Pemberton Youth Emergency Service Cadets is a volunteer-run not for profit, registered with ACNC and an Incorporated Association.
We teach local youth aged 11 to 17 years life skills based around the different emergency services in the area including Volunteer Fire & Rescue, Bushfire, Ambulance, State Emergency Service, and Police service. We encourage, support, and train our Volunteer Cadets to join Emergency Services in the future. We are the first program to span all emergency services in the South-West, with our Volunteer Instructors from St John Ambulance Pemberton, DFES Bushfire Service Pemberton, DFES State Emergency Service Manjimup, and DFES Volunteer Fire and Emergency Services Pemberton.
The average age of frontline emergency service personnel (Ambulance, Bushfire and Fire & Rescue) is steadily increasing and is now into the mid 60's. Without investing into our youth and attracting them to the emergency service roles, we are at real risk of not having volunteer frontline emergency service personnel in the future in our region
Pilot training sessions began September 2023 and were a surprising success, with 19 Volunteer Cadets and over 10 Volunteer Instructors. Due to a lack of protective clothing and equipment, training sessions have been heavily controlled and largely classroom-based for Volunteer Cadet and Volunteer Instructor safety. We are fundraising to purchase these items.
With full Personal Protective Clothing and equipment, Pemberton YES Cadets will be able to carry out more realistic practical training such as:
- moving through our native forests and carrying out search techniques for missing people / items
- carrying out firefighting activities using real fire scenarios
- entering prescribed burn areas and assisting works crew with mop up of fire grounds
- working around car crash scenarios and extricating of casualties
- realistic first aid and mass casualty scenarios with moulage patients
- climbing ladders and working at height safely
Cadets that learn these skills will not only be safer individuals (as they learn how to assess risk better than most), but they will also be an asset to the community should an incident or emergency occur. Cadets will be able to assist people in need in their community and understand first aid principles and response. Cadets will understand fire in the environment, and they will know emergency protocols for all responding agencies.
As an added benefit, we recognise that purpose, community, and contribution play an important part of mental health and wellbeing, and we actively foster a sense of belonging and respect amongst the group.
We are affiliated with the Department of Fire and Emergency Services (DFES) for program administration and governance purposes but do not receive any financial support from any government department or agency.
