The committee members are the persons who, as the management committee of the Association, have the power to manage the affairs of the Association. The committee must take all reasonable steps to ensure that the Association complies with the Act, these rules and the by-laws (if any). Subject to the Act, these rules, the by-laws (if any) and any resolution passed at a general meeting, the committee has the power to do all things necessary or convenient to be done for the proper management of the affairs of the Association, and in particular, may: acquire, hold, deal with and dispose of any real and personal property, hold property and equipment as may be provided by any other body upon the terms stipulated by the said body.
Open and operate bank accounts, invest in monies in any security in which trust monies may by Act of Parliament, be vested, vary and transpose the investment for the time being held by the Association for other investments of a kind as authorised by this Constitution, conduct fundraising activities which have as their objective the raising of revenue to enable the objects of the Association to be achieved; and to pay the costs of conducting any such fundraising activity effect and maintain such insurances as are reasonably necessary for the purposes of the Association, enter into any contract which the Association considers necessary to pursue its objects.
Purchase or otherwise acquire any books, newsletters or periodicals and dispose of them as it may see fit; regulate and control their own meeting and the transaction of business; suspend or expel any member; enter into or accept any lease or tenancy of the premises where the Association shall conduct its affairs; or of any furniture, goods and effects which may be required for the use of the Association on such terms and on such conditions as the
Association may deem expedient; take and defend all legal proceedings by or on behalf of the Association and to appoint all necessary Attorneys for any such purpose; borrow, raise or secure the payment of money, and to sell and dispose of the assets of the Association; make, alter and repeal by-laws not inconsistent with these rules; regulate the use and management of the Association premises, the admission of members and the conduct of the Association and its affairs generally, do and perform any other act, matters and things in connection with or relative to the management of the Association as shall not by these rules require to be done by the Association in General meetings.
SESVA Management Committee Meeting Notes
SUMMARY OF THE SESVA MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE MEETING 8th FEBRUARY 2024
Legislation Working Group
The Position Paper was approved at the December meeting and is being prepared for printing ready to share with units and for delivery to the FES Commissioner and Minister at presentations in the coming months. Recent changes implemented in Queensland, where a Chief Officer has been appointed for the SES under the expanded Police and Emergency Services, are a similar concept to that being proposed by the SESVA in WA.
NSESA Raffle
The raffle has taken off very well in WA. It is important to note that not all the funds raised in WA remained in WA after costs were taken into account. A second raffle is scheduled to commence in coming weeks, subject to permit sign off by WA Racing and Gaming. The result of the first raffle draw was published on the NSESVA website and in the 10th February Weekend Australian newspaper.
Media and PR Strategy sub-committee – MCM nominations sought
The first meeting of the sub-committee will be held soon. Several SES Units have been invited to have representative members. Interested volunteers should contact Allen sesva.secretary@ses-wa.asn.au. It is anticipated the group will meet three to four times a year.
Emergency Services 125th / SES 65th anniversary
The 125th anniversary of Emergency Services in WA coincides with the 65th anniversary of SES in WA. Management Committee members are going to contact their Units to determine the level of support for celebration of the SES WA 65th anniversary. Celebrations are being considered to align with WOW Day/Volunteer Week 18-24 May.
DFES Pregnancy and Intended Parents Policy – feedback sought
The Committee discussed to implications of the Policy for volunteers. President will respond to DFES on the Policy following further input from the Management Committee members.
Fit For Role – request for feedback to DFES
The related documents have been sent to all SES units and an on-line meeting is scheduled for Thursday 14 March for all units to participate in. SES presenters from the eastern states will provide information based on their experience of the concept to enable a clear understanding of how the Fit For Role project would impact SES WA if it was to be implement.
To contact the SESVA Secretary, call or message Mobile: 0419 935 479 Email: sesva.secretary@ses-wa.asn.au
SUMMARY OF THE SESVA MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE MEETING APRIL 2024
Legislation Working Group
The draft SESVA Legislation Position Paper is being formatted for printing. It is proposed to release the document soon and providing briefings to key stakeholders. It is uncertain whether the Green Paper will be released this year.
Fundraising – NSESA Raffle
Raffle No. 2 has been launched in WA.
Media and PR Strategy sub-committee
The inaugural meeting of this sub-committee on 21 March was extremely positive with the next meeting scheduled for June. The Media & PR Strategy sub-committee has oversight of various sub-committees, including the Heritage group.
Fitness for Role meeting
A report of the meeting has been provided to the Executive. The report to be sent to Management Committee members along with a copy of the PowerPoint presentation provided by Mitch Sewell. These to be circulated to all member units, with feedback being encouraged. Those units who have not yet indicated their preference to be reminded to do so before an update is provided to the FES Commissioner on the SESVA position relating to the adoption and implementation of the FFR Program and Framework.
ICT Working Group
Action items include issues relating to the cyber security and spamming and implementing solutions, as well as establishing- ing Multi Factor Authentication for the SESVA website, email system and data storage. Discussion also included Password Management and SESVA Facebook page administration.
