Annual Report 06 - 07DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICESCorrection to the Department of Human Services 2006-07 Annual Report.

The following table is to replace Table A3.1 in Appendix 3 on page 225 of the report.

Table A3.1 Core Department-payments for advertising and market research

Advertising agencies

Payee Purpose Amount

Eardrum To provide radio advertising services for the Drought Assistance campaign and Access Card campaign

$97,957

George Patterson Y&R

To provide creative advertising services for the Drought Assistance campaign and Access Card campaign

$835,321

Grey Worldwide Pty Ltd

To purchase creative advertising services for the Medicare Easyclaim campaign

$252,447

Universal McCann

To purchase advertising space for the Drought Assistance campaign and Access Card campaign

$4,660,435

Market research organisations

Payee Purpose Amount

Blue Moon Research and Planning Pty Ltd

To undertake market research for the Medicare Easyclaim campaign

$636,300

Open Mind Research Group

To undertake market research for the Drought Assistance campaign

$340,033

Orima Research To undertake market research for the Access Card campaign $1,335,572

Polling organisations

Payee Purpose Amount

Nil Nil Nil

Direct mail organisations

Payee Purpose Amount

Advertising agencies

Solutions Marketing and Research Pty Ltd

To conduct direct mail for the Drought Assistance campaign $157,520

Media advertising organisations

Payee Purpose Amount

hma Blaze To provide employment and tender advertising $291,313

Prepared by: Department of Human Services with the assistance of WordsWorth Writing

Designed by: Department of Human Services with the assistance of McMillan Printing Group

Printed by: Paragon Printers Australasia

Web address of this report: www.humanservices.gov.au/publications.html

Contact officer: Assistant Secretary

Marketing and Communication Branch

Department of Human Services

PO Box 3959

Manuka ACT 2603

Telephone: 1300 554 479 or 02 6223 4000

Fax: 02 6223 4499

Email: enquiries@humanservices.gov.au Website: www. humanservices.gov.au

ISSN 1832-8792

© Commonwealth of Australia 2007

This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced by any process without prior written permission from the Australian Government, available from the Attorney-General's Department. Requests and inquiries concerning reproduction and rights should be addressed to the Commonwealth Copyright Administration, Copyright Law Branch, Attorney-General's Department, National Circuit, Barton ACT 2601, or posted at www.ag.gov.au/cca.

Guide to the Annual ReportPurposeThe annual report of the Portfolio Department of Human Services (DHS) sets out DHS's activities and performance for the financial year ending 30 June 2007.

It has been prepared in accordance with the guidelines set out in the Requirements for annual reports for departments, executive agencies and FMA Act bodies, as approved by the Joint Committee of Public

Accounts and Audit under subsections 63(2) and 70(2) of the Public Service Act 1999. It satisfies the annual reporting requirements set out in the Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997.

This is the report on the performance of the three organisations that constitute DHS—the Core Department, the Child Support Agency (CSA) and CRS Australia. Information on how the other four agencies within the Human Services Portfolio report their performance is in the overview section of this report.

StructureThis report is presented in eight parts:

a review by the Secretary summarising significant developments in 2006-07 and the outlook for 2007-08;

an overview of the Human Services Portfolio explaining the roles of, and relationships between, the Core Department and the six agencies, and the corporate governance and financial arrangements that apply to the three organisations that constitute DHS;

an output section reporting on performance and governance in the Core Department;

an output section reporting on performance and governance in CSA;

an output section reporting on performance and governance in CRS Australia;

the audited financial statements of DHS inclusive of the Core Department, CSA and CRS Australia;

appendices containing detailed information and statistics required under legislation and reporting regulations; and

references, comprising a list of abbreviations, a compliance index and a general index.

Secretary's ReviewSecretary Helen Williams AO

The Portfolio Department of Human Services (DHS) consists of the Core Department, the Child Support Agency (CSA) and CRS Australia.

The Core Department is a small, flexible organisation that provides leadership to CSA, CRS Australia and the other Human Services Portfolio agencies, including Centrelink, Medicare Australia, Australian Hearing and the HSA Group.

It is focused on achieving a creative, whole-of-government approach to the delivery of social and health-related services, and on ensuring that the need for effective and efficient implementation is taken into account in policy design and decision making.

CSA supports separated parents to transfer payments for the benefit of their children.

It works with the Core Department in administering the Child Support Scheme, and with the Department of Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs in developing child support policy.

CRS Australia provides vocational rehabilitation, injury management, assessment and prevention services to people with disabilities, injuries or health conditions to enable them to gain and maintain employment.

The year 2006-07 saw both DHS and the Human Services Portfolio build on its early successes in influencing the strategic focus and coordination of service delivery for Australians.

These results are to the credit of my predecessor, Patricia Scott, who met the challenge of establishing DHS and who led the organisation for much of the year. They also reflect well on staff of both DHS and the Portfolio agencies, who deserve congratulations for the extent of their achievements in 2006-07.

The year in reviewThe Core Department continued to provide effective leadership to, and oversight of, the activities of the Portfolio during the year and achieved significant progress across the major projects which were its particular responsibility.

Development of the access cardDuring 2006-07, the Core Department refined key policy aspects of the Access Card Programme, taking into account ongoing consultations with other Australian Government agencies, state and territory governments, business and financial organisations, and consumer, privacy, welfare and rural and remote advocacy groups. In particular, working with the Human Services Agencies and the Department of Veterans' Affairs, the Core Department made considerable progress in developing the business requirements for the access card system. Public tenders were invited to build key aspects of the system.

Consultations with the Australian Federal Police, the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation, the Defence Signals Directorate and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade were important in developing the security of the technology architecture of the card.

An information campaign was conducted to increase awareness of the card, supported by the establishment of a dedicated telephone line and access card website.

The Core Department also prepared and released exposure drafts of legislation to implement the access card, taking into account responses from stakeholders and the community.

Job Capacity AssessmentsIn the first year of the Job Capacity Assessment Programme, more than 363,000 assessments were conducted to assess job seekers with barriers to employment and to refer them to services to help them find work. The programme is running ahead of its target of achieving 80 per cent of assessments within 10 working days. More than 76 per cent of assessments resulted in referrals to services provided by the Job Network, vocational rehabilitation, the disability employment network, the personal support programme, literacy and numeracy skills training, and community mental health services. The Core Department continues to work closely with providers and stakeholders to provide feedback to job capacity assessors, and to adjust training and other support material with the aim of ensuring assessments are of a high standard. Referrals to short-term interventions funded under the Job Capacity Account grew rapidly over the year. By year's end, weekly referral rates to short-term interventions such as counselling and anger and pain management exceeded the target of 6.8 per cent of assessments completed. The objective of the programme is to enable job seekers who are almost work ready to receive short-term assistance while being concurrently referred to the Job Network.

Contribute to cross-government policy developmentIn 2006-07, the Core Department contributed to whole-of-government policy deliberations, providing advice on service delivery across a range of policy areas. Key areas of influence included the development of welfare reform proposals and the establishment of a service delivery mechanism for the LPG vehicle purchase and conversion rebate.

National emergenciesDuring the year, the Core Department worked with Portfolio agencies to build up the Portfolio's capacity to respond to situations of national emergency. Through its membership of the Australian Government Disaster Recovery Committee it contributed to developing a response to disasters and critical incidents. It was also joint chair with the Department of Families Community Services and Indigenous Affair of the subcommittee set up to oversee the establishment of the National Emergency Call Centre, which was implemented in July 2007.

The Core Department has also been working to assist in national emergencies that Australia faced during the year. Since November 2006, for example, the Core Department has been supporting Centrelink's mobile assistance services for drought-affected areas of Australia through the Drought Assistance Campaign. Three drought buses, each staffed by employees of Medicare Australia and Centrelink (including a social worker and rural service officers), have delivered information, advice and support services to drought-affected communities, particularly in rural, regional and remote Australia. The buses have travelled over 60,000 kilometres and visited more than 260 towns.

Efficiency of service deliveryA range of strategies were implemented to increase efficiency and improve service delivery across the Human Services Portfolio in 2006-07. Around 240 letters and forms from Centrelink, Medicare Australia and CSA were reviewed, and 38 letters and forms were abolished. It is expected that the changes will result in savings of more than 10 million pages a year across the three agencies. In addition, the strategies and targets introduced in 2005-06 continued to reduce levels of absenteeism across the Human Services agencies and the Core Department worked with agencies to reduce queuing times.

The Core Department also coordinated a trial of flexible service delivery options involving eight sites in Centrelink and Medicare. The results will inform deliberations about future service delivery strategies. Arrangements for joint procurement and coordinated property management between agencies continued to reduce costs and produce operational synergies.

Access to services was improved by co-locating related services. The rollout of Family Assistance Offices into all Medicare Australia offices was completed ahead of schedule and there was an expansion in the number of CSA regional service delivery centres that were co-located with Centrelink offices.

Electronic access was improved by the implementation of a secure internet portal that allows people to access online services from Centrelink, Medicare Australia and CSA using a single password. The portal also includes a cross-agency search engine, links to self-assessment calculators and access to relevant announcements.

Fraud and non-complianceThe Core Department continued its coordination role in the 2007-08 Budget, bringing together a cross-portfolio package of measures to address social welfare fraud. The Australian Government committed $113.8 million to this package, which will result in net savings of $269.4 million over three years. As part of the cross-portfolio package, the Minister for Human Services put forward a measure that will establish a real-time link between Centrelink and the Department of Immigration and Citizenship from July 2008. The link will enable Centrelink to confirm eligibility for social welfare payments and concessions, and will significantly improve payment accuracy and streamline service delivery.

Indigenous AustraliansIn partnership with the Human Services agencies, the Core Department continued to give priority to communication strategies aimed at improving access for Indigenous Australians to social and health-related services. Centrelink's communication network was enhanced to offer information and services on behalf of all Human Services Portfolio agencies. The Indigenous Ambassadors Programme was expanded and has been of significant benefit in improving awareness of government services in Indigenous communities. Community connections have also been built by agency participation in Access and Employment Roadshows and by supporting more than 90 joint agency visits to regional and remote Australia.

Child Support Scheme reformsCSA implemented the first two of three stages of significant reforms to the Child Support Scheme during the year. The reforms support the concurrent reform of the family law system, which aims to encourage shared parental responsibilities and strengthen relationships between intact and separated families. CSA responded well to the major challenge of implementing the reforms while delivering 'business as usual', and it worked to ensure that parents affected by the reforms, and employers who deduct child support payments on behalf of such parents, were kept informed. Staff development and recruitment activities were undertaken to expand CSA's capability in preparation for the implementation of the final, most complex stage of the reforms from July 2008.

