Today marks day one of my new role and I want to take this opportunity to say how excited I am to be joining CFA.
It’s a privilege to be able to serve in this role and to support you in the work you do.
I know many of you will be asking what my plans are for CFA.
My focus for the next few months is to get to know and understand what it means to be a CFA member.
I want to understand the issues, challenges and risks you all face each day, and what you need to do your jobs well.
To do this, I will be getting out to as many districts and brigades as I can and meeting as many of you as possible.
I have spent more than 30 years in emergency services. I know there are many similarities between CFA and Victoria Police, but there are just as many differences – and I want to understand these.
As I said when I was first appointed, my focus has always been about supporting those members on the ground and this hasn’t changed.
I want to know how we can support service delivery and make sure you have a strong, clear voice to outline what you need to do your job well so that you can continue protecting and supporting the community.
I want to hear what the most significant issues and barriers impacting our members are so we can make sure you have everything you need to keep yourselves and the community safe. But I also want to know about what’s working well at a local level and at the broader organisational level.
What I do know is we need to continue attracting as many dedicated volunteers as possible so we are in the best position to protect Victorians, and we need to continue looking at how the sector works with communities to share the responsibility for their safety.
To help me acclimatise quickly and to develop a deeper appreciation of your working environment, I would like to hear directly from you. I have set up an email dedicated to receiving ideas, suggestions and questions from you. It’s at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
I'll also be sharing as many of my experiences as possible on the CFA News & Media site (www.news.cfa.vic.gov.au), Twitter (www.twitter.com/cfaceovic) and on the CFA members Facebook page (www.facebook.com/cfamembers).
I look forward to meeting many of you over the coming months.
Author: Lucinda Nolan