he still be in charge if he had been less gung-ho, even allowing for the Section 5 breaches? Impossible to know - but possible.
Lee is nothing though if not a man of his word. He promised openness, accountability and a warts-and-all approach; that’s what he gave.
His final words show he’s not given up entirely on the West Midlands fire service. “It would take quite a dramatic change in the situation for me to end up back there. But it has genuinely been among the highlights of my life. It has been special, and I have been humbled by the way the organisation accepted me and understood what I wanted to achieve. It has been a privilege.”
NB: I’d like to add a final note. To Lee’s credit, he ducked none of my questions. Unlike Fire Authority members who I’ve asked for direct interviews for this article, to no avail, he has been up front about his achievements and failings on the record, and not through pre-prepared statements. Only briefly in this interview did he go ‘off the record’, when we both agreed it would be legally dubious not to. I also appreciate the firefighters, officers and unions who have contributed their thoughts, discreetly or directly. If anyone wishes to comment on this story, please get in touch: email jane.haynes@reachplc.com
Oliver was the best CEO/CFO. He made things happen. The West mids fire turned into a bureaucratic management, where yes men prevailed.
The senior managers lived in HQ completely oblivious to the situations in the fire stations.
He’ll be truly missed, hearing the words, integrity, honesty and selflessness, words I hadn’t heard since I served the military over 20 years ago.