C3. Roles & Responsibilities

Clarity in roles, shared accountability
“The strength of the team is each individual member. The strength of each member is the team.” — Phil Jackson

Policy Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to define the responsibilities of all roles within Trust Children and ReadyStepGrow. It ensures accountability, safe delegation, and consistent, high-quality services while aligning practice with professional standards, legal obligations, and family-centred values. This includes the expectation that clinical documentation is completed in line with professional registration requirements, △△D policies, and funder obligations.

Policy Statement

All staff must work within clearly defined role boundaries and meet professional, organisational, and funder requirements. Confidentiality and informed consent are central to all roles. Clinicians hold particular responsibility for ensuring documentation is accurate, timely, and consistent with their professional registration standards, △△D policies, and funding body requirements.

Policy Details – Roles and Responsibilities

Administrative Staff

• Manage scheduling, service agreements, billing, payments, and records.
• Prepare and distribute documents (e.g., templates, letters, reports) at the request of clinicians.
• Act as first contact for families and direct clinical queries to the appropriate clinician.
• Maintain confidentiality and data security in all communications and record-keeping.
• Must not provide therapy, clinical advice, or interpret clinical information for families.

Clinicians

• Adhere to professional registration body codes of conduct and ethical standards.
• Complete clinical documentation in line with professional standards, registration body requirements, △△D policies, and funder obligations.
• Lead assessment, clinical reasoning, therapy planning, goal setting, and therapy delivery.
• Create therapy plans (clinical and family-friendly versions) and ensure they meet organisational and funder requirements.
• Supervise therapy assistants, review therapy assistant session notes, and provide scheduled supervision.
• Make — and remain accountable for — all clinical decisions (e.g., appropriateness of goals/strategies, progress measures, changes to intervention).
• Provide formal updates, reviews, and reports to families and funders.
• Collaborate across disciplines to ensure consistent, coordinated care.
• Model professional behaviours and standards for therapy assistants and supervisees.

Therapy Assistants

• Deliver therapy activities as directed in the therapy plan and by the supervising clinician.
• Document session notes for every contact; notes must be reviewed by the supervising clinician.
• Provide observations and feedback during scheduled supervision.
• Support families to practise therapy strategies, without making clinical decisions.

Therapy assistants must not:

• Decide therapy goals
• Judge whether strategies are appropriate
• Change or stop strategies
• Determine how progress is measured
• Conduct assessments
• Develop therapy plans
• Set goals independently

Supervision & Delegation

• Delegation occurs only from a supervising clinician to a therapy assistant for tasks clearly defined in the therapy plan.
• The supervising clinician retains accountability for all delegated clinical tasks and for therapy assistant notes.
• Administrative staff may receive task requests (e.g., scheduling, document handling) but do not receive delegated clinical tasks.
• Supervision frequency and format are determined by the Clinical Director, in line with professional and organisational requirements.
• Supervision is both supportive and accountable — ensuring quality practice, safeguarding families, and protecting staff wellbeing.
• Performance reviews are conducted annually by the Clinical Director (or delegate), complementing supervision by providing structured feedback on professional responsibilities, wellbeing, and professional development goals.

See the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Use Policy (Supporting Policy 11) for guidance on safe and approved use of AI in documentation and communication.

Accountability

• Each staff member is accountable for fulfilling the responsibilities of their role as outlined in this policy.
• Clinicians remain accountable for clinical decision-making, documentation standards, and the supervision of delegated tasks.
• Therapy assistants are accountable for carrying out delegated tasks accurately, within scope, and under supervision.
• Administrative staff are accountable for delivering operational support tasks efficiently and maintaining confidentiality.
• Contractors are accountable for meeting the same professional, documentation, and confidentiality standards as employees, and are expected to comply with this policy as a condition of engagement.
• Accountability is shared across the team — through supervision, reflection, and constructive situational feedback we support one another to uphold professional standards and provide family-centred care.
• Performance reviews form part of this accountability structure, offering formal opportunities to reflect on strengths, address challenges, and set growth goals.

How to Raise a Concern

If staff identify blurred role boundaries, delegation concerns, or unclear responsibilities, they must:

1. Raise the concern directly with the staff member involved, where appropriate.
2. If unresolved, escalate to their supervisor or the Clinical Director.
3. Use supervision or team meetings to reflect on delegation, role clarity, and professional responsibilities.
4. If concerns impact child safety or confidentiality, escalate immediately under the Child Safety Policy or the Confidentiality & Consent Policy.

Related Policies and How They Connect

• Child Safety Policy – outlines role responsibilities in recognising, reporting, and documenting child safety concerns.
• Clinical Documentation Policy – clarifies clinician responsibility for accurate, timely, professional documentation.
• Communication Standards Policy – ensures clarity in role-based communication and delegation.
• Confidentiality & Consent Policy – ensures all roles respect consent, assent, and confidentiality.
• Supervision & Performance Policy – provides reflective structures for role development, accountability, and review.
• Therapy Plan Policy – defines clinicians’ responsibility for plan creation and assistants’ role in delegated implementation.
• Governance & Quality Policy – outlines how roles and responsibilities are monitored, reviewed, and continuously improved.

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Document Control: v1.1 · Created: Aug 2025 · Updated: Sep 2025 (added AI cross-reference; strengthened accountability language) · Review: Annual (Jan 2026) · Owner: △△D Pty Ltd

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