Marking the 65th Anniversary of SES
The 65th anniversary of the SES in WA aligns with the 125th anniversary of Fire Services in WA. Celebrating the SES 65th anniversary would provide an opportunity for SES to celebrate with other SES members. Some SES unit members of have indicated their interest in assisting with a SES 65th Anniversary event in October or November. If organising the event proved practicable and successful this could set a precedent for future anniversaries being celebrated in this manner. The Management Committee are prepared to support the proposal.
SESVA Constitution – review
While the VA Constitution is being reviewed and while it meets the model rules of the Associations Act in WA, it needs to be more contemporary in some areas. Management Committee members are providing comments.
SESVA PR Photo Frames – planned distribution and use
The SES photo panel, which is SES WOW Day specific on one side and SES generic on the other has been designed for use by SES Units in their public relations/community engagement activities, notably WOW Day. Twelve frames have been produced at this point and, as the frames are quite large, it is envisaged one frame would be provided to each Management Committee member as custodians where they become a ‘pick up and drop off point’ for their region’s units to borrow.
Training Matters
Management Committee members are meeting with Chief Superintendent Peter Curran to raise learning and development related issues. President, Secretary, Les Hayter, Alan Hawke are also attending 20th April Training Forum (refer to Training Forum article elsewhere in this edition of the Newsletter).
SUMMARY OF MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE MEETING – 8TH JUNE 2024
Legislation Working Group – the Position Paper has been distributed on a limited basis. Printed copies of the Position Paper will be distributed after the Working Group meets with the Minister and Commissioner in July to provide a briefing and answer questions. A wider distribution of the Position Paper will be undertaken following the meetings.
NSESA Raffle (WA & TAS) – the raffle is going well in WA. The third raffle commenced 3 June and will be drawn 30th August. The result of the second raffle draw was published on the NSESVA website and in the 8th June Weekend Aus-tralian newspaper.
SES 65th Anniversary 1959-2024 – a Family Day is to be held Saturday 12th October 2024 from 10am at Jarrahdale Oval with overnight camping available. Units to show their history and lunch will be provided for Active volunteers
Fitness For Role – the FFR report from the March online meeting hosted by the SESVA has been discussed with DFES who have agreed to respond to the questions raised during the meeting. The response will be shared with all Units. DFES is also keen to offer five units to do a trial of the FFR program processes.
Combined ATAG/VTAG Forum – DFES and Bushfire Centre of Excellence teams hosted a Volunteer Training Forum 20th April. Presentations were received on training product strategy, RPL/RCC, IIR Process, development of online induction training and training resources on the Volunteer Hub. Ideas and strategies were invited during the forum.
National Training work group – the SESVA will form a work group to investigate the likely success of a policy that WA SES be supported by DFES to gain and maintain national recognised qualifications.
Friends of the SESVA – the SESVA will create a group ‘friends of the SESVA’ that can help or run tasks such as promotion-al events, help with mass mailouts, build promotional material, package merchandise and catalogue historical items.
SUMMARY OF SESVA MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE MEETING – 25th JULY 2024
Legislation Working Group – Group members had meetings with the Minister and the Commissioner in July. They were warmly received, and discussions were fruitful. Hard copy versions of the Proposed Emergency Services Act 2024 Position Paper have now been distributed to SES units, selected DFES staff, state and federal politicians, selected Government Departments, Local Government and selected community groups. It is likely that the draft bill may be released later this year for consultation.
NSESVA Raffle – The third raffle commenced on 3 June and will be drawn 30th August, however the sales of tickets were very slow in July. The committee agreed to encourage SES units to promote the SESVA Raffle and request units to provide timely advice of significant incidents and events that showcase the exceptional work of the SES volunteers to the SESVA representatives. This type of information has been proven to attract the attention of the public who are then more likely to purchase Raffle tickets and also donate.
SES 65th Anniversary 1959-2024 – A Family Day being held Saturday 12th October 2024 from 10am at Jarrahdale Oval with overnight camping available. The SESVA are supporting the event which is being organised by a working group and DFES has also agreed to support the event.
Fitness For Role – the FFR report from the March online meeting hosted by the SESVA had 14 questions for DFES to respond to. The Association has received a draft response and Management Committee members will be involved in discussing with the SES units their position on the further development of the SES Volunteer Association’s position on behalf of members units.
Women’s Operational PPC sizes
An issue has been raised about the lack of suitable sizing/cuts for the 2-piece uniform tops for women sizing/cut for women’s operational uniforms. They do not fit well and often need to be upsized significantly due to poor fit around the chest. SES volunteers ‘live’ in their operational uniforms and having the correct sizing is crucial for their comfort and performance. The Management Committee agreed to ask units “are there issues with uniforms for female members?”
Capital Expenditure for SES Units Working Group
Due to the lack of capital expenditure to meet the core needs of vehicles, facilities, watercraft, and newly developing resources for SES units in WA, the Management Committee agreed to form a working group to liaise with SES units and, through the DFES Executive, establish support, funding, and purchase of identified items to meet the future needs of SES units in WA. Expressions of Interest from current three Local Managers as working group members will be sought.
Meeting notes will be posted when they have been released
Meeting notes will be posted when they have been released
Meeting notes will be posted when they have been released
