Policy 8.1 : Management Committee Members Code of Conduct

Community Enterprise Inc. is a non-profit organisation established for the purpose of supporting people with disabilities and their families living in the Shire of Hidden Valley.

The services offered by Community Enterprise include group home accommodation, in-home respite, out-of-home respite, home help and community access.

Community Enterprise is a non-profit, community organisation which is governed by a management committee elected annually by the members. Community Enterprise receives all of its operating funds from the Western Australian Government in the form of an annual grant.

The purpose of this policy is to set out a code of conduct to govern the decision and actions of Management Committee Members with respect to their statutory and fiduciary duties as prescribed in the Associations Incorporation Act (1987), Equal Opportunity Act (1984), Disability Discrimination Act (1992), Sex Discrimination Act (1984), Racial Discrimination Act (1975), Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission Act (1986), Workplace Relations Act (1997), Minimum Conditions of Employment Act (1993), Occupational Health, Safety and Welfare Act (1984), Privacy Act (1988), Income Tax Assessment Act (1936) and its subsequent amendments, Sales Tax Exemption and Classifications Act (1992), Disability Services Act (1993) and Standard 8 of the Disability Services Standards (1993).

This policy applies to all Management Committee Members from the moment that they are elected to office.

The following procedures are to be implemented to ensure that Management Committee Members act, at all times, in the best interests of the organisation and meet their statutory and fiduciary obligations.

Management Committee Members will, at all times:

1. Ensure that the organisation conducts its affairs so as to promote the agency's aims and objectives.
2. Understand their roles and responsibilities as a Management Committee member.
3. Fulfil their responsibilities as Management Committee Members by attending as many Management Committee meetings as possible and tendering their apologies in advance if unable to attend any meeting.
4. Prepare themselves properly for Management Committee meetings by pre-reading the minutes of the previous meeting, the agenda for the forthcoming meeting and any supporting documentation.
5. Satisfactorily complete any tasks allotted to them by the Management Committee within the agreed time-frame.
6. Act in good faith and in the best interests of the organisation, regardless of whether they have been nominated to the Management Committee by another organisation or whether they are serving as a representative of another organisation.
7. Act as an ambassador for the agency in their public and private dealings with other persons or organisations.
8. Observe the confidentiality guidelines established by the Management Committee.
9. Act honestly in the exercise of their powers and the discharge of their duties.
10. Exercise reasonable care and diligence in the execution of their duties by keeping themselves informed about the agency's activities and financial position.
11. Not make improper use of information gained through their position as a Management Committee Member to gain, directly or indirectly, an advantage for themselves or any other person, or cause detriment to the agency.
12. Not make improper use of their position as a Management Committee Member to gain, directly or indirectly, an advantage for themselves or any other person, or cause detriment to the agency.
13. Where they have personal interests that might give rise to conflicts of interests with their duties as Management Committee Members, disclose the nature of those interests at the Management Committee meeting and refrain from discussing, or voting on, the issue.
14. Ensure the keeping of such accounting records as correctly explain the agency's transactions and financial position.
15. Not make or authorise a statement to the Ministry of Fair Trading, the Australian Taxation Office, the agency's independent auditor or the agency's funding body which, to their knowledge, is false or materially misleading.
16. Prevent the agency from incurring a debt if there are reasonable grounds for suspecting that the agency is insolvent at the time the debt is incurred or would become insolvent by incurring the debt or a number of debts.