Djarragun College is a non-state school specialised for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students from Prep to year 12. A spike in workers’ compensation claims led to the college engaging the Queensland Government’s Injury Prevention and Management program (IPaM) to review its systems.
At the time of the review, the college’s management made two major changes to facilitate and complement the new approach to work health and safety at the college.
- They invested in systems and governance software to focus on work health and safety, including risk and compliance.
- They made changes to personnel and roles to transition to the new work health and safety focus.
The leadership team at the college proactively drove a renewed and targeted approach by initiating the Executive Leadership Alliance, a body dedicated to overseeing major projects and operational decisions and creating a work health and safety compliance role who was dedicated to implementing the IPaM Program.
The college communicated and involved staff members and contractors through feedback surveys, working groups, committees, training and education programs.
Aside from a reduction in cost related to workers’ compensation claims, the college has also benefited from:
- increased hazard identification and reporting
- improved work health and safety communication
- increased and improved risk assessment processes
- the embedding of work health and safety roles and responsibilities into position descriptions
- an employee assistance program (EAP)
- the introduction of an injury management and return to work program
- more involvement by college leadership in work health and safety.
