Patrol and Volunteer Obligations

Are you Ready for the 2025/26 Season?

  • Two men sitting in the back of a rescue UTV on a beach with surfboards on the roof, looking at the camera.

    1. Renew your membership by paying your fees

    Login to the SLS Hub and renew your membership by paying your fees so you are set up in our system for the season. Visit our renewal page for further information on how to renew your membership.

    SLS Hub Login
  • Four rescue workers in yellow and red uniforms providing medical aid on a sidewalk near the coast, with a blue ocean and a rescue flag nearby.

    2. Ensure your Qualifications and WWC are up to date

    All lifesavers must earn their core competency of an SLS Bronze Medallion, and you must complete a Skills Maintenance Check every season before patrolling. The cut off date is 31 December. Visit our education page for more information and to enrol.

    You must also have a current Working With Children Check, visit the office for forms.

    Education Courses
  • Two female surf rescue team members in yellow and red uniforms walking along the beach with a rescue board, near the ocean with ships in the background.

    3. Join a Patrol and check your roster

    Patrol nominations are now closed, but you can still be assigned to a patrol group. Check your roster and make sure you can complete your patrol hour requirements. You can sign up to voluntary patrols to make sure you have enough hours.

    Voluntary Patrol Sign Up

What You Need to Know as an Active Member

Patrol Hour Requirements

All Cadet, Active Junior (15-18) and Active Senior (18+) members must earn a minimum of 16 hours per season, with at least one patrol being completed by 31 December.

Failure to achieve the minimum number of hours may result in termination, suspension or the imposition of probationary membership status.

If the member is joining once the season is already commenced then only 8 hours are required for the members first season.

For further information, please consult our By-Laws.

Patrol Hour Exemptions

If a member is unable to patrol or fulfill their volunteer obligations, they must apply for an exemption by completing this form before the start of the season, or as near to the start of the season as is possible.

The Chair of Lifesaving will assess these requests and determine approval on a case-by-case basis.

Please note: repeated exemption requests will be subject to closer review, as all active members are expected to contribute to the club's operations in some capacity.

Patrol Options

If you cannot patrol as part of a patrol team due to work commitments, like a FIFO roster, illness or injury, you have the following options:

  1. Apply to the Chair of Lifesaving for approval to patrol in non-rostered patrol opportunities

    e.g. some public holidays, Abalone Patrol, Surf Sport Carnival Water Safety or service hours.

  2. Apply to the Chair of Lifesaving for a patrol hour exemption

  3. Nominate to a patrol and request substitutes via the SLS Members Area and catch up your missed patrol hours on a different patrol.

SLS Athletes - Competition Hours

Athletes who compete in the State and National Surf Life Saving Championships must have AT LEAST 16 Patrol Hours within a calendar year (Jan - Dec of the previous year).

The only exceptions are for newly joined members and those who have earned Long Service Membership (10 years of patrol service).

Service Hours

Service Hours are different to Patrol Hours, they are usually non-lifesaving and patrol related.

For the minimum patrol hour requirement (16 hours), at least 4 hours must be active patrol hours.

Members can earn an unlimited number of service hours by carrying out other volunteering at the Club. This could be general maintenance, cleaning, coaching services or other work as agreed.

All Service Hours must be approved by a Board Member or the General Manager.

Awards and Qualifications

It is your responsibility to make sure your qualifications are up to date. You can check your current awards and qualifications on the SLS Hub. Whilst we do send reminders, please do not rely on us to tell you in case our emails go to your junk folder/you haven’t notified us of contact detail changes.

All members must have completed their Skills Maintenance check by 31 December - having a SLS Bronze Medallion and doing a requal is compulsory for all patrolling members. Failure to do so will result in your membership being terminated.

Ways of Patrolling

A rescue helicopter hovering over the water with rescue personnel preparing to assist individuals from a rescue boat.

  • Patrolling throughout the season as a team member of one of the 20 patrol teams.

  • Members of the IRB section are highly skilled lifesavers and are qualified as either IRB Crew or as a Silver Medallion IRB Driver (SMIRBD).

    Members will patrol at North Cottesloe Beach over the season or provide water safety at Surf Carnivals or other specialist patrol events, such as open water swims (like the Rottnest Channel Swim) or Abalone Patrols (Abalone Fishing Season).

    Members must hold their Bronze Medallion qualification before attaining higher awards. Drivers must hold their Recreational Skippers Ticket. Learn more here.

  • Our RWC Operators are part of an elite team that serve both North Cottesloe SLSC and the SLSWA Emergency Response Team.

    These operators are highly skilled and can be deployed when surf conditions are too dangerous for other rescue methods or as part of search and rescue or other emergency response operations.

    Members wishing to hold an RWC qualification must have their Bronze Medallion Qualification, Recreational Skippers Ticket and, ideally, their SMIRBD - however this is not mandatory.

  • Certain carnivals will require North Cottesloe SLSC to provide lifesavers to provide water safety.

    Members with Bronze Medallion and higher awards can provide water safety at Surf Sport Carnivals up and down the coast during the surf season. A call out to active lifesavers will be made via the Club Newsletter or via SMS.

  • Members (usually Cadets) can earn patrol hours by providing water safety throughout the duration of the Nippers Programme which operates on Sundays 0800 to 1030, from October to March.

    Start and end dates will vary seasonally.

  • All patrol teams have at least one rostered public holiday patrol.

    Other public holidays are volunteer based and members are encouraged to patrol on these dates.

    See the Patrol Calendar for specific dates for the current season.

  • Abalone Patrols are a dedicated surf lifesaving initiative held during the regulated abalone fishing season, ensuring the safety of recreational fishers in challenging coastal conditions. Trained lifesavers monitor high-risk areas, equipped with rescue boats and jet skis, ready to respond quickly to incidents.

    These patrols play a vital role in preventing accidents and saving lives during the popular fishing season.

  • The Club will, from time to time, required water safety during Bronze Medallion or Surf Rescue Certificate courses. These will be advertised in the club newsletter.