Araya Tuition · OP-02

Transport and Volunteer Driver Policy

Document: OP-02
Version: 1.0
Current as at: 4 October 2026
Next review: October 2027
ABN: 46 535 961 069

Araya Tuition (ABN 46 535 961 069). Version 1.0. Current as at 4 October 2026. Next review: October 2027. Document owner: Designated Child Safety Officer. New policy.

In an emergency on the road, call 000 first. Then phone Araya on 0466 373 048 and the student's parent or carer. Never leave a student alone in a vehicle, even briefly.

1. Purpose and scope

This policy sets the rules for transporting Araya students in volunteer drivers' private vehicles. It covers the routine "home to Araya to home" runs on program days, and excursions or other one-off trips. It applies to every volunteer driver, to the Araya administrators who roster, approve and supervise transport, and to the parents and carers whose children travel.

Araya transports students only on runs that Araya has approved, by drivers that Araya has approved. Any other arrangement between a driver and a family is private and is not an Araya activity.

2. Who may drive for Araya

A person may drive students for Araya only when all of the following are true, and Araya has recorded them:

Blue Card: they hold a valid Queensland Blue Card or exemption card that Araya has validated, linked to Araya and recorded in its Blue Card register (HR-01). No card, no start.
Licence: they hold a current open (full) driver licence for the vehicle. Learner and provisional licences are not accepted. Araya sights the licence and records the number and expiry.
Driving history: they provide a current Queensland traffic history (or the equivalent from another state). Araya will not approve a driver with a recent licence suspension or disqualification, or with a pattern of serious offences (for example drink or drug driving, dangerous driving, or high-range speeding).
Vehicle: the vehicle is registered in Queensland (registration includes compulsory third party insurance), is roadworthy, and has a working seatbelt for every passenger.
Insurance: the vehicle has comprehensive motor vehicle insurance, and the driver has confirmed with their insurer that it covers them when driving as a volunteer.
Screening and induction: they have completed Araya's screening, the Child Safety Foundations course (pass mark 11 out of 12) and transport induction, including this policy and the in-vehicle guides.
Approval: an Araya administrator has approved them and marked their screening as cleared in Araya's system. Until then, handovers are switched off in the Driver app and the driver cannot transport students.

Drivers must use an authenticator app (two-factor authentication) to log in to the Driver app. Each year, drivers re-confirm their licence, traffic history, registration and insurance. Drivers must tell Araya straight away if their licence is suspended or restricted, they are charged with a traffic or criminal offence, their insurance lapses, or their Blue Card status changes. Araya sets their screening status so that handovers are switched off until the issue is resolved.

3. Parent and carer consent

Routine transport consent. A student may travel on routine runs only after a parent or carer has signed Araya's routine transport risk assessment (ATR-RA-01) in the Parent portal. Araya asks families to sign it again each consent period.
Excursion consent. The driver plans each excursion in the Driver app and sends the plan to Araya admin for review. Once admin approves it, a parent or carer of every child travelling must sign the excursion risk assessment (ATR-RA-02), with its route map and trip details, in the Parent portal. The trip goes ahead only when every child's parent or carer has signed.
Parents and carers must keep the home address for transport, phone numbers and emergency contacts up to date in the Parent portal. They must also tell Araya about any medical condition, medication or child restraint need, and about any court order that affects who may collect their child.
A parent or carer can withdraw consent at any time by telling Araya. The student does not travel until the issue is resolved.

4. Before every run

Before every run the driver must:

be fit to drive: not tired, unwell, or affected by alcohol, drugs or medication. Araya has zero tolerance for alcohol or drugs when driving students. A driver who is not fit must withdraw and tell Araya, which will arrange another driver or cancel the run;
check the vehicle: tyres, lights, fuel, seatbelts, and that the right child restraints and booster seats are fitted for the students travelling;
carry a first-aid kit, a charged phone and the in-vehicle guide for the type of trip;
check the run in the Driver app: the roster, the planned route and any notes from Araya;
tap Start run in the Driver app when setting off, and record the odometer reading if asked.

