The BCRC AGM, is held in April each year when Officer posts are up for re-election. Below are the contact details for the BCRC Officers and a brief summary of their roles ….
(Note: Email links may not work on all devices – you can always use the form on the Contact Us page to send a message to the BCRC Secretary)
Chairman: Peter Dennis
Represents cave rescue within the National Police Chief Constables LandSAR group, MREW Regional Operations Group, and within UKSAR for insurance matters. Represents BCRC at AGMs of the European Cave Rescue Association; and reinstated UIS Cave Rescue Commission. Member of Scottish CRO 1996-2006, secretary, 2000-2006. Joined SMWCRT after move to Wales in 2006 and served on the Executive committee in various training roles from 2016, co-opted as BCRC Conference Secretary 2016-2017, leading to ResCon17, and elected as chairman in 2018.
Vice Chairman: Bill Whitehouse MBE
Assists and deputises for the chairman and is BCRC’s representative on the UKSAR Operators and Volunteers Groups. A member of Derbyshire CRO since 1964 and for many years a rescue controller and either its secretary or chairman. Past chairman of BCRC 1980 – 2015. A current trustee of the Mountain and Cave Rescue Benevolent Fund.
Assistant Chair: Gary Mitchell
BCRC representative for liaison with Mountain Rescue England & Wales Executive, and at MREW Regional Chairs meetings. Warden and Emergency Services Liaison for South & Mid Wales Cave Rescue Team.
Secretary: Emma Porter
Ensures regular communications between teams and BCRC, undertakes admin tasks and deals with external enquiries. Organises officers’ meetings, produces and distributes minutes. Represents BCRC at British Caving Association meetings. Training Co-ordinator of Midlands Cave Rescue Organisation and team member of Gloucestershire Cave Rescue Group.
Treasurer: John Sheehy
Manages BCRC finances and coordinates fundraising.
Training Officer: Gavin Stewart
Addresses any national training needs, responds to requests from BCRC teams and supports other officers. Working closely on the team review process. Represents BCRC at the MREW Training sub-committee. Member of Cumbria Ore Mines Rescue Unit and Penrith mountain rescue team.
Diving Advisor: John Volanthen
Advises on cave diving issues and liases between the Cave Diving Group and BCRC.
Equipment Officer: Mike Clayton
Liaises between teams and MREW for the government grant, and has been running PPE inspection courses for teams. Represents BCRC at the MREW Equipment sub-committee meetings and works for a height safety specialist company so gets to test the latest equipment. Chair of Midlands Cave Rescue Organisation and team member of Gloucestershire Cave Rescue Group.
Communications Officer: Tony Haigh
The aims of this post are to seek to enhance ICT and Communications for cave rescue.
Information Officer: Roger King
Ensures that contact information for the fifteen cave rescue teams within the UK and Eire is maintained and updated regularly. Collects, collates and distributes incident and other statistics from the teams.
Legal Advisor: Toby Hamnett
A solicitor and volunteers as the Legal Adviser for BCRC. He focuses on pragmatic solutions and believes in communication to ensure that cave rescue legal risk is minimised. If a case requires specialist knowledge outside of his areas of expertise he can assist in ensuring that the right expert is identified for the teams.
Medical Advisor: Brendan Sloan
Involves advising and dealing with medical queries from teams and keeping teams aware of relevant medical issues of concern to cave rescue. Represents BCRC at the MREW medical sub-committee and serves as the BCRC’s medical member of the UKSAR Medical Group.
Wellbeing Officer: Ron Price
Represents cave rescue at MREW, UKSAR and Emergency Services meetings. Is mindful of the current situation in respect of volunteer wellbeing and reports to BCRC and member teams.
The Wellbeing Officer is a central point of contact for member cave rescue teams, collates and distributes wellbeing information, provides information and signposting to member teams. Bringing wellbeing and mental health to the forefront of conversation, facilitates discussion and information sharing in order to support and improve wellbeing and resilience.
I have been involved as a team member with DCRO 2008-2023, serving on the committee, a team Vehicle Officer for several years and as the Wellbeing Lead 2020 – 2023. I have a working background and lived experience around mental health and wellbeing.
The Wellbeing Officer is a central point of contact for member cave rescue teams, collates and distributes wellbeing information, provides information and signposting to member teams. Bringing wellbeing and mental health to the forefront of conversation, facilitates discussion and information sharing in order to support and improve wellbeing and resilience.
I have been involved as a team member with DCRO 2008-2023, serving on the committee, a team Vehicle Officer for several years and as the Wellbeing Lead 2020 – 2023. I have a working background and lived experience around mental health and wellbeing.
Conference Secretary: Tracey Binks
Co-opted representative of ResCon24 which will be hosted by Cumbria Ore Mines Rescue Unit (COMRU) at Nenthead, Cumbria.
Find out what happens at conference – take a look at the 2019 BCRC Rescue Conference in Priddy, hosted by Mendip Cave Rescue.