VISION, MISSION and VALUES Contents
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VISION, MISSION AND VALUES ConTenTS OUR VISION VALUES OvervieW To provide a world standard of excellence The values that underpin all our IFC Key facts in the provision of a community-based fire actions are: Snapshot and emergency service. 01 Vision, mission and values Our People Commissioner’s letter OUR MISSION Volunteerism and commitment 02 Key statistics 03 Who we are and what we do To protect the community and our Professionalism Key stakeholders and customers environment we will minimise the In all we do 04 Commissioner’s report impact of fire and other emergencies by Community providing the highest standards of training, GOVERNANCE Mutual assistance community education, prevention and 08 Governance operational capability. Quality Customer Service 10 Principal officers Internal and external 13 Office access details Organisational structure Continuous Improvement Co-operation revieW OF the reporting YEAR Honesty, Integrity and Trust 16 Administration and Finance Ethical standards and behaviour 19 Operations and Regional Management 20 Year in the regions: East 24 Year in the regions: North 26 Year in the regions: South 28 Year in the regions: West 31 Operations Support 35 Community Safety 40 Strategic Development perFormance The Hon Tony Kelly MLC 44 Our performance Minister for Emergency Services 45 Management Level 34, Governor Macquarie Tower 48 Community Safety 1 Farrer Place 50 Learning and Development SYDNEY NSW 2000 51 Operations Financial statements 56 Independent audit report 57 Statement by the Commissioner 58 Balance sheet Dear Minister 59 Operating statement I have pleasure in submitting to you for presentation to Parliament the Annual Report 60 Statement of changes in equity of NSW Rural Fire Service for the year ended 30 June 2006. 61 Cash flow statement VISION, MISSIONHighlights AND of VALUESthe year included 62 Program statement – expenses and revenues • Allocation of $27.4M for the purchase of 230 new and refurbished tankers 64 Summary of compliance with • 88% of districts have established Bush FireWise programmes financial directives 65 Notes to the financial statements • All districts have Bush Fire Risk Management Plans • All districts have Operational Plans appenDices • 50% of brigade stations audited 86 Organisation chart 87 Chaplaincy and Family Support network • 86% of paper purchased had recycled content 88 Hazard Reduction • 5,275 membership applications processed 90 Bush Fire Risk Management Plans – • 298 applications for junior membership processed performance audits 91 Use of credit cards • Implementation of Bush Fire Environmental Assessment Code 92 Equal Opportunity statistics • 85% of volunteers now qualified Basic Bush Firefighting. Staff establishment Annual Reports (Departments) 93 Freedom of Information statistics The report has been prepared in accordance with the and the Waste Avoidance and Waste 96 Allocations to councils 2005/2006 – Act, 1985, the Public Finance and Audit Act, 1983 Recovery Act, 2001. in regional order 97 Payment Performance Yours sincerely 98 Current publications 99 Statement of Performance of Commissioner 100 Committees 102 International travel 103 Glossary 104 Index Phil Koperberg AO AFSM BEM Commissioner NSW Rural Fire Service Annual Report 2005-2006 KEY STATisTICS 05/06 04/05 03/04 Funding $M140 $M134 $M125 Brigades 2,100 2,069 2,094 Districts 126 128 132 Zones/Teams 38 39 37 Our people Volunteers 70,745 70,964 69,375 Salaried support and administration 680 649 601 Incidents Total number of incidents 19,590 17,342 18,812 Bush fires 2,865 2,659 1,764 Grassfires 3,888 3,533 3,844 Building fires 951 949 206 Vehicle fires 1,525 1,166 1,491 Motor vehicle accidents 3,225 2,289 3,152 False alarms 2,028 1,896 1,271 Other 5,108 4,850 7,084 Buildings Headquarters 1 1 1 Regional Offices 4 4 4 Tankers Number of new and refurbished tankers delivered to brigades 230 210 205 Vehicles Current fleet including marine craft Tankers 3,927 Pumpers 58 Bulk Water units 52 Trailer pumps 2,109 Cargo, tip trucks, various trailers 83 Communications vehicles and trailers 36 Catering vehicles and trailers 64 Marine 19 Slip on trailers and miscellaneous 1,502 Communications Radios 19,800 NSW Rural Fire Service Annual Report 2005-2006 WHO WE ARE AND WHAT WE DO Over 100 years ago the residents of The role of volunteer fire brigades the south-western New South Wales encompasses far more than fighting and township of Berrigan formed Australia’s preventing bush fires – for which they first official bush fire brigade. The residents are best known. Volunteer firefighters are joined together as firefighters for mutual regularly called upon to attend building and protection against the ever-present threat structure fires, motor vehicle