Volunteers

The Hon. P. CAICA (Colton) (15:16): Often in the past, I have been asked by people what is, in my view, Australia's most significant and important piece of infrastructure. I have always responded by saying that our most important piece of infrastructure is our natural environment. As a species, it sustains us and it sustains every species in this country and indeed on the planet. Of course, our welfare and wellbeing as a species are inextricably linked to the welfare and wellbeing of the environment in which we and other species live.

I have also been asked: what other pieces of infrastructure are there? I do not necessarily like referring to humans in this way, but our next most important piece of infrastructure is our population—the people of Australia, those people who work in a small way, but collectively in a huge way, to make sure that this country remains at the forefront with respect to the delivery of a quality of life and standard of living that are the envy of many other parts of the world.

Importantly, within that component of human infrastructure that makes sure that our place operate better than it otherwise would—our place called Australia and, indeed, in this instance, South Australia—is the role of volunteers. Recently, I have seen a press release from minister Bettison highlighting the continuation of those many South Australians who volunteer and freely give up their time to contribute to our community.

The most recent survey that was undertaken and promulgated on volunteering in South Australia shows that about 900,000 people are volunteering annually across this state, and I pay tribute to each and every one of those people who make an outstanding contribution to our community. But in this instance what I want to highlight is an initiative undertaken by the Minister for Education, Jennifer Rankine, in ensuring that every school in South Australia will have available to it a plaque to acknowledge an outstanding volunteer in their school.

That award is called an Award for Outstanding Volunteer Service and is going to schools, preschools and kindergartens. I was lucky enough only yesterday to drop off half a dozen plaques at some schools and preschools in my electorate and, of course, I still have another bundle that I am going to be fortunate to deliver to the schools and in turn be able to recognise those volunteers who are determined by their schools as being outstanding in the contributions they have made to their school and their school community.

This is a terrific initiative, and it is aimed to be an annual award and to formally recognise the efforts of one outstanding volunteer each year, as well as to allow the minister and broader community to publicly thank them for their work. An engraved plaque has been arranged for each school to display the name of the recipient. As I said, I delivered half a dozen yesterday, and I look forward to delivering personally the rest of those at some functions that the schools will undertake.

It must be very difficult for the schools to recognise only one volunteer, and I know that in some instances they will look at a collective because there are so many people within our community who contribute in so many different ways through volunteering within our education system. As I said, I congratulate minister Rankine on this fantastic initiative. It is great to recognise the immensely positive contribution volunteers make to children and students in our community.

We have had a fantastic response from the schools in our community. Recipients include long-serving couples helping out in canteens, and with maintenance, to young people aspiring to work 'one day' in early childhood education. It has been lovely for me to hear the stories of how valued and appreciated volunteers are by teachers in my electorate, by other members of our community within our electorate and, indeed, the entire school community.

The upcoming presentations at several schools to formally present and acknowledge this year's recipients is something I am looking forward to over the next couple of weeks. It is always a busy time for local members at this time of the year, particularly those who have a lot of schools in their electorate. I am planning on further recognising recipients in the Colton Connection, my newsletter, as we all have a newsletter, and I will be recognising each of those recipients in the next issue that goes out to the people of Colton, and playing my part in recognising the contribution and importance of the volunteers and the role they play within our community.

I would like to finish off by saying that this is a fantastic initiative from minister Rankine, and I congratulate her on this initiative. More importantly, I thank her for allowing a mechanism whereby we can thank the volunteers who operate within our schools, kindergartens and preschools.