5. Route planning and approved stops

Araya rosters each student to a regular driver. The driver plans the run in the Driver app, which sorts the stops into the most efficient order. Drop-off runs go from the driver's home to each student's home and on to the Araya venue; pickup runs go the other way. A map of the plan is saved for Araya admin, and the driver can open the route in Google Maps to navigate.
The only approved stops are the students' transport addresses on the roster, the Araya venue, and (for excursions) the approved destination.
No unscheduled stops or detours. Drivers must not stop at shops, their own home or anywhere else with students in the vehicle, unless it is needed for safety (for example a breakdown, an illness, or pulling over to deal with behaviour). Any such stop must be reported to Araya the same day.
Excursions over 90 minutes' driving include a rest break, as set out in the excursion risk assessment.

6. Seating and child restraints

Every student must be restrained as the Queensland Road Rules require. The driver checks that every student is correctly buckled before moving off.

Children under 4 travel in the back seat in an approved child restraint suitable for their age and size.
Children aged 4 to under 7 use an approved forward-facing restraint or booster seat. They sit in the back unless every back seat is already taken by younger children in restraints.
Children aged 7 and over use a correctly adjusted seatbelt, or a booster seat if they are too small for the adult seatbelt to fit properly.
Araya's rule: students sit in the back seat wherever possible. There must never be more passengers than seatbelts.

7. While driving

No phone use while driving. Never hold or touch a phone while driving, including when stopped in traffic. A phone may be used only for navigation, mounted in a fixed cradle and set up before the trip, as the road rules allow for open-licence holders. Handovers and other Driver app tasks are done only when the vehicle is parked.
Obey speed limits and the road rules, and drive to the conditions.
Do not smoke or vape in the vehicle, and do not play unsuitable music or media.
Keep conversations friendly and appropriate, as the Child Safety Code of Conduct requires. Do not give students gifts or food without Araya's approval, ask them for personal contact details, or contact them outside Araya's portals.
If a student's behaviour makes driving unsafe, pull over safely, then contact Araya and the parent or carer.

8. Avoiding one adult alone with one child

Araya plans runs so that a driver is not alone with a single student wherever that can be avoided, for example by grouping students on one run or including a second adult on excursions. Where a driver will be alone with one student, these controls must all be in place:

the run is on Araya's roster (or approved in advance by Araya admin) and the parent or carer has signed the transport consent;
the run is started in the Driver app, so it is GPS-recorded from start to end;
the student sits in the back seat;
the driver takes the direct route, with no unscheduled stops;
the handover is confirmed in the app at both ends.

Any change from these controls must be approved in advance by Araya admin and recorded.

9. Handovers with the Araya Driver app

Every time a student is handed over (from a parent or carer to the driver at drop-off, from the driver to Araya at the venue, and back again at pickup), the handover must be confirmed and recorded. A student is never handed to a person who has not been confirmed.

QR code. The driver opens the student in the Driver app and shows a QR code. The parent or carer scans it with their phone's camera, which opens the Araya Parent app to confirm. Alternatively, the driver scans the code shown in the parent's app.
6-character code. If scanning does not work, the parent reads out the 6-character code shown in their app and the driver types it in (or the other way round). Each QR code and short code works once and expires after 5 minutes. The driver taps New code if one expires.
Signature fallback. If the parent or carer has no phone, they type their name and sign on the driver's screen (No phone? Parent signs here). The driver must be satisfied that the person signing is the parent or carer, or an authorised person on the student's record.
At the venue. Araya staff confirm each student's arrival and departure on the roll. Where a handover could not be confirmed in the app, an Araya administrator records it manually, and the system requires a written reason.

Each record shows the student, the date, drop-off or pickup, who handed the student over and who received them, the method used, the time, and the run it belongs to. A handover for a student who is not on that driver's regular roster is marked off-roster for Araya admin to check. If the driver has any doubt about who is collecting a student (for example a person who is not on the record, or a court order on file), the student stays with the driver and the driver phones Araya.

10. A student who is not collected, or is missing

10.1 No parent or carer at the drop-off point (pickup runs)

The driver waits safely with the student in the vehicle and phones the parent or carer, then the emergency contacts.
The driver phones Araya admin within 10 minutes if no one has been reached.
If no safe adult can be reached, the driver takes the student back to the Araya venue (or another place Araya directs) and hands them to Araya staff, who keep trying the family. The student is never left at an empty house or with a person who has not been confirmed.
If no parent, carer or emergency contact can be reached within 30 minutes of the end of the run, the Designated Child Safety Officer contacts Queensland Police (Policelink 131 444) for advice.

