Congratulations on your new Club Director of Lifesaving role! You are the glue that will hold your patrol captains and patrolling members together. As such, a little bit of knowledge will go a long way to ensuring your success.

Role Description

Click here to view a role description that your club may customise to meet local lifesaving requirements.

Please note that your role may have a different role title at your local SLSC.

Timeline of Priorities

Download the Timeline of Priorities for a list of considerations for each calendar month that includes some of the key tasks we see as crucial for the smooth running of your club. You can add or subtract from this timeline as necessary.

Below is a high-level summary of what tasks you need to perform.

During patrol season (September – April) Off- Patrol Season (May – August)
Assist to facilitate club events where appropriate. Attend and lead patrol captain pre-season meetings.
Assist with and review retention activities. Complete club lifesaving equipment grant.
Manage patrol operations. Complete national lifesaving equipment grant.
Monitor club financials. Complete gear and equipment inspection.
Participate in board meetings and providing them with feedback. Create and distribute patrol roster to members.
Support and manage patrol captains, water safety personnel and patrolling members. Monitor club financials.
Support and say thank you to patrol captains, water safety personnel and patrolling members. Participate in board meetings as required.
Succession plan and submit feedback to branch.
Support and say thank you to patrol captains, water safety personnel and patrolling members.

The below table summarises the key people that can assist you at every level of the SLS organisation.

These key people may be current or previous holders of the role as noted in SLS annual reports.

Club Level
Lifesaving Support Team Some Directors of Lifesaving may also have Lifesaving Officers to assist them with the duties of their role and play a key role in succession planning.

Refer to SurfGuard Officer menu for names and contact details.
Club President A Director of Lifesaving works in collaboration with the Club President who plays a key role in managing operations for the club. The President will direct and work with you to run the lifesaving operations of the club.
Club Board Members Club Board members are available to assist with advice and support.

Refer to your Surf Life Saving Club website or annual report for names. Refer to SurfGuard for contact details.
Club Life Members Life Members have a wealth of information to assist you to make informed decisions.

Refer to your Surf Life Saving Club website or annual report for names. Refer to SurfGuard for contact details.
Club Management Team Members Work with your existing Club Management Team members. They can answer enquiries, assist with projects or point you in the right direction of where to find information.

For example, the Surf Sports Officer, Chief Training Officer, Junior Activities Chair, Administrator.

You will need to work closely with your club’s Chief Training Officer to plan the club’s training provision based on the lifesaving training needs/patrol capability.

Refer to your Surf Life Saving Club website or annual report for names. Refer to SurfGuard for contact details.
Other Directors of Lifesaving in Your Region You can also reach out to local club Directors of Lifesaving to share some key learnings.

Refer to the SLSNSW Club Directory for club contact details.

Branch Level
Branch Director of Lifesaving They collate feedback from lifesaving positions at club levels to lead and champion change within NSW.

They represent SLSNSW branches and clubs at a state level and meet every 6-8 weeks with the SLSNSW director of lifesaving.

Refer to the SLSNSW Branch Directory for branch contact details.

SLSNSW
SLSNSW Director of Lifesaving Team They collate feedback from lifesaving positions at branch and club levels to lead and champion change within NSW. They represent SLSNSW branches and clubs at a national level, and assist lifesaving operations within NSW.

Contact details are available on the SLSNSW website.
SLSNSW State Operations Manager They collate feedback from lifesaving positions at lower organisational levels and monitor changing industry requirements to lead organisational change at a state level, e.g. policy and procedure changes.

Contact details are available on the SLSNSW website.
SLSNSW Lifesaving Team They can answer lifesaving related enquiries, assist with projects or point you in the right direction of where to find information.

Contact details are available on the SLSNSW website.

SLSA
SLSA IT Helpdesk The SLSA IT Helpdesk is available to support you with using SLS applications and systems, such as SurfGuard and the SLSA Operations app.

Log a support ticket or provide feedback at: http://support.sls.com.au

There are several different platforms you need to be familiar with in your role at your Surf Life Saving Club.

Click the links below to note the key ones to be aware of and what they are used for.

Social Media Platforms

SLS Platforms

Many SLSNSW DOLs also use Team App as a platform to communicate important information and timetable changes related to special events.

TheSLSNSW Lifesaving SOPs and the SLSNSW Club Guide are the key documents that you need to familiarise yourself with as they can assist you with completing some of the day to day tasks in your role.

SLSNSW has created a dynamic list of resources that are useful for club management team members to be aware of. The list is in an excel sheet with tabs organised into document categories and contains links to the resources it references such as:

  • Circulars
  • Memorandums
  • Bulletins
  • Guides
  • Publications
  • Toolkits and information packs
  • Templates
  • Forms and checklists
  • Online Training
  • External organisation resources

Note: This list is reviewed annually by SLSNSW so be sure to note the date is was last updated.

Download list of useful resources