At the same time, CSA continued to refine many aspects of its operations to improve the experience that customers have when dealing with the agency, through the Building a Better CSA change agenda. The benefits of Building a Better CSA were demonstrated through higher customer satisfaction ratings across many aspects of CSA products and services, as well as lower numbers of complaints.

Through its collection activities, CSA worked with separated parents to transfer a record $2.68 billion to support approximately 1.2 million children in separated families in 2006-07. During the year, CSA increased its focus on compliance activities directed to establishing the right amount of child support payable and to sending a message to those who seek to avoid their responsibilities that CSA will pursue outstanding amounts.

Vocational rehabilitation servicesThe high quality of services and operations of CRS Australia was given clear endorsement in 2006-07. The annual stakeholder satisfaction survey found that 89 per cent of job seekers were satisfied or very satisfied that their vocational rehabilitation programmes met their needs, and 82 per cent rated CRS Australia staff highly for their helpfulness, understanding and ability to provide support and assistance

The auditor that assessed the organisation for its ongoing accreditation commented on CRS Australia's well-managed system, consistent organisational values, strong commitment from both staff and management to the welfare of clients, excellent compliance with the Disability Service Standards, strong teamwork approach, and the wide range of skills, experience and qualifications of its staff.

In addition to providing employment outcomes and assisting more than 48,200 job seekers through its vocational rehabilitation programmes, CRS Australia continued to develop tailored services and innovative approaches to assist people with disabilities, injuries or health conditions. CRS Australia also gave priority to reviewing its practices and providing targeted training and development to its staff to help ensure the organisation's readiness for the introduction of partial contestability for vocational rehabilitation services from 1 July 2007.

The year aheadDHS and the Portfolio face another very challenging year in 2007-08. The growing emphasis on the importance of the delivery of government policy, both in the development and implementation stages, highlights the significance of the task ahead for the Portfolio as a whole.

In this context, DHS will continue to work towards achieving improved access to social and health-related services for Australians through the timely, efficient and effective delivery of Australian Government commitments and budget measures. This work continues to be underpinned by two fundamental objectives for social and health-related services: to achieve best value for money in service delivery and to emphasise innovation and continuous improvement in providing service to the public.

The access card is a major project which has significant potential for service delivery across the health and welfare area. Responses to the exposure draft of the legislation will feed into the Human Services (Enhanced Service Delivery) Bill 2007 to go before the Parliament and work will be finalised on the major contracts to enable the access card system to be built. Throughout 2007-08, detailed work will be undertaken to finalise administrative rules governing the access card registration process. An important part of this process will be continuing the work with all stakeholder groups to ensure that registration is as streamlined as possible for all members of the community. In particular, the needs of vulnerable people and those in remote communities need to be taken into account.

The Core Department will give priority during the year to its work with other departments and agencies to develop a more strategic approach to dealing with fraud and non-compliance.

The Core Department will also play a lead role in coordinating and improving the effectiveness of services provided by Portfolio agencies to Indigenous Australians through the implementation of welfare reforms and other initiatives to create a safe and healthy environment for children.

CSA will face the particular challenge of implementing the third and most complex phase of the Child Support Scheme reforms, which involves the introduction of a new formula for calculating child support assessments. At the same time, CSA will continue to raise the community's awareness of and confidence in the Child Support Scheme, while building the capability and responsiveness of the agency. CRS Australia will have the challenge of competing in the new partially contestable vocational rehabilitation market.

I thank the General Manager of the Child Support Agency, Matt Miller, the General Manager of CRS Australia, Margaret Carmody, and staff across the Core Department of Human Services for their strong performance in 2006-07. I look forward to working with them, and with the other Human Services agencies, to achieve the Portfolio's objectives in 2007-08.

Helen Williams AO

Secretary

OVERVIEWThe Human Services PortfolioMinister for Human Services

Senator the Hon Chris Ellison

In October 2004, the Department of Human Services was established within the Finance and Administration Portfolio. In January 2007, the Department became an Australian Government portfolio

department in its own right. Its primary role is improving the development and delivery of government social and health- related services to the Australian people.

The MinisterThe Minister for Human Services is Senator the Hon Chris Ellison, who has been a Senator for Western Australia since 1993 and Minister for Human Services since 9 March 2007.

The Minister is responsible for the administration of the following legislation:

Australian Hearing Services Act 1991, except to the extent that it is administered by the Minister for Health and Ageing;

Child Support (Assessment) Act 1989, insofar as it relates to the exercise of the powers and functions conferred on the Child Support Registrar under the Act;

Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988, insofar as it relates to the appointment of the Child Support Registrar and the exercise of the powers and functions conferred on the Registrar under the Act;

Commonwealth Services Delivery Agency Act 1997; and

Medicare Australia Act 1973.

During the reporting period, the position of Minister for Human Services was also held by the Hon Joe Hockey MP (to January 2007) and the then Senator the Hon Ian Campbell (to March 2007).

Portfolio structureThe Portfolio Department of Human Services (DHS) includes the Core Department, the Child Support Agency (CSA) and CRS Australia:

the Core Department directs, coordinates and brokers improvements to service delivery across Human Services agencies;

the Child Support Agency helps separated parents transfer payments for the benefit of their children; and

CRS Australia provides vocational rehabilitation services to people with a disability, injury or health condition, and helps employers keep their workplaces safe.

Centrelink delivers a range of government payments and services for retirees, families, carers, parents, people who are seeking work or studying, people with disabilities, Indigenous people, and people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, and provides wider services at times of major change.

Medicare Australia administers a range of health and payment programmes, including Medicare, the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, the Australian Organ Donor Register, the Australian Childhood Immunisation Register and Aged Care Payments to approved aged care providers. Medicare Australia also delivers Family Assistance Office services.

Australian Hearing provides a range of hearing services for a broad group of eligible Australians, including children and young people up to the age of 21 years, eligible adults and aged pensioners, and war veterans.

The HSA Group focuses primarily on providing occupational health, safety and medical assessments.

The Human Services Portfolio is shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1 Human Services Portfolio structure at 30 June 2007

Performance reportingSection 63 of the Public Service Act 1999 stipulates that departmental annual reports must be prepared in accordance with the guidelines approved on behalf of the Parliament of Australia by the Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit in Requirements for annual reports for departments, executive agencies and FMA Act bodies. DHS has prepared this report in accordance with those guidelines and as required by the Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997.

The agencies within the Human Services Portfolio that do not form part of DHS (Centrelink, Medicare Australia, Australian Hearing and the HSA Group) report according to different legislative requirements and publish their own annual reports. Detailed information about the activities and responsibilities of the agencies may be obtained from each agency's website.

Reporting arrangements for all entities within the Human Services Portfolio are outlined below.

Core DepartmentThe Core Department reports in this annual report on its performance, corporate governance and other matters as required by legislation. It reports against the Human Services Portfolio Budget Statements 2006-07 and Portfolio Additional Estimates Statements 2006-07.

Internet: www.humanservices.gov.au

Telephone: 1300 55 44 79

Child Support AgencyCSA reports in this annual report on its performance, corporate governance and other matters as required by legislation. It reports against the Human Services Portfolio Budget Statements 2006-07 and Portfolio Additional Estimates Statements 2006-07.

Internet: www.csa.gov.au

Telephone: 131 272

CRS AustraliaCRS Australia reports in this annual report on its performance, corporate governance and other matters as required by legislation. It reports against the Human Services Portfolio Budget Statements 2006-07 and Portfolio Additional Estimates Statements 2006-07.

CRS Australia's performance is also reported in the annual report of the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations in respect of its delivery of vocational rehabilitation services funded by that department.

Internet: www.crsaustralia.gov.au

Telephone: 1800 277 277

CentrelinkCentrelink, an agency formed under the Commonwealth Services Delivery Agency Act 1997, provides its own annual report covering its performance, corporate governance and other matters as required by legislation. It reports against the Human Services Portfolio Budget Statements 2006-07 and Portfolio Additional Estimates Statements 2006-07.

Internet: www.centrelink.gov.au

Telephone: 1800 050 004

Medicare AustraliaMedicare Australia provides its own annual report covering its performance, corporate governance and other matters as required by legislation. It reports against the Human Services Portfolio Budget Statements 2006-07 and Portfolio Additional Estimates Statements 2006-07.

Internet: www.medicareaustralia.gov.au

Telephone: 132 01 1

Australian HearingAustralian Hearing is a Commonwealth Statutory Authority. It publishes its own annual report under the Commonwealth Authorities and Companies Act 1997 and the Australian Hearing Services Act 1991.

Internet: www.hearing.com.au

Telephone: 131 797

HSA GroupHSA Group is a public non-financial corporation. It publishes its own annual report under the Commonwealth Authorities and Companies Act 1997.

Internet: www.hsagroup.com.au

Telephone: 1300 361 046

The Portfolio Department of Human ServicesThe Portfolio Department of Human Services (DHS) comprises the Core Department, the Child Support Agency (CSA) and CRS Australia. Unless otherwise indicated, references in this document to the Department refer to these three groups.

Outcome and output structureThe planned outcome of DHS is:

Effective and efficient delivery of social and health-related services, including financial assistance, to the Australian community.

Each of the three parts that constitute DHS produces one output, as defined in the Portfolio Budget Statements and Portfolio Additional Estimates Statements, to deliver this outcome. These are set out in Figure 2 below.

Figure 2 summarises the structure and purpose of DHS at 30 June 2007.

Figure 2 DHS outcome and outputs, at 30 June 2007

Corporate governanceThis section describes corporate governance matters that are common to the Core Department, CSA and CRS Australia. Owing to the particular structure of DHS, the separate corporate governance arrangements of each group making up DHS are detailed in the output sections of this report.

The executiveExecutive responsibilities

The Secretary is directly responsible to the Minister for Human Services for the leadership, sound management and performance of DHS. She is responsible for delivering strong organisational performance by determining priorities and resource allocations across DHS, and for shaping the Portfolio Department's future.

The General Manager of CSA is responsible for the leadership, sound management and performance of CSA within the delegations established by the Secretary. This position also holds the statutory office of the Child Support Registrar, which has legal responsibility for the administration of child support legislation.

The General Manager of CRS Australia is responsible for the leadership, sound management and performance of CRS Australia within the delegations established by the Secretary.

Executive remunerationSalary ranges for executive employees are provided in Appendix 1.

Information on executive staff members who received, or were due to receive, total remuneration of $130,000 or more is set out in Note 13 to the financial statements in this report.

Portfolio Department governance frameworkAgency Heads MeetingA regular meeting is held bi-monthly or more frequently to discuss and resolve matters relating to all agencies in the Human Services Portfolio. The Agency Heads Meeting is attended by:

Secretary Portfolio Department (as Chair);

Deputy Secretaries Core Department;

General Manager CSA;

General Manager CRS Australia;

Chief Executive Officer Medicare Australia;

Chief Executive Officer Centrelink

Managing Director HSA Group; and

Managing Director Australian Hearing.

