Сержант полиции Чарли Томпсон спас мужчину от поджога на заправке в Стратфорде

INTERVIEW: SNT Sergeant Charlie Thompson on saving lives and policing the Stratford district beat A Stratford police officer made headlines recently after he bravely saved a man from setting himself alight at a petrol station. But the news that Sergeant Charlie Thompson was that fearless copper will come as no surprise to anyone who has met him. He’s been a Stratford Safer Neighbourhood Team sarge for the last year or so, and is something of a Robin to Inspector Jake Kibblewhite’s Batman. The real-life crime-fighting duo have had a real impact on issues such as antisocial behaviour, including stepping up patrols and using new legal powers, while also fostering strong bonds with the community and local agencies, such as Stratford District Council. Back to April 2025 and that Tesco petrol station off Birmingham Road. Charlie is called to the scene along with other officers. A man is having an acute mental crisis and threatening to set himself alight as he demands to see the mayor and others. Just as Charlie begins to reason with him, the man, clutching a lighter and standing by the pumps, pours a jerry can full of petrol over his head. Last year, an explosion at a petrol station in Italy injured 29 people, so backing off from a possible life-threatening disaster would not be unreasonable. But no, that’s not Charlie’s instinct. Like something out of an episode of Blue Lights, he rushes forward, rugby tackling the man to the ground and grabbing the lighter. A firefighter covers the two in fire retardant foam as other officers take over. For his actions, Charlie has won an award at the Police Federation National Police Bravery Awards 2026. The man who was tackled is understood to have received support and been rehoused since these events. Naturally modest, Charlie credits his fellow officers. “I couldn’t have done it without the team behind me – we co-ordinated, we worked together, and it was together that we stopped what could have been a terrible loss of life,” he says. “I’m overwhelmed to have been nominated for a bravery award – it’s always a good day when our hard work in the police is recognised like this. “But there are thousands of cops who do things even more gallant and brave – that don’t get recognised. And there is no way I could have done that without knowing that all of my team had my back. It was either me or I nominated someone on my team, and you never tell someone to do something that you wouldn’t be willing to do yourself.” He continues: “I hope that the chap I tackled is doing better now – it will have been a very low moment for him, and we hope he’s managed to pick himself back up and get the support he needed.” Joining Charlie for a catch-up in a poky office at Stratford Police Station, the Herald hears a bit more about the incident and what makes the 34-year-old officer tick. His biggest motivation comes from two small things – namely his toddlers: Rory, three, and Ziggy, two. “There is only 16 months between them,” says Charlie, beaming at the thought of his girl and boy. “They’re a handful, but a beautiful handful.” It was his children and his wife that he thought of in the aftermath of the petrol station incident. “That is the only job that my wife has ever had remonstrations with me about, it got to her and really upset her. “I mean, I’ve had knives pulled on me, I’ve been assaulted, people have tried to stab me – including a woman in Leamington a few years ago. It’s part and parcel sometimes with this job. Those situations were more dynamic: if someone attacks you react and you deal with it, you don’t have to think about it. “But the petrol station was very different. That’s the only time I’ve ever wanted to say hello to my kids on the radio, just in case.” Reflecting on the emotional cost of that day again, Charlie adds: “My kids didn’t have to go in their cots that night, they both came in my bed, and I didn’t want to let go. “We’re all just people. We’ve got different motivations and different things that make us tick. And for me, it’s my kids.” Charlie also takes a moment to share one of the most devastating emergencies he has attended: the drowning of Joshua Hillstead in July 2024. Charlie was one of the first officers to arrive at the riverside in Alcester, and plucked him from the water. Alas too late. You can see it’s a pain that stays with him. Brought up around Leamington, Charlie says he was lucky to get a scholarship to Warwick School – the prestigious private school. He had long thought of a uniform career – initially army – but then took a slight detour into education. “I was a teacher at Trinity Catholic School. I was the head of transfer and transition, looking after joining students and students coming from Year 6 into secondary. “I was really fortunate because I didn’t have a full-time teaching timetable, so I could be purely pastoral. I’d been a scout leader since I was 19, and the pastoral side of things was the bit that I really enjoyed.” Jokingly, Charlie adds: “I was really quite happy. If it wasn’t for the parents, I’d still be there. And there are things I still miss: summer holidays, Easter holidays, half term holidays…” After five years in education, Charlie applied to join the police – and after some Covid delays he started on patrol in 2020, before moving on to investigations, followed by Stratford SNT. Now living in Lighthorne with his family, Charlie says he has been enjoying the charms of Stratford. “I hadn’t attended Shakespeare’s Birthday before, this year was my first one. It was amazing to see how many people were out, how much effort went into costumes and dances, and just how many students turned out from the school. Hundreds of them, giving up their time on a weekend! “It was fantastic to see the community pride. Stratford has all these events, such as the lights switch-on, and has a more cohesive community than other towns that I’ve worked in.” Along with Jake and the rest of the SNT team, Charlie says they’ve been making real strides with an integrated approach. “That’s probably the biggest change in policing in the last few years,” he observes. “Not just Warwickshire Police, but nationally, the importance of joint inter-agency working has been the biggest push and focus. “Historically, the police used to be so siloed, and we wouldn’t work with anybody else, But these days, it’s every operation or job involves partners we are linked into. And I think that’s probably the healthiest change that we’ve had.” And yet probably the biggest complaint is the lack of ‘bobbies on the beat’. “You are right. I honestly think I could put another thousand cops out on foot, and you would still get people saying, ‘You never see a cop…’. It’s almost become like a peculiar British idiom, where everybody goes, ‘Weather's hot’ and, ‘Never see a cop’. “Policing has changed, and society has changed. There are still Peelian principles but we’ve modernised, and we police with consent, which is always going to have its own unique challenge. The whole landscape of crime has evolved with society, and to deal with it, people can’t always be on foot. I don’t think society as a whole quite comprehends how much policing goes on that can’t be on the street, because it’s not street-based crime, and you need the resources there. Teams that deal with online child sexual exploitation or domestic abuse.” Charlie and the Herald go on to discuss many local issues – on which he has caring and thoughtful takes. But to end we return to the subject of his heroics. “There’s quite a few bits of this career that I’m proud of. There was a high-risk missing person a couple of years ago. “In the freezing weather, we managed to find him submerged in water. With the help of a police dog, we could get him out and give him life-saving first aid, and he survived. “I’d never apologise for being a police officer. I think it’s a fantastic career. Policing, for me, is a vocation, not a job. And if I can protect people, then I should protect people.” The dad adds thoughtfully: “I feel that that’s me paying it forward. Because one day in 20 years’ time, when my kids are adults, someone else is going to be doing my job and keeping them safe. “I know I’m doing it for the right reasons, and I know that they're proud of me.”