accidents, of bush fires. assist in search and rescue operations and help with storm and flood recovery. On 1 September 1997 the NSW Rural The Service is responsible for structural Fire Service (RFS) was established by firefighting in more than 1,200 towns an Act of Parliament as the successor to and villages across the state. that first bush fire brigade, redefining the world’s largest fire service and building on Brigade members are all volunteers and ESTABLISHED IN 1997 a century of experience in protecting some come from all walks of life. They are 70,000 volunTeers of the most fire-prone areas on earth. community minded, having the volunteer spirit of service, combined with a Today the Service comprises over 2,100 professional approach to the protection 2,100 rural Towns and volunteer rural fire brigades with a total of life and property within the community. villaGes ProTECTed membership of just over 70,000. In addition, salaried staff are employed to As a matter of daily routine we also work manage the day to day operations of closely and collaboratively with the media, the Service at Headquarters, regional government departments, rural land offices and district fire control centres. managers, local government and schools. Staff carry out a variety of roles including operational management, administration, finance, planning, training, hazard reduction management, and engineering. KEY STAKeholders and CusTomers Our customers: • The people of New South Wales • Our volunteers and staff Our staKeholDers: • The people of New South Wales • The Insurance Industry • Local Government • Other emergency services • Other Government agencies • The Government of New South Wales NSW Rural Fire Service Annual Report 2005-2006 Commissioner’S rePorT The fifth year of drought across the Should this come to pass it will mean landscape produced a series of intense a greater reliance on other aspects of fires in the Central Coast, Central West fire mitigation, such as manual hazard and Central South areas of the state that reduction works, community education, resulted in property and stock losses. and suppression through the deployment Though losses were confined to these of the modernised tanker fleet and the areas, in what was otherwise a typical fire use of aircraft. season, volunteer firefighters were tested Development control in bush fire prone owing to the weather conditions which areas will also help to maximise the level resulted in record temperatures for of protection for new or significantly January along the eastern seaboard. renovated properties. In these increasingly I can never stress enough the gratitude important areas the Environmental I Can never STress I have for the tirelessness and Assessment Code was reviewed and enouGH The GraTITude professionalism of the Rural Fire implemented in order to streamline I have For The Service’s volunteer firefighters. approvals for hazard reduction works. Firefighting, however, needs to be To help educate children about living with Tirelessness and coordinated through rigorous planning. bush fires 88% of all rural fire districts Operations Plans are in place in all rural have established Bush FireWise community ProFessionalism OF fire districts, (100%), as are Bush Fire education programmes. Additionally, The Rural Fire ServiCE’S Risk Management Plans, (100%). These 291 schools undertook the Kids FireWise important documents provide direction and programme. volunTeer FireFIGHTers. strategies for districts and brigades. One of the most innovative programmes They also highlight the bush fire threat and this year was the development and trial of where hazards are located, enabling hazard a school based cadet programme designed reduction planning to occur. The weather for 15 to 16 year old students who learn that produced record temperatures also about fire behaviour and firefighting but produced rainfall over much of the state also team work, leadership and a sense of that was nowhere near enough to end community. Trialled in five high schools this the drought but sufficient to delay and year it is expected that the programme will frustrate hazard reduction work. expand. It has the potential to create a new generation of fire aware citizens and may The prospect of climate change may well also produce the volunteer firefighters bring more days of extreme fire weather of tomorrow. to parts of the state but current predictions also indicate that the hazard reduction People wishing to join the Service or season will shrink and shift to the winter transfer between brigades now have to months only, thus further restricting have a criminal history check undertaken. our ability to conduct this work in a In 2005/6 the Service undertook 5,275 narrower window of opportunity than such checks while a further 1,923 checks we currently