The Executive Officer to the Secretary provides secretariat services to the meeting.

Audit arrangementsMedicare Australia, Centrelink, HSA Group and Australian Hearing have separate audit arrangements.

DHS's Audit Committee is responsible for:

reviewing, monitoring and recommending improvements in the corporate governance framework of DHS, including internal controls, risk management, compliance and financial reporting; and

overseeing internal and external audit processes within DHS.

An external provider delivers internal audit services to DHS.

In 2006-07, the Audit Committee oversaw the integration of the corporate governance frameworks of DHS into a wider departmental governance framework consistent with the Australian National Audit Office better practice guide Public Sector Audit Committees.

The membership structure of the Audit Committee in 2006-07 is shown in Table 4 in Output 1 Core Department. Membership of the committee is determined by the Secretary in consultation with the Executive Management Committee and is for a fixed term, as determined by the Secretary.

Jeff Popple, Acting Deputy Secretary of the Core Department, chaired the committee (following the departure of Geoff Leeper in January 2007) in 2006-07. The two independent members, Jenny Morison and Len Early, have specialist skills in financial reporting, risk management and corporate governance.

As a result of changes to committee membership agreed to in May 2007, the Audit Committee for 2007-08 will be made up of the Chair and two independent members only.

Financial overviewThis section provides a summary of financial performance for 2006-07 of the full Portfolio Department, including the Core Department, CSA and CRS Australia. Results are shown in the audited financial statements and this summary should be read in conjunction with those statements.

DHS's total resources are shown in some detail in Table 1. The administered and departmental expenses incurred in delivering the department's outputs are also detailed in Table 1, as is the budget allocation for 2007-08.

Departmental financial performanceDHS's statement of financial performance reports an operating surplus of $18.6 million, which is 2.9 per cent of the revenue available to the Department. The result was less than the operating result of $28.1 million forecast for the 2006-07 year in the Portfolio Budget Statements 2007-08.

Table 1 Total resources for Outcome 1, $'000

(1) Budget 2006-07a

(2) Actual expenses 2006-07

Variation (2) - (1)

Budget 2007-08b

Administered expenses

Child Support 997,257 1,110,030 112,773 1,040,446

Welfare to Work 119,716 103,539 -16,177 141,130

Total administered expenses 1,116,973 1,213,569 96,596 1,181,576

Price of departmental outputs

Output 1: Core Department 79,157 73,847 -5,310 142,083

Output 2: Child Support Agency

369,729 370,141 412 466,971

Output 3: CRS Australia1 - - - -

Subtotal departmental outputs

448,886 443,988 -4,898 609,054

(1) Budget 2006-07a

(2) Actual expenses 2006-07

Variation (2) - (1)

Budget 2007-08b

Revenue from government (appropriation) for departmental outputs

448,886 448,886 - 609,054

Revenue from other sources 233,717 199,419 -34,298 220,178

Total price of outputs 682,603 648,305 -34,298 829,232

Total for Outcome 1 1,799,576 1,861,874 62,298 2,010,808

(price of outputs and administered expenses)

2006-07 2007-08

Average staffing level 5,126 6,509

a Full-year budget, including additional estimates.

b Budget prior to additional estimates.

c CRS Australia is a business operation and as such did not receive direct appropriations in the 2006-07 Budget.

Statement of financial performanceRevenueDHS was appropriated $404.7 million in the 2006-07 Budget. In February 2007, under the 2006-07 Portfolio Additional Estimates Statements, DHS was provided additional funding of $44.2 million, bringing the total appropriation for 2006-07 to $448.9 million. Of this, $79.2 million was for the Core Department and $369.7 million was for CSA.

In addition, DHS recognised further revenue of $199.4 million, primarily from the provision of vocational rehabilitation services by CRS Australia (see Figure 3). Total revenue received by DHS in 2006-07 was, therefore, $648.3 million.

ExpensesDHS's expenses totalled $630.2 million: $73.8 million for the Core Department, $370.1 million for CSA and $186.3 million for CRS Australia (see Figure 4).

Figure 3 Departmental revenue by agency

Figure 4 Departmental expense by agency

Figure 5 Departmental expense by type

Statement of financial positionEquity

DHS's total equity is $141.4 million, representing an increase of $79.0 million during 2006-07. This reflects the retention of the 2006-07 surplus of $18.6 million as well as the impact of injections of equity into CSA and the Core Department during the year.

AssetsDHS's assets total $294.7 million and can be categorised as:

cash;

fixed assets (infrastructure, plant and equipment, land and buildings);

intangibles (non-physical assets such as software);

receivables; and

other non-financial assets (prepayments).

DHS has $189.3 million recorded as a receivable in the Official Public Account. Of this amount, $55.1 million is held for the Core Department, $69.3 million for CSA and $64.9 million for CRS Australia.

LiabilitiesDHS has total liabilities of $153.3 million. This consists of employee provisions of $86.7 million, building-related provisions of $17.9 million, trade creditor provisions of $40.8 million and other payables of $7.8 million.

Administered itemsCSA's administered activities include the provision of assessment, registration, collection and disbursement services that facilitate the transfer of child support payments between separated parents for the support of their children.

The Core Department receives administered appropriations to fund expenses in respect of Job Capacity Assessments, administered dividend revenue from Australian Hearing and the HSA Group, and competitive neutrality revenue from Australian Hearing.

All administered receipts are transferred directly to the Official Public Account.

OUTPUT 1 Core DepartmentHighlights of 2006-07 Developing the access card business framework including delivery of tender processes, procurement

and contract management activities

Developing strategies for the rollout of the access card capability across participating and registration agencies

Undertaking an information campaign to raise awareness and inform the Australian community about the access card

Overseeing the successful first year of implementation of the Job Capacity Assessment Programme, with more than 363,000 assessments completed, meeting timeliness targets across remote and non-remote areas

Working with CSA and Centrelink on implementation of the first two stages of the Child Support Scheme reforms

Contributing to more than 50 whole-of-government policy deliberations, providing advice on service delivery across a range of policy areas, including child support scheme reforms

Coordinating the 2007-08 Budget process for the Human Services Portfolio, securing $315.7 million over four years to implement a total of 71 measures

Coordinating a cross-portfolio package of 17 measures to reduce health and welfare fraud and improve compliance efforts across health and social welfare payments

Developing a Reconciliation Action Plan to increase Indigenous employment, and develop and promote a greater appreciation of and respect for Indigenous Australians

Implementing a range of strategies to improve Indigenous Australians' awareness of and access to government services

Taking part in a national exercise designed to test the capacity and capability of the Australian health response to an influenza pandemic, and finalising pandemic influenza plans for the Human Services Portfolio

Enabling a single sign-on capability through a Human Services web-based portal for people who use the internet to access government services

Working with Centrelink and Medicare Australia to improve customer access to services through the deployment of Family Assistance Office services in Medicare offices and the trialling of extended service delivery options in selected Medicare and Centrelink offices

Working with Centrelink to reduce call centre waiting times (by over 31 per cent, to an average of one minute and 50 seconds, down from two minutes and 40 seconds in 2005-06).

IntroductionThe Core Department plays a leadership and coordinating role across the Human Services Portfolio. In particular, it focuses on cross-portfolio objectives such as the reduction in health and welfare fraud, improved access to services for Indigenous Australians and major cross-portfolio programmes such as the development of the access card and the implementation of Job Capacity Assessments.

At the same time, the Core Department worked to implement successful approaches to improve the efficiency of Human Services service delivery agencies. These include expanding options for physical and electronic access, reducing red tape and improving communications, and lowering levels of staff absenteeism. Through its oversight of joint procurement and property management, and promotion of other cross-agency synergies, the Core Department also contributes to reduced costs and environmental impacts across the Portfolio.

Given its broad focus and suite of responsibilities, the Core Department has a unique opportunity to meet the changing needs of clients and customers. This year's annual report shows that the Core Department is supported by effective cooperation between agencies.

Output overview

PurposeThe Core Department's purpose is:

to improve the delivery of social and health-related services to the Australian people; and

to ensure that the government is able to get best value for money in service delivery.

The Core Department plays a leadership role in the Human Services Portfolio, working with and through the Child Support Agency and CRS Australia, which form part of the Department, and also Centrelink, Medicare Australia, Australian Hearing and the HSA Group, which form part of the Human Services Portfolio. It also works with other Australian Government departments to ensure that the need for the

most efficient and effective service delivery is taken into account as social and health-related policies are developed.

Figure 6 Core Department—organisational structure and senior staffing at 30 June 2007

StrategyThe Core Department meets its broad purpose through a set of goals that are clearly defined in its strategic plan. The Strategic Plan 2006-07 describes how the Core Department will achieve its goals by:

taking a customer perspective in reviewing services offered by Human Services agencies, to promote simplicity in delivery;

ensuring that products and services meet customer needs;

ensuring that Australians are able to access government services in a contemporary way, including via the telephone and internet;

balancing customers' preferences for services with the risks to taxpayer funds caused by fraud and incorrect payment; and

ensuring that the service delivery agencies deliver value for money in service provision, and have justifiable and sustainable financial arrangements.

The Strategic Plan 2006-07 also identifies the Core Department's approach to its work, and the values that guide its operations. The plan can be accessed through the publications section of the website at www.humanservices.gov.au

StructureIn 2006-07, the Core Department was structured around three divisions and the Office of Access Card (OAC), Medicare Electronic Claiming—with Deputy Secretary Rona Mellor outposted to Medicare to lead this project—and Legal Branch, as shown in Figure 6.

Service Delivery OperationsThe Service Delivery Operations Division is responsible for:

managing the Job Capacity Assessment and Job Capacity Account Programmes;

contributing to the development of high- level service delivery strategies within the portfolio;

implementing effective communication strategies;

developing and driving approaches that use information and communications technology to improve quality and cost efficiencies of services;

driving the effective governance of major change initiatives;

monitoring and analysing the performance of the Human Services agencies and the services they provide, to drive performance improvements;

improving service delivery for Members of Parliament, Senators and their constituents through the Local Liaison Officer Programme; and

analysing audit report findings.

Policy and StrategyThe Policy and Strategy Division is responsible for:

working to ensure that service delivery implications are taken into account in the development and implementation of Australian Government policy that impacts on the Human Services Portfolio;

developing an annual policy and budget framework that addresses the Minister's priorities;

coordinating input from across the portfolio into the Budget process;

developing and contributing to the implementation of service delivery reforms;

contributing to programme design and service delivery improvements to better meet the needs of Indigenous Australians;

reviewing, monitoring and overseeing the implementation of government initiatives, including fraud and compliance measures; and

undertaking specific service delivery projects and developing and maintaining effective networks with agencies and other departments.