10.2 Student not at the pickup point (drop-off runs)

The driver phones the parent or carer and Araya admin, and does not wait for more than a few minutes in a way that puts other students at risk. Araya follows up with the family.

10.3 A student is missing

If a student cannot be found at any point during a run or excursion (for example they leave the vehicle or group), the driver keeps the other students safe and calls Araya immediately. The driver searches nearby only if it is safe to do so without leaving other students alone. If the student is not found within 10 minutes, the driver calls 000. Araya contacts the parent or carer.

Every uncollected or missing student is recorded as an incident on the same day.

11. Incidents, breakdowns and accidents

Crash or injury: stop safely, turn on the hazard lights, call 000 if anyone is hurt or the road is blocked, give first aid within your training, keep students together and away from traffic, then phone Araya and the parents. Exchange details as the law requires and report to police where required.
Breakdown or long delay: move to a safe place, keep students together and supervised, call roadside assistance and Araya. Araya updates parents and arranges another driver or collection if needed.
Medical emergency: call 000, follow the student's action plan if one is provided, and contact Araya and the parent.
Child-safety concern or disclosure: follow the Child Safety Reporting Procedure (CS-03).
Reporting: report every incident, near miss, unscheduled stop or concern to Araya admin on the same day. Araya records it as an incident and reviews whether the transport risk assessment needs to change. Notifiable work health and safety incidents are handled under the Emergency Management and First Aid Policy.

12. GPS tracking during runs

While a run is active, from Start run to End run, the Driver app records the vehicle's location using the phone's GPS. Phone browsers allow this only while the app is open on screen, so drivers must keep the app open during the run. The app asks the phone to keep the screen awake. If the app is closed or the screen locks, tracking resumes when it is reopened.
The app does not record location outside an active run. Drivers must tap End run as soon as the run finishes.
The record is used to confirm that students were transported safely along the approved route, to work out the kilometres driven, and to reimburse drivers. Araya admin and the driver can see it. A parent or carer can see the trip report and route maps for runs their child was on.
Location and route records are handled under the Privacy Policy (PR-01).

13. Fatigue, weather and other conditions

Drivers must not drive students when tired. Avoid driving after a night shift or with less than a normal night's sleep, take a break on any drive over 90 minutes, and withdraw from a run if not fit.
In severe weather (storms, flooding, extreme heat warnings) or when roads are closed, Araya admin delays or cancels runs and tells families through the Parent app and by phone. Never drive through floodwater. If conditions change during a run, pull over in a safe place and contact Araya.
On hot days, students must not be left in a parked vehicle, even with the windows down or the air-conditioning on.

14. Records

Araya keeps transport records as child-safety records for at least 45 years. They include run records (times, odometer readings, planned and actual route maps and kilometres), handover records and signatures, transport consents and signed risk assessments, rosters, driver screening records, and transport incident reports. Drivers must not keep their own photos, copies or notes of students' details or addresses.

15. Related documents and legislation

Araya documents: Recruitment, Screening and Blue Card Policy (HR-01); Child Safety Reporting Procedure (CS-03); Attendance, Arrival, Collection and Departure Policy; Emergency Management and First Aid Policy; Privacy Policy (PR-01); transport risk assessments ATR-RA-01 (routine) and ATR-RA-02 (excursions); the in-vehicle guides in the Driver app.
Transport Operations (Road Use Management) Act 1995 (Qld) and the Transport Operations (Road Use Management—Road Rules) Regulation 2009 (Qld): seatbelts, child restraints, mobile phones and speed.
Working with Children (Risk Management and Screening) Act 2000 (Qld).
Child Safe Organisations Act 2024 (Qld): Child Safe Standards.
Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld): duties to volunteers and to the students in their care.

This document is Araya's policy. It is not legal advice. If it differs from the law, the law applies; where this document sets a stricter rule than the law, Araya follows the stricter rule.