Planning for Spontaneous Emergency Volunteers

15/08/2024

We appreciate that in times of need, Western Australians want to help.

Community volunteers can provide crucial support to people who are impacted by an emergency.

Volunteering WA’s role in non-frontline emergency volunteering

Our role is to connect people to community groups who need help outside of formal frontline emergency services roles. Non-frontline community volunteers (also known as spontaneous  emergency volunteers or community helpers) provide invaluable support to community groups and organisations before, during and after an emergency.

emergency.volunteer.org.au is managed by Volunteering WA, the peak body for volunteering in Western Australia.

Over 4,573 people registered their details on the site during previous emergencies, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, Wooroloo Bushfires, and Kimberley Floods to help collect donations and prepare food for affected families and frontline volunteers, clean and rebuild damaged communities, help care for displaced animals, and provide administrative support to response agencies.

Volunteering WA’s emergency volunteering program received a substantial funding boost through the Australian Government’s National Recovery and Resilience Agency’s National Disaster Risk Reduction (NDRR) 2022-23 Grant. You can learn more about the project deliverables.

Local community groups and organisations play a vital part in the recovery phase of an emergency

Before an emergency: Prepare

Register your organisation at emergency.volunteer.org.au

You will be ready to recruit spontaneous volunteers if an emergency happens in your region.

Learn how to plan and coordinate spontaneous emergency volunteers with Volunteering WA’s videos, reports, checklists, and guides emergency.volunteer.org.au/resources

When an emergency is happening: Recruit and deploy

• Let Volunteering WA know you need support volunteers
• Your roles will be shared with registered volunteers in your region
• Communicate directly with volunteers once they have accepted your role

How community volunteers can help

Non-frontline community volunteering

• Sorting clothing, blankets or goods donations
• Transport for affected families
• Animal welfare
• Community clean up and rebuilding fences following extreme weather
• Assisting with information desks and directing the public
• Preparing food for affected families or emergency response teams
• Plus many more ways to help!

Visit emergency.volunteer.org.au

 

This project acknowledges the funding contribution of the Commonwealth Government and support from the WA State Emergency Management Committee.

---