Early last month, AFAC and the Fire Chief’s released the Seasonal Outlook for spring. For those who have been around for a little while, the telltale signs of indicators trending upward all point towards the potential for a busier than usual fire season. As one of the most fire prone places in the world, unsurprisingly Victoria receives strong emphasis in this year’s outlook. 
 

The outlook makes clear that Victoria has recorded the lowest-on-record 18-month rainfall deficits. These have persisted across the west of the state and extend across west central and south-west Gippsland. The drought conditions that farmers have been reporting on over the last 18 months are evidenced by the underlying soil moisture levels. The outlook also acknowledges that these areas have recorded a significant accumulation of dead plant material that have the potential to heighten bushfire activity further in the season. 

And while recent rains may be sending mixed signals to the general public, the real danger is starkly outlined in the report. While acknowledging heavy falls across the south-west, central, eastern and north-east ranges, the evidence shows that while the rainfall has dampened the top layer of soil, the lower-level soil remains historically dry, with uncertainty in how long the top layer of soil will remain damp. 

Despite the recent rainfall, and early above average spring rainfall estimates - the outlook cautions that this underlying dryness could rebound very quickly, and areas with arid vegetation types may dry out quicker during warmer and windy weather. It also cautions that while the recent rainfall will generate green growth in paddocks through spring, this will conceal the underlying dryness. 

It is this mixed signal environment that highlights the importance of CFA’s shared responsibility model. The beauty and wisdom of CFA’s community placed volunteer brigade model is uniquely designed to cater to these situations and is the key reason VFBV actions and activities will never risk damaging the well-earned volunteer reputation that our community safety relies upon. 

Brigades are advised to lean into CFA’s community education and safety campaigns to make it clear that this season will require preparation. Educating the community on positive actions they can take to prepare their homes and properties for the increased risk of fire that is likely to eventuate late spring will be crucial. 

The trust and respect the community places in CFA volunteers provides a unique opportunity to lead these community conversations. Our Joint CFA/VFBV Community Safety Committee have also worked hard over the preceding year to encourage and work with CFA to refresh and contemporise the public facing materials. 

Brigades can also seek advice from their local Community Safety Managers located in District/Regional offices, for support in engaging with the community at the local level. As well as information on core programs, including material for connecting with new residents or how to host an engaging community display, it may also be an opportunity to connect residents with a community fireguard session, home bushfire planning resources or the property advice visit service. These and other resources can all be accessed from the Community Engagement Content portal on Members Online or through your BASO or local Community Engagement Coordinator (CEC). 

And while it may be too late to be actively involved this season, members stepping away from frontline operational roles are exceptionally well suited to becoming volunteer presenters or undertaking the training to become home visit advisors. And there is no better time of year to be learning and being mentored as these programs start to roll out. There are many pathways available for non-operational or those transitioning out of operations to support community safety and education. Bringing one’s operational experience and background make you a very credible presenter, so don’t underestimate this pathway and the ability to influence change. So, if you have taken a step back from a suppression role, consider how you might be able to support the prevention side of our business. 

ANNUAL BURNOVER DRILLS 
It is that time of year that members are all encouraged to complete their annual skills maintenance in preparation for the fire danger period ahead. The burn over drill is an annual requirement, while refreshing your tree hazard awareness training is required to be redone every three years. While the burn over drill is best done in person, the tree hazard awareness training can be completed online, or via a brigade face to face session should you prefer.
 
And while some members often talk to me about why they think it is unnecessary to need to redo the burn over drill each and every year, for those of us who are involved in the aftermath of a serious firefighter injury or death and speaking with your loved ones, all I can do is impress on you the importance of undertaking this core refresher each year. Even if you have many many years of experience, if nothing else - your involvement in the drill allows other members to benefit from your experience, and who knows – you just might pick up something during the refresher that you may have missed or forgotten. 

At the risk of contradicting myself, there is a potential risk that the annual refreshers encourage complacency. Just because you know how to do the drill, are you equally prepared to ensure you and your crew are never put into a situation that may require it in the first place? 

These discussions are best done at the same time as your annual drills as they ensure we don’t just refresh the how but gain a better understanding of the why. 

Our Joint Operations Committees have been working with CFA on refreshing case studies gleaned from real after-action reviews to present real stories that can help you step into the mindset of a crew leader and learn from those who have come before us. These are available through CFA’s lessons management section of Members Online, and are often featured in CFA’s pre-season updates, so keep an eye out for them. 

