New South Wales State Emergency Service

NSW State Emergency Service
Agency overview
NSW SES volunteers (in orange overalls) assist at the Thredbo landslide, 1997
Formed	1955
Preceding agencies	State Emergency Services (April 1955 – September 1955) Civil Defence (September 1955 – 1989)
Jurisdiction	New South Wales
Headquarters	Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia
Minister responsible	Hon. David Elliott MP, Minister for Emergency Services
Agency executive	Adam Dent, Commissioner
Key document	State Emergency Service Act, 1989 (NSW)
Website	www.ses.nsw.gov.au

The NSW State Emergency Service or NSW SES, an agency of the Government of New South Wales, is an emergency and rescue service dedicated to assisting the community in times of natural and man-made disasters. The NSW SES is made up almost entirely of 10,251 volunteer members, via 230 suburban, regional and rural units located throughout New South Wales. The volunteers are easily identified by their distinctive orange overalls.

With its history going back to 1955, a State Emergency Services' organisation was established after the devastating Hunter Valley floods of 1955, when they merged with Civil Defence in response to fears of a nuclear attack, and then restructured in 1972 and again in 1989, following the enactment of the State Emergency Service Act, 1989 (NSW).

The agency is led by its Commissioner, Adam Dent, who reports to the Minister for Emergency Services, presently the Hon. David Elliott MP.

Emergency support

The major responsibilities of the NSW SES are for flood (including Flood Rescue), tsunami and storm operations. The NSW SES also provides the majority of General Land Rescue effort in the rural parts of the state. This includes road crash rescue, vertical rescue, general rescue, bush search and rescue, evidence searches (both metropolitan and rural) and other forms of specialist rescue that may be required due to local threats. The Service's trained rescuers also support the full-time emergency services during major disasters.^[1]

The NSW SES also assist other emergency services when they are performing major operations. These services include the New South Wales Police Force, the NSW Rural Fire Service, the Fire and Rescue NSW and the Ambulance Service of New South Wales.

Organisational structure

The state headquarters of the NSW SES is located in Wollongong, with 17 regional headquarters located across the state. Region boundaries are generally based on river catchments, reflecting that floods are a major part of their work. The boundaries for the SES's 228 units are based on local government boundaries.

NSW SES volunteer units are managed by Local Controllers. Where there is more than one unit in a local government area, or a number of units in close concentration, a Unit Controller is appointed to manage each unit with a Local Controller overseeing operations on a larger scale than at the individual unit but smaller scale than at the Regional Headquarters. Region offices are managed by a Region Controller. Offices also have a Deputy Region Controller, Learning and Development Officer, Business Manager and Business Services Officer. A number of Regions have additional Learning and Development Officers and/or Community Engagement Coordinators. Volunteers may also be attached to a region office.

The 17 regions are: Sydney Northern, Sydney Southern, Sydney Western, Illawarra South Coast, Hunter, Mid North Coast, Clarence Nambucca, Richmond Tweed, Namoi, North West, Far West, Murray, Murrumbidgee, Central West, Southern Highlands, Lachlan and Macquarie.

At a state level, Directors are responsible for key functional areas (Finance and Logistics, Regional Operations, People and Culture, Information Technology and Emergency Management). All these positions are based at NSW SES State Headquarters in Wollongong.

Funding and support

The NSW SES receives funding primarily from the NSW Government and donations made by members of the public. Resources are often obtained through numerous grants provided by public and private entities.

Photos

SES volunteers removing debris from Lake Albert, in 2010.
SES vehicles and volunteers in Wagga Wagga, in 2008.
SES vehicle and volunteer in Wagga Wagga, in 2008.
Queanbeyan headquarters of the SES, in 2011.
Murrumbidgee regional SES headquarters, located in Ashmont, in 2008.
Gooloogong local SES unit shed, in 2011.

References

↑ "About us". State Emergency Service. Government of New South Wales. 10 August 2011. Retrieved 6 February 2012.

