VICSES hosted more than 300 women and gender- diverse volunteers from across the state at its ninth annual Women in Rescue event last month.

Designed to build skills, confidence and collaboration as part of VICSES’ flagship initiative empowering women in emergency response, for the first time this year’s volunteers trained alongside Victoria Police’s aviation crew and mounted officers.

They observed real-time flight operations, practised tactical co-ordination and experienced how air support integrates with ground rescue teams during complex emergency responses.

Participants learned about flight planning, rescue co-ordination and the role air support plays during major incidents, highlighting a range of career and operational pathways available to women across the emergency services sector.

The involvement of the mounted branch also provided a perspective on how mounted units support search operations and incident management, expanding training beyond traditional land-based rescue.

VICSES Grampians and North West Metro Women in Rescue volunteer organiser Amanda Opie said Women in Rescue continued to go from strength to strength.

“It’s fantastic to see so many female and gender-diverse volunteers getting involved and learning valuable new skills,” she said. “This ensures our volunteers are prepared and ready to be the best first responders they can possibly be when tasked with a real-life emergency.”

Women currently make up nearly 34 per cent of VICSES’ volunteer base, and the organisation remains committed to increasing participation to better reflect the communities it serves.

Western Region community resilience co-ordinator Crystal Sanders said people who joined VICSES were trained in-house.

“Members don’t have to have a particular skill set or experience behind them because SES provides all training for our volunteers in their area of interest,” she said.

“There is no commitment or pressure for volunteers to take on any roles they don’t want to – members can choose their own pathway.”

Ms Sanders said volunteers could take support roles including administration, maintenance, finance, member support and community engagement, while operational members could take part in road-crash rescues, land and boat search, technical rescue and storm response.

She said people could also take on leadership, communication or management roles.

“What the SES does is so broad and there are so many roles for so many people from all walks of life,” she said.

“Our operational roles all have a minimum fitness requirement, but if members have the time and willingness, then what the service offers is at times like a second family – the support network and camaraderie is something else.

“All of our units are open to additional volunteers to join our team. If anyone in the community wants to join, they can simply visit www.ses.vic.gov.au/join-us and select their nearest unit.”

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