We are not currently looking for prospective new members and it is unlikely we will be recruiting provisional team members until December 2024. However, if you are interested in joining the team, we would like to hear from you.
We are accepting an ‘Expression of interest’ and if you think you have skills which could help us and you’d like to let us know that you are interested, then please complete this short form to leave your details with us.
Please be aware that except in really really rare circumstances, we will not be contacting anyone until December 2024. You will not hear from us until then, so please be patient.
Points to bear in mind if you are thinking of joining
- Prospective hill going team members are expected to already be experienced on the fells in all weather conditions and possess appropriate navigation skills. They are also expected to be comfortable operating on steep ground and at night. We do not train team members in what we consider to be basic hill skills.
- Joining the Team represents a very significant commitment indeed. We train on one Sunday (full day) and one Wednesday (evening) every month and additional training days or evenings (covering such things as winter skills, swift water rescue, driving and casualty care) are slotted in during the year. Generally, we also have close to 50 call outs per year. These occur at any time of the day or night and we are all on-call 24/7/365 (we do not operate any kind of rota system). In addition, team members are expected to assist in maintaining the base, the vehicles and the equipment and to participate in fund-raising activities.
- All new team members are required to undertake a “Provisional” year during which time they are expected to demonstrate a high level of commitment to training and other team activities. It is also about getting to know and work with other team members and about them getting to know you (the importance of this cannot be over-emphasised as we often work high on the fells in appalling conditions and at night). It may well be towards the end of your provisional year before you start to be called to attend searches and rescues. Completion of your provisional year does not necessarily mean that you will be accepted as a full hill going team member.
- Learning continues after becoming a full hill going team member and on-going commitment is necessary. It may well be several years before you can consider yourself to be fully effective as a team member. For this reason alone you should consider carefully whether your age, physical fitness and other commitments are such that you can offer the team a reasonable length of potential service.
- We require our hill going team members to live “on the patch”. In practice, however, even if you live on the patch you should consider whether you would be able to get to our base in Kendal in time to respond to a callout. Typically, we expect to get our first vehicle away within about 10 minutes of being called and the rest of the team will usually follow pretty quickly thereafter.
- Please direct any membership enquiries via E-Mail to: MembershipSecretary@kendalmrt.org.uk
If you are still interested in joining the team, please fill out the Expression of Interest Form here.