Executive board
Our executive board set the direction and strategy for the Service and ensure we are delivering an effective and efficient service for the communities we serve.
Gavin Ellis - Chief Fire Officer
Gavin joined Northamptonshire Fire Service at age 19 in 2000 before transferring to Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service in 2010 as Station Manager. Between 2011 and 2017 he was promoted to Group Manager and worked in a variety of roles across the Service. In 2016, Gavin was seconded to lead a team that reviewed and produced an external report on the Royal Clarence Hotel fire in Exeter.
In 2018 he was seconded to the newly formed Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS). As Chief of Staff, he successfully led dedicated teams in delivering the first round of these independent inspections. Gavin returned to Devon and Somerset in January 2020 as Area Manager Service Delivery. In July 2020 he was appointed Assistant Chief Fire Officer, Director of Service Improvement, with key responsibility for driving service performance and preparing the launch of the 2022/2027 Community Risk Management Plan (CRMP).
In March 2022 he was promoted to Deputy Chief Fire Officer. In May 2023 Gavin was appointed interim Chief Fire Officer during Lee Howell's secondment to the National Fire Chiefs Council. In June 2024 Gavin was confirmed as permanent Chief Fire Officer.
Gavin is committed to leading the Service through future challenges and driving professional standards to ensure the best service is delivered to our communities. His key priorities are organisational performance and cultural transformation.

Gerald Taylor - Deputy Chief Fire Officer - Director of Service Delivery
Gerald Taylor is Deputy Chief Fire Officer and Director of Service Delivery. Gerald joined the Service in 2007 as an on-call firefighter in Kingsbridge, and then on a wholetime basis in 2010 as part of a UK-wide pilot developing high potential leaders. Before this, Gerald had worked in leadership roles in the public and private sectors within the public transport industry, primarily rail.
Gerald’s work experience before joining the Service has helped during his secondment as interim CEO for the Service’s trading arm Red One Ltd, and his appointment in 2021 as the National Fire Chief Council Lead for Rail.
Gerald has had several roles within the Service, including leading the on-call team in Kingsbridge, working with the Service’s data analysts, as a station manager within the Learning and Development team, Group Commander for South Devon, and Service lead for collaboration. Gerald also led the regional response to the pandemic in arranging for firefighters to drive ambulances across the southwest 15 days after the Service received the request from the ambulance service. Before becoming Assistant Chief Fire Officer, Gerald was the Head of Response and Partnerships leading our operational response from the teams based at our 83 fire stations.
Gerald is a strong advocate of providing excellent customer service and believes this applies to a fire and rescue service as much as any other industry.
Outside of work, Gerald is a passionate football fan enjoying not only the ups and downs of Norwich City but is a regular at Home Park cheering on Plymouth Argyle. Gerald also loves music and consequently enjoys leading the Service’s response to the Glastonbury Festival.
Gerald believes that the Service’s biggest challenge is to have a more diverse workforce and would encourage anyone reading this to consider becoming an on-call firefighter!

Steven Adams - Deputy Chief Officer for Strategy and Improvement
Steven joined Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service in June 2025 as Deputy Chief Officer for Strategy and Improvement from the National Fire Chiefs Council, where he worked as Chief of Staff, interim Chief Officer, and Director of Strategy, Insight and Portfolio. In those roles, Steven supported development of the NFCC in 2016, and a restructure programme in 2022 once annual grants were agreed with government to build the national team’s capability and capacity. As company secretary, Steven was also the NFCC Trustees’ principal adviser, ensuring good governance for the organisation.
Working at the NFCC, Steven played a lead role supporting the sector’s response to the Grenfell Tower fire and was the national lead for Operation London Bridge after the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. He also exercised his passion for good data and digital transformation as a member of the Digital, Data and Technology Committee and the programme lead for the organisation’s own Digital First strategy.
Earlier in his career, Steven spent over 10 years with the London Fire Brigade, culminating as Head of Governance, where he delivered major governance reforms after the Policing and Crime Act 2017, which established unique arrangements with the London Fire Commissioner as the fire and rescue authority.
Outside of work, Steven is active locally, including as a school governor for 20 years. He loves watching sports, including as a passionate Aston Villa fan.
Damien Borlase - Assistant Chief Fire Officer - Director of Response and Resilience
Damien is the Director of Response and Resilience.
Maria Phillips - Director of Corporate Services
Maria joined the Service in 2016 as a Senior Project Manager and was promoted to Programme Manager in 2018 with the remit to deliver the Safer Together programme outcomes. She then became Head of Portfolio and Programme Management using her professional qualifications in project, programme and portfolio management. In 2023 she was appointed to the role of Assistant Director of Corporate Services with a remit that includes People Services, Digital, Data and Technology as well as Portfolio, Programme Management and Organisational Assurance. Maria is the Service’s Senior Information Risk Officer (SIRO).
Maria also completed a secondment to His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS), forming part of an inspection team for a metropolitan fire service.
Maria previously worked in community engagement as part of a neighbourhood regeneration team for Plymouth City Council and progressed to become a project manager in the city’s transformation team in 2014.
As a teenager, Maria left home in Cornwall to join the Royal Navy in Plymouth. She spent nearly seven years working in operational communications aboard HMS Cornwall and HMS Coventry. After leaving the navy, Maria completed a BSC Degree in Sports Management at Plymouth University, and later also achieved a Post Graduate Certificate in Enterprise Leadership.
Maria is passionate to see the Service ensure that the communities we serve are at the heart of what we do, taking a balanced approach between ensuring we deliver an effective and efficient service that demonstrates value for money, and is sustainable for the future.
Maria has two daughters who still have no idea what mum does for a living!

Chris Howes - Assistant Director of People
Chris is our Assistant Director of People.
Andrew Furbear - Treasurer
Andrew is the Head of Finance and also carries out the role of Treasurer, (sometimes known as the Section 151 Officer) to the Fire Authority.
Samantha Sharman - Monitoring Officer
Sam is the Democratic Services Manager and also acts as Monitoring Officer to the Fire Authority.