The Sovereign’s Award GUIDELINES

PURPOSE The purpose of The Sovereign’s Award Guidelines (Guidelines) is to provide consistency in the way St John Australia administers the Sovereign’s Award (the ‘Award’) in Australia. OBJECTS OF THE AWARD The Sovereign’s Award is the premier youth award in . This is an international award and is the only award to bear the personal signature of the Sovereign Head of the Order. The Award has been established to recognise the outstanding achievement of members of St John between the ages of 16 and 25 years in personal development and benefit to the community through the work of St John Ambulance Australia. The Award aims to provide opportunities for young members in developing initiative, broadening knowledge and experience and encouraging personal achievement. The Sovereign’s Award will be awarded to those members in recognition of outstanding work in three key areas: • personal development • benefit to St John Ambulance Australia, and • benefit to the community. The Award ranks immediately senior to the Grand Prior’s Award. GUIDELINES 1. Entry 1.1 The Award is open to young members of St John Ambulance Australia who: (i) are aged between 16 and 25 years (ii) have completed the Grand Prior’s Award or (Gold level) Southern Cross Award or 1,000 hours of service (iii) have completed five consecutive years of recognised service as a youth or adult member by the completion of the Award. ‘Recognised service’ refers to service completed under the national Guidelines for Formal Service Recognition (available at members.stjohn.org.au). 1.2 To qualify for entry, the Candidate must nominate a mentor for the duration of the project. 2. Award Criteria 2.1 To qualify for the Award, Candidates must submit a project that has evidence of significant achievement in the three key areas: (i) personal benefit as an individual and team member (ii) benefit to the work of St John Ambulance Australia (iii) benefit to the community, preferably over an extended period. 2.2 The format the Candidate presents their final work in may be of their own choice, however it must: (i) demonstrate a need for the project in the community (ii) include a written summary or equivalent portfolio of work of the project that is of a high standard. An ‘equivalent portfolio of work’ may be (but is not limited to) for example: • a video • the development of an informative website • development of brochures, posters or other items to convey information to a target group • a podcast. (iii) Where a written piece is submitted, include appropriate referencing/citation of any sources used. (iv) Where a creative/non-written work is submitted, include a short explanatory piece on the project’s purpose, how the idea came about/need demonstrated in the community, its development over time and how it will be used to benefit the individual, community or St John. (v) The final work must be finalised within a three-year period, but not less than 18 months, from the commencement date. 3. Assessment criteria 3.1 A panel will be established to assess the Candidate’s application based on the evidence presented to them (refer to 4 below). 3.2 Candidates are encouraged to select a project that is within the range of their own experience. They are also encouraged to select projects that are local rather than wide-scale, large State/Territory or National projects. Furthermore, Candidates are encouraged to select projects that they can demonstrate a need for within the community. 3.3 The Candidate will be assessed on the following. The Candidate: (i) is aged between 16 and 25 years (ii) has completed the Grand Prior’s Award or (Gold) Southern Cross Award or 1,000 hours of service (iii) has completed five consecutive years of recognised service as a cadet or adult member by the completion of the Award. ‘Recognised service’ refers to service completed under the national Guidelines for Formal Service Recognition (available at www.stjohn.org.au) (iv) has selected a mentor to monitor the Candidate’s progress. This person must be of Divisional Officer grade or above. 3.3 The application must demonstrate: (i) personal benefit as an individual and team member (ii) benefit to the work of St John Ambulance Australia (iii) benefit to the community, preferably over an extended period. 4. Assessment Panel 4.1 An Assessment Panel will be established and tasked with examining all applications against the assessment criteria. 4.2 The Panel should be comprised of people from a variety of backgrounds, but will typically consist of: • a representative from the Australian Youth Advisory Network • a representative from the National Youth Group (although, not from the state/territory that the application originates from) • the National Youth Officer • National Manager—Policy & Community. 5. Submission of Application 5.1 To become a Candidate, members are required to submit an application to the National Office via the National Policy Manager (via PO Box 292, Deakin ACT 2600 or [email protected]). 5.2 The Panel will consider the application and ensure that the application meets the criteria specified in 3 above in addition to being of a standard considered deserving of the premier youth award in St John Ambulance internationally. 5.3 The Panel will ensure the project completion date is a minimum of eighteen months and a maximum of three years from the date of the CEO’s approval. 5.4 Based on the Panel decision, the Chief Cadet Officer will make a recommendation to the National Chief Executive Officer (CEO). The application must be approved by the CEO before the Candidate can commence work on the project. 6. Submission to the Secretary General 6.1 Details of the successful Candidates, together with brief details of the projects for which the Award is granted are to be submitted by the Chief Cadet Officer annually to the Secretary General by 1st November. These will then be collated within the International Office for submission to the Sovereign Head for approval, through the Grand Prior’s Office. 6.2 Candidates will be awarded a certificate signed personally by Her Majesty, The Sovereign Head. 7. Alterations to the project 7.1 Candidates may alter aspects of their project after submission upon seeking confirmation from the Chief Cadet Officer that such alterations are acceptable. 7.2 Altering the overall aim of the project is not acceptable. 7.3 Where a Candidate requests to alter the aim of the project, they must resubmit their application.

Endorsed by the National Cadet Group, July 2018

Reference documents: The Order of St John (2011). Regulations for the Sovereign’s Award. The Order of St John: London.