External links

New South Wales State Emergency Service

Departments and agencies of the New South Wales Government

New South Wales Government

Premier and Cabinet	Audit Office Barangaroo Delivery Authority Independent Commission Against Corruption Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal Infrastructure NSW NSW Electoral Commission Office of Western Sydney Ombudsman’s Office Parliamentary Counsel’s Office Police Integrity Commission Public Service Commission (to be established)

Attorney General and Justice	Corrective Services Crown Solicitor's Office Disaster Welfare Assistance Emergency Management NSW Fire and Rescue NSW Industrial Relations Commission Information and Privacy Commission Judicial Commission Juvenile Justice Legal Aid Commission Ministry for Police and Emergency Service NSW Crime Commission NSW Police Force NSW Trustee and Guardian Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions Registry of Births Deaths and Marriages Rural Fire Service State Emergency Service

Education and Communities	Aboriginal Affairs Board of Studies Board of Vocational Education and Training Children’s Guardian Combat Sports Authority of NSW Commission for Children and Young People Community Relations Commission Early Childhood Education and Care Hunter Region Sporting Venues Authority Illawarra Venues Authority Institute of Teachers NSW Institute of Sport Office of Communities Parramatta Stadium Trust Public Schools Sport and Recreation Sydney Cricket and Sports Ground Trust Sydney Olympic Park Authority TAFE and Community Education TAFE Commission Communities Veterans Affairs Volunteering Youth

Family and Community Services	Aboriginal Housing Office Ageing, Disability and Home Care incl Office for Ageing City West Housing Pty Ltd Community Services Home Care Service Home Purchase Assistance Fund Housing NSW NSW Businesslink Pty Ltd Office for Women’s Policy

Finance and Services	Aust. Centre for Advanced Computing & Communications (ac3) Board of Surveying and Spatial Information Consumer, Trader and Tenancy Tribunal Geographic Names Board Hunter Water Corporation Motor Accidents Authority Land and Property Information NSW Architects Registration Board NSW Fair Trading NSW Government Telecommunications Authority NSW Land and Housing Corporation (jointly with FACS) NSW Procurement NSW Public Works Office of Industrial Relations Office of State Revenue Rental Bond Board State Contracts Control Board State Property Authority State Records Authority Surveyor General Sydney Water Corporation Teacher Housing Authority Waste Assets Management Corporation WorkCover Authority Workers’ Compensation (Dust Diseases) Board ValuerGeneral

Health	Ambulance Service of NSW Cancer Institute of New South Wales Health Administration Corporation Health Care Complaints Commission Health Professional Councils Authority Local Health Districts x 15 Statutory Health Corporations x 10

Planning and Environment	Centennial Park and Moore Park Trust Central Coast Regional Development Corporation Historic Houses Trust Hunter Development Corporation Landcom Luna Park Reserve Trust Office of Environment & Heritage Office of Local Government Redfern-Waterloo Authority Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority UrbanGrowth

Trade and Investment, Regional Infrastructure and Services	Agriculture Aquatic Reserves Arts NSW Art Gallery Australian Museum Benerembah Irrigation District Environ. Protection Trust Biosecurity Casino, Liquor and Gaming Authority Catchment Management Authorities Central Coast Water Corporation Chief Scientist and Engineer Chipping Norton Lake Authority Cobar Water Board Crown Lands 'Department of Primary Industries Destination NSW incl. Tourism, Events, Homebush Motor RA Energy Corporations Energy, Mining and Biofuels Fisheries Food Authority Forests NSW Game Council Lake Illawarra Authority Livestock Health and Pest Authorities Marine Parks Authority Mine Subsidence Board Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences Office of Liquor, Gaming and Racing Office of Rural Affairs Office of Water Primary Industries Regional Development Retail Tenancies Unit Rural Assistance Authority Screen NSW Small Business State Development State Library Sydney Catchment Authority Sydney Opera House Tourism and Major Events Policy Wild Dog Destruction Board

Transport	Independent Transport Safety Regulator Newcastle Port Corporation NSW TrainLink Office of Transport Safety Investigations Port Kembla Port Corporation Public Transport Ticketing Corporation RailCorp Roads & Maritime Services State Transit Authority Sydney Ferries Sydney Metro Authority Sydney Ports Corporation Sydney Trains

Treasury	Crown Finance Entity Electricity Tariff Equalisation Ministerial Corporation Liability Management Ministerial Corporation NSW Self Insurance Corporation Office of Financial Management T Corp