There are many reasons why people volunteer with Fire and Emergency. Some join because they want to contribute to their community. Others join to be part of a team and to learn new skills.

Strengthen your community

Being a volunteer with Fire and Emergency is a way to serve your community. Not only do volunteers attend incidents and emergencies, they also participate in community occasions and hold brigade events. As a volunteer you’ll meet new people in your community.

Become part of a team

Volunteering with us is all about teamwork. Volunteers learn teamwork skills through training and working with their brigade. When you volunteer, you become part of a team – not just within your brigade but with Fire and Emergency nationwide. You’ll have the opportunity to take part in a large social network as well as compete in sporting and firefighting challenge events.

Learn new skills

Volunteers are trained to do their jobs safely and effectively. Firefighters and medical first responders attend formal training courses held locally or at one of our training centres. For some firefighters this includes a recruits course that can be up to a week long. All volunteer firefighters and some operational support volunteers are also trained in medical co-response. We also offer training in valuable skills such as leadership and provide access to online educational resources.

Access special benefits

We appreciate our volunteers’ hard work and dedication and to acknowledge this, we provide access to: 

• free annual health checks
• free flu and hepatitis B vaccinations
• annual reimbursement for out of pocket expenses
• $50 family/whānau allowance when away overnight for formal training
• discounted health insurance
• discounted products and services.