Parks Victoria has decided recently to require ALL its volunteers to obtain a Working with Children Check (WWCC), regardless of whether they actually work with children.
The Victorian government, through its WWCC website states very clearly that the check does not apply to incidental contact with children. Parks Victoria has chosen to ignore that. It’s clear that this is purely an arse-covering exercise.
Our group has been removing weeds from the Dandenong Ranges National Park since 1990. In that time, we have worked co-operatively with Parks Victoria without incident, or the necessity for police checks. We do not work with children since the work we do is arduous and physically demanding. To require a blanket WWCC for all our members is therefore very disrespectful and egregious. We resent being regarded as potential child molesters.
The Victorian Environment Friends Network (VEFN) is actively trying to persuade Parks Victoria to reconsider this thoughtless directive. They have had no success to date.
I, and countless other volunteers, are debating whether we want to work with Parks Victoria in the future.
Living Naturally 