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:
“We design training so our volunteers can do as much or as little as they want. Some volunteers are content to complete their first stage of compulsory training, which permits them to be called out to an emergency, while others are eager to learn more. For those particularly keen we have rest centre management training, which is a bit more in-depth and is great for those looking to broaden their skills”.
Liz, who’s been with WRVS for over ten years, appreciates that WRVS are seen as leaders in emergency support training because of the organisation’s heritage and because their volunteers are so visible during a disaster. What a lot of people don’t realise though is that it’s not just volunteers that WRVS train, it also uses it’s knowledge and experience to offer an external training programme for the Police, Fire Service and Civil Defence Departments as well as to private companies who want their own trained team on site.
WRVS has a team of emergency service managers, who with Liz, train outside organisations to equip them with the resources to deal with a crisis when it happens. WRVS offers a wide range of training packages, which are tailored to meet the needs of the client, and many of its courses are accredited by the ILM (Institute of Leadership and Management). Liz explains the benefits of the programme that she has helped put together for external clients:
“We want to make sure people are prepared. We have courses on establishing and maintaining a rest centre, evacuation reception centre, survivor centre or family and friends reception centre. We work from the client’s rest centre plan or their policies and procedures so all training is bespoke to suit individual needs”
WRVS is looking good at 70. Through its own volunteers and the training and knowledge it has passed onto others, it is continuing to help people caught up in emergencies across the country. And of course if you do have an emergency and need to call out WRVS, their volunteers can still make an excellent cup of tea.