It’s easy to think that WRVS just provide tea and sympathy. WRVS volunteers wearing their iconic orange tabards can be seen offering refreshments to evacuees in rest centres, or to the police or fire service during a disaster. But there’s a lot more to WRVS than a nice brew. In fact, WRVS not only have teams of fully trained volunteers on call twenty four hours a day, ready to support their local community should disaster strike but they also provide training to other organisations to make sure they are prepared should the worst happen.
Celebrating its 70th anniversary this year, WRVS was originally founded in 1938 as the Women’s Voluntary Service as the Second World War looked inevitable. Seventy years on and there are nearly 7000 male and female WRVS emergency service volunteers. Volunteers have supported those affected by train derailments, power failures, fires, gas leaks and natural disasters such as floods, extreme snow, hurricanes and heatwaves in the past. WRVS volunteers really have to be prepared for anything, at any time, in any weather.
WRVS believe it is paramount to offer extensive training to its volunteers so they not only feel confident when called out but also that they can make a worthwhile contribution at the scene. Liz Redfern, WRVS’ emergency services training manager is responsible for ensuring that all of the volunteers are fully equipped with this knowledge, but recognises that not all volunteers are the same:
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