In the lessons management section, you can also find some case studies of previous tanker burn overs. To emphasise my point, the title publication “Last Resort Tanker Survival Checklist” is a poignant reminder that performing a burn over on a tanker should be a last resort, and we are putting a lot of trust in the equipment and safety systems on what for many are very old trucks. As the old idiom teaches us - you are safest not to find yourself in that situation in the first place. But should you do so, doing the annual refresher will ensure it becomes muscle memory and not something you will need to struggle to remember in what is a high-risk - high stress environment. It also allows you to evaluate how your peers and fellow members may react during these events. 

ANNUAL VOL SURVEY 
As teased last month, our annual VFBV vol survey is launching this month and you once again have the opportunity to provide feedback on what’s working and what’s not. A huge shout out and thank-you to each of the 2,115 volunteers that completed the 2024/25 survey. 

Your continued involvement in our annual survey adds significant credibility to the results and allows us to keep advocating for improvements on your behalf. It also keeps a spotlight on the critical areas you tell us are your priorities. And because its arm’s length from CFA, we don’t have CFA marking their own homework, which provides confidence to volunteers that the issues they are raising are being prosecuted without fear or favour and are being objectively pursued through our networks. 

Even if you are raising the same things you have observed for many years in a row, annual involvement ensures these issues are always contemporised, and no one can hide behind the excuse that it’s an old issue and doesn’t exist anymore. The year-on-year trends are also a critical performance measure that assists CFA determine if the things that have been done to improve an area have hit the ground yet or not. 

As a result of the continued consistent dissatisfaction expressed through the survey each year in the training category, we will be working closely with VFBV District Councils to provide strengthened relationships between the Regional and District training teams and brigades. As discussed last month, a deep dive into the qualitative comments provided through the survey last year made it clear that training delivery issues remain a significant flash point. Issues such as when courses are scheduled, where they are scheduled, how much notice is provided, and administrative issues such as how cancellations and waiting lists are handled, as well as if there are enough scheduled courses to meet demand are consistently raised as priorities. 

And given the majority of training delivery is scheduled and managed at the local District level, there is an increased opportunity for District Council’s to play an active role in working with brigades and district officers to strongly influence improvement that will directly benefit the local patch. 

Simultaneous to this local work, VFBV State Committees are also committed to pursuing substantive changes and improvements to CFA’s LMS and the other related training systems that we all rely on to register, track and report on training needs and outcomes. VFBV will continue to encourage CFA to bid for critical funding that will allow these systems to be fit for purpose and suit an organisation the size of CFA. 

These are just two examples of how the survey results directly lead to work and initiatives to address the key issues you raise as priorities. 

Please visit vfbv.com.au/cfa to access the 2025/26 survey, or phone the office via (03) 9886 1141 to request a paper copy be mailed out to you. QR codes are also available from VFBV State Councillors or Support Officers, or via Fire Wise or the website. 

This year’s VFBV Vol Survey is now open. 

The survey is the largest of its kind, and provides an annual snapshot of volunteer opinion, using questions on issues chosen by volunteers. 

All responses are confidential, with only de-identified results going straight to decision makers. The results are studied by the CFA Executive, the Department of Justice and Community Safety, the Fire Services Implementation Monitor, and the Victorian Government. Issues highlighted by volunteer feedback and responses drive further initiatives and investment to try and improve the things that volunteers raise as priority issues. 

Now in its 14th year, the survey is the oldest, most credible and robust analysis of emergency service volunteer opinion in Victoria. 

The survey measures volunteer opinions on what is important to them, and how well CFA is performing according to what they are experiencing. By repeating the survey each year, important trend analysis allows decision makers to evaluate efforts to address key issues, and whether or not the selected improvements are being effective. VFBV uses the results to drive important volunteer advocacy, and push for improvements on the issues that volunteers tell us they value the most. 

Scan the QR code below or visit the VFBV website to do the survey today. Paper copies are also available by calling the VFBV Office on (03) 9886 1141. 

The survey allows you to rate what’s going well, what needs improvement and an opportunity to suggest key issues requiring further attention. Help us help you and have your say today. 

VFBV is now accepting expressions of interest from volunteers to nominate to the CFA/VFBV Joint Consultative Committees for the 2026 calendar year.

If you have an interest in one of the eight streams, feel you can contribute and have the time, are passionate about volunteers and want to be an integral part of our Joint Committee process – then please visit the VFBV website or talk to your local VFBV District Council, State Councillor or VFBV Support Officer for a nomination form. Nominations are due 24 November 2025 but need to be endorsed by the District Council first.

We are seeking volunteers from broad and diverse backgrounds to participate in our consultative structures. Young members, women and members of culturally diverse backgrounds are highly encouraged to nominate. We also want to attract volunteers from as broad a range of brigade types and risk profiles as possible.

