Policies and insurance

Participant code of behaviour

Participants who join the department's holiday camps are required to demonstrate behaviours that support the growth of the individual and the achievement of team outcomes.

Participants should:

• Treat all participants as you like to be treated. Do not bully or take unfair advantage of another participant.
• Respect the privacy and personal space of other individuals.
• Respect the rights, dignity and worth of all participants regardless of their gender, ability, cultural background or religion.
• Cooperate with your instructor and other participants. Without them there would be no holiday program.
• Never argue with an instructor or other participants.
• Control your temper. Physical and verbal abuse of instructors, sledging other participants or deliberately distracting or provoking other participants is not acceptable or permitted behaviours on camp holiday programs.
• Demonstrate independence and participate for your own enjoyment and benefit, not just to please your parents/carers.
• Take leadership. Be a good sport. Applaud all good plays whether they are made by your team or other participants.
• Work equally hard for yourself and/or your team. Your team's performance will benefit and so will you.
• Accept responsibility for your own actions.
• Enter only the dormitory allocated to you for the duration of the camp.
• Remain in segregated areas as designated by the camp coordinators.

To assist in achieving these objectives we ask that the following be observed:

• no mobile phones
• no smoking
• no alcohol
• no drugs
• no swearing
• no lollies
• no intimate relations.

Working with children

The department complies with Working with Children (Criminal Record Checking) Act 2004 to ensure a safe environment for children.

The Working with Children (WWC) Check is a comprehensive criminal record check undertaken for specified people working with children in Western Australia. The department recognises the importance of the WWC Check as being one element of child protection. The WWC Check aims to increase the safety of children in the community by ensuring people who have a criminal history that indicates they may harm children do not actually work with children.

Department staff and volunteers

The department ensures all relevant employees and volunteers are compliant with Working with Children legislation requiring that:

• they obtain a check and provide a copy to the agency before commencing employment with the department
• they maintain currency of the WWC Check to continue employment with the department in accordance with the Working with Children legislation.

The department do not provide information about individual staff member's Working with Children status to external organisations, nor do they expect their staff to carry their Working with Children cards at all times. Instead the department includes in its contracts with external organisations the assurance that all employees have sufficient qualifications and the requisite police clearances and Working with Children Checks.

Subcontractors to the department who are involved in child-related activities are also required to ensure that their employees possess and maintain valid Working with Children Check in compliance with the working with children legislation.

Legal responsibility

Legal responsibility for the protection of children from abuse rests with both the Department of Communities and the WA Police.