I am a Life Member of the Central Safety Group (CSG), a small network of OHS professionals who meet in central Melbourne each month. CSG seems to me to provide the best return on investment for professional development in my area and I’d like to recommend membership, if you are local.
The Central Safety Group has operated for over 40 years, continues to meet monthly, providing access to important guest speakers, like those listed below, and to networking opportunities.
Some of the topics and speakers that the Central Safety Group has hosted over the last 12 months:
- The Pitfalls of OHS Legal Risk Management – Mike Hammond
- Why is psychological health the current big OHS issue? – Professor David Caple
- What has been the impact of the harmonised work health and safety legislation in other jurisdictions – Steve Bell.
- Workplace Psychological First Aid, Rhonda Brand – Comcare
- Are we measuring safety performance the right way? – Conor O’Malley.
- Striving for Excellence in Health & Safety in Emergency Services – Tony Murphy, Emergency Management Victoria
- Australia’s failure to improve return to work rates – Dr Alex Collie, ISCRR,
- Anti-bullying and the FWC – Commissioner Nick Wilson of the Fair Work Commission,
- Implications of the Model Work Health Safety legislation for Victorian businesses – Graham Dent,
- WorkSafe Victoria’s current priorities – Tim McLean, Director Improvement Programs, WorkSafe
One of the meetings included a site visit to the Melbourne Assessment Prison.
Information on some of these is available at the group’s website.
Membership of the group is $50 per year which entitles you to attend the 10 monthly meetings (and a free Christmas lunch) at no weekly charge. If you want to eat lunch there is a $15 charge for each meeting. I don’t know anywhere that offers access to OHS experts and regulators for minimum of $50 a year. There are different cost structures for non-members but membership is so cheap, why wouldn’t you join.
The Central Safety Group meetings are like an OHS conference spread over the year with ten top OHS guest speakers with a “conference dinner” to round off the event.
I am a Life Member in recognition of my secretarial duties several years ago but even if I wasn’t, I would be at each month’s meeting to develop my OHS state of knowledge and to network with my peers.
More information about the Central Safety Group is at its website but the best way to find out about it is to visit a monthly meeting. Call the Secretary, Jane Loudon, on 0417 040 252 or email her at secretary@centralsafetygroup.com
Hi Kevin
I am looking at creating something similar in regional SA for safety professionals. Would like to know how the CSG keeps its momentum and what sought of things I should be considering in creating the group. really like the format of the meetings and glad to hear the CSG is a successful body.
I would appreciate if you could email me directly, refer to details.
It’s a pretty impressive line-up of speakers when you look at it that way. Thanks Kevin.
Thank you for sharing that Kevin, I’ll definitely consider joining. Even though I’m moving to Geelong in a month.