1. Prepare for Work in the
Community Sector

2. Development and impact of
personal values (CONT)
Principles of effective client
service delivery
Recap Week 8
3/09/2013

3. Development and impact of
personal values
• Work with clients is consistent with their
needs and rights.
• Contact with clients is within accepted
practice and codes of conduct of the
organisation and duty of care responsibilities.
• The client will, where able, direct all
interventions provided by the organisation.
(CONT)
Principles of effective client
service delivery

4. Development and impact of
personal values
• Workers will actively empower clients to
make decisions affecting their lives.
• All service delivered to clients upholds
relevant statutory and legislative
requirements, the reputation of the
organisation and the area of work.
• Client service delivery is based on accurate
and up to date information about service
options and the service being delivered.
(CONT)
Principles of effective client
service delivery

5. Development and impact of
personal values
• All appropriate documentation related to
client service delivery is completed and
maintained according to organisational
standards.
• Strategies are implemented to ensure client
services are routinely reviewed in the light of
client needs and rights and organisational
policies and capabilities. Remedial action is
implemented as appropriate.
(CONT)
Principles of effective client
service delivery

6. Development and impact of
personal values
• The organisation will provide all service
within access and equity guidelines.
• Companies are welcomed and are utilised to
identify gaps in service and areas of practice
that may need improvement.
(CONT)
Principles of effective client
service delivery

7. According to Youth Action and Policy Association
(2002) access and equity means:
“Ensuring that all Australians regardless of racial,
religious, cultural or language backgrounds
enjoy full access to services they are entitled to.
It is NOT about special services for people of
culturally and linguistically diverse
backgrounds, or from a non English speaking
background”.
(CONT)
Access and Equity

8. (CONT)
Access and Equity
Access and equity is about identifying and removing
barriers which prevent people from knowing, using
and participating in a service that they wish to
utilise.
It is based on an equitable, fair and just distribution
of resources amongst all eligible clients, even if it
means providing additional services or seeking
additional resources to do so.

9. LEGISLATION IN THE COMMUNITY SERVICE INDUSTRY
PREPARE FOR WORK IN THE
COMMUNITY SECTOR
Week 9 10/9/2013 = Team Building Assessment

10. LEGISLATION IN THE COMMUNITY SERVICE INDUSTRY
PREPARE FOR WORK IN THE
COMMUNITY SECTOR
Week 10 17/9/2013 – Recap + handing in Assessment
Task 2 Written Report

11. TYPES OF LAW
• Community service workers practices are
determined and regulated by law
• This means you have to comply with a
minimum set of legal requirements, which
vary according to the target group.
• Legislation is a set of guidelines, passed be
an ACT of Parliament, which clearly defines
what is legal and illegal.

12. TYPES OF LAW
Activity 1
• 1. What acts are we generally governed by
working in the area of children's services?
2. What is both the law and regulation that
most clearly relates to children's service
educators? This will be answered in Activity 2
(Students to think about this before checking
their notes....refer Work with Others Week 6)

13. Legislation affecting work planning
There is a range of legislation that impacts upon workers asThere is a range of legislation that impacts upon workers as
employees. These include -employees. These include -
• Industrial Relations Act 1996 (amended 2011)Industrial Relations Act 1996 (amended 2011)
• Annual Holidays Act 1994Annual Holidays Act 1994
• Long service leave Act 1955Long service leave Act 1955
• Anti-discrimination Act 1977Anti-discrimination Act 1977
• WHS Act 2011WHS Act 2011
• Children and Young Persons Act 1998 (amended 2010)Children and Young Persons Act 1998 (amended 2010)
• Privacy and Personal Information Protection Act 1998Privacy and Personal Information Protection Act 1998
• Workplace Relations Act 1996Workplace Relations Act 1996
• Workers compensation legislation (various acts)Workers compensation legislation (various acts)

14. • In contrast common law is what is known as
judge made law as the decision rests with
community attitudes and expectations .
• For example in the Community Service
Industry the most obvious example of
common law is the Duty of Care
requirement.

