An “over-the-escarpment” recruitment drive is in the offing, aimed at getting people from Picton, Camden and Campbelltown to volunteer with Illawarra clubs. 

Surf Life Saving NSW CEO Steve Pearce said there were roles within the surf lifesaving movement for people with strengths other than swimming. 

This included roles on jet skis, off-shore rescue boats and helicopters; drone piloting, administration and other support roles, he said. 

“We need a good, strong patrolling base, so we want to make the clubs as large as possible,” he told the Mercury from North Wollongong Beach on Thursday, at the launch of the 2018/2019 patrol season.

“A vast majority of our work now is beyond the red and yellow flags. They’re all services that we need volunteers for as well.” 

There were 23 drownings recorded in the region in the 10 years to 2016 – an average of two or three a year. But last year five people drowned off the Illawarra’s coast, all of them visitors to the region. 

Mr Pearce said the growing number of out-of-area beachgoers helped make the case for recruiting volunteers from further afield. 

For the first time, Surf Life Saving NSW will send dedicated recruitment resources to the Illawarra to support local clubs in reversing a long-running decline in volunteers.

As well, an “over-the-escarpment” recruitment drive will look to “make our surf clubs just as inclusive as the rest of the community – but also to give us that membership base”. 

“We have to really demonstrate how inclusive we are going forward,” Mr Pearce said. “That means gender diversity, ethnicity diversity as well, because the majority of people that come to Illawarra beaches [from outside the area] are all from those at-risk groups, particularly the culturally and linguistically diverse groups, so it only makes sense that if your target audience is these members of the community, why not make them part of the surf life saving.”

“It’s really important that if you have people in these stands, you don't just have ‘Adonises’ standing there, you’ve to to have the broad spectrum of membership, from 18 to 65.” 

Wollongong’s 80 paid lifeguards retain primary responsibility for patrolling the city’s beaches from Monday to Saturday. 

Volunteer lifesavers support that work with “secondary patrols” at some beaches on Saturdays, and at all 17 patrolled beaches on Sundays and public holidays. 

Surf Life Saving Illawarra’s Peter Evert said the number of active volunteers in the region had declined by 30 per cent in the past 10 years. Meantime, visitors increased.  

The local lifesaving effort is now heavily reliant on a support operations group, capable of responding to emergencies 24/7. The group carried out 33 after-hours rescues last year. 

“They get a call-out and they could come to North Wollongong Beach at seven at night if there’s a person in difficulty,” Mr Evert said. “We’re improving that service every year.”