Financial Analysis and CorporateThe Financial Analysis and Corporate Division is responsible for:

providing financial management and support services;

providing corporate governance and support structures, covering legislative compliance and audit, risk management and fraud control processes;

managing human resources, including recruitment, training and development, and occupational health and safety matters;

managing corporate services, including information technology and security;

dealing with complaints;

coordinating ministerial and parliamentary services, including correspondence, briefings and answers to questions; and

coordinating the provision of consistent, accurate and timely portfolio information to the Minister and the Secretary.

Legal BranchLegal Branch is responsible for:

providing legal services to the Core Department and the Minister for Human Services;

making sure the Core Department meets legal requirements and manages legal risk;

coordinating legal advice and information on issues involving the Human Services agencies and particular legal matters affecting or involving more than one agency or the Commonwealth generally, including in relation to information policy issues;

participating in internal service delivery policy analysis and providing legal advice and legal-policy advice, including on specific projects requiring legal support;

coordinating and managing the Australian Government's Human Services Portfolio legislative program; and

considering opportunities for improved synergies in the performance of the Human Services agencies' legal work.

Office of Access CardThe Office of Access Card (OAC) consists of five divisions and the Access Card Legal Branch.

The Access Card Legal Branch is responsible for providing legal advice to the Office of Access Card Divisions on legislative and procurement issues relating to the Access Card Programme, providing drafting instructions to the Office of Parliamentary Counsel and preparing the explanatory materials for the access card legislation.

The Programme Management Division is responsible for planning, monitoring and reporting on the risks, issues, changes, finances and overall progress of the implementation of the Access Card Programme. In addition, it provides management information to model and support the overall rollout of the programme.

The Business Division is responsible for the development and implementation of the access card service delivery arrangements, including registration, customer contact and business processes in participating agencies and service providers.

The Technology Division is responsible for technical assurance of access card systems to enable the Office of Access Card Programme delivery a fit for purpose, secure and end-to-end integrated technology product.

The Procurement and Implementation Division is responsible for key tenders, coordination and oversight of procurement and contract management activities and developing strategies and detailed plans for the effective and coordinated rollout of the Access Card capability across participating and registration agencies.

The Communication and Stakeholder Engagement Division is responsible for the development of policy advice, the engagement of stakeholders and communication activities for the Access Card Programme.

The resources of OAC are complemented by expertise from Booz Allen Hamilton, KPMG, Minter Ellison and the Australian Government Solicitor.

PerformanceThe Core Department is responsible for Output 1 of the Department of Human Services (DHS) Portfolio:

Facilitation and promotion of effective and efficient delivery of social and health-related services.

Table 2 reports the Core Department's results against the performance measures for Output 1 set out in the Human Services Portfolio Budget Statements and the Portfolio Additional Estimates Statements for 2006-07.

The following sections describe how the Core Department's performance contributed to Output 1 and met the objectives of its strategic plan in 2006-07.

Table 2 Core Department—performance measures

Measure Performance

Quantity On the basis of experience since the establishment of the Core Department in October 2004, the Core Department expects annually to:

process approximately 7,200 items of ministerial correspondence;

provide approximately 1,800 briefings to the Minister and his office; and

prepare draft answers to approximately 300 parliamentary questions on notice

In 2006-07, the Core Department:

processed 8,532 items of ministerial correspondence;

provided 2,197 briefings; and

prepared draft answers to 131 parliamentary questions in writing and 227 written Senate estimates questions

Quality The degree of satisfaction of the Minister and his office with the quality and timeliness of advice and the achievement of key tasks, as expressed through formal and informal feedback

The ability to measure the Minister's satisfaction with timeliness and quality in 2006-07 was complicated by the need to collect feedback from three consecutive Ministers for Human Services and their respective staff. Feedback from the Minister's Office indicates a general level of satisfaction with the day-to-day provision of advice by the Core Department

Price Price of outputs $79.157 million

Implement the Access Card ProgrammeThe Access Card Programme aims to:

reduce complexity for customers accessing Australian Government services;

facilitate a more convenient, userfriendly and reliable method of accessing Australian Government benefits and services;

reduce fraud by strengthening identity information; and

improve access to relief in emergency situations.

Since the Office of Access Card was established as part of the Core Department, in May 2006, it has consulted extensively with interested parties across the public, private and community sectors to ensure that the implementation of the card meets their needs.

In 2006–07, discussions were held on:

social and health-related policy and service delivery, with non-government consumer, privacy, charity, welfare, and rural and remote advocacy organisations, government agencies, business organisations, and financial institutions;

the provision of non–Australian Government concessions to card holders, with business organisations and state, territory and local governments;

the whole-of-government implementation of the programme, with the Secretaries Group and the Deputy Secretaries Group on the access card which together represented 14 Australian Government departments and agencies; and

the security of the technology architecture for the card, with the Australian Federal Police, Australian Security Intelligence Organisation, Defence Signals Directorate and Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

Table 3 summarises the number of stakeholders (organisations/peak bodies) consulted in each state and territory during 2006–07.

Table 3 Office of Access Card—number of stakeholders (organisations/peak bodies) consulted to 30 June 2007

Stakeholder category ACT NSW NT Qld SA Tas. Vic. WA National

Australian Government

24 - - - - - - -

States and territories

1 12 - 11 5 5 5 17

Allied health 4 2 - - - - 8 -

Consumer 10 11 - 3 1 1 6 6

Health 11 4 2 1 2 - 4 -

Welfare and charity

2 1 - - - - - 1

Business and retail

3 - - - - - - -

Privacy 1 11 - 1 - - 2 2

Information technology Transaction delivery providers

11 2 - - - - - - 12

Total 67 43 2 16 8 6 25 26 12

The Core Department also conducted an information campaign to increase awareness of the card. This campaign included newspaper advertising in 559 publications and radio advertising on 251 stations. In addition, 850,000 brochures were distributed through Medicare, Centrelink and Department of Veterans' Affairs offices and a dedicated telephone line and website were established.

In conjunction with Human Services agencies and the Department of Veterans' Affairs, the Core Department continued to develop the business requirements for the access card system. The Core

Department also invited public tenders to build key aspects of the system. The Australian Government has committed to ensuring major contracts are not signed until appropriate legislation has been passed.

The Access Card Legal Branch within the Office of Access Card had the lead role in liaising with the Office of Parliamentary Counsel to prepare exposure drafts of legislation to implement the access card, including the Human Services (Enhanced Service Delivery) Bill 2007 and the Human Services (Enhanced Services Delivery) (Consequential Provisions) Bill 2007. In preparing the exposure drafts, the Office of Access Card considered stakeholder submissions to the previous exposure draft of the legislation as well as the findings of the inquiry into the earlier draft by the Senate Standing Committee on Finance and Public Administration. The exposure drafts of the legislation were released during 2006-07.

The proposed legislation:

clearly states the Australian Government's intention that the access card will not be used as a national identity card;

addresses a number of issues not covered in previous legislation, including administrative review mechanisms, privacy issues, and oversight and governance of the access card system;

contains a range of penalties for attempts to demand the card as a form of identification (except for the limited purposes detailed in the draft), as well as protections against unauthorised access to personal information contained on the Access Card Register; and

provides considerable detail on how personal information will be protected and who will be authorised to access information contained in the access card system.

Implement the Job Capacity Assessment ProgrammeThe Job Capacity Assessment Programme provides comprehensive assessment of work capacity, and referral to early intervention and support, for people with barriers to work.

The Job Capacity Account Programme provides funding for job capacity assessors to purchase short-term interventions for clients, such as counselling and work conditioning.

The Core Department manages the Job Capacity Assessment and Job Capacity Account programmes. In 2006-07, about 80 per cent of assessments were undertaken by three government providers (Centrelink, CRS Australia and the HSA Group), while the remaining 20 per cent were provided by 15 non-government organisations selected through an open tender process.

In 2006-07, the first year of the programme:

assessments were conducted in more than 1,070 locations around Australia;

a total of 363,261 assessments were completed;

approximately 82.5 per cent of assessments in non-remote areas were completed within 10 working days and 91.9 per cent of assessments in remote areas were completed within 15 working days, exceeding timeliness targets;

more than 76 per cent of completed assessments resulted in recommended referrals to employment services— around 70 per cent to employment services such as Job Network and vocational rehabilitation services, and other social support services such as literacy and numeracy skills training or community mental health programmes (see Figure 7); and

around 46 per cent of the assessments were used by Centrelink to determine eligibility for the Disability Support Pension and exemptions from activity requirements for income support payments.

The Job Capacity Account provides funding for job capacity assessors to purchase short-term assistance programmes, such as pain management and counselling services, to assist people to return

to work. In the first 12 months, more than 11,000 clients were referred to such services. Initially, referrals built up slowly as job capacity assessors developed a network of organisations to provide the services. However, since December 2006, assessors have referred more than 7.5 per cent of clients to Job Capacity Account programmes, exceeding the expected referral rate of 6.8 per cent.

Figure 7 Job Capacity Assessment Programme referrals as percentage of total referrals to services, 3 July 2006 to 29 June 2007

The Core Department improved the support and resources available for job capacity assessors during the year, with particular emphasis on training and liaison. Highlights included:

the distribution of the Code of Practice in October 2006 and the Client Service Charter in April 2007;

new training in helping people with mental health conditions, developed by an independent expert, and provided for assessors in December 2006; and

more than 900 random audits of job capacity assessments conducted since December 2006, providing individual feedback to assessors to assist with continuous improvement.

Working with the Human Rights and Equal Opportunities Commission, the Core Department implemented a checklist and fact sheet on ensuring access to job capacity assessment sites for people with disabilities. This work found that all assessment sites were accessible, although providers were asked to make improvements at 12 sites.

Since meeting with remote service providers in March 2007, the Core Department has been working with other agencies and job capacity assessment providers to develop approaches to improve job capacity assessment services in remote communities in 2007-08.

Voluntary referrals and Job NetworkOver the past year, voluntary referrals from Centrelink to the Job Network for non-activity tested customers have been sustained at a high level. In 2006-07, a total of 83,024 people receiving Parenting Payment or Disability Support Pension were referred to the Job Network by Centrelink. Of these, 74,264 were in receipt of Parenting Payment and 8,760 were receiving Disability Support Pension. This reflects the ongoing efforts of the Core Department, with the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR) and Centrelink, to support people moving into work. Figure 8 shows the trends, on a monthly basis from December 2005 to June 2007, in the number of voluntary referrals from Centrelink to the Job Network. Figure 9 shows the cumulative total of voluntary referrals over the same period.

Figure 8 Monthly voluntary referrals to the Job Network from Centrelink (Disability Support Pension, Parenting Payment Partnered and Parenting Payment Single)

Figure 9 Cumulative voluntary referrals to the Job Network from Centrelink (Disability Support Pension, Parenting Payment Partnered and Parenting Payment Single)

Data from DEWR shows that more than 53,000 Parenting Payment customers received jobs through Job Network in 2006-07. An additional 11,000 jobs were achieved for Disability Support Pension customers.