15. STATUTORY AND REGULATORY
REQUIREMENTS
• If a legal obligation is statutory, it means
there is an Act that says you have to do
something or not do something. This means
you can be legally punished if the Act is not
followed.
• For example it a statutory obligation in NSW
for community service workers to report
situations where they believe a child is at risk
of significant harm

16. STATUTORY AND REGULATORY
REQUIREMENTS
• What is the name of this reporting?
• What is your professional requirement in this
instance and how would you initiate this if
you were working in a service?

17. • Regulatory requirements refer to standards
or rules on how a service should be run in
order to meet the needs of the clients
effectively and safely.
• The statutory and regulatory requirements
contained in Acts and regulations shape
community service organisations’ policies
and procedures- they guide your decisions
about what is ‘right’ in regard to your clients

18. Activity 2
• To look up any state legislation, go to the
NSW Government legislation website where
you can search or browse alphabetical lists
of Acts: www.legislation.nsw.gov.au
• Now – type in search and early childhood
• Discuss your findings

19. • Duty of Care: refers to the obligation to take
responsible care to avoid injury to a person
whom, it can be reasonably foreseen, might be
injured by an act or omission
• Reasonable Standard of Care refers to
what is expected of any other reasonable
person/worker who performs the same duties
this is about doing your work as well as any
other worker.
• A breach of duty of care exists when it is proven
that the person who is negligent has not
provided the appropriate standard of care

20. • Duty of Care vs dignity of risk:
Dignity of risk is the concept that
recognises risk as a natural part of life
that helps us to learn and develop.
This almost seems in contradiction to
duty of care that refers to an action
or an inaction that could cause
foreseeable harm. In balancing the
two, the benefits gained in
undertaking an activity need to be
weighed against the foreseeable risks
and determining how these risks may

21. • Duty of Care vs dignity of risk:
Activity 3 - Balancing the risk

22. NEGLIGENCE
• A failure of duty of care towards a client
may lead to a change of negligence.
Negligent conduct is conduct which is in
the opinion of the court falls below an
acceptable standard

23. PRIVACY AND CONFIDENTIALITY
• Confidentiality means keeping private what
someone tells you
• Confidentiality also extends to things like
names and addresses of clients, phone
numbers and addresses of staff and
volunteers
• It is essential that all information and
documents that are confidential are kept
secure in a place that cannot be accessed
by unauthorised people
• For example in lockable draws and filing
cabinets

24. WHAT ARE THE EXCEPTIONS TO THE
RULE OF CONFIDENTIALITY

25. EXCEPTIONS TO THE RULE OF
CONFIDENTIALITY
• These include
• Making records available to the police if
they have a warrant to inspect documents
• Making information available in the case of
suspected or confirmed child abuse
• Responding to a summons or subpoena

26. CLIENTS RIGHTS TO CONFIDENTIALITY
•Remember that all clients,
whether they have a drug and
alcohol issue, a mental illness or
a physical or intellectual
disability have rights, and their
confidentiality must be
respected

27. CLIENTS RIGHTS TO CONFIDENTIALITY
•Unless it involves a disclosure or
something that leads you to
believe they are at risk of harm,
do not share their information
with others. Respect their right
to privacy as you would that of
a carer or co-worker.

28. CLIENTS RIGHTS TO CONFIDENTIALITY
•All people respond better
when their wishes are taken
into account. Workers can
demonstrate their respect for
the rights of clients to be
meaningfully involved in
decisions about their lives on a
daily basis.

29. CLIENTS RIGHTS TO CONFIDENTIALITY
Activity 4
Selecting relevant information – working
in pairs, identify the information that
needs to be given by parents if they
are enrolling their child at your service.

30. STANDARDS AND CODES OF PRACTICE
• An acceptance of the code of ethics by
workers ensures that the safety, wellbeing
and rights of clients are being actively and
continually considered within the workplace
the code is voluntary but most services
require workers to adhere to a professional
code for the benefit of both the client and
the service.

31. LINKING LEGISLATION TO ROLES AND
RESPONSIBILITIES OF WORKERS.
• There is a variety of legislation to uphold
when working in the Community Services
Industry. Being aware of legislation is only
the first step. Employers must also develop
policies and procedures to ensure work
practices reflect the legislation.