Shifting Gears

Supporting educators to deliver farm safety education.

Shifting Gears is an intervention program and farm health and safety extension resource for schools.
It is a teacher-led, school-based program designed to improve farm safety culture.

Shifting Gears is unique – bridging the gap between agriculture and horticulture studies and the national skills program. It demonstrates the broader context of agricultural injury in rural Australia through relatable content, specifically for young people.

Led by teachers, Shifting Gears is for middle and senior school students who are living on farms, studying agriculture and horticulture, undertaking work experience, and/or interested in pursuing a career in this field.

Audio Visual materials

The National Centre for Farmer Health has created unique, unscripted farm safety audio visual (AV) material for an Australian farming context.
We endeavoured to create documentary-style AVs that are meaningful, personal, and relatable to young people and teachers by connecting the concepts of safety with human health – rather than just compliance.
We have also created digital animations to teach farm safety theories through a creative, engaging medium.

Classroom activities

We support teachers with classroom materials including health and safety statistics, discussion topics and activities. These resources are linked to the AVs in order to reduce teacher’s time allocated to lesson planning and sourcing appropriate content.

Interested in delivering Shifting Gears at your school? Register your interest below.

Shifting Gears Portal (password protected)

This is a link to the Shifting Gears portal, which houses all the resources, links and videos teachers need to deliver the Shifting Gears program in classrooms.

To access the portal you must be a registered pilot school.

Watch the Shifting Gears Webinar

The Shifting Gears webinar provides guidance on the Shifting Gears resources and activities, and emphasises the significance of incorporating health and safety conversations into teaching practices. Teachers and school representatives interested in the program are encouraged to watch via the link below to explore this exciting resource and become catalysts for positive change in farm safety practices.

Behind the scenes of Shifting Gears

Western District Health Service (WDHS) owns, or has the right to use and licence, the farm safety educational materials for secondary schools (including videos and downloadable resources) (Educational Materials).   By downloading the Educational Materials, you acknowledge and agree that:

1. WDHS grants you a royalty free, non-exclusive, non-transferrable, non-sublicensable licence to use the Educational Materials for educational purposes;
2. the Educational Materials may not be modified or adapted in any way (including deletion or modification of any copyright notices) without the prior written approval of WDHS;
3. to the best of our knowledge, the information provided in the Educational Materials is accurate and current but WDHS does not make any representation or warranty as to the accuracy or currency of the information; and
4. WDHS will not be liable for any loss or damage caused by your reliance on or use of the Educational Material.