About West Mercia Search & Rescue
West Mercia Search & Rescue save people in danger.
Always on-call. Always professional. Always volunteers. We drop everything to respond – the call could come at any time to find someone and save their life.
We care deeply about people in danger and train hard to help them. We go in to danger and get people out safely. We are the hand reaching to people in need. We are the first face they see when all else is lost.
We are called out by the Police and Fire Services when help is needed in finding and saving people in Shropshire, Herefordshire or Worcestershire.
We provide highly-trained, well-equipped specialists for:
- Search for missing vulnerable adults and children
- Rescue from floods
- Rescue from rivers and other waterways
- Provision of care to anyone whose life is in danger
We are all unpaid civilians, but we are audited by multiple agencies to ensure that our training, equipment and response is as reliable as the emergency services themselves.
Agencies we work with
We’re proud to work alongside trusted agencies and organisations dedicated to safety, emergency response, and community support. Together, we help deliver reliable search and rescue services when they matter most.
Members
We currently have 80+ members and a group of trainees based across the region, from Malvern to Hereford to Worcester to Oswestry. We plan to grow this to 100 operational members by end of 2026.
Trustees
We are governed by a board of Trustees and we answer to the Charities Commission for all spending and fundraising. Our Trustees have included a retired Chief Fire Officer of Shropshire Fire & Rescue Service, a retired senior Police Officer, a Solicitor and experienced SAR professionals.
Bases
We have a main equipment base in Telford and a unit in Kidderminster. All of our members deploy from home for immediate callouts.
Equipment we use
We have access to a comprehensive range of equipment and resources to support the successful delivery of our services and operational requirements. This includes, amongst other items:
- 3 powerboats
- 2 rafts
- A water response vehicle with a fleet of kayaks
- A drone team
- An incident command vehicle
- A crew-welfare and equipment vehicle
- 2 4×4 response vehicles
- A sub-service search capacity with Sonar and underwater drone
- First response medical kits
- Rescue and recovery kits
Training
Our training is provided by our own in-house training team, Lowland Rescue trainers, and Rescue 3 providers. We provide a combination of on-line and face to face sessions at various venue around our region.
Learn more
Our story
The story of West Mercia Search & Rescue from formation in 2007 to the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service.
Meet the team
Meet the trustees and operational leads of West Mercia Search & Rescue. Over 80 volunteers covering Shropshire, Herefordshire and Worcestershire.
Governance
Governance information for West Mercia Search & Rescue. Charity registration, policies, annual accounts and trustee information.
Impact and reports
Our annual impact: callout statistics, volunteer hours, value to the emergency services and the communities we serve.