Implement child support reformsIn 2006, the Australian Government announced a package of reforms to the Child Support Scheme and to the way the Child Support Agency (CSA) delivers its services. The reforms support the concurrent reform of the family law system which aims to encourage shared parental responsibility and to strengthen relationships in intact and separated families.

The Core Department is working with CSA, Centrelink and the Department of Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs to implement the Child Support Scheme reforms in three stages. Stages

1 and 2 were successfully implemented on 1 July 2006 and 1 January 2007 respectively. The changes implemented included increasing the minimum child support payment, reducing the income cap on high-income earners, and providing customer access to a mechanism for reviewing CSA decisions through the Social Security Appeals Tribunal. The final and most complex stage, which includes the introduction of a new formula for calculating child support payments, will be implemented on 1 July 2008.

The Core Department and CSA continued to work together to implement improvements to the way CSA delivers its services. Further information about the child support reforms can be found in Output 2—Child Support Agency.

Contribute to cross-government policy developmentWhole-of-government policy developmentIn 2006-07, the Core Department contributed to whole-of-government policy deliberations, providing advice on service delivery across a range of policy areas including:

youth and education;

immigration and citizenship,

health, aged care and mental health;

Indigenous Australians;

cultural diversity;

welfare reform;

families and community services, including child care and child support;

business regulation; and

delivery of the LPG rebate.

Budget strategy 2007-08The Core Department coordinated the 2007-08 Budget process for the Human Services Portfolio. The Human Services Portfolio will receive $315.7 million over four years to implement a total of 71 measures, focusing on:

providing support to rural communities affected by the drought, particularly irrigators and farmers in the Murray-Darling Basin;

providing continuous access to human services;

achieving efficiencies in the Human Services agencies through improved work practices, without compromising effective service delivery; and

addressing gaps and improving levels of payment accuracy through greater prevention and detection of fraud and non-compliance.

Fraud and compliance strategiesIn 2006-07, the Core Department coordinated a cross-portfolio fraud and compliance package, and examined a range of strategic fraud and compliance issues affecting the management of social, health and welfare programmes.

In the 2007-08 Budget, the Australian Government announced:

a joint project with the Department of Finance and Administration, in consultation with other departments, to develop a more strategic approach to fraud and non-compliance; and

17 fraud and compliance measures across the Human Services Portfolio and the portfolios of:

Education, Science and Training;

Employment and Workplace Relations;

Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs; and

Veterans' Affairs.

The 17 measures are expected to produce net savings of $269.4 million over three years.

National mental health planIn April 2006, the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) agreed to a national action plan on mental health to promote better mental health and provide additional support to people with mental illness, their families and their carers.

The plan represents a commitment to deliver mental health services in a more integrated way, both between governments and between the government and non-government sectors. Governments have agreed to a model of community-based coordinated care for the people with serious mental illness who are most likely to benefit and who are most at risk of falling through the gaps in the system.

The Core Department and Centrelink participated in developing the plan and are now involved in implementing the package of measures through membership of the COAG Mental Health Implementation Interdepartmental Committee. Medicare Australia is also involved in the implementation of a number of measures in the package.

Commitment to reconciliationThe Core Department contributed to the development of the Australian Government's Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) strategy, which aims to reduce the disadvantage experienced by Indigenous Australians.

The Core Department's Reconciliation Action Plan was registered with Reconciliation Australia on 24 May 2007 and launched at Old Parliament House on 30 May 2007. The plan focuses on:

improved service delivery for Indigenous people and their communities;

increased employment and development of Indigenous people; and

greater appreciation and respect for Indigenous Australians, and the promotion of cultural awareness across the Core Department.

Immigration policyThe Core Department provided and coordinated advice on the development and implementation of immigration policy in 2006-07, including:

the delivery of citizenship tests through Centrelink and Medicare Australia offices;

English language training and employment services; and

humanitarian settlement services.

Preparedness for pandemic influenzaIn October 2006, the Department of Health and Ageing hosted Exercise Cumpston 06, a national exercise designed to test the capacity and capability of the Australian response to an influenza pandemic. The Core Department participated in the decision-making and coordination aspects of the exercise. Centrelink provided assistance with the national telephone hotline and the monitoring of home quarantine.

In November 2006, the Core Department finalised pandemic influenza plans for the Human Services Portfolio, addressing the relevant recommendations of the National Action Plan for Human Influenza

Pandemic, and made changes to business arrangements to ensure that critical services would continue to be delivered in the event of an influenza pandemic.

Reduce fraud, errors, debts and overpaymentsAs described in last year's annual report, the Core Department coordinated a strategic package of fraud and compliance reforms for the 2006-07 Budget. During 2006-07, Human Services agencies commenced implementing 16 of the measures, including seven Human Services measures.

The 2006-07 fraud and compliance package included measures to address serious fraud, including high-profile and complex cases, and encouraged stronger partnerships across service delivery agencies. The new measures coordinated by the Core Department for the 2007-08 Budget built on the 2006-07 package, further developing cross portfolio collaboration to achieve a greater reduction of fraud and non-compliance.

Simplify agency forms and lettersHuman Services agencies have made significant progress in reducing and simplifying their forms and letters. In 2006-07, more than 240 letters and forms from Centrelink, Medicare Australia and CSA were reviewed, and 38 letters and forms were abolished. It is expected that the changes will result in savings of more than 10 million pages in a year, across the three agencies.

Implement effective communication strategiesCorporate communicationIn 2006-07, various communication materials were developed to support business areas and projects in the Core Department and across DHS. These materials included the Core Department's strategic plan, the DHS annual report, budget media kits, online communication, and a portfolio-wide newsletter 1+1=3.

Communication campaignsThe Core Department developed and managed the implementation of information campaigns to provide more proactive, consistent and better targeted communication to Human Services customers during the year.

In conjunction with Centrelink and with advice from the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, the Core Department conducted the Drought Assistance campaign from December 2006 to June 2007. The campaign used television, radio and press advertising, direct mail, the internet and public relations activities to inform farmers and small businesses that depend on the agricultural sector about the government assistance available to them. Indicators that the drought campaign was effective in reaching its intended audience included increased calls to the Drought Assistance Hotline during the advertising periods, and increased awareness among stakeholder groups, as confirmed through benchmarking and tracking research undertaken after each phase of the campaign.

In conjunction with Medicare Australia, the Core Department is developing a communication campaign to inform consumers and medical practices about Medicare Easyclaim—a fast, easy and convenient way to claim Medicare rebates in the doctor's surgery.

Indigenous AustraliansIn 2006-07, the Core Department, in partnership with Human Services agencies, continued to implement communication strategies to improve access to social and health-related services for Indigenous Australians.

Centrelink's communication network was enhanced to offer information and services on behalf of other Human Services agencies. The communication network includes the Indigenous Call Centre—which

covers Queensland, Western Australia and the Northern Territory—and the Customer Service Centres, Remote Area Service Centres and agents in 50 locations across rural and remote Australia.

The Core Department and Human Services agencies built community connections by participating in Access and Employment Roadshows, attending eight 'Croc Fest' events in regional and remote Australia, and supporting more than 90 joint agency visits to regional and remote Australia.

The Indigenous Ambassadors Programme, launched in May 2006, was expanded to include women's touch footballer Bo de la Cruz and Australian Football League player Michael O'Loughlin. The ambassadors have been very influential in improving awareness of government services in Indigenous communities. The programme assists the Human Services Portfolio's extensive network of Indigenous specialist staff to deliver vital services and honour the Government's commitment to work with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

Local liaisonThe Local Liaison Officer Programme, which commenced in February 2005, continued to assist federal parliamentarians with handling constituents' enquiries or grievances about Human Services agencies. Local liaison officers are assigned to every federal parliamentarian as a single point of contact for information and support about Human Services agencies.

By the end of 2006-07, approximately 11,091 referrals had been received through the programme, 99.6 per cent of which were responded to within two working days. There has been a very high take-up of this service—100 per cent of Members of Parliament and 92 per cent of Senators have used the Local Liaison Officer Programme.

Increase the use of online servicesThe Core Department continued to investigate ways in which information and communications technology can improve the delivery of services and the efficiency of Human Services operations.

In March 2007, the Core Department enabled a single sign-on capability for the increasing numbers of customers who choose to use the internet to access government services. Through the new, secure internet portal at myaccount.humanservices.gov.au, people who are already registered to use internet services with Centrelink, Medicare Australia and CSA can now choose to link all of their log-ons together under one password.

Other features of the portal include:

a cross-agency search engine and office locator;

links to self-assessment calculators and other useful websites; and

access to relevant news and announcements.

The take-up of online services continued to increase across the Human Services Portfolio, with significant increases evident in both new customer registrations and the use of online information and transaction services.

Implement Medicare Easyclaim in medical practicesMedicare Easyclaim will allow patients to claim Medicare rebates through EFTPOS terminals at participating doctors' surgeries. Both doctors and patients will benefit from the facility. Doctors will receive faster bulk-bill rebates and have less paperwork, and patients will have their rebates paid almost instantly, directly into their bank accounts, without having to visit a Medicare office.

The Core Department made a strong contribution to the work of the Electronic Medicare Claiming Interdepartmental Committee and the development of the Cabinet submission for Medicare Easyclaim.

Since the introduction of Medicare Easyclaim was announced by the Prime Minister in August 2006, the Core Department, working with Medicare Australia, has made strong progress towards the goal of rolling out the facility in the second half of 2007.

In particular, the Core Department worked with Medicare Australia to develop the commercial arrangements for the project. Two major banks and one internet-based EFTPOS provider have already been contracted to deliver the service.

Discussions with other financial institutions are well advanced, with more financial institutions expected to sign contracts by the end of 2007. The first Medicare Easyclaim transactions were successfully transmitted in late June 2007.

The communication strategy for the project was developed with leadership from the Core Department. Direct communication with medical practices to inform them about the new channel and the choices available for their practices commenced in 2006-07 and will continue as the financial institutions roll out additional options. A communications campaign for consumers and medical practices is planned for early 2008.

Improve the efficiency of service delivery agenciesCustomer accessIn 2006-07, the Core Department continued to coordinate improvements in customer access by co-locating related services. The rollout of Family Assistance Offices into all Medicare offices was completed, ahead of schedule, in November 2006. The new arrangement increases access to a range of family- related payments previously provided only through Centrelink and the Australian Taxation Office. In the 2006-07 financial year, around 653,000 customers benefited from this additional flexibility in service delivery.

