Berkshire Lowland Search and Rescue

Last updated
Berkshire Lowland Search and Rescue (BLSAR)
Founded1980 (1980)
Type Registered charity
Registration no.1202260
Area served
Berkshire, England
Key people
Chairman: Andrew Panting

Secretary:

Treasurer: Adam Waller
Website www.berkshirerescue.org.uk

Berkshire Lowland Search and Rescue (BLSAR) is a registered charitable lowland search and rescue team based in Berkshire, United Kingdom and provides support functions (primarily search and rescue) to Thames Valley Police and the emergency planning departments of various local authorities in Berkshire. In common with most UK SAR teams, BLSAR members are all volunteers. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5]

Contents

BLSAR was formally called SEBEV, the original meaning of SEBEV was South East Berkshire Emergency Volunteers, however the full title was dropped in 1994 and the team was then known simply as SEBEV Search and Rescue (or sometimes by the media as Berkshire Search and Rescue) in order to better reflect their role. In 2011 SEBEV changed its name again to Berkshire Lowland Search and Rescue (BLSAR). [6]

History

The organisation was originally set up in 1980 by John Cowling as a Civil Defence volunteer team to provide support for the local authorities and the statutory emergency services during civil emergencies as a category one responder, support organisation (CCA 2004). [6] [7] [8] At the time its membership consisted of mainly council employees who met once a month for basic training in such things as message handling, logging and plotting and map reading. [9]

In 1981, BLSAR acquired its own headquarters, an ex-street cleansing depot, in one of the local housing estates which was redesigned and redecorated as a training area with communications facilities. Gradually the council staff left and replacement volunteers came from friends. Over a period of time they became entirely composed of non local authority staff, with the exception of the borough's Emergency Planning Liaison Officer. In 1984 the team moved from their single room premises into Easthampstead Park in Wokingham, taking over the basement area already used by the government as a bomb shelter [9] BLSAR moved out of the premises in 2018 and are now based at the old Arborfield Garrison site.[ citation needed ]

BLSAR members meet once a week to undertake training as well as training weekends, at home and away. [9]

In 1995, its primary function changed to providing lowland search and rescue support for Berkshire. The team, based at Easthampstead Park Conference Centre in Wokingham, Berkshire is available 24 hours a day to search for missing persons. BLSAR also assists other SAR teams in neighbouring counties, when needed. The team has its own fully equipped incident control vehicle and an incident support vehicle plus all equipment necessary for rescue and first aid purposes. [10]

BLSAR meets weekly for training in such subjects as search techniques. communications, navigation, first aid, including use of Automatic External Defibrillators, [11] rescue techniques, team building, navigation amongst other subjects. [12]

BLSAR is a member team of ALSAR the Association of Lowland Search and Rescue [13] and is mentioned in the Search and Rescue Framework for the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. [14]

Fundraising and Events

Berkshire Lowland Search and Rescue (BLSAR) is funded purely by its own fundraising efforts, local community events and occasional grants or donations. [6]

BLSAR provides first aid, marshals and stewards for local events such as carnivals, music festivals, sports activities and firework displays. [15]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reading, Berkshire</span> Town and borough in Berkshire, England

Reading is a town and borough in Berkshire, England. Most of its built-up area lies within the Borough of Reading, although some outer suburbs are parts of neighbouring local authority areas. Located in the Thames Valley at the confluence of the rivers Thames and Kennet, Reading is 40 miles (64 km) east of Swindon, 25 miles (40 km) south of Oxford, 40 miles (64 km) west of London and 16 miles (26 km) north of Basingstoke.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Berkshire</span> County of England

The Royal County of Berkshire, commonly known as simply Berkshire, is a ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Oxfordshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the north-east, Greater London to the east, Surrey to the south-east, Hampshire to the south, and Wiltshire to the west. Reading is the largest settlement and the county town.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bracknell Forest</span> District in Berkshire, England

