A COUPLE who run a fish and chip shop in Ludgershall have been recognised for their support of Wiltshire Fire & Rescue Service.

Although they are only a small employer, Peter and Pauline Unwin who run Down At The Chippy allow one of their members of staff, Dean Andrews, to be an on-call firefighter and they have been supportive and understanding when he has been called away from work to serve his community.

The fire service says that, despite the inevitable impact that Mr Andrews’ absence has on their business, Mr and Mrs Unwin have remained good-natured about the disruption.

And their support goes beyond freeing up a member of staff. On numerous occasions, they have provided a hot meal for firefighters on their return from an incident, making them very popular.

Mr and Mrs Unwin are also actively involved in the Ludgershall community.

At the service’s annual awards ceremony, held at Potterne HQ on Tuesday, June 12, Chief Fire Officer Simon Routh- Jones presented Mr and Mrs Unwin with the Excellence Award for Employer of the Year.

This award recognises the employer who has done most to support retained firefighters in Wiltshire.

CFO Routh-Jones said: “We could not run the fire service without the support and understanding of employers such as the Unwins. In communities like Ludgershall, retained firefighters are essential to keeping people safe, but they can only provide cover if their families and employers enable them to be ‘on call’ and to literally drop everything when their pager goes off.”

To find out more about being a retained firefighter, call 01380 731144 or visit wiltsfire.gov.uk