Application
This unit describes the fundamental skills required to police roads in a safe and professional manner, including the ability to apply road safety principles, control traffic, drive safely and conduct initial crash investigations.
This unit applies to those working in a policing environment, typically in a general duties role.
The skills and knowledge described in this unit must be carried out within the legislative, regulatory and policy environment in which they are carried out. Organisational policies and procedures must be consulted and adhered to, particularly those related to work health and safety (WHS), use of force, and pursuits.
Those undertaking this unit would primarily work independently or under limited supervision, while performing specific/specified tasks in a broad range of contexts. They would be required to apply decision making and problem solving skills to interpret behaviours and develop solutions.
No licensing, legislative or certification requirements apply to unit at the time of publication.
Elements and Performance Criteria
ELEMENTS | PERFORMANCE CRITERIA |
Elements describe the essential outcomes | Performance criteria describe the performance needed to demonstrate achievement of the element. Where bold italicised text is used, further information is detailed in the range of conditions section. |
1. Apply road safety principles | 1.1 Assess road conditions in order to determine whether the situation is or may become unsafe. 1.2 Identify and analyse unsafe road situation to inform policing actions and referrals. 1.3 Inspect vehicle safety and roadworthiness to determine potential safety risks. 1.4 Identify unsafe driver behaviour and traffic offences to inform policing actions. |
2. Control traffic | 2.1 Use personal protection equipment when controlling traffic. 2.2 Direct traffic using traffic signals. 2.3 Regulate traffic flow in accordance with safety principles. 2.4 Coordinate traffic movement to minimise risks to safety of self, colleagues, and public. |
3. Enforce road policing legislation | 3.1 Apply current legislation to inform road policing services. 3.2 Identify traffic offences for road policing and law enforcement purposes. 3.3 Assess road situation to identify potential offences or crimes of a general nature. 3.4 Conduct vehicle stops and pullovers. 3.5 Detect potential offences using road policing equipment. |
4. Conduct initial investigations of crash incidents | 4.1 Manage crash incidents to support traffic flow and safety of self, colleagues and public. 4.2 Secure crash incident scene to identify and protect potential evidence. 4.3 Assess crash incidents to determine resources required. 4.4 Gather details of potential witnesses, offenders and victims for further investigation purposes. |
5. Demonstrate safe driving | 5.1 Assess police vehicles for operational suitability and fitness for purposes. 5.2 Perform pre-drive checks to establish vehicle’s operational readiness and safety. 5.3 Demonstrate safe driving techniques in controlled scenarios. 5.4 Assess urgent duty calls and road situations to inform police response. |
6. Demonstrate an understanding of police pursuits | 6.1 Analyse road situations to identify police response options. 6.2 Perform operational driving while demonstrating situational awareness to reflect changing situations, conditions, or as directed by jurisdiction. 6.3 Pursue potential offenders with high regard to the safety of self, colleagues and public. 6.4 Identify impact of use of force principles on police pursuit responses. 6.5 Identify and comply with roles and responsibilities of police jurisdictions when conducting cross border pursuits. |
Evidence of Performance
Evidence required to demonstrate competence must satisfy all of the requirements of the elements and performance criteria. If not otherwise specified the candidate must demonstrate evidence of performance of the following on at least one occasion.
identifying legislation relevant to road policing
assessing road situations to identify safety issues related to road conditions, drivers, and vehicles
referring and reporting safety issues to internal and external stakeholders
directing and managing traffic flow, including the use of hand signals and PPE
assessing road policing scenarios to identify traffic offences and offences or crimes of a general nature
conducting vehicle stops and pullovers
securing and protecting crash incident scene and evidence
communicating with stakeholders at crash incident scene
preparing and driving police vehicles to deliver policing responses
demonstrating safe police pursuit practices
Evidence of Knowledge
Evidence required to demonstrate competence must satisfy all of the requirements of the elements and performance criteria. If not otherwise specified the depth of knowledge demonstrated must be appropriate to the job context of the candidate.
WHS legislation
jurisdictional policies and procedures related to WHS
driver education
rights of road users
Assessment Conditions
This unit contains no specific industry-mandated assessment conditions. Guidance on suggested and recommended conditions and methods can be found in the Implementation Guide.
Consideration must be given to practical assessment for this unit. Refer to advice in the companion volumes.
Assessors must satisfy the NVR/AQTF mandatory competency requirements for assessors.
Foundation Skills
The foundation skills demands of this unit have been mapped for alignment with the Australian Core Skills Framework (ACSF). The following tables outline the performance levels indicated for successful attainment of the unit.
Further information on ACSF and the foundation skills underpinning this unit can be found in the Foundation Skills Guide on the GSA website.
Competency Field
General