Royal Commission recommendations 87 and 89

The Taskforce is responsible for consulting with veterans, families, ex-service organisations (ESOs) and service providers on two of the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide’s (Royal Commission) recommendations – 87: establish a new agency focused on veteran wellbeing, and 89: establish a peak body for ESOs.  The work of the Taskforce is closely related to Recommendation 80: the Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) to take responsibility for supporting members to transition out of the Australian Defence Force (ADF).  

The full text of the Royal Commission recommendations is below, taken from Volume 5, Transition, DVA and support for ex-serving members, Chapter 24: Empowering Veterans to Thrive of the Final Report. 

Recommendation 87: Establish a new agency to focus on veteran wellbeing  

The Australian Government should establish a new executive agency focused on veteran wellbeing. The new agency should have distinctive branding but be administratively nested within DVA to ensure seamless information sharing and referrals.  

The new veteran wellbeing agency should have the following functions:  

1. Transition – to play a key role in supporting veterans to transition from military to civilian life (Recommendation 80), build relationships and encourage veterans to access early interventions and supports
2. System navigation and connection to wellbeing supports at the individual level – to help veterans to navigate the wellbeing ecosystem by providing clear information online about available services, and by working in partnership with Veterans’ and Families’ Hubs and expanding engagement with veterans through state and territory shopfronts  
3. Improve referral pathways and service integration at the systems level by: 
   
   1. managing relationships between Veterans’ and Families’ Hubs, ESOs, DVA, Australian and state and territory government agencies and non-government service providers 
   2. ensuring referral pathways are in place and services are integrated to the greatest extent possible 
   3. advising DVA and state and territory governments on service gaps 
4. Co-designing wellbeing supports – to work with veterans and ESOs to co-design new prevention and early intervention wellbeing programs and services at the local level, supported by a dedicated funding stream under the redesigned grants program for ESOs.   

The new veteran wellbeing agency should have an ongoing operating budget, and the following capabilities and features:  

5. staff who have lived experience of military service 
6. offices established in area/s where large numbers of veterans live 
7. customer service expertise, including in digital-led solutions 
8. a trauma-informed communications and service-delivery approach 
9. led by a CEO who reports to the Secretary of DVA 
10. adhering to a service charter and associated key performance indicators, supported by regular and transparent reporting requirements.  

Recommendation 89: Establish a national peak body for ex-service organisations   

The Australian Government, in consultation with ESOs, should establish a national peak body for ESOs following a co-design process.  

The role, functions, membership, governance and funding model of the peak body should be informed by the outcomes of the business case and agreed between the Department of Veterans’ Affairs and the ESO sector. The funding model should not exclude participation of any eligible ESOs, particularly those who operate on a not-for-profit basis.   

Recommendation 80: DVA to take responsibility for supporting members to transition out of the ADF 

Defence should continue to be responsible for supporting members to prepare for and complete separation from the ADF. The new executive agency to be established in the DVA (Recommendation 87) should take responsibility for supporting members to transition into civilian life. 

Through the new agency, DVA should:  

1. establish a meaningful relationship with serving members as soon as they begin a pathway towards transition
2. conduct a transition readiness review prior to separation, which includes the member, their commanding officer and DVA support person
3. lead transition screening and expand it to assess members’ psychosocial readiness for transition, including purpose and connection, help-seeking, beliefs about civilians, and regimentation and adaptability
4. with the consent of the member, share transition screening results (wholly or partially) with the member’s commanding officer and key transition support people within Defence and DVA (with Defence and DVA implementing a proactive process to obtain members’ consent to share this information)
5. proactively reach out to ex-serving members in the 12 months after they leave the ADF to understand their experience of transition, how they are adjusting to civilian life, and connect them with supports delivered by Australian Government agencies, states and territories, and ex-service organisations.