While, I believe, that most councils did this inherently, the Act has 23 specific rights it has identified that requires consideration. This needs to be captured and analysed for each decision and action, which does become onerous. However, it could be identified that having these stipulated ensures that decisions are sound and have considered all aspects of something that will impact now and into the future. The benefit is hopefully it will improvement operations, reduce the likelihood of complaints and deliver a product/plan that meets the majority of the communities needs.

For example, before heading out for any fieldwork, we now have to complete risk assessments, review safe operating procedures, and make sure everyone has the right PPE. It slows things down a little, but it also means our teams are a lot more aware of hazards and we’re making more considered decisions about how to do the job safely.

It’s changed management decision-making too. Project leads now plan activities around safety first, not convenience. They often adjust timelines, bring in extra people, or change methods if WHS requirements aren’t met. The policy has basically pushed the whole organisation to think more carefully about risk, staff wellbeing, and accountability.

Overall, even though it adds a bit of paperwork, the WHS policy has made our operations more structured and has improved the way we manage jobs across the department—especially when it comes to safety in remote or unpredictable environments.

As an allied health practitioner this also created scope and opportunity to work on the ground inside the school system at "mainstream schooling systems" to create increased accessibility for all members of schools community. This directive required a reconsideration of how services were structured and delivered. Operationally it has opened up the funding and scope for schools to have in-house allied health consult on the implementation and design of frameworks that support students through building universally designed teaching practices and ensuring education staff feel supported in implementing these practices. These frameworks previously had always sat outside with external individual providers focused on individual student needs in the area of occupational Therapy.

From a management perspective, this led to deliberate decisions around service design, workforce capacity building, and resource allocation. Time and expertise were increasingly directed towards professional development, systems mapping, and collaboration with school leadership teams to ensure alignment with policy intent. Its led me to examine the policies and funding models that create clearer frameworks and documentation processes to support accountability and consistency across settings.

This experience has highlighted how public policy directly shapes organisational priorities and reinforced the role of governance in ensuring that operational decisions remain aligned with broader reform objectives while still meeting the needs of children, families, and professionals on the ground.

In reviewing our process we also had to ensure we had systems in place to capture disclosures and maintain confidentiality but also be accessible to all stakeholders.