News 
VFBV are seeking expressions of interest from members to be Joint Committee District Nominees for the 2023 VFBV/CFA Joint Committees.
Interested volunteers are encouraged to submit your expression of interest to your local District Council for endorsement by 21st November 2022.
VFBV/CFA Joint Committees are a critical part of the consultative framework, offering a direct line of communication between volunteers and the state-level decision makers within the CFA.
If you feel you have a passion for one of the eight committees and have the time to contribute please contact your local District Council or local VFBV Support Officer to submit your nomination (nomination form available for download at the bottom of the page). In particular, VFBV is seeking greater diversity across our structures and highly encourages nominations across the entire broad and diverse membership.
Following a refresh, the eight Joint Committees are:
| Community Safety | Enhancing services for brigades to improve community preparedness, recovery, and resilience in the prevention of fires. |
| Equipment and Infrastructure | Working closely with the infrastructure services and fleet management team at CFA to improve equipment, stations, and appliances. |
| Member Services (formerly Volunteerism) |
Consultation with CFA to improve volunteer recruitment, retention, youth, cadets, events, championships and fundraising. |
| Operational Capability (new) | Building brigade/group capability, addressing gaps in service delivery, personal protective clothing and equipment and specialist response. |
| Operational Performance (formerly Operations) |
Policy, doctrine and standards to ensure continuous improvement including service delivery standards, safe operating procedures and lessons learned. |
| People, Culture and Safety (formerly HR, Welfare and OH&S) |
Improving the welfare and safety of members by improving HR and welfare services and ensuring CFA is a safe place to volunteer. |
| Technology and Innovation (formerly Communications and Technology) |
Working to improve member access to the best innovations in equipment, communication and technology, mapping and communications. |
| Training | Continuous review and improvement to course design, delivery and access to volunteer training and training equipment. |
As committees need to be of a reasonable size district nominees are appointed to the committees via an expression of interest process and are approved annually by State Council.
The Joint Committee structure allows for selected district nominees to join State Councillors to be a part of planning for the future, developing strategies and raising issues that have been raised by the wider VFBV membership across all Districts.
District Councils are asked to seek expressions of interest from members who wish to participate in the Joint Committees and discuss with them a few key considerations:
- A requirement to attend a minimum of four (4) meetings per year at CFA HQ in Burwood (or virtually as required), usually held on a Saturday or Sunday. (2023 proposed meeting schedule below)
- Relevant subject matter expertise and the ability to actively contribute to the Committees work with a State-wide view of issues.
- A network outside their own brigade which will allow them to communicate views that are not just their own
- Willingness to report back to District Council and engage with members
District Council Endorsement Process
District Council Executives have been requested to review all district nominations and provide a recommendation and priority order prior to submission to the VFBV Executive Officer.
District Councils have been encouraged to have nominations returned to them by Monday 21st November 2022, to allow time for the District Council prioritisation process prior to submission to the VFBV Executive Officer by Monday 28th November 2022.
With District Councils encouraged to wait until all nominations are received before ranking nominations in priority order and submitting all nominations in one batch to the VFBV Executive Officer.
All nominees must be endorsed by their local VFBV District Council.
Questions?
Contact your local VFBV Support Officer or State Councillors to find out more about the VFBV/CFA Joint Committees.
Proposed 2023 Joint Committee Meeting Dates
(These have not yet been endorsed, and are subject to change with specific committee meeting dates to be allocated)
| Round One Meetings | Saturday 25 February 2023 Sunday 26 February 2023 Saturday 1 April 2023 Sunday 2 April 2023 |
| Round Two Meetings | Saturday 24 June 2023 Sunday 25 June 2023 Saturday 1 July 2023 Sunday 2 July 2023 |
| Round Three Meetings | Saturday 26 August 2023 Sunday 27 August 2023 Saturday 9 August 2023 Sunday 10 August 2023 |
| Round Four Meetings | Saturday 18 November 2023 Sunday 19 November 2023 Saturday 25 November 2023 Sunday 26 November 2023 |