The Core Department also coordinated a trial of flexible service delivery options involving Centrelink and Medicare. Centrelink made some seniors and carers services available through four Medicare sites:

Port Macquarie, New South Wales;

Box Hill, Victoria;

Hillarys, Western Australia; and

Marion, South Australia.

Medicare Australia delivered non-cash services through four Centrelink sites (Sutherland, New South Wales; Earlville, Queensland; Broome, Western Australia; and Launceston, Tasmania). There was no reduction in the services offered in the home agency site—for example, where non-cash Medicare services were offered in a Centrelink site, there was no reduction in the service available in the home Medicare office.

At the end of the initial six-month trial period, 31 March 2007, a total of 11,014 customers had conducted business under the flexible service delivery arrangements, including 42 per cent in Medicare offices and 58 per cent in Centrelink offices. The flexible services continue to be delivered in the trial sites with the results to inform future service delivery decisions.

In 2006-07, Centrelink call centre waiting times were reduced by more than 31 per cent, to an average of one minute and 50 seconds (from two minutes and 40 seconds in 2005-06).

The Core Department also worked with the agencies to reduce queuing times. These were reduced through successful management strategies. In 2006-07, 57.6 per cent of Centrelink customers rated the 'length of time in a queue' as either 'good' or 'very good' on their last visit to a Customer Service Centre. This is an increase from the 2005-06 result of 53.6 per cent.

ProcurementThe Core Department and the six Human Services agencies continued to achieve efficiencies through joint procurement. In 2006-07, Human Services agencies collaborated to purchase a range of goods and services, including office stationery, personal computers, managed telecommunications services and legal advice. As in 2005-06, the joint purchasing power of the agencies achieved savings equivalent to around one per cent of their expenditure on external suppliers. This was achieved through clustered procurement arrangements and/or synergies and efficiencies achieved by joining existing contracts.

Property managementIn 2006-07, the Core Department continued to assist property managers from the Human Services agencies to work together to leverage their combined assets and achieve efficiencies and benefits to service delivery through coordinated property procurement, co-location and management.

A major development in 2006-07 was the agreement between agencies to approach the market for a single property services manager. A single property services contract will result in greater integration and standardisation of administrative practices, and maximise strategic property alliances for Human Services agencies that choose to participate. The arrangement will also produce more timely outcomes for participating agencies, which will support business continuity and enhance customer service. Initially, Centrelink, Medicare Australia and CSA will participate in the single service provider arrangement.

Environmental performanceThe Core Department also negotiated a new cooperative agreement on environmental performance with the Australian Greenhouse Office, representing a major milestone in reducing the environmental footprint of the Human Services property network. The environmental policies of Human Services agencies will now be embedded into business processes; for example, environmentally friendly leases will be sought and favoured where they are practical and cost effective.

Figure 10 Improvements in rates of unplanned absences across Human Services agencies

Performance managementThe Core Department closely monitored the functions, directions, corporate governance and financial positions of the Human Services agencies in 2006-07. The agencies reported regularly on performance issues, including audit reports and progress on policy implementation.

The Core Department also continued to monitor monthly achievements against the targets for absenteeism agreed to by its own staff and the staff of Human Services agencies in 2005-06. Reductions in unscheduled absences continued to be achieved across the portfolio in 2006-07, leading to significant productivity gains. Figure 10 shows a consistent improvement across Human Services agencies in the two reporting periods since the targets were established.

The Core Department continued to regularly brief the Minister on emerging issues and potential improvements to service delivery across the Human Services agencies.

The Review of the Corporate Governance of Statutory Authorities and Office Holders (Uhrig review) identified in its report a number of initiatives and policy opportunities for the Government to consider with a view to improving the performance of statutory authorities. The review indicated that a number of statutory authorities would benefit from greater clarity in the definition of their purpose, direction and objectives. To assist the relationship between government, portfolio departments and statutory authorities, it was recommended that Ministers issue a Statement of Expectations to statutory authorities within their portfolio where the Minister has a role in providing direction.

In accordance with the recommendations of the Uhrig review, to ensure that the Minister's expectations were well understood and met, statements of expectations and intent were in place for Centrelink,

Medicare Australia and Australian Hearing during the year. The Core Department also continued to coordinate quarterly reporting to the Cabinet Implementation Unit on key measures being implemented across the Human Services Portfolio.

Agency performance audit and risk managementThe Core Department's external audit and risk management activities continued to focus on:

providing responses to Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) reports that relate to Human Services agencies; and

examining and analysing all ANAO performance audits, identifying common themes and lessons to be applied as better practices within Human Services agencies.

These activities, when combined with other regular reports and executive meetings, provide the Core Department with the opportunity to proactively manage potential issues in a timely way. The strategic monitoring of additional mechanisms for external scrutiny, such as reports by parliamentary committees, enhances the Core Department's capacity to ensure relevant learnings are taken up across the Human Services Portfolio.

Positioning Human Services agencies to respond quickly to national disastersThrough its membership of the Australian Government Disaster Recovery Committee (AGDRC), the Core Department provided input to planning for, and management of, the impacts of and recovery from disasters and critical incidents.

The Core Department and the Department of Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs jointly chair the National Emergency Call Centre (NECC) Subcommittee of the AGDRC. When implemented in July 2007, the NECC will allow 7,000 call centre operators, from five provider agencies, to answer calls made to a single disaster hotline in the event of a disaster or emergency of national significance. This will be supported by systems that provide coordinated, real-time information to the public and enable the collection and exchange of information between the public and relevant government authorities.

In 2006-07, the Core Department convened the NECC Operational Steering Committee to provide operational and technical expertise regarding the implementation of a NECC capability. If the NECC is activated, a number of agencies in the Human Services Portfolio— Centrelink, Medicare Australia and CSA—will make a direct contribution to the operation of the NECC.

The Core Department worked with portfolio agencies to build capacity to respond to major emergencies. In 2006-07, agencies contributed to a number of Australian Government emergency responses, including the evacuation of Australians from Lebanon in July 2006, the responses to tropical cyclones George and Jacob in Western Australia in March 2007, and the response to flooding in the Hunter Valley and Central Coast of New South Wales in June and July 2007.

Since November 2006, the Core Department has been supporting Centrelink's mobile drought assistance services for drought-affected areas across Australia through the Drought Assistance campaign. The mobile services involve three 'Drought Buses' travelling to drought-affected communities, with a primary focus on providing better access to services for communities that do not have a Centrelink Customer Service Centre. Each bus is staffed by employees of Medicare Australia and Centrelink and includes a social worker and rural service officers.

In their eight months of operation, the buses have delivered information, advice, drought assistance and other support services to rural, regional and remote areas in New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia and South Australia. The buses have visited more than 260 towns, travelled more than 60,000 kilometres and provided advice and information to more than 8,000 potential and existing customers.

In June 2007, with cross-agency cooperation within and external to the portfolio, the Murray-Darling Basin Assistance and Referral Line was established to assist irrigators who face reduced water allocations and other drought-affected members of rural communities. The telephone assistance line is supported by cooperation between agencies within the Human Services Portfolio and other Australian Government agencies.

Vietnamese delegation visits the Department of Human ServicesIn May 2007, the Core Department hosted a six-member delegation from Vietnam Social Security, to share experiences, successes and approaches to delivering social and health-related services, and to provide an overview of the Core Department's role in managing the Human Services agencies in Australia.

The Core Department organised and facilitated meetings between the delegates and officials from:

Centrelink and Medicare Australia, to discuss their operations;

the Department of Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs, to discuss aged care policy; and

the Department of Health and Ageing, to discuss health insurance policy.

Participants found the interaction highly valuable. The head of the delegation, Mr Nguyen Thanh Xuyen, Deputy General of the Vietnam Social Security Agency, stated:

Australia and Vietnam share similar challenges in providing cost-effective social security services to economically diverse populations in the context of rapidly changing technology and labour markets. I am impressed at the progress your department is making in addressing these issues.

Figure 11 Core Department—corporate governance framework

Note: The Audit Committee is responsible for CSA and CRS Australia as well as the Core Department.

Management and accountability

Corporate governanceThis section reports on aspects of the Core Department's corporate governance arrangements that function in addition to the whole-of-department measures described in the Overview chapter.

The names and responsibilities of the senior executives of the Core Department are shown in Figure 6.

Governance frameworkThe Secretary made changes to the corporate governance framework in May 2007. The changes took effect immediately, except for changes to the Audit Committee membership, which took effect from 1 July 2007.

Figure 11 shows the relationships between the committees that made up the Core Department's corporate governance framework in 2006-07. Details of those committees and their functions are shown in Table 4.

Table 4 Core Department—governance committees as at 30 June 2007

Members Name Functions Administration

Leadership Group

Secretary (Chair) Helen Williams Advises on operational matters and facilitates communication between SES staff across the Core Department

Secretariat Executive Officer to the Secretary

Meetings

Weekly

All SES officers

Executive Management Committee

Secretary (Chair) Helen Williams Provides advice on policy, management issues and priorities

Reviews reports from the Chief Financial

Secretariat

AS Portfolio Coordination and Corporate

Deputy Secretaries Jeff Popple a/g

Kerri Hartland

Rona Mellor

Officer (monthly financial report), AS Portfolio Coordination and Corporate (organisational performance report) and other governance committees

Meetings

Weekly

First Assistant Secretaries

Audit Committeea

Deputy Secretary Core Department (Chair)

Jeff Popple a/g Monitors and, where necessary, recommends improvements to:

Secretariat Director Portfolio

FAS Financial Analysis and Corporate

Chris Dainer risk management identification and amelioration;

internal control processes (including fraud control);

the financial reporting process;

the functioning of the Internal Audit Unit;

the external audit process; and

processes for monitoring

Coordination (with Internal Audit)

Meetings:

QuarterlyGeneral Manager CRS Australia

Margaret Carmody

General Manager Child Support Agency

Matt Miller

Two independent members

Members Name Functions Administration

compliance with legislation, regulations and government policy

Maintains an effective working relationship with the ANAO

AS Portfolio Coordination and Corporate (observer)

Chief Financial Officer (observer)

Chief Internal Auditor (observer)

ANAO Observer

Information Management Committee

FAS Financial Analysis and Corporate (Chair)

Chris Dainer Provides advice to the Executive Management Committee on:

strategies and policies for the effective use of information resources; and

the development of information infrastructure and services that support business outcomes

Oversees the development and maintenance of knowledge management and sharing

Reviews the effectiveness of internal and external communications

Secretariat Director Information

FAS Service Delivery Operations

Alex Dolan Technology Services

Meetings

Quarterly

AS Portfolio Coordination and Corporate

Neil Skill

AS Agency Integration, OAC

Drew Baker

General Counsel Kathryn Johnson

Executive Officer to the Secretary

Felicity Woods/ Kristine Schultz

People and Leadership Committee

FAS Policy and Strategy (Chair)

