A TOP Bolton firefighter, with more than 30 years in service, has been honoured by the Queen.

John Judd, assistant county fire officer with Greater Manchester Fire Service, was presented with a special award at a glittering Buckingham Palace reception.

The royal honour - a Queens Fire Service Medal for Distinguished Service - was in recognition of his firefighting role since he joined the ranks in 1968.

Dad-of-one Mr Judd, who lives in Bolton with his wife Christine and daughter, said: "I am very proud and delighted to receive the medal on behalf of the service.

"It was a great honour to receive the award from Her Majesty the Queen at Buckingham Palace."

The 48-year-old fire chief initially joined Lancashire County Fire Brigade and following reorganisation in 1974 served at locations throughout the newly-formed Greater Manchester Fire Service.

He transferred back to Lancashire as an assistant divisional officer in 1982 and transferred back to GMCFS 13 years later as ACO with responsibility for fire safety management.

Mr Judd has also been appointed the chairman of the National Fire Safety Charity for Children, established to promote blaze safety awareness to youngsters aged between four and eight.

He is also a member of the Chief and Assistant Chief Officers National Fire Safety committee, using his spare time to develop fire engineering education and professional development.

For 26 years he has been an active member of the Institution of Fire Engineers, holding a number of honorary positions from group secretary to international council member