If you would like to learn more about the role of a Joint Committee delegate and how to get involved, please contact your VFBV Support Officer, State Councillor or VFBV Executive Officer Mark Dryden. 

As drought continues to set in across large parts of Victoria, VFBV recognises that it is having a significant impact on many CFA Volunteers, their families and communities.

There are numerous supports available to farmers, businesses, individuals and communities, but navigating these can be a time consuming and sometimes frustrating exercise with information hard to find and spread across multiple sources.

Similar to previous Fact Sheets VFBV has prepared for fire and storms – VFBV has developed a Fact Sheet to assist members navigate the various Drought Relief packages that are currently available.

The Fact Sheet can be downloaded from the VFBV website or printed copies may be requested from the VFBV office via vfbv@vfbv.com.au or (03) 9886 1141. 

Thank you to all affiliated brigades and groups that have reaffiliated and helped us stand up for volunteers. 

Affiliation sends a strong message that volunteers are united and will work together to achieve positive outcomes that benefit not only brigades, but the broader community of which we all protect. It also provides access to the VFBV Welfare Fund, which since its inception, has distributed more than $2.85 million in grants to volunteers who have fallen on hard times.

Over the past 12 months, VFBV has had to strongly advocate on presumptive cancer legislation, the Fiskville redress scheme, volunteers injured performing CFA duties and requiring fair compensation, the government’s new emergency services tax and volunteer rebate, improvements to the GFF program and other training initiatives, improvements to the CFA Regulations, CFA/FRV secondment arrangements, the ageing CFA truck fleet and the inadequacy of the CFA budget and base funding to just name a few. 

A reminder that the eligible volunteers rebate scheme is now open for eligible volunteers and life members to apply for a rebate on an eligible property under the Emergency Services Tax. 

CFA volunteers intending on claiming the volunteer rebate will be required to first log-in to their CFA online account, to complete the CFA eligibility test. 
To check the rules and eligibility requirements, you can visit: https://www.vic.gov.au/evrs  

If you are eligible and own an eligible property, head to Members Online to start the process. 

Monash University is conducting a clinical trial to evaluate a new online intervention for couples called Couple HOPES.

Couple HOPES is designed to give you and your partner tools to improve PTSD symptoms and enhance your relationship.

They are seeking any current or veteran police officers, firefighters and paramedics with symptoms of PTSD and their intimate partner, who would like to improve their PTSD symptoms and enhance their relationship satisfaction. Couples who participate will receive FREE access to Couple HOPES.

What's involved?
Participation in all aspects of the study will involve:

• Meeting with one of the research team via Zoom to discuss your eligibility
• Random allocation to receive either immediate or delayed access to Couple HOPES
• Completion of 7 x 30min Couple HOPES modules, including practice assignments between sessions and attending coaching sessions with your coach
• Completing 7 online surveys, each approximately 15-20 minutes in duration
• Participation in an online interview via Zoom (optional)

If you would like to find out more about the study or submit an expression of interest to get involved, you can visit the trial website. 

This study has been approved by the Monash University Human Research Ethics Committee (Project ID 40515).

Applications are now open for a number of leadership development programs across the state which are made available to volunteers through CFA’s Volunteer Leadership Development project. 

Members are able to express an interest in upcoming intakes of the Certificate IV in Leadership and Management course run by CFA. Further details on how to apply can be found on members online. 

Expressions of interest are also open across the state for the Regional Leadership Program – Community Leadership Programs.  The programs now accepting applications are: Future Shapers (Ballarat and Western regions), Fairley Leadership Program (Goulburn Murray Community Leadership Program), Leaders for Geelong, Gippsland Community Leadership program, Lead Loddon Murray, and Alpine Valley Community Leadership program. 

Applications for the Leadership Great South Coast and Change Makers (Leadership Wimmera) program will open later in the year. 

The October 2025 edition of Fire Wise has been published online only, this edition and past editions are available from the Fire Wise website for a small subscription fee.

You can support Fire Wise and the role it plays as an independent voice in keeping volunteers informed by becoming a subscriber. To become a subscriber visit the Fire Wise website or contact the Managing Editor of Fire Wise, Gordon Rippon-King either by phone 0402 051 412 or email gordon@fire-wise.com.au 

Now Open - 2025/26 VFBV Volunteer Survey

2026 VFBV/CFA Joint Committee District Nominees Expression of Interest 

Emergency Services Tax Forecast Funding 

2025 Drought Relief Resources

Presumptive Legislation Update