Marks there for fine footy future Class action strife WHILE footy fans sit with their feet up waiting for the new season many players are already putting in the hard yards to get up to speed for preseason training having been awarded a scholarship to the AFL Academy. Luke Davies-Uniacke, a 17-yearold midfielder at Keysborough’s Haileybury College, has his eyes on the prize of an AFL playing career and is determined to keep improving his game to try to make his dream a reality. In 2011 The News reported the then under-12 player represented Victoria at the School Sport Australia Championships in Canberra and Luke has hit every mark in the intervening years. He snared a hat-trick of Best and Fairest awards at Rye Junior Football Club in 2010, 2012 and 2013 and was voted B&F in the Mornington Peninsula Junior Football League in the same years. Last year Luke was selected to represent Victoria in the under-15s National Football Championship in Sydney and wore ‘the Big V’ with pride. Now the Rye teenager, who also plays up forward, has his sights set on the big league while training at the AFL Academy. “I’ve been doing a bit of gym preseason three times a week so that’s been pretty full on,” he said. “I’ve sort of set a goal for myself to be a bit bigger and stronger than last year.” A two-year program at the AFL Academy sees players meet AFL players, coaches and game day analysts to learn from the best in the game. There were 203 graduates of the AFL Academy on AFL lists last season, including nine club captains. Luke also plays for the Dandenong
ahead for Evocca Neil Walker neil@baysidenews.com.au
Harder, better, faster, stronger: Luke Davies-Uniacke has ticked every box on his journey to a possible AFL playing career. Picture: Yanni
Luke, a Hawthorn fan, admits a shot at an AFL career is not a given, and he’s still one year away from being a possible draft pick, but he says he would jump at the chance to play for “any Melbourne side” given the chance. Looking at his career stats the name Luke Davies-Uniacke could be one to look out for local AFL fans come draft time next year. Neil Walker
Stingrays and his school Haileybury but is keeping his feet firmly on the ground despite his footballing progress to date. “I’ve learned that nothing comes easy … and basically I’ve got to be able to kick with both feet, handball both sides and be bigger and stronger than my opponent every year because there’s always that one person who wants to work harder than you on and off the field so it comes down to hard work.”
EVOCCA College could face a class action before the end of the year from disgruntled students unhappy with the marketing of vocational courses by the registered training organisation. Solicitor Benjamin Kramer is gathering expressions of interest from former students who believe they were “pressured to sign up or lured in unfairly”. The Queensland based college opened a campus in Frankston in 2013. Mr Kramer says he was contacted by a friend who is a former student of Evocca College “dissatisfied with the service they received”. The Sydney lawyer said “about 250” people so far had expressed an interest in joining a class action against Evocca. “We hope to lodge the class action before Christmas. I’m working on it so we can get it done in the next few weeks,” Mr Kramer said. “In 2014 Evocca received a quarter of a billion dollars ($250 million) and they passed 170 students. Just that alone should be enough to make people realise there is fundamentally wrong here.” Evocca was one of several colleges criticised by a Senate inquiry over marketing practices for federal funded VET FEE-HELP diplomas and short courses (‘College’s marketing to students slammed’, The News 28/10/15). Students incurred up to $20,000 worth of debt and do not have to repay the VET FEE-HELP funding
until they earn at least $50,000 per year. An Australian Skills Quality Authority audit found just eight of 21 privately owned education providers were fully compliant with VETFEE-HELP regulations. Evocca had conditions imposed on its operations and must now “retain enrolment and assessment records for 12 months” and “report data back to [the] ASQA on a regular basis”. The college has refused to disclose how many students have completed courses at its Frankston campus (‘Unanswered questions on Evocca graduation rates’, The News 4/11/15). Department of Education and Training statistics show Evocca had 27,907 students enrolled nationally last year but just 1053 students completed courses, a completion rate of less than 4 per cent. Evocca College CEO Craig White has denied the company’s courses are not up to scratch. In September he advised the ABC that “no particular course offering has been alleged to us to be substandard; and no marketing practice has been alleged to us to be in breach of any law.” Mr Kramer said the Senate inquiry findings, released last month, support complaints former students of Evocca have been making. “I think a lot of people were waiting on what the Senate inquiry would reveal. It all confirms everything we believe.” See evoccaclassaction.com for details about the proposed Evocca class action.
Hospitals on notice over carpark fees Neil Walker neil@baysidenews.com.au HOSPITALS have been ordered to review car parking fees after a review found some regular patients and visitors are financially burdened with hefty costs due to repeat visits. The Labor state government promised to review hospitals’ car parking fees before last year’s state election and commissioned an independent review of carparks at Victoria’s public hospitals. The review found hospitals charge different car parking rates and only some provide discounted parking to regular
patients, visitors, carers and pensioners. In some cases discounted carpark fees were not displayed or promoted by hospitals. The government has ordered every public health service operating fee-based car parking to have a formal policy in place by February next year. Health services must also publish and publicise car parking policies and all fees, including concessions details, must be clearly displayed at carpark entrances, points of payment and signs inside hospitals. “Having to go to hospital regularly can be distressing enough, both as a patient and as a visitor, without having to worry
about how much it will cost to park the car,” Health Minister Jill Hennessy said. “We’re directing all public hospitals to do what they can to ensure Victorians can safely, conveniently – and economically – receive regular treatment or visit their loved ones in hospital.” Peninsula Health planning and infrastructure acting executive director Rick Law said Frankston Hospital already had a formal parking policy. “Patients, carers or relatives demonstrating financial hardship can access concession parking rates by speaking to a hospital social worker. Oncology patients are not charged for parking.”
Frankston Hospital carparking fees begin at $7 for one hour rising to $15 for five hours, the maximum fee for all-day parking. A weekly rate of $45 is available. The Victorian Healthcare Association welcomed the review into hospitals’ carpark fees but noted “Victoria’s public hospitals are not funded to build and run car parks”. Association CEO Tom Symondson said public hospitals take out loans from the government to build car parks but these must be repaid and hospitals have few options to raise revenue to repay the loans.
“We would welcome the government contributing to the cost of providing parking discounts as well as supporting hospitals to expand their parking services given the pressures of increasing rates of chronicity and a growing population,” he said. The VHA backed the prominent display of concession carpark rates. Hospitals must also review their carpark fees and policy every year as part of the government push to ease financial stress on regular patients and visitors. Peninsula Health said it reviews its policy each year.
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