Bracknell Forest is a unitary authority area in Berkshire, southern England. It covers the two towns of Bracknell and Sandhurst and the village of Crowthorne and also includes the areas of North Ascot, Binfield, Warfield, and Winkfield. The borough borders Wokingham and the Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead in Berkshire, and also parts of Surrey and Hampshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Search and rescue</span> Search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger

Search and rescue (SAR) is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger. The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, typically determined by the type of terrain the search is conducted over. These include mountain rescue; ground search and rescue, including the use of search and rescue dogs ; urban search and rescue in cities; combat search and rescue on the battlefield and air-sea rescue over water.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wokingham</span> Market town and civil parish in England

Wokingham is a market town and civil parish in Berkshire, England, 37 miles (60 km) west of London, 7 miles (11 km) southeast of Reading, 8 miles (13 km) north of Camberley and 4 miles (6 km) west of Bracknell. It is the main administrative centre of the wider Borough of Wokingham. In 2011 it had a population of 50,320.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bracknell</span> Town and civil parish in England

Bracknell is a town and civil parish in Berkshire, England, the westernmost area within the Greater London Urban Area and the administrative centre of the borough of Bracknell Forest. It lies 11 miles (18 km) to the east of Reading, 9 miles (14 km) south of Maidenhead, 10 miles (16 km) southwest of Windsor and 25 miles (40 km) west of central London. Bracknell is the third largest town in Berkshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thames Valley Police</span> English territorial police force

Thames Valley Police is the territorial police force responsible for policing the Thames Valley region, covering the counties of Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire in South East England. It is the largest non-metropolitan police force in England and Wales, covering 2,218 square miles (5,740 km2) and a population of 2.42 million people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Borough of Wokingham</span> Unitary authority area in Berkshire, England

The Borough of Wokingham is a local government district with borough status in Berkshire, England. It is named after its main town, Wokingham. Other places in the district include Arborfield, Barkham, Charvil, Earley, Finchampstead, Hurst, Remenham, Ruscombe, Shinfield, Sonning, Spencers Wood, Three Mile Cross, Twyford, Wargrave, Winnersh and Woodley. The population of Wokingham is 177,500 according to 2021 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reading Buses</span> British municipal bus operator

Reading Transport Limited, trading as Reading Buses, is an English municipal bus operator owned by Reading Borough Council, serving the towns of Reading, Bracknell, Newbury, Slough, Windsor, Maidenhead, Wokingham and the surrounding areas in the counties of Berkshire, Oxfordshire, Surrey and Hampshire, as well as parts of Greater London.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reading East (UK Parliament constituency)</span> Former parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom, from 1983 to 2024

Reading East was a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament. In the 2019-2024 Parliament, it was one of two Labour seats from a total of eight seats in Berkshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Newbury (UK Parliament constituency)</span> Parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom, 1885 onwards

Newbury is a constituency of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, located in the English county of Berkshire. It was created by the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 and has been in continual existence since then. It has been represented by Lee Dillon of the Liberal Democrats since 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wokingham (UK Parliament constituency)</span> Parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom 1885-1918 and from 1950 onwards

Wokingham is a constituency of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, located in the English county of Berkshire. From its creation in 1950 until 2024, it was represented solely by Conservatives, most notably, John Redwood, who held his position from 1987 until 2024 when he stepped down after the dissolution of parliament.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bracknell (UK Parliament constituency)</span> Parliament constituency in the United Kingdom since 1997

Bracknell is a constituency in Berkshire represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2024 by Peter Swallow, from the Labour Party. It was created for the 1997 general election, largely replacing the abolished county constituency of East Berkshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mountain rescue in England and Wales</span> UK rescue services

Mountain rescue services in England and Wales operate under the association of Mountain Rescue England and Wales (MREW), formerly called Mountain Rescue Council of England & Wales. The association has a number of regional mountain rescue teams, each of which is an independent charity. The team members are highly trained volunteers who are called out by the police.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service</span> Fire and rescue service in southern England

Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service (RBFRS) is a statutory fire and rescue service covering the area of the ceremonial county of Berkshire in England. The fire service was formerly administered by Berkshire County Council, but when that was abolished the service became the responsibility of the Royal Berkshire Fire Authority, made up of representatives from the six unitary authorities of Bracknell Forest Borough Council, Reading Borough Council, Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, Slough Borough Council, West Berkshire Council, and Wokingham Borough Council.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East Reading</span> Human settlement in England

East Reading is a main locality of the town of Reading in the English county of Berkshire. Its centre is known as Cemetery Junction, after Reading Old Cemetery.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bracknell Forest Council</span>

Bracknell Forest Council, also known as Bracknell Forest Borough Council, is the local authority for Bracknell Forest, a local government district with borough status in Berkshire, England. Since 1998, the council has been a unitary authority, being a district council which also performs the functions of a county council. The council has been under Labour majority control since 2023. It is based at Time Square in Bracknell.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Search and rescue in the United States</span> American search and rescue resources

Search and rescue in the United States involves a wide range of organizations that have search and rescue responsibilities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Surrey Search and Rescue</span>

Surrey Search and Rescue (SurSAR) is a lowland search and rescue team based in Surrey, United Kingdom, who respond for missing person search, water rescue, drone imaging and other taskings at the request of Surrey Police and Surrey Fire and Rescue Service, as well as other statutory and government agencies. In common with most UKSAR teams, SurSAR's members are volunteers. The team has been a registered charity in England and Wales since October 2011.

References

  1. ↑ Charity Commission (March 2009). "1046861 - South East Berks Emergency Volunteers" . Retrieved 2010-01-13.
  2. ↑ Thames Valley Police (n.d.). "Useful links". Archived from the original on 2011-05-14. Retrieved 2010-01-13.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: year (link)
  3. ↑ Bracknell Forest Council (n.d.). "Organisation Details". Archived from the original on 2011-06-08. Retrieved 2010-01-13.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: year (link)
  4. ↑ Thames Valley Police; et al. (January 2006). "Berkshire Major Incident Protocol" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-06-08. Retrieved 2010-01-13.
  5. ↑ West Berkshire Council; et al. (October 2004). "Planning For Disasters In Berkshire" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-06-08. Retrieved 2010-01-13.
  6. 1 2 3 SEBEV Search and Rescue (2011). "About SEBEV Search and Rescue". Archived from the original on 6 October 2011. Retrieved 2 October 2011.
  7. ↑ Reading Borough Council (November 2007). "Flood Plan - Fluvial/Rivers & Pluvial/Drains" (PDF). Retrieved 2010-01-13.[ permanent dead link ]
  8. ↑ Parliament of the United Kingdom (February 2003). "Flooding (Thames Valley)". Archived from the original on 2011-06-05. Retrieved 2010-01-13.
  9. 1 2 3 SEBEV (n.d.). "History and Development of SEBEV" . Retrieved 2010-01-13.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: year (link)[ permanent dead link ]
  10. ↑ SEBEV Search & Rescue (December 2008). "SEBEV Search & Rescue" . Retrieved 2010-01-13.
  11. ↑ Bradley, Robert (December 2009). "SEBEV trains its members in AED use". Archived from the original on 2009-12-15. Retrieved 2010-01-13.
  12. ↑ SEBEV - Search and Rescue Team (Berkshire) (2009). "Training". Archived from the original on November 29, 2009. Retrieved 2010-01-13.
  13. ↑ Association of Lowland Search and Rescue (n.d.). "Member Units" . Retrieved 2010-01-13.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: year (link)
  14. ↑ Queen’s Printer and Controller (April 2008). "Search and Rescue Framework for the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2010-03-03. Retrieved 2010-01-13.
  15. ↑ SEBEV - Berkshire Search and Rescue Team (2009). "Event Services" . Retrieved 2010-01-13.[ dead link ]
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.