Girls on fire

A group of teenage girls had an introduction to fire, emergency, and disaster management skills this week at National Training Centre in Rotorua.

The ‘Girls on Fire’ programme was founded in Australia in 2018 and this is the first time it has been held in New Zealand. Girls on Fire runs school programmes, cultural inclusion camps and community engagement activities in 30 locations across New South Wales.

The one-day pilot on 7 March took the 20 attendees aged between 14 and 19 through interactive activities to give them an idea of what life would be like as a firefighter.

Programme founder Bronnie Mackintosh’s aim is to promote and increase numbers of women and ethnically diverse people in fire agencies.

The day had a lot of support from National Training Centre people, Volunteer lead trainer Emma Gibb, and Mike Williams Manager Firefighter Development who worked together to make it happen at NTC.

SFF Ady McKenzie from Whāngarei, QFF Zoe Mourant from Ngongotaha, and Kaye Ahsam Advisor Women’s Development also gave up their time to support the event.

https://girlsonfire.com.au(external link)