Jenny Thomson a/g

Develops capability, with particular emphasis on:

corporate culture and values;

succession planning, workforce planning and staff

Secretariat

Director People Strategies

MeetingsFAS Financial Analysis and Corporate

Chris Dainer

Members Name Functions Administration

development;

links between the strategic framework, business outcomes,

people management strategies, and people's day-to-day work;

people management and leadership initiatives, particularly ii career development, support and training;

flexible workplace practices that help people to balance their work and personal lives; and

high-level strategic people management and leadership need

Quarterly

AS Portfolio Coordination and Corporate

Neil Skill

AS Access Card Communications

Barbara Flett

AS Marketing and Communication

Jenny Barbour a/g

AS Compliance and Development

Di White

Executive Officer to the Secretary

Felicity Woods/ Kristine Schultz

Security and Business Continuity Committee

FAS Service Delivery Operations (Chair)

Alex Dolan Oversees, monitors and reports on the overall management of security risks and business continuity management Prepares responses to the Australian Government Annual Protective

Secretariat Agency Security Adviser

Meetings

Quarterly

Chief Technology Architect, OAC

Marie Johnson Security Survey

Implements security education and training

Instigates new distribution controls, where appropriate

FAS Financial Analysis and Corporate

Chris Dainer Reviews the protective security environment against the requirements of the Protective Security Manual Annually reviews the Protective Security Plan

Maintains a robust Business Continuity

AS Portfolio Coordination and

Neil Skill Management Plan, including a pandemic influenza supplement

e

Members Name Functions Administration

Corporate Maintains a Business Continuity Procedur Manual for members of the DHS Business Continuity Management Central

Executive Officer to the Secretary

Felicity Woods/ Kristine Schultz

Coordination Team Maintains Business Continuity Quick Roadmaps for managers and staff Maintains the Emergency Management Plan

Chief Internal Auditor (observer)

ANAO = Australian National Audit Office, AS = Assistant Secretary, FAS = First Assistant Secretary, OAC = Office of Access Card, SES = Senior Executive Service, a/g = acting

a The Audit Committee is responsible for CSA and CRS Australia as well as the Core Department.

Internal scrutinyInternal audit, risk management and fraud preventionThe Core Department has taken a comprehensive approach to risk management, including business continuity, fraud, security, operations and auditing, by integrating its management of these risks under its Strategic Internal Audit Plan 2006-09. The Core Department plans to test its business continuity plan in 2007-08.

In 2006-07, the Core Department identified operational and strategic risks through strategic risk assessments, and implemented action plans and strategies to manage these risks. Strategic risk assessments were updated in December 2006 and May 2007.

The Audit Committee provides assurance that risks are being identified and addressed across the whole of DHS.

Management of ethical standardsThe Core Department explicitly embraces the Australian Public Service (APS) Values and Code of Conduct in all its corporate documents and practices, including performance assessments. Training in the APS Values and Code of Conduct is provided in the Core Department's induction programmes for new staff and through other courses such as those run by the Australian Public Service Commission (APSC).

Throughout 2006-07, KPMG provided independent advice to government to ensure that the access card is implemented in an efficient and cost-effective manner. KPMG implemented an assurance framework for monitoring the Access Card Programme, reviewing the proposed programme implementation plan to ensure that it is comprehensive and has an effective control framework and performance reporting regime.

External scrutinyJudicial or administrative decisionsIn 2006-07, there were no judicial decisions or decisions of administrative tribunals that had a significant impact on the operations of the Core Department.

Audits of financial statements by the Australian National Audit OfficeIn the interim audit of the financial statements for 2006-07 (Audit Report No 51 2006-07) DHS received three B (or moderate) findings. This was an improvement on the four B findings received in the ANAO'S report for 2005-06. Of the three B findings, one-reconciliation processes—related to both the Core Department and CSA (the other two related to CSA only). The Core Department has addressed the issue, which related to sign-off procedures, and considers it resolved. See Output 2 for details of the other two B findings.

Reports by the Commonwealth Ombudsman or parliamentary committeesIn 2006-07, no reports were made on the operations of the Core Department by the Commonwealth Ombudsman.

Both the Core Department and Centrelink provided responses to the Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit's report No. 407, tabled in September 2006, which examined the implementation of findings from a number of previous audits on Centrelink systems conducted by the Australian National Audit Office.

On 7 February 2007, the Human Services (Enhanced Service Delivery) Bill 2007 was referred to the Senate Standing Committee on Finance and Public Administration to examine:

the intended scope and purposes of the card; the information to be included in the card register and card's chip and on the card's surface; and the range of offences aimed at prohibiting persons requiring an access card for identification purposes and prohibiting other improper uses of the card.

Public hearings were held in March 2007 in Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra. DHS appeared before the committee at its meetings in Sydney and Canberra.

DHS coordinated the Australian Government submission to the inquiry and provided it to the committee on 28 February 2007. On 9 March 2007, DHS submitted a supplementary submission on key issues raised in the public hearings.

The Senate committee report of 15 March 2007 included one recommendation: that the bill be combined with the proposed second tranche of legislation for the access card system into a consolidated bill.

The Minister announced his support for this recommendation in a media release of 15 March 2007.

On 21 June 2007, exposure drafts of the consolidated access card legislation were released by the Minister.

PeopleStaffing statisticsAt 30 June 2007, the Core Department employed 230 people. Of these, 216 were ongoing and 14 were non-ongoing.

Detailed information on staffing is provided in Appendix 1.

Human resource managementAttracting and retaining staffIn 2006-07, there was a significant growth of 150 per cent in the number of staff employed by the Core Department on either an ongoing or non-ongoing basis, corresponding with the growth in Human Services programmes and initiatives.

Throughout 2006-07, the Core Department also continued to benefit from agency staff on temporary transfers. The use of temporary transfers built collegiality across the Human Services agencies and allowed the Core Department to draw on a wealth of diverse experience.

Promoting a safe and supportive workplaceThe Core Department participated in the Human Services cross-agency working group to identify, develop and implement consistent strategies to address occupational health and safety (OH&S) requirements.

During 2006-07, the Core Department provided training for health and safety representatives, continuing its commitment under the OH&S legislation to promote and provide a safe and supportive work environment for employees.

During the Core Department's Health Week 2006-07, 47 employees accepted the offer of free influenza vaccinations. Education and information packages on various health and lifestyle issues were also distributed.

The Core Department has trained and appointed eight first aid officers to cover the Core Department's sites.

Workstation assessments were conducted for all new employees and for existing employees whose physical work circumstances had altered (for example, through a change of work location). Employees were assessed by CRS Australia professionals who provided one-on-one assessments and consultation in regard to individual circumstances and requirements.

Appendix 7 provides details of OH&S performance in 2006-07.

RemunerationAustralian Workplace AgreementsAll ongoing and non-ongoing staff of the Core Department are employed on Australian Workplace Agreements (AWAs). Remuneration arrangements are based on the principles that remuneration must be:

fair and competitive;

sufficiently flexible to reflect the particular skills, experience and work responsibilities of individual employees;

designed to reward and remunerate employees reasonably and appropriately for their performance;

accountable for efficiency gains, including any reductions in administrative complexity and cost; and

achieved through the simplification of rules governing employment.

Salary ranges for Core Department employees are provided in Appendix 1.

Performance payAll Core Department staff are employed on AWAs which include an eligibility provision for performance bonuses.

The Core Department's Performance Management Scheme draws extensively on the Integrated Leadership System developed by the APSC. Under this scheme, all staff are required to have performance agreements, including learning and development plans, in place for each year.

Performance assessments are used to determine eligibility for performance bonuses, which are paid when an employee receives a rating of four (superior) or five (outstanding) on a scale of five. Bonuses

totalling $407,173 were paid to employees in the 2006-07 financial year. This amount does not include any bonus paid to the Secretary.

In total, 104 Core Department employees were eligible for performance bonuses, including employees who had separated from the department before the end of the financial year.

Table 5 Core Department—performance pay for 2005-06

Level Staff eligible Staff paid Amount paid ($) Average ($)

Australian Public Service

17 11 27,785 2,525

Executive Level 73 48 186,781 3,891

Senior Executive Service

14 13 192,605 14,815

Totala 104 72 407,173

a Does not include any bonus paid to the Secretary.

The performance bonuses paid in financial year 2006-07 for performance during the 2005-06 financial year are set out in Table 5.

Learning and developmentWorkforce capability requirements in 2006-07 were identified through various sources, including the organisational learning needs analysis conducted for the Australian Public Service Commission's (APSC's) 2005-06 State of the Service Report, a staff survey, individual learning and development plans, and advice from the People and Leadership Committee.

During 2006-07, the Core Department delivered skill development and learning opportunities to:

82 staff members to equip them with further technical skills to perform in their specific roles; and

22 staff members to increase organisational capability through leadership and strategic planning.

The Core Department utilised the APSC's flagship programmes, such as the Career Development Assessment Centre and Indigenous recruitment initiatives, outbound programmes involving Human Services agencies, mentoring and coaching, and other programmes related to specific technical learning needs.

The Core Department's induction programme effectively introduced all new staff members to the workplace culture, expectations and values, and prepared them to formulate their performance agreements.

As a strategy of the Core Department's Performance Management Scheme, 11 officers commenced formal executive coaching to enhance their leadership development. Four Senior Executive Service officers attended the APSC Senior Executive Service Band 1 Orientation Programme and a number of other courses related to their roles. Two SES officers also attended the APSC Senior Executive Service Band 2 Leading Across Boundaries Programme.

The Core Department conducted a regular seminar series designed to raise staff understanding of service delivery innovation. Speakers included the Australian Public Service Commissioner Lynelle

Briggs, former senior Defence officer General John Baker (retired), and DHS Indigenous Ambassador Bo de la Cruz.

Nine Core Department staff attended Centrelink's outbound programme to gain a better understanding of Centrelink's operations and customer needs, and six staff members received support to pursue external studies.

Workplace diversityThe Core Department continued to demonstrate its commitment to providing a fair and equitable environment for all staff. The DHS Diversity Plan incorporates the Indigenous employment strategy, the disability strategy and the diversity strategy, and makes sure that equity and diversity are considered in all aspects of the Core Department's work, particularly in recruitment and people management strategies.

As part of its Reconciliation Action Plan, the Core Department took part in advertisements promoting the Human Services Portfolio as an employer of choice for Indigenous Australians.

The Core Department employed three Indigenous staff in 2006-07, including one university graduate.

ResourcesFinancial managementThe Core Department has further strengthened its capabilities for financial management and reporting from 2006-07 by entering into an arrangement with Centrelink for the provision of its financial management information system.

During 2006-07, revised Chief Executive's Instructions were promulgated to provide a primary source of information and advice on the internal financial management framework and practices of the Core Department, CSA and CRS Australia.

