The Duke of Edinburghs Award in Australia

Assessor Form Personal details and agreement

Participant Details Name Contact Details Award Level Award Section seeking Assessor Time Commitment My purpose / goal for this activity is Licenced Operator Details Licenced Operator Coordinator Contact Details Assessor Details (Please complete) Name Phone Address Email Skills/expertise/ qualifications I have read and agree to the terms (please write name, sign and date) of the Volunteer code of Conduct and acknowledge that I have the skills and/or expertise to undertake assessment for this participant, and agree to be an assessor for The Duke of Edinburghs Award 3 6 9 12 18 months (please circle)

Volunteer Code of Conduct

In consideration of the Licensed Operator above, appointing me as an Assessor in relation to The Duke of Edinburghs Award (The Award), I accept these terms and undertake that I will: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Exercise due care and diligence in carrying out my role and responsibilities. Comply at all times with the requirements of The Award and with all applicable laws relevant to fulfilling my obligations to The Award. Consent to undergo a police and/or referee/background check when requested by The Award. Undertake training and meet accreditation requirements, as appropriate. Respect the privacy of persons served by The Award and hold, in confidence, sensitive, private and personal information collected in relation to The Award in accordance with the Privacy Policy of the Duke of Edinburghs Award in Australia [ACN 114 267 195] (National Award Authority) and the law. (Reports of child abuse or neglect will be handled under the relevant State/Territory legislation). Immediately advise the aforementioned Licensed Operator of any matter of which I am involved that has or could lead to a criminal conviction. Advise the Licensed Operator of any Officer or employee of the Licensed Operator; or any assessor, instructor or volunteer involved in the management and/or delivery of The Award, who I believe has acted in a way which may be detrimental to the good name of the award. In carrying out my role and responsibilities for The Award I will:

6. 7.

8.

represent The Award with professionalism, dignity and pride, and be responsible for conducting myself with courtesy and appropriate behaviour; follow through and complete accepted tasks; conduct myself in a respectful manner, exhibit good conduct, and be a positive role model; display respect and courtesy for participants of The Award, other volunteers, staff, contractors and property; provide a safe environment by not harming youths or adults in any way, whether through discrimination, sexual harassment, physical force, verbal or mental abuse, neglect, or other harmful actions; work cooperatively as a team member with employees of The Award and other volunteers; and

9.

I agree:

to follow through and complete accepted tasks; I will copy and distribute materials the Licensed Operator gives me only for the purposes of The Award and will not otherwise use them without the prior written consent of the National Award Authority; I will not use those materials in any way which would bring The Award, Licensed Operator, State Award Authority or the National Award Authority into disrepute; that once my appointment to The Award ends, I will immediately stop all use of the materials; that any improvements or developments or new versions of the materials, including new materials I create based on or incorporating them, belong to the National Award

Authority and I assign all rights, including intellectual property rights, in them to the National Award Authority;

A description of my role and responsibilities under The Award are detailed below, as well as the requirements and fundamental principles of The Award, which I have read and understand. I will comply with all of these requirements. I am aware of my obligations as outlined in this document and that my appointment as an Assessor in relation to The Award may be terminated as a result of any breach by me of the undertakings in this document. I agree to the above terms.

Assessor Roles and Responsibilities

Assessors are adult volunteers who assist the young person with their Award Program. For each Section of The Award (Fitness, Skill etc), a Participant will need at least one Assessor to help guide them throughout their Award journey. In some instances a Participant will require more than one Assessor per Section. Assessors must have experience and/or qualifications in the activity chosen by the young person. They must be suitably skilled to assess a Participants activity, write a report at the completion of that activity, and sign off the Record Book to verify the Participant has achieved the requirements of the Award. An Assessor can assess more than one Participant. They may also be qualified to assess across multiple activities and/or Sections. An Assessor may be required to meet certification or qualification requirements if their activity is bound by a State/Territory or National accreditation requirement. Please note that a Coordinator can also be an Assessor. Generally Participants are responsible for finding their own Assessors, however it is the responsibility of the Award Coordinators to check and approve Assessors and ensure they are suitable. In some circumstances, a Coordinator, on behalf of their Licenced Operator, may create a pool of recognised Assessors for popular activities previously undertaken by their Participants.
As an Award Assessor, you also play a crucial role in the success of The Award program. Your role is to engage with Participants of The Award, and offer guidance, mentoring and encouragement as they journey through the Section of The Award that you are assessing.

As an Assessor, you are responsible for:

1. Assisting Participants to identify and set achievable goals for the Section(s) you are assessing. 2. Helping Participants to stay focused on the goals they have set. 3. Assisting Participants to develop a program to reach their goals. 4. Encouraging and recognising improvements in your Participant(s). 5. Recording positive comments about their progress in their Record Book.

As an Assessor you must:

I. II. III. IV. V. Be experienced or qualified in the field in which you are instructing or assessing. Be approved by the Award Coordinator and therefore the Licensed Operator (LO) prior to the Participant commencing the activity. Hold appropriate qualifications from a relevant authority if such qualifications are available and/or required. Be selected and approached by the Participant before the Participant commences the activity. Agree to the Volunteer Code of Conduct prior to undertaking any assessment (Please refer to Section 5.1.5 of this Handbook)

Fundamental Principles of The Award

The International Declaration
The Award concept is one of individual challenge. It presents to young people a balanced, noncompetitive program of voluntary activities that encourages personal discovery and growth, self-reliance, perseverance, responsibility to themselves and service to their community.

The Fundamental Principles

The criteria for gaining an Award is individual improvement through persistence and achievement, taking into account the Participants initial capabilities, and without any element of competition between Participants Participation is entirely voluntary and the individual Participant has a completely free choice in the selection of the locally available options within the four sections (five for Gold) The is no discrimination against participation on grounds of sex, race religion or political affiliation

The Operational Principles

Participants must be between the ages of 14 and 25. The basic structure of The Award program consists of the four mandatory sections: Fitness (Physical Recreation), Skill, Volunteering (Service), and Adventurous Journey There are three levels of The Award: Bronze (for those 14 an over), Silver (for those 15 and over), and Gold (for those 16 and over) The minimum period of participation for direct entrants to qualify for an Award is 6 months for Bronze, 12 months for Silver, and 18 months for Gold At Gold level Participants must undertake a Residential Project away from home

The Code of Practice

To maintain comparable standards of operating practice as advised by the International Secretariat To manage The Award program fairly and impartially in all respects To ensure that The Award program is freely available to all young people of the appropriate ages, without regard to sex, race, religion, political affiliation or any other personal circumstances