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The King’s New Year Honours 2025 – Police, Fire and Ambulance

Recipients of blue light service medals in Scotland.

King’s Police Medal

Shaheen Baber, Superintendent, Police Scotland (Retired)

Alan Speirs, Deputy Chief Constable, Police Scotland

 

King’s Fire Service Medal

Bruce Farquharson, Deputy Assistant Chief Officer, Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (Retired)

Karla Stevenson, Station Commander, Scottish Fire and Rescue Service

 

King’s Ambulance Service Medal

Kenny Freeburn, Regional Director for East Region, Scottish Ambulance Service

 

KING’S POLICE MEDAL

Shaheen Baber, Superintendent, Police Scotland (Retired)

Superintendent Shaheen Baber (retired) began his distinguished policing career with Strathclyde Police in March 1996, starting as an operational response officer in the Easterhouse area of Glasgow.

Over nearly three decades, Shaheen gained extensive experience across critical roles. He spent eight years in local and community policing in Glasgow, followed by eight years in counter-terrorism intelligence, addressing national security threats. He then dedicated five years to counter-extremism, tackling complex public safety challenges. His expertise further expanded through leadership roles within the Safer Communities Division and operational senior management positions in Glasgow and Ayrshire Divisions.

In his final post, Shaheen led the national Policing Together programme where he championed police cultural reform, advanced equality and inclusion, combated hate crime and prejudice, and strengthened community cohesion.

Shaheen’s career was guided by a simple but profound principle: treating everyone with the fairness and respect he would wish for himself. This ethos enabled him to connect with individuals from all walks of life, build meaningful partnerships, and inspire long-term trust within diverse communities and organisations.

A tireless advocate for equity, inclusion, and public service, Shaheen leaves a legacy defined by his unwavering commitment to making a positive impact. His work has not only strengthened communities but also reinforced the core values of fairness and compassion that underpin modern policing. 

 

Alan Speirs, Deputy Chief Constable, Police Scotland

Deputy Chief Constable for People and Professionalism, Alan Speirs, joined Strathclyde Police in June 1988, working in various roles throughout his 36-year career. His roles have included Area Commander for Renfrewshire and Inverclyde Division, Contact, Command & Control Division (C3), Professionalism, Governance & Assurance and Senior Information Risk Owner (SIRO).  

In 2014 as Divisional Commander, he led Renfrewshire and Inverclyde (K Division) during the Commonwealth Games and the UK Referendum Vote. Appointed as Head of Professional Standards in 2016 he established the Complaints Assessment Resolution Unit which improved the response to the public. As Assistant Chief Constable to a newly developed role of professionalism he implemented a force wide whistleblowing policy.

Deputy Chief Constable Speirs has worked extensively with the LGBTQI community within Police Scotland to promote an inclusive culture. He is currently chair of the Professional Reference Group, a group he helped establish following the death of Sheku Bayoh. Following former Chief Constable Sir Iain Livingstone’s acknowledgement of Police Scotland being institutionally discriminatory he took responsibility for activity within the new portfolio of Policing Together. To improve efficiency and practice to become an anti-discriminatory organisation, he was pivotal in the decision to merge Partnerships Preventions and Community Wellbeing and Policing Together.

 

KING’S FIRE SERVICE MEDAL

Bruce Farquharson, Deputy Assistant Chief Officer, Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (Retired)

Deputy Assistant Chief Officer Bruce Farquharson – who retired in July 2024 had a highly distinguished 31-year career. Senior officer roles within the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) included Response and Resilience, Strategic Planning, Performance and Communications and Service Delivery, where he served as Local Senior Officer for Aberdeen City for four years. In his last role with SFRS, he was head of training.

Over and above his day job, he was the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) Wildfire Lead and Chair of the Scottish Wildfire Forum (SWF). Representing Scotland at a UK and European level since 2017, his leadership helped ensure that the natural resources we enjoy in Scotland are resilient to the negative impact that climate change might bring, and that the devastating impact of wildfire on Scotland’s rural communities is reduced.

From 2014 he was a lead for the SFRS United Kingdom International Search and Rescue Team (UK-ISAR)), which responds to global humanitarian accidents or disasters on behalf of the UK Government. He oversaw the training and exercising required by the SFRS team members to maintain their specialist core skills, ensuring that the team establishment is maintained through a succession planning process as well as co-ordinating the deployment of the SFRS UK-ISAR team. He also supported the health, wellbeing and welfare of team members and their families when dealing with dangerous and traumatic major incidents, especially deployed overseas.

 

Karla Stevenson, Station Commander, Scottish Fire and Rescue Service

Station Commander for Community Safety Engagement for Highland, Western Isles, Orkney & Shetland, Karla Stevenson joined Highland and Islands Fire and Rescue Service in July 2000 as an on-call firefighter, before becoming a full-time firefighter at Renfrew Fire Station in 2007. Station Commander Stevenson has served in all three service delivery areas of Scotland, as well as at the national training centre in Cambuslang.

Volunteering to become one of SFRS’ first contact advisors, Station Commander Stevenson supports personnel if they experience bullying or harassment. With a keen interest in promoting inclusion and diversity, she founded the first staff network (SFRS LGBT). A passionate advocate for women’s rights, she is on the National Executive Council for Women in the Fire Service (WFS) and was a finalist in 2018, for the LGBT Uniformed Icon of the Year Award. As a member of the professional standards and attraction and engagement groups she will help to shape a new set of cultural standards for firefighters across Scotland.

Last year, along with the crew from Dunvegan Fire Station, Station Commander Stevenson released a charity single ‘Things are Hotting Up’ for Alzheimer’s Scotland, which promoted on-call diversity and increased recruitment. Despite some health issues, she continues to set herself extreme physical challenges to raise funds for several good causes.

 

KING’S AMBULANCE SERVICE MEDAL

Kenny Freeburn, Regional Director for East Region, Scottish Ambulance Service

Regional Director for East Region, Kenny Freeburn has over 30 years’ service in the Scottish Ambulance Service, including as head of service in East Central, National  Community Engagement Manager and as Deputy Director in North and East Regions.

Formerly a clinician, Regional Director Freeburn is currently delivering the National Scheduled Care Project and is an executive lead for the service’s Ethnic Minority Network. He regularly undertakes national roles and responsibilities and deputises for the Chief Operating Officer when required.

Displaying good conduct and exemplary service throughout his career, Regional Director Freeburn regularly displays exceptional support to his team and wider workforce, with the best interests of staff and patients in mind.

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