Warwickshire child gets award for helping protect family in house fire
Charlie, who lives in Hatton, received the award during a special school assembly
A Year 5 pupil has been recognised with a joint Chief Fire Officer Award after helping to protect his family during a house fire at their Warwickshire home.
Charlie, who attends Eversfield School in Solihull and lives in Hatton, received the award during a special assembly attended by representatives from Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service (WFRS) and West Midlands Fire Service (WMFS).
Warwickshire County Council says Charlie had learnt safety lessons at West Midlands Fire Service's Safeside centre prior to the fire.
The council says the award – a joint Chief Fire Officer's Meritorious Action Award, recognises Charlie's calm actions during the incident, and the positive impact of fire safety education.
The incident happened in May this year (2026), when an accidental fire broke out in an electrical fuse box at Charlie's family home.
When the smoke alarms sounded, Charlie says he immediately put into practice what he had learned during a visit to WMFS's Safeside centre just weeks earlier. Charlie placed wet towels against a door to help slow the spread of smoke and fire.
Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service crews from Henley-in-Arden and Kenilworth fire stations attended and extinguished the blaze where thanks to Charlie's quick-thinking, no-one was injured.
Charlie said:
"When it happened, I remembered what we'd learned at Safeside and knew we needed to call 999 and help everyone get out safely.
"I'm really happy to receive this award, and I'm glad we visited Safeside because it helped me know what to do."
Chief Fire Officer Ben Brook, Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service, said:
"This is a fantastic example of Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service and West Midlands Fire Service working together to help keep people safe.
"Charlie's experience shows how prevention and response come together. After visiting the excellent Safeside facility, he learned some important fire safety skills and then put them into practice when a fire broke out at his family home.
"In what must have been a frightening situation, Charlie stayed calm, got out safely, called 999 and did all the right things. Because of those actions, the outcome was far better than it could have been.
"It was a pleasure to congratulate Charlie on everything he did that day and to recognise him with this joint Chief Fire Officer Commendation."
Paul Askew, Deputy Chief Fire Officer at West Midlands Fire Service, said:
"Charlie's actions are an outstanding example of how education can translate into real-life decision-making. Faced with an emergency, he remained calm, acted responsibly and helped protect those around him.
"This joint Chief Fire Officer Commendation recognises not only Charlie's courage, but also the lasting value of high-quality fire safety education for young people."
Charlie's dad, Doug, said:
"As parents, we're incredibly proud of Charlie. In such a frightening situation, he stayed calm and remembered exactly what he'd been taught. We're so grateful for the education he received at Safeside because it genuinely made a difference when we needed it most.
"We'd also like to thank the excellent firefighters from Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service who attended and safely extinguished the fire at our home."