THETFORD TRAINING WEEKEND  2008 - IT RAINED! A LOT!

At 21.00 on the Friday our weekend scenario began and foot teams went out to look for a missing Mum and two children (Tulip & Annie) who had not returned after a picnic in the woods. The family were found relatively easily and then the "rescue" element began as the "mum" had an ankle injury and needed carrying out to the road. Once the teams had improvised and used a thick branch wrapped in a coat for a seat the "mum" (Deborah) took pity on them and recovered so she could walk out. A gentle introduction to the weekend.

Saturday began for the teams at 06.00 hours with the main exercise of the day. And still it rained. A number of people were missing at "Two mile bottom" picnic site and the first two teams began. Throughout the day more teams were dispatched including 4 dog teams and the bike team and 2 more foot teams. A big THANK YOU to our mispers Ian and Mick who gave up their time & came both days to hide for us.

And still it rained!

We finished the exercise for lunch and in the afternoon some of us went "off roading" - just to finish off the excitement for the day. The evening saw families arrive to join us for the traditional barrel and BBQ. This year saw a new addition to the festivities with presentations - the pink shorts award (for the radio "mistake" of the day), a gnome for James (not sure why), a combined compass/thermometer/light for Ted (and only he knows why) and Angel wings for Deborah (something to do with her cooking breakfasts).

Sunday was even busier and CONGRATULATIONS to Cambridgeshire Search & Rescue team who passed their ALSAR assessment today. NorLSAR set up an exercise for them and the pressure was on with observers from Norfolk and Cambridge police as well as NorLSAR team leaders. So well done to you.

The dog teams had their own exercise and we were lucky enough to have Liz and Ian hide joined by one of our newer team members Dexter.  And the weather turned VERY hot and humid. It was so extreme it was bordering on being too much for the dogs. More details soon on the dog page. While the dog team were out the canoe team went down to the river to practise. Thank you also to the Scouting organisation for letting us use their venue. They kindly relaxed their rule of no dogs and we appreciated not only the fantastic venue, but the facilities and beautiful surroundings.

And finally after lunch, down to the river to play! I think all agreed a great weekend socially and lots learnt about searching.

2008 TRAINING

We have had a busy time with public events as well as training and it has been nice to welcome new members. So far this year we have completed basic water safety training, first aid, communication, radio use, navigation and a number of practical exercises based on searches we have done in the past.

Our basic water safety training includes a reminder of the basic safety principles and practising rope throwing, before moving on to the more complicated:

If you are not as good as the canoe team members at paddling and controlling direction experts are on hand to show you how it is done.

As we approach the half way stage in our training calendar we have been joined not only by new volunteers but representatives of other agencies and search teams. We have continued our classroom training at Broadland Council bunker but sadly we will soon outgrow it as our numbers grown. The hunt is now on for another building around the Dereham area which has facilities for us and is FREE!

We have now had a number of night time scenarios; some at new venues for us.  NORLSAR operational members need to complete our minimum requirement training program every year, ensuring they are well equipped to lead, or be part of a search team at any time. All operational members of NORLSAR must also have completed ALSAR search technicians' training & assessment

NORLSAR has members that don't directly participate in searches, but are nonetheless essential to the team. People with administrative, financial, procurement and other skills are always needed to keep us operational. We also have members trained in remote access and working at heights, all-terrain driving, canoe-handling and bike searching. Our search dogs can be quickly put into any search area, no matter how inaccessible.


For members considering training on one of our special skill activities, visit the page relating to the activity you are interested in pursuing.

This is the minimum requirement for all NORLSAR members. We do however ask that you complete as much of the training as possible in the year.

Basic Navigation

Basic Radio Techniques

Basic First Aid

Dog Familiarisation

Weekend Exercise

Basic Water Safety

Five Scenario

Night Exercise

Team building Exercise

Fundraising Event

Have a look at our training manual. It's full of useful tips and will give you some idea of the training we ask you to do. For this you will need to have Adobe Reader.

To find THE BUNKER (the venue for indoor training) go to:

Thorpe Lodge, 1 Yarmouth Road, NORWICH, NR7 0DU

Training Officer:
Paul Weber

I was a Retained Fire fighter for 18 years in Kent and then East Sussex. I moved to Norfolk in 2000 and was looking for a voluntary organisation, where I could put some of my previously learnt skills to good use. 3 years ago I came upon Norlsar on the Internet by chance and decided to attend a training session and 12 months later became a qualified search technician.

Assistant Training Officer:
Keith Knight

Keith is a Mechanic by trade and owns Highway Motors in North Walsham. He has a police background (20-plus years). In that time, he gained two long service medals and a Queen's Award for her golden Jubilee. He has been involved in Search and Rescue since 1982. Keith has a Land Rover that has been used for night searches over large areas.

This website has been designed by James Tibbetts.