Course Overview
The Lead Emergency Teams course gives learners the practical skills to lead and coordinate an emergency response team during workplace incidents. It covers how to assess emergency situations, make informed operational decisions, direct resources and coordinate rescue and containment activities under dynamic conditions.
Effective emergency team leadership is a critical capability across high-risk industries, where team leaders are responsible for determining and implementing an appropriate response to a range of emergency events, coordinating the rescue of personnel at risk, overseeing containment actions and deploying resources at the scene in line with organisational emergency procedures. The 3-day Lead Emergency Teams (LET) course delivered at ERGT Australia provides learners with the practical knowledge and hands-on experience required to take charge during workplace emergencies across a range of high-risk environments. Designed for experienced emergency response team members preparing to step into a leadership role, this course focuses on scene assessment and dynamic risk management, coordination of rescue activities, implementation of containment strategies, and emergency communication and decision-making under pressure in accordance with workplace procedures and legislative requirements.
Through a combination of facilitator-led learning and practical activities in a simulated work environment, learners will build the confidence and capability to lead fire teams, incident response teams and other emergency groups, assess and prioritise incident demands, and direct resources to maintain control of the scene in line with industry best practice. Upon successful completion, learners will be job-ready to lead and coordinate an emergency response team during onsite emergencies in industrial or high-risk workplaces.
Key details
Learning Objectives
- By the end of this course, learners will be able to:
- Assess the nature and extent of the emergency
- Effect rescue of personnel at risk
- Confine the spread of emergency
Prior Skills & Knowledge
Training Standard Pre-requisites:
There are no pre-requisites from the training standard for this course.
Prior Skills & Knowledge requirements:
Due to the operational and leadership demands of this training, learners are expected to already have current skills and experience in emergency response, including the use of breathing apparatus, fire control, and rescue activities.
It is essential Learners are current and confident in:
· Operating breathing apparatus in emergency conditions
· Applying fire control and firefighting techniques
· Participating in emergency rescue activities within a team
This course builds on these fundamental skills and does not provide initial training in these areas. If you do not hold the above requirements, this course may not be suitable for you.
If you are unsure of your suitability please contact us.
What to expect
Learner Support:
Learner wellbeing for this course is supported through measures that recognise the physical, cognitive, and psychological demands of leading an emergency response team in a simulated high-risk environment. As the course involves physically demanding tasks, rapid decision-making, use of emergency response equipment and performance in realistic emergency scenarios, ERGT implements support strategies that prioritise learner safety, confidence and readiness. This ensures learners can safely participate in all practical components without compromising their wellbeing or safety.
Physical Wellbeing Support:
- Trainers continuously monitor learners for signs of fatigue, discomfort, heat stress or restricted movement while wearing PPE, breathing apparatus or operating emergency response equipment.
- Learners are encouraged to disclose any physical concerns (e.g. fatigue, minor injury or discomfort in PPE or breathing apparatus) so adjustments can be made to participation.
Psychological & Emotional Wellbeing Support:
- Trainers provide clear pre-scenario briefings to prepare learners for the level of realism and pressure expected, including safety controls and expected activities.
- Learners experiencing elevated stress when taking on leadership roles are supported through gradual re-engagement, additional coaching, or alternative sequencing of activities where appropriate.
- Post-scenario debriefs are conducted to review decisions, address stress reactions and reinforce constructive learning.
Cognitive Support for Safety-Critical Tasks:
- Gradual progression from simple to complex scenarios, allowing learners to build leadership capability incrementally.
- Structured decision-making models and communication frameworks introduced early to reduce cognitive overload during live scenarios.
- Opportunities to rehearse communication and command tasks before executing them in practical environments.






