Another big hello to my fellow PR buddies,
I hope that all of your workplace experiences are going as well as mine :)
I am almost half way through my time here at the Department of Sport and Recreation and it has absolutely flown by!
To give you all an indication of what I am doing here, I can sum it up in one word.. Research !
The Department of Sport and Recreation are currently up to stage five of a five stage program designed to get more people active in their communities, whether it be through sporting team participation, volunteering, umpiring etc.
At present, I have been scouring the internet, looking for previously implemented strategies (worldwide, national and local) to grab the attention of younger people to get more active in their communities and I have found some very interesting research. Ideas from offering students discounts on their university studies if they join a local group to establishing a passport system that allows people to showcase a portfolio to future employers of where they have volunteered are just two of many ideas I have found so far.
The state government has just allocated my particular section, called "Sport for all" a five year payment plan totalling $6million, or $1.2million per year which is going to come in very handy to pursue our strategies and projects.
There are also alarming trends between children and obesity as well as older generations and lack of social interaction, and we are trying to address these and many other issues too. It is quite exciting to be here, especially now with the government grant!
Everyone is very active here and only a few people commute to work by car which really shows that the staff live by the ethos of the department they work for and keep active.
Just to rub it in a little bit, I thought I should share some (not all) of the benefits I have while working here.
1. Free yoga classes, massages, walking groups at lunch
2. As much sporting equipment as you could ever need. (At lunch I will quite often grab a football, walk onto Leederville Oval (it adjoins our building) and kick a few goals with the guys!)
3. Free ergonomic assessment; you get fitted out for proper seating, foot rests, arm rests, fitness balls if you need them (very comfortable now!).
Everyone is very happy to work here and it definately shows.
Well, back to work for me but look forward to reading some more developments in all of your placements!
Kieran Vanpraag
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