Sport and Active Recreation placement compliance

Essential compliance

You need a number of compulsory clearances and to undertake compulsory training before being allocated a placement.

You will not be eligible for placement until deemed fully compliant.

Additional compliance for some students

Some host organisations also ask for you to complete additional compliance checks. You will be informed if these things are required for your placement.

Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Check (NCCHC)

Valid for three years from date of issue

Commonly referred to as a Police Check, a National Coordinated Criminal History Check (NCCHC) is a document that lists all criminal convictions recorded against a person in the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC) database. For more information visit the ACIC website.

The following information is provided to assist you complete an application form for your Police Check:

• Reason for Check – Unsupervised Contact with Vulnerable Groups (if there is a character limit, ensure Unsupervised Contact is recorded at a minimum. This wording may not be required for all placements but if you have it then you will be covered)
• Proposed Place of Work – Sports Industry placement

Location - Adelaide, South Australia

Students are responsible for the cost of obtaining their Police Check (NCCHC).

Police Check (NCCHC) can be issued by State, Territory or Federal Police, or, private brokers that have been accredited by the ACIC. We strongly recommend you use South Australia Police (SAPOL)  as the SAPOL Police Check as this the most accepted document. If a Police Check (NCCHC) is required urgently (e.g sooner than 4-5 weeks) then it is advisable to apply online through an accredited broker that offers fast turnaround.

Please note that Flinders University does not endorse these providers and cannot guarantee their turnaround times.

Police Checks (NCCHCs) can be issued by State, Territory or Federal Police, or, private brokers that have been accredited by the ACIC. We strongly recommend you use South Australia Police (SAPOL) and the SAPOL Police Check as this the most accepted document. If a Police Check (NCCHC) is required urgently (eg sooner than 4 – 5 weeks) then it is advisable to apply online through an accredited broker that offers fast turnaround. Please note that Flinders University does not endorse private providers and cannot guarantee their turnaround times.

What happens if there are offences listed on my Police Check?

Students with criminal convictions are advised to meet with their course coordinator to discuss their ability to satisfy the requirements of their placement topic. Students with serious convictions may be precluded from placement.

How can I obtain a replacement Police Check?

Replacement Police Checks (NCCHCs) can sometimes be obtained by contacting the organisation that issued the original certificate. In many cases, students who have lost their Police Check (NCCHC) will need to apply for a new one.

The Bachelor of Sport, Health and Physical Activity staff have already established some links with industry placement providers and you will be provided with a list of placements available via FLO.

This will not be an exhaustive list so if you have thoughts regarding an alternative Provider, you MUST discuss it with the WIL team in the first instance. Do NOT contact the organisation yourself without approval. We are happy to investigate other options with you if you discuss this with the placement coordinator.

Industry placement is designed to be part of the process through which you learn about sport, health and physical activity and gives you practical experience in the workplace to back up what you learn in the classroom. It gives you invaluable experience, knowledge and contacts and can help you identify your career directions. For those of you who don’t have work experience, it offers a chance to develop a work ethic and to find out what it is like to be in the workplace. It is a compulsory component of the Bachelor of Sport, Health and Physical Activity.

The placement should enable you to work in an area related to sport, health and physical activity as this is the focus of the degree you are taking.

If you are already in a job involving sport, health or physical activity you will not be able to use this as your placement because:

1. it could be seen as double dipping
   
2. you could be unfairly advantaged or disadvantaged because you would already be known in your current workplace.

Placements can occur at  any time across the year as sporting seasons vary widely, and starting times are flexible depending on the needs of the placement provider and the project. The WIL team will match students as closely as possible to the topic availability you have enrol in, either an NS2 (summer) placement, a S1 or S2 placement.

You must complete a minimum of 96 hours, but there is also flexibility over whether you do the placement as one four week full time block, or work part-time over a longer period. Part-time placements t must have clearly defined start and finish dates.

