Local mountain and cave rescue teams will be raising awareness of the work they do, as well as raising funds, at events around the country on Monday 2 May.

Mountain rescue in the UK is free of charge to the casualty but relies on the support and generosity of the public to maintain this valuable community service. There are many ways you can support mountain rescue; you can make a donation, join Basecamp, or even get involved in fundraising.

Make a donation
It costs a tremendous amount to run a mountain rescue team. You can donate by cheque, standing order, secure online payment, or through a Give As You Earn scheme. Every penny you give goes to help mountain rescue teams across England and Wales.

Join Basecamp
Basecamp is the national support group for all mountain rescue teams in England and Wales, launched in March 2007. It's the simplest way for you to support all the teams, and their members, with the work they do. As a voluntary organisation which relies entirely on support from the public, your subscription can make a difference!

Get involved in fundraising
There are lots of ways you can raise money for mountain rescue, so if you would like to support the work of mountain rescue through fundraising events, here's how.

For information about events and activities around England and Wales on Mountain and Cave Rescue Awareness Day visit the Mountain Rescue England and Wales website.

Twirlies on Tour
Setting off on National Awareness Day to walk across England will be two members of Rossendale and Pendle Mountain Rescue Team. Judy Whiteside and Gail Todd aim to raise £5,000 for a planned benevolent fund to help the families of volunteer rescuers injured in action. You can follow their adventures on their blog and make a donation at www.justgiving.com/twirliesontour

The Twirlies featured on this BBC report earlier this week, which links the increasing number of emergency call outs attended by mountain rescue to an increasing over-reliance by walkers on technology.

Call Out Mountain Rescue?
To help you reduce your chances of becoming a mountain rescue statistic, Mountain Rescue England and Wales has published a pocket guide to safety on the hill. It contains advice about planning and preparation, keeping safe on the hill, emergency procedures, first aid and, if necessary, how to summon help.

Call Out Mountain Rescue? is available to purchase from the BMC online shop

Some Facts about Mountain Rescue

• There are 54 teams with 3,500 team members covering England and Wales.
• Team members are on call 24 hrs a day every day of the year.
• All team members are volunteers and do not get paid.
• Most team members have day jobs.
• Training and rescuing demands a very high commitment from the team members.
• Tremendous support and understanding is necessary from partners, wives, husbands, family and employers.
• Teams are self sufficient but are charities with hardly any external funding.
• Teams need to raise around £30,000 to £70,000 each year to keep going.
• Funding comes from donations and fundraising activities.
• There are over 1,100 rescues each year in England and Wales, over half in the Lake District.
• A typical rescue may involve up to 20 team members for around 6 hours on average.

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