News 
The results of the 2018 VFBV Volunteer Welfare and Efficiency Survey are now available.
The 2018 VFBV Volunteer Welfare and Efficiency Survey was the seventh annual survey conducted by VFBV with over 2,500 CFA volunteer taking part. The survey remains one of the largest surveys of its kind within CFA and most likely across the emergency sector.
Volunteers are most satisfied with their role and activities that occur at the brigade level with many volunteers feeling that the time they devote to CFA is productive and worthwhile. In contrast volunteers are least satisfied with activities at the corporate / management levels of CFA, with the poorest performing area being how CFA consults and involves volunteers in decisions that may affect them.
The 2018 VFBV Volunteer Welfare and Efficiency Survey report is available for download at the bottom this page.
VFBV encourages all members across the sector to review the survey results and engage in conversations with their local agency, VFBV District Council or work unit on how to improve the volunteer concerns highlighted in the survey.
2018 National Volunteer Welfare and Efficiency Survey Results
The Council of Australian Volunteer Fire Associations (CAVFA) was established to give volunteer firefighters a united voice to governments and key stakeholders. As part of CAVFA’s objectives, CAVFA endorsed an expansion of VFBV’s Volunteer Welfare and Efficiency Survey to enable fire service volunteers from across Australia to participate in the Volunteer Welfare and Efficiency Survey since 2016.
The results of the third annual, National Volunteer Welfare and Efficiency Survey are available from the CAVFA website.
The results for the national survey allow results from the VFBV Volunteer Welfare and Efficiency Survey to be compared to the results from other Australian states. They show that volunteer expectations are closest to being met at the local brigade level, while expectations are furthest from being met in the area of consultation by management and corporate levels of agencies and in relation to training availability for volunteers.
The volunteer associations who participated in last year’s National Volunteer Welfare and Efficiency Survey were:
- NSW Rural Fire Service Association (RFSA)
- Rural Fire Brigades Association Queensland (RFBAQ)
- Tasmanian Volunteer Fire Brigades Association (TVFBA)
- Volunteer Fire and Rescue Services Association of WA (VFRSA)
- Volunteer Fire Brigades Victoria (VFBV)
To access a copy of the 2018 National Volunteer Welfare and Efficiency Survey Report, visit the CAVFA website.
