Exercise tests vital voluntary sector response

Volunteers play a crucial role in emergency response – a fact that was highlighted during the latest training exercise to test the voluntary sector’s response to a major incident.

Volunteers from a number of organisations came together to discuss their capabilities and decide on the best way to support the emergency services and other responders during an event such as a flood or utility outage.

The voluntary sector can support: 
•    Emergency services, eg. by providing medical care, helping with access issues or sharing communications
•    Local authorities, with tasks such as door knocking, call handling and information points
•    All agencies, to identify and support vulnerable people and run evacuation centres

The exercise covered areas such as deployment, defining roles and information sharing.

Ahead of Volunteers Week (1 - 7 June), Gino Harris, Resilience Manager for Leicester City Council, who co-led the LRF voluntary sector exercise with Rachael Payne from the British Red Cross, said: “Volunteers play an invaluable part in our multi-agency response to major incidents across LLR so it’s extremely important that they’re involved in our training programme.

“Volunteers Week is an ideal opportunity to extend our thanks to all the volunteers who give up their time so generously and share their knowledge, skills and resources to help protect the people of LLR.”

Organisations taking part included Raynet, Leicestershire Search and Rescue, Rapid Reaction Team, REACT and the British Red Cross.

Find out more about volunteering and how you can help to boost resilience in your community.