Animal ethics

Information for researchers with research or projects involving animals.

In accordance with the Australian Code for the Care and use of Animals for Scientific Purposes, 8th edn, 2013 (the Code), researchers, including students, who wish to undertake research or teaching projects involving animals, must obtain ethics approval from the Flinders University Animal Welfare Committee (AWC) before commencing any projects. The term animals refers to live non-human vertebrates (fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals), and cephalopods (such as octopus and squid).

If your research or teaching project is not covered by the Code (for example, scavenging tissue, existing data sets, birdwatching without interference, etc.), then the project can be added to the Register without having to obtain full animal ethics approval.

All applications must be submitted in ResearchNow Ethics & Biosafety. It can be accessed via the Okta dashboard. A FAN is required to access ResearchNow Ethics & Biosafety.

The Committee's Terms of Reference can be downloaded here.

Key information

Explore the areas below for information on the application process, managing approval, training requirements, and resources.

Applying for animal ethics

Committee meeting dates and details on how to apply for animal ethics.

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Training and templates

Training information and key animal ethics templates.

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Flinders Vet and other resources

Information about resources including standard operating procedures, statistical help, and the Flinders Vet.

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Modifications, reports and unexpected adverse events

Submit modifications and reports, and details of how to deal with an Unexpected Adverse Event (UAE).

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Complaints and enquiries

Flinders University has processes for handling complaints, enquiries, comments and suggestions as required in Section 5 of the Code.

Any staff, student or member of the public who has concerns about the well-being of animals held at Flinders University for use in research or teaching, or of wildlife involved in field studies conducted under the auspices of Flinders University can forward their enquiries, concerns, comments, and suggestions in the first instance to the Research Ethics Officer.

All concerns are treated confidentially and every effort will be made to address matters raised in a timely fashion.