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BECOMING A HILL PARTY MEMBER (HPM)

If you’re a competent hill walker with good local knowledge / love of Dartmoor and a strong desire to help people, then we’d like to hear from you.

Applicants must be 18 years of age and should meet the following criteria:

• Live or work within 30 mins drive of Tavistock with access to transport to get to training and callouts
• Have an appropriate level of physical and mental fitness to cope with extended callouts in challenging weather conditions on Dartmoor
• Work well within a team
• Basic ability to navigate with a map and compass
• Good local knowledge, specifically of Western Dartmoor
• Potentially other skills that can be brought to the Team (such as first aid, working at height, off road driving, etc)
• Commitment to attend at least 18 training sessions each year plus fundraising and other events.

Trainees’ training takes approximately a year and covers a range of skills such as navigation, first aid, communications, technical rope / water rescue, welfare, working with search dogs / external agencies, searching and vehicles. Once sufficient training and experience has been gained, Trainees are invited to do the Final Assessment to demonstrate their competence in all the skills that they have been taught. Once successful on this Assessment the Trainee becomes a ‘Badged’ HPM.

We have now stopped recruiting for our next intake of Trainee HPMs in 2026. If you wish to register your interest for joining as a Trainee HPM in January 2027 then please email trainingofficer@dsrt-tavistock.org.uk

If you would still like to be involved in the Team but maybe don’t meet the above criteria, then do please consider joining our Supporters Team.