We can’t promise to make you bionic but we’ll do our best…
© Sara Spillett
In 2018, an intriguing email landed, from Miller Harris of the Lochaber team, representing Mountain Rescue Support Scotland Ltd…
From the archive: Mountain Rescue Magazine Winter Issue 67, January 2019: Judy Whiteside.
This newly-formed company is a benevolent fund, set up by the four independent mountain rescue teams in Scotland, and mountain rescue teams in England and Wales were invited to ‘become members’.
The response on behalf of Mountain Rescue England and Wales (MREW), by Peter Dymond, was to thank Miller for his email and assure him that the membership would be informed. But it would be up to individuals whether they join. Peter also noted that ‘MREW has its own benevolent fund’.
The ensuing discussions gave pause for thought. Maybe we should let people know that our charity is very much alive and well and still in business. So here goes.
Why does mountain rescue need a benevolent fund at all?
Well, there’s never a ‘good time’ to have an accident. They can happen to anyone. The best prepared, the most expensively kitted-out, even the highly skilled. They even happen to people carrying maps, compasses and torches. And occasionally, they happen to team members too — in possession of all those things and more besides — while they’re out on a shout or undertaking training.
It might not even be a physical injury. Maybe it’s a particularly harrowing incident and that chat down the pub afterwards just isn’t enough.
That’s where the Rescue Benevolent Fund comes in.
If this is so vital, why isn’t MREW footing the bill? Why do we ask teams and other individuals to contribute?
The fund was set up by MREW and the British Cave Rescue Council (BCRC). Since then, both have contributed financially and both are represented on the trustee board. To protect monies donated for benevolent purposes and to ensure the objective assessment of claims, we set up a separate charity. As such, the fund has its own Deed of Trust, bank account, operating procedures and policies. And freedom from whatever frustrations might be exercising mountain rescue minds on any particular day! As a separate charity we also need to raise our own funds.
What have we achieved so far?
Our aim is to help alleviate hardship suffered by team members which is a direct result of their mountain or cave rescue activity.
The number of claims we’ve had remains low, not least because the rescuer nature tends towards the antithesis of claim culture! Asking for help if you get injured in the course of duty doesn’t come easy. Often, the perception is that there’s ‘someone more deserving’.
‘We’re still a young charity’, says Neil Woodhead, chairman of the fund and a Kinder team member. ‘We’re still growing and learning about the sort of support team members need from us.
‘Most of our claims have been for physical rehabilitation but, increasingly, we are asked for help with emotional support. Many of our members are self-employed. They already give up potential earning time for call-outs, so if they’re injured on an incident and unable to work as a result, it can mean in real hardship. Our guiding principle is to get people back to work and back to mountain rescue.’
Of course, there are also insurances in place to protect team members but sometimes immediate help is needed. And, if it’s a physical injury, the sooner you begin rehabilitation treatment, the better your prognosis for recovery.
But how can we possibly help with things like physical rehab?
By covering the costs. We have agreements in place with both The Fire Fighters’ Charity and the Police Treatment Centres. All their centres are residential so we’ve got physical rehab services covered across England and Wales. We also work with local counsellors and mountain rescue TRiM personnel to provide emotional and mental health support.
We also offer immediate financial support, both on a loan basis and non-returnable, depending on circumstances.
Here comes the ‘bionic’ bit… David’s story
Patterdale team member and Lakes dog handler David Benson knows from painful experience how easily an injury can occur and how it can impact your life. A self-employed dry stone waller, when he injured his knee on a call-out, it didn’t just affect his ability to respond to incidents and ground his search dog. More importantly, he was unable to earn a living.
It was a Saturday in October, three years ago. He’d just returned to Patterdale base, after training with his search dog Brock, when a call came in to an incident on Helvellyn. Back up the hill he went. It was a difficult stretcher carry from Swirral Edge to Red Tarn, then to the outfall and sledging down towards Greenside.
Having taken his turn with the carry, David carried on downhill, alongside the group but his knee became extremely painful.
