Volunteer options for Flooding:

Flood Wardens

Flood Volunteers

Volunteers at Evacuation Centre

Post Flood Recovery Volunteer

Flood Wardens

Flood Wardens will deliver contact cards to each of the streets they have been allocated annually in September. There will be 2 Flood Wardens for each street/area.  Both contact names and details will be included on the contact card.

Flood Wardens will be issued with Properties at Risk Sheets which will detail all the properties in their street/area and will be responsible for gathering as much information as possible with regard to those properties – names and contact details, whether they have property level flood defences and if they will need additional assistance.

When instructed to do so Flood Wardens will undertake door knocking to advise residents to prepare for flooding.

In a flood event the flood wardens will:

• The Group Coordinator will instruct you to start door knocking in your designated street/area.
• Gather kit, hi-vis coat, waterproofs, torch, clipboard with assigned street/area addresses, pens.
• You may be allocated additional volunteers to assist by the coordinator.
• In pairs, go to your assigned street/area and knock on the door of each address
• Advise residents that a flood warning has been issued
• Advise residents to put in place their own flood plan, e.g flood gates, moving items of value or importance upstairs
• Advise residents with cars to move them to a safer place
• Advise them to keep up to date via Facebook, radio, tv, local news, gov.uk/flood, Flood line, river levels online etc
• Identify who may need to evacuate and advise them to go to a Reception Centre, if established, if they have nowhere else safe to go to before flood levels become excessive
• If residents cannot evacuate on their own contact the Command Centre to find out if transport can be arranged for them
• Ensure those who are to be evacuated take with them essential medicines
• Record on clipboard which residents you have been able to speak to and what their plans are (are they going to the Reception Centre, evacuating to friends/family or elsewhere or staying in their house)
• After all houses on your list have been checked, return to the Command Centre
• Report in to your coordinator and hand over address check list
• If you have to stop the door knocks for any reason, contact your Coordinator

Flood Volunteers

• You will receive notification of volunteers on standby by the group coordinator.
• Once volunteers are activated, please attend agreed meeting point in town (the Group Co-ordinator will confirm where to meet). A Command Centre may be established at Appleby Primary School
• Gather kit, hi-vis coat, waterproofs, torch, clipboard
• In pairs, you will be assigned to a role

You may be asked to carry out the following tasks:

• Filling sandbags
• Transport sandbags to areas forecast to be flooded
• Deliver sandbags to properties likely to be flooded
• Assisting the flood wardens with door knocking

Volunteers at Evacuation Centre (ie Appleby Grammar School)

• On receipt of instruction from the coordinator, go to the Evacuation Centre as soon as possible
• Provide support to the agencies operating the evacuation centre
• Assist with organisation of food and drinks
• Provide emotional support to evacuated residents
• Keep a record of those people returning to their homes or elsewhere after the flood

Post Flood Recovery Volunteer

• Removal of sandbags
• Offer support, be able to make drinks and/or food if required
• Carry out regular checks on the houses affected to ensure residents are managing or if any additional help is needed