Frank Bailey (firefighter)

Frank Arthur Bailey (26 November 1925 – 2 December 2015) was a Guyanese-British firefighter and social worker who is known as being one of the first black firefighters in the United Kingdom.

Born in British Guiana, he first worked on a German trade ship which led him to move to New York where he soon found work at a hospital, becoming a medical assistant. In opposition to racially segregated practices, he led a walkout at the hospital. In 1953, he moved to London and came across a Fire Brigades Union (FBU) delegate who told him that black people were not employed by the fire service because they were "not educated or strong enough", though he challenged this by applying as a firefighter. In 1955, he was accepted and became one of the first black firefighters in the UK, though left 10 years later due to being consistently turned down for promotion due to inherent racism in the service. Afterwards, he became a social worker, guardian ad litem and a legal adviser, retiring in 1990.