The Australian Narcotics Anonymous region has a standing Policy and Procedures Subcommittee. The Subcommittee serves the Australian Regional Service Committee (ARSC) by creating, documenting, and maintaining policy, procedure, and guideline documents related to ARSC functioning and to functions of the region and sometimes NA in general.

These are therefore living documents that reflect the present day operations of the Australian Regional Service Committee (ARSC) meetings and other information reflective of how Areas and Groups run in the Australian region.

We use clear and common sense explanations wherever we can, while maintaining accuracy and precision. The idea is that these documents are accessible and useful for anyone who reads them.

There is a Table of Contents that you can click on to take you anywhere in the document.

If you want to get in contact, you can email policy@na.org.au

Thanks!

What is policy?

The Webster dictionary defines ‘policy’ as

“policy

policy (noun) · policies (plural noun)

“A course or principle of action adopted or proposed by an organization or individual.”the government’s controversial economic policies” · “it is not company policy to dispense with our older workers”synonyms:plans · strategy · proposed action · blueprint · approach · scheme · stratagem · programme · schedule · code · system · guidelines ·

intentions · notions · theory · line · position · stance · attitude · practice · custom · procedure · wont · way · tack · routine · matter of course · style · pattern · convention · mode · rule”

and it defines

procedure (noun)

“An established or official way of doing something.”the police are now reviewing procedures” · [more]synonyms:course of action · line of action · plan of action · policy · series of steps · plan · method · system · strategy · stratagem · way · approach · formula · mechanism · [more]

“A series of actions conducted in a certain order or manner.”the standard procedure for informing new employees about conditions of work”synonyms:method · course of action · process · technique · system · plan · strategy · scheme · means · mechanism · routine · manner ·

approach · route · road · modus operandi”

Procedures often follow policy, because policy sets a stance, strategic direction, or states an organisation’s values, and procedures describes any instructions or practical steps taken that come as a result of following that policy.

However, sometimes procedures are just ways of doing something that are standalone. For example, we might say the serenity prayer in the ‘we’ format at the end of our service meeting, but we might not have an associated that tells us exactly why. It’s just a procedure, or an accepted way we do things.