Industry Placement Providers (IPP’s) submit placement offers to the WIL Team across the year, and we allocate students individually to suitable placements based on the information students provide to us about their skills and interests. We do our best to match up student interests with the placement provider, but bear in mind students may be matched to a sport/industry outside of their past experiences to provide you with new contacts and experiences while still being able to use your transferrable skills

If no suitable placement offers are available, we will seek out a placement specifically for you, and are happy for you to provide us suggestions or contacts.

Once a match is established you will be advised to contact the supervisor to negotiate the timing and actual project. If you feel the placement offered to you by the University is not suitable or your circumstances have changes, please discuss this with the WIL team immediately. Students are only permitted to decline one placement offer per academic year.

A schedule is drawn up between Flinders University, the Industry Placement Provider and the student, outlining the dates and duties involved with the placement. The schedule MUST be agreed to by ALL parties before placement begins. The schedule ensures the student is covered by Flinders University insurance whilst undertaking their industry placement, as it is a designated part of the Bachelor of Sport, Health and Physical Activity.

If your project, IPP or dates change significantly prior to or during the course of the placement, you must notify us as soon as possible, so that your schedule can be amended or redrawn. The purpose of the schedule is to protect the interest of all parties – the student, Industry Placement Provider and Flinders University.

Your attitude to your placement is the single most important thing in determining whether it is successful or not. You need to show initiative, be willing to do all sorts of jobs from the mundane to the exciting – and always give a bit more than is asked for (If you don’t do mundane jobs willingly and reliably, you won’t ever get beyond that). Be punctual and dress appropriately and act in a professional manner, before, during and after the completion of the placement. The student’s attitude and demonstrated commitment during the entire placement process is assessed.

All work (or the majority thereof) must be completed at the providers’ worksite or designated location, if this is not the case please contact us as soon as possible.

Most of the employers you will be working with operate with very tight budgets. You will not be paid for your work. It has been possible in some cases to obtain assistance with petrol money, and some billet accommodation can be arranged in some cases if you are working away from home. However, you do need to be prepared to pay your own fares if you travel interstate or overseas, and to pay for your own accommodation (unless you have friends and relatives who would put you up for a few weeks). Don’t be deterred by regional or overseas placements as many employers offer support and/or assistance – there may be some excellent opportunities and placement providers in regional Australia and overseas.

Students embarking on a placement will be required to meet normal eligibility criteria, including prerequisites. In addition, students must attest that they meet the University’s ‘Fitness for Placement’ criteria via the declaration on InPlace.

If you have questions that relate more to the course as a whole (eg if you are eligible to do placement), please contact the Bachelor of Sport, Health and Physical Activity course coordinator.

Some students may be invited or permitted to conduct work of a confidential nature. The student and appropriate University staff may be required to sign a confidentiality agreement before proceeding.

Obviously, confidential aspects of the work will not be discussed at open seminars and discussion groups. Where this unduly restricts a student’s ability to present their work at a seminar or to publish their report, special ‘in camera’ arrangements will be made with the placement provider.

While on placement students are representing Flinders University and are therefore expected to exhibit professional behaviour, interacting appropriately with their supervisor, other staff and the organisations’ clients. Students should follow the ethical code of conduct of the placement provider, act in a safe and respectful manner with integrity, and notify the industry placement coordinator immediately if any issue relating to occupational health, safety and welfare arises or equal opportunity arises.  

The University recognises that in certain situations a student will not be successfully placed with a provider. In other rare situations, a placement may be terminated due to misfortunes or major changes within the company, poor performance by either the student or the company, or a major breakdown in some aspect of the company-University-student relationships. Where a suitable rearrangement or reassignment of duties with the current provider cannot be negotiated, the preferred solution would be for the student to be counseled and to obtain a similar position with another cooperating Provider for the remainder of the placement period. If it proves impossible for the student to secure an appropriate (further) placement, the University will endeavour to create a similar experience within the University.