Applying to join Teesdale & Weardale Search & Mountain Rescue Team (Hill Team)

Please take time to read and consider the information below before you apply.
The Team has around 45 volunteers who freely give up their time to train to a high standard. This enables the Team to attend callouts day or night, in difficult terrain and in all weathers in order to search for and locate missing persons and to treat casualties.
To be able to operate to this level we expect Team Members to attend a range of training which covers medical, crag, search, rescue, navigation, radio communications, equipment, vehicles and more besides.
Our regular training sessions for fully trained Team members are usually every other Wednesday night and one Sunday a month. Additional training is laid on for new recruits.
We can't emphasize enough how much commitment you need to give especially in your first year to achieve the standard required so please do carefully consider if you have the time available to commit to joining the Team.

Essential Qualities we are looking for:

Personal - You live within the borders of County Durham and Darlington
Are 18 years of age or older and have your own transport
Have the support of your family, partner/spouse and employer to enable you to attend callouts, training, fundraising and other Team activities
You are willing to complete a DBS check and supply references where required.

Skills - You are a competent hill walker able to look after yourself in all weathers on the high Pennines day or night. You have a good understanding of navigation, being able to use a map and compass, give bearings, measure distance on a map and on the ground 'pacing', supply an accurate 6 or 8 figure grid reference number and have an understanding of GPS.

Fitness - You have good general health and are able to walk over rough terrain for a number of hours not only carrying your personal hill kit but additional Team kit including carrying a casualty on a stretcher

Attitude - You are able to work as part of a team in challenging conditions, have a 'can do' attitude and, are able to follow instructions. You will have an understanding that some situations can be stressful and that you will need to be able to remain calm at all times as well as recognising your own limitations

Basic IT skills - You are able to record information electronically, respond to emails, view documents on line and use map apps on a phone

Attend callouts - You should be available and prepared to attend callouts during the week and at weekends. We understand that you may not always be able to leave other commitments to attend callouts, however, if for example, you cannot attend when at work, then we would expect that you attend callouts on an evening and during the night. This is the reason for the Team's existence!

Time and Commitment- Please take time to consider whether you have the time to commit:
In your training year you need to attend at least 70% of training that is offered, which is likely to exceed 20 Wednesday evenings and 14 full days. During this time, at the end of every 3 months your attendance and performance will be reviewed, in the event you don't make the requirements you will most likely be asked to leave the Team.
Once you qualify as a hill team member the training requirements are reduced but you will still need to maintain a good number of training sessions and callouts.

Application Process

The first step in the process is to complete the expression of interest form below.

Potential applicants who have expressed an interest in joining the Hill Team will then be invited to an online briefing. The online briefing will cover the recruitment and training process, what the Team does and what we expect from Team members.

As part of the briefing attendees will be advised how and when to formally apply to join the Team .

The recruitment process typically takes 2-3 months to complete and includes:

• A detailed application form
• An online navigation test
• Undertaking a specific walking route and returning information to us from the route
• An internal review of application forms, navigation tests and walking route results provides an initial sift
• We will invite those who pass the first sift to a hill test on the fells of County Durham. This will allow you to demonstrate your hill fitness, navigation skills and whether you are a team player with a can do attitude who will fit into the Team
• A further internal review after which those successful will be invited to an evening at our base in Durham. This is your chance to get to know us, see our base and equipment, ask us any questions you might have and decide if joining the Team is right
  for you. There will also be a short interview where the final decision will be made as to whether to invite you to become a Trainee Team Member

At the end of the trainee year a final assessment is undertaken to test skills and knowledge before trainees can become a full Hill Team members.

Finally

All Team members are unpaid volunteers, and all elements of the Team's training and administration are organised by the same unpaid volunteers.
Organising our annual recruitment takes a lot of our volunteer time, therefore the dates advertised for various aspects of the process are fixed, we just haven't got the resources to rearrange sessions.
If you can't make the advertised dates you will need to reapply in a subsequent year.

People who have joined say it's like having another family and because of the high standard of training their personal skill level, knowledge and confidence has grown dramatically. That plus the reward of working within a team and the satisfaction you get from a successful call out makes the sacrifice you have to make all worth while.