A service offering support to families whose homes have been devastated by fire or flooding is appealing for new volunteers. SALLY CLIFFORD found out more.

Norman Brickley's camper van is packed with practical provisions.

Refreshments, toiletries and a stock of freshly laundered clothing are efficiently arranged inside it.

There's a shower and washing facilities too. The vehicle offers the home comforts of a conventional camper van, only you won't find this parked up at some seaside destination. For it's a vehicle that's part of the Fire and Emergency Support Service, one of the welfare arms of the British Red Cross.

As co-ordinator of the service, Norman and his crew, who are all volunteers, regularly come into contact with people who have literally lost everything.

Their role is to help them pick up the pieces when their homes have been devastated by fire or flood.

Their camper van offers a temporary refuge while victims sort out emergency accommodation. Often relations step in to provide a temporary roof in times of need. Those who don't have the benefit of family living nearby may have to seek overnight shelter in a hotel or hostel.

Norman recalls arranging emergency accommodation for some refugees from Russia left homeless following a house fire. "They had no friends or relatives so we provided them with clothing, food and made arrangements, through Social Services, for them to be re-housed.

"What would these people have done? That is how vital this service is," says Norman.

Sometimes their services are needed in the aftermath of major incidents. One of their recent assignments was providing practical support and refreshments for residents following the large-scale evacuation of homes in the Beeston area of Leeds during inquiries into the London bombings.

"One of our bosses got a call in the morning saying there was an evacuation situation and could the British Red Cross provide support in the rest centre in Beeston," recalls Norman.

"It was a sports hall commandeered by the council and we were asked to go across to assist Social Services in running the rest centre."

They had some idea the evacuations were connected to inquiries into the London bombings. "But we just got on with it," says Norman. "The area they evacuated was some distance from the rest centre so we were in a safe zone, we were protected."

He recalls some residents were distressed having left pets behind. "Some had let pets out in the morning and they hadn't come back," says Norman, who with his colleagues worked closely with the RSPCA, and local kennels, ensuring pets were looked after.

They also had to deal with disorientated homeowners who'd left their home early to go to work and arrived home to find the area cordoned off. "We were looking after the welfare issues and it's another side to our service," says Norman.

"Because our vehicle is fully equipped at all times it can be called upon very quickly and we have things that can be used for that sort of thing, but because this was large-scale, Social Services were involved.

"But the community spirit kicked in and there were no problems in the centre. People were talking to each other and perhaps people spoke to each other who may not have spoken for a long time. The common purpose brought them together."

This is probably one of the major and certainly one of the most high-profile incidents Norman and his crew have dealt with since he began volunteering for the charity a decade ago.

Retiring from the police force after 30 years has given him more time to devote to the cause, and four years ago he became co-ordinator of the West Yorkshire operation of the charity's Fire and Emergency Support Service.

Originally set up in the States, the service was piloted in England in 1994. Its success led to it being introduced into different regions. West Yorkshire's launched in 1998 at Pudsey Fire Station. When that closed and moved to other premises the Fire and Emergency service switched bases to Idle Fire Station where it continues to provide a region-wide support service.

Norman explained how volunteers are called into action through the Fire Service. The senior fire officer attending a fire, flood or road accident, will assess whether Norman and his crew are needed. If they are, a call is put into brigade headquarters in Birkenshaw.

Call centre staff page the volunteers on call who take the camper van to the scene, enabling the fire crews to get on with fighting the fire or mopping up a flood while Norman and his crew provide practical and emotional support to the victims.

So far this year the service has dealt with more than 40 requests and assisted more than 100 people. The majority of the incidents they attend are fires. Common causes are people leaving the chip pan on when they come home from the pub; candles, and children playing with matches.

Statistically, they tend to occur at night when insurance companies have closed for business and other agencies you need are operating skeleton services, leaving Norman and his crew to make all the necessary arrangements. They can also pass victims on to organisations for further assistance.

"We are supplementing a major service by providing this," says Norman.

"We turn up at the scene of a fire, the people can get on board our vehicle and we assist them in making decisions as to what they want to do. We can also help them come to terms with things."

The youngest volunteer is 26, the oldest is a 75-year-old retired police officer, but with plans to develop the service Norman is seeking more volunteers.

"I am trying to recruit more people because it takes quite a few people to run it," says Norman.

Volunteers are required to work in pairs once a week on a rota system. Currently the service provides 24-hour cover over the weekend and 6pm until 7am during the week and Bank Holidays. Recruiting more volunteers would enable them to eventually run it round the clock.

"It is a successful service and the more volunteers we have we can provide greater cover," says Norman.

"I enjoy doing the job because I know I'm helping people. I think it's a worthwhile service and it would be nice to get more volunteers involved."

A spokesman for the British Red Cross says the service's main purpose is to give shelter, comfort and advice as well as the basic necessities of life.

"We're often called out to people who have lost everything, even their clothes. The main service we give is that of practical and emotional comfort and support in the immediate aftermath of a personal crisis, like a domestic fire or flood, or another serious incident."

Increasing volunteers would enable them to develop the service whose greatest endorsement comes from the Fire Service.

"They give people practical help and also point them in the right direction of where they need to go. They provide an invaluable service."

For more information call the British Red Cross Fire and Emergency Support Service on (01274) 620999. For more general information visit www.redcross.org.uk or call 0870 170 7000.