‘It was just a simple walk off with a light pack,’ says David. ‘But my left knee went clunk clunk to the medial side and down I went.’
Rescuing the rescuer…
His old teammates from Kirkby Stephen stretchered him off the hill. ‘They’d been ask to support us on the casualty carry but got me instead!’
David had suffered a sprained MCL. Supported by the Rescue Benevolent Fund, undertook a week of intensive rehab just before the Christmas break. ‘I was wondering how can you do rehab all day for a week. What could they possibly do with you to fill in all that time? Well they did. I wasn’t expecting it to be so holistic. Diet and nutrition were covered, men’s health and relaxation. Knowledgeable people who were happy to chat and answer questions, a good bunch of folk who created a calm, positive atmosphere and wanted to make you good again. Worth getting injured for!’
We think he was joking about that last bit but then eleven months after the injury he had a go at a regular run from Kirkland to the top of Cross Fell. ‘Pre- injury, I’ve never subbed one hour to the top, despite trying. Not that day. 59.57! I just had to send the photo (see right) to the physio team at The Fire Fighters to let them know what a good job they did with me!’
See, they made him bionic!
We’ve helped with emotional issues too… Dion and Sue’s story
Dion and Sue Llwyd Hopcroft had an entirely different experience. Shortly before midnight, in late February 2016, the Aberglaslyn team were asked to assist in the search for a young man missing in their patch. But this search was particularly poignant because the missing 18-year-old was Josh Llwyd Hopcroft and his father, Dion, was the Aberglaslyn team leader.
Alongside Aberglaslyn were members of the South Snowdonia team and SARDA Wales search dogs, searching through the night. At first light, Dion himself went out on foot and sadly it was he who found Josh, who had taken his own life.
Hard to imagine the impact such tragic circumstances might have on any family, let alone one so involved with the entire incident, and both Dion and Sue struggled. With the team liaising with us on their behalf, we were able to support them both with separate counsellors, local to them, over the course of a year, to help them come to terms with their grief.
One family. Very different experiences
‘It’s still raw,’ says Dion, ‘but the counselling helped me a lot. Sue too — though hers was a different experience. I’ve been in MR for 21 years. I’ve seen horrific things and been offered counselling but I’ve just got on with it. I wasn’t sure what to do at the time but it’s the best thing I ever did. Definitely helped me move forward and we’ve got to the stage now where we counsel each other.
‘Initially, I said this is my last call-out but Sue made me aware that Josh was so proud of me and my involvement with mountain rescue so I got back into it. It wasn’t long after that I was called out to the helicopter crash in North Wales — the first team on the scene. That was pretty horrendous but I’ll never see anything worse than seeing my own son that day.’
Finding the strength and inspiration to move forward
Almost three years on, Josh’s death has inspired the family to help other young people in similar situations. Determined to turn their devastation into a force for good, Dion and Sue, supported by friends, family and team members, created ‘Josh’s Lighthouse Project’.
This glass-fronted log cabin, overlooking the sea, is a safe space where young people can go for counselling and education about mental health and wellbeing. The name derives from Josh’s request, just before his eighteenth birthday, to have a tattoo. He’d designed his tattoo in the shape of a lighthouse. He never did have it done but Sue, Dion and Josh’s brother have, in his memory, and their cabin project continues the theme.
So how do you claim?
It’s simple. If you’ve suffered hardship as the result of injury, get in touch. Your claim will be considered against strict criteria (‘official mountain rescue activity’ being a key phrase) but if there’s genuine need we’ll do out best to help. And we treat your application with utmost confidentiality.
To start the process, speak to one of the trustees or your local regional rep. Email me if you have any further questions about the Rescue Benevolent Fund. I’m always happy to chat.
How do we raise money?
Anyone can give to the fund, as an individual, team or region, as well as the national bodies. We’re regularly asked how teams can give, as one charity to another. Our advice is to look at whether your constitution specifically prevents you from doing so. If in doubt, consult your team’s legal adviser.
Finally, stay safe out there and be well. And, if you think the Rescue Benevolent Fund can help you in any way, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.