The Department fulfilled its statutory responsibilities throughout the year in respect of financial management and reporting, and provided meaningful and properly supported financial information to the ANAO to facilitate timely completion of the 2006-07 audit of the Core Department.

Consultants and services contractorsDuring 2006-07, the Core Department entered into 40 new consultancy contracts to the value of $10,000 or more, involving total actual expenditure of $26,738,453. In addition, three ongoing consultancy contracts were active during the year, involving total actual expenditure of $87,905.

Consultants were engaged to provide specialist services where skills were not available in-house or where an independent and impartial view from outside the Core Department was required.

Detailed information on consultancy contracts is provided in Appendix 4.

Information on expenditure on contracts and consultancies is also available on the AusTender website, www.tenders.gov.au.

PurchasingThe Core Department's purchasing decisions complied with the Commonwealth Procurement Guidelines and the DHS Procurement Guidelines which took effect from 1 January 2006. The objectives of the DHS guidelines are:

to better meet the Minister's requirements for improved efficiencies in procurement processes across Human Services agencies;

to give agencies greater responsibility and accountability for their purchasing; and

to move to common purchasing for all purchases over $1 million by actively participating in joint procurements.

Asset managementThe Core Department does not have a significant holding of fixed assets. The majority of fixed assets consist of office fit-out and computing equipment.

Outlook

Job Capacity Assessment ProgrammeThe Core Department will continue to work with service providers, other agencies and stakeholders to manage the Job Capacity Assessment Programme to ensure it continues to deliver its intended outcomes. In 2007-08, there will be a particular focus on the effective delivery of assessments in remote regions.

The Core Department will continue its strong focus on national performance, and on preparing the market for the next job capacity assessment open tender. Current job capacity assessment contracts were let for a two-year period, expiring at the end of June 2008. That period is being extended for a further year, until June 2009. This will align the next open tender for job capacity assessment services with the procurement cycle for employment services.

Access cardThe Core Department will continue to work with Human Services agencies and the Department of Veterans' Affairs to develop the access card system to enhance delivery of and access to Australian Government health, veterans' and social services.

In finalising proposed legislation planned to be introduced in 2007-08, the Department will continue broad consultation with health and community sector stakeholders and key departments and agencies such as the Department of Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs, the Department of Health and Ageing, the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations, the Attorney- General's Department and, in particular, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner.

Other key priorities for 2007-08 will be:

finalisation, after passage of legislation, of procurement arrangements for services to build the access card system and manage card issuance; and

further development of business processes and operations to support the access card registration process.

Child support reformsThe Core Department and CSA will continue to work to improve the experience that parents have when dealing with CSA. The Core Department will also work closely with the Department of Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs and the Human Services agencies to implement Stage 3 of the reforms to the Child Support Scheme.

Budget initiativesThe Core Department will be involved in a range of activities initiated by the 2007-08 Budget, including:

pursuing efficiencies in Human Services agencies;

improving infrastructure to meet existing and expanded responsibilities for service delivery more effectively;

providing information and support to people affected by drought, particularly in the Murray-Darling Basin;

working with the Department of Finance and Administration, in consultation with other departments, to develop a more strategic approach to fraud and non-compliance; and

implementing measures to reduce health and welfare fraud and non-compliance.

OUTPUT 2 Child Support AgencyHighlights of 2006-07 Facilitating the transfer of $2.68 billion in child support payments, and increasing the number of

paying parents who met their child support obligations

Successfully implementing Stage 1 and Stage 2 of reforms to the Child Support Scheme

Successfully completing a four-year intensive debt collection programme, exceeding the target for the collection of outstanding child support liabilities

Working closely with Department of Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs on the development and implementation of Stage 3 of the Child Support Scheme reforms

Improving customer satisfaction and significantly reducing the number of customer complaints, while maintaining high levels of service responsiveness

Introducing a national, personalised service involving more intensive assistance for customers with complex child support issues

Providing greater online functionality for separated parents and employers through CSAonline, which was a finalist in the Excellence in e-Government Awards 2007

Simplifying customer letters and forms to improve readability

Expanding and improving information and support services for customers, including connecting parents with the Family Relationship Advice Line, Family Relationships Centres and CSA's Parent Support Service

Improving accountability through the implementation of call recording

Partnering with beyondblue, the Australian General Practice Network and the Starlight Children's Foundation to enhance the reach of services and support for separated families

Distributing significantly increased quantities of self-help products, with 85 per cent of customers rating the products excellent

Improving customer and community awareness and understanding of child support issues and CSA's performance

Establishing a new quarterly customer newsletter, Child Support Matters, which 90 per cent of customers surveyed assessed as easy to read

Strengthening CSA's privacy regime through staff training and a new security strategy to monitor and respond to any unauthorised staff access to customer records

Establishing a Data Quality Improvement Programme to improve the integrity and quality of customer records

Developing comprehensive training and development, and workforce planning strategies

Initiating major reviews of CSA's performance measures and staff performance management systems to support CSA's cultural change programme

Developing new customer service principles and commencing Customer First training for all staff, based on extensive customer feedback workshops

Lowering unplanned leave to better than target levels, and reducing workers compensation costs through improved management of injuries and the Building a Healthier CSA strategy

Improving service for Indigenous Australians through the recruitment of Indigenous staff, cultural awareness training for staff and joint outreach activities with other DHS agencies

Improving the effectiveness of financial management processes and compliance activities

General Manager's reviewThis was both a challenging and successful year for the Child Support Agency (CSA) and for the separated families CSA works hard to support.

Consistent with the Australian Government's four-year reform agenda announced in 2005-06, CSA successfully delivered key elements of the Child Support Scheme reforms and the Building a Better CSA change agenda.

CSA continued to perform strongly across all business areas, despite the challenges of simultaneously implementing major reforms and maintaining and improving ongoing activities. Separated parents and their children benefited from these efforts, in terms of the immediate improvement to outcomes and the progress made towards effective completion of the reform agenda.

Cooperation with portfolio partners and the commitment of CSA staff were vital contributors to these outcomes.

In April 2007, CSA hosted the 2007 International Child Support Heads of Agencies Conference in Melbourne. As in previous years, delegates from Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States met with their Australian counterparts to share best practice and contemporary understanding of international child support. Delegates were particularly interested to learn more of Australia's reform initiatives in the areas of family law, child support, and improving the effectiveness and connectedness of CSA, particularly through Building a Better CSA. CSA remains highly regarded internationally in terms of its cost-effective transfer of child support.

Improving our service and support for parentsDuring 2006-07, reflecting Building a Better CSA's emphasis on customer service, CSA developed new service options for parents with complex circumstances or who seek face-to-face service and continued to build a customer-focused culture to underpin other service delivery improvements. CSA was able to better support parents through the provision of advice, targeted referrals to other service providers and significantly increased provision of support programmes and products. Cooperative partnerships with providers such as the new Family Relationship Centres and Family Law Advice Line were particularly important. As a result of these service improvements, high levels of customer satisfaction were raised further, and numbers of complaints dropped significantly.

Improving collectionCSA increased its focus on compliance activities directed to establishing the right amount of child support payable and obtaining payments from those seeking to avoid their responsibilities. The increased focus was applied to both paying and receiving parents. As a result, $2.68 billion was transferred between parents during 2006-07, an increase compared with $2.56 billion in 2005-06, and a clear signal was sent to those parents seeking to avoid their responsibilities that CSA would be pursuing outstanding amounts.

Improving communicationCSA recognises that it is important for separated parents and the broader community to have a good understanding of child support, to promote shared parental responsibility and confidence in the system.

During 2006-07, CSA expanded outreach activities to build improved awareness and understanding. A new information bulletin for separated parents, Child Support Matters, was launched, and proactive media activity increased. Information was extended to separated families through partnerships with organisations such as beyondblue, the Australian General Practice Network and the Starlight Children's Foundation. This resulted in significantly greater positive media coverage and customer and community understanding of child support.

Improving capability and capacityCSA developed and implemented strategies to ensure strong organisational capability and sufficient resources during the year. In particular, the implementation of the reform agenda involves substantially increasing CSA staffing (by approximately 30 per cent). Through robust workforce planning, CSA was successful in recruiting the planned 617 staff it sought. Attendance rates improved significantly during 2006-07, thereby creating additional frontline capacity to support the delivery of business outcomes.

Despite consciously increasing staffing levels to buffer the impact of the reforms' implementation on business-as-usual capacity, CSA's ability to sustain business performance outcomes has come under challenge. The loss of experienced staff to develop and implement the reforms, combined with the relatively lower productivity of new staff, has created greater service delivery pressures than originally envisaged. This has reinforced the importance of more sophisticated workforce planning and workload management capabilities and of effective staff engagement.

Implementing the new schemeBecause of the extent and complexity of the Child Support Scheme reforms, they are being implemented in three stages over two years. In 2006-07, CSA successfully implemented Stage 1 and Stage 2, and prepared for the implementation of Stage 3. The feedback from separated parents on CSA's implementation of the first two stages has been positive.

Looking aheadThe year ahead will present more challenges as 1 July 2008 approaches, the date on which the final and most complex stage of the Child Support Scheme reforms comes into effect.

CSA will focus in 2007-08 on successfully implementing the most complex stages of the Child Support Scheme reforms and the balance of the Building a Better CSA agenda, while maintaining services and support for CSA's 1.4 million customers. It will be important to carefully manage the impacts of this transition on business as usual performance, as the agency approaches the end of this significant journey of reform.

The outcomes achieved during 2006-07 clearly show that CSA is heading in the right direction. I look forward to working with my colleagues and our portfolio partners, stakeholders and customers to achieve the goals we share in 2007-08.

Matt Miller

General Manager

Output overview

PurposeCSA's purpose is to support separated parents to transfer payments for the benefit of their children. This mission emphasises that CSA provides support for separated parents, rather than just collecting money.

CSA's vision is that children can rely on their parents for the financial and emotional support necessary for their wellbeing. This vision recognises CSA's commitment to shared parental responsibility, and its approach of working in partnership with other government and non-government organisations to support separating and separated families in the family law system.

CSA works with the Core Department in administering the Child Support Scheme, and supports the Department of Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs to develop child support policy. CSA also works closely with other Human Services agencies to ensure efficient and effective delivery of services to the Australian community.

StrategyThe Child Support Agency Strategic Plan 2006-08 sets out the following goals:

improved collection—more money for more kids;

customer service excellence—transform our customers' experience;

effective stakeholder relations and engagement—from consultation to engagement;

informed customers and community— aware and knowledgeable customers; and

excellence in service delivery capability— our foundation for a better CSA.

CSA is achieving its goals through improving service delivery under the Building a Better CSA change agenda, increasing compliance and enforcement, rebuilding corporate capability, implementing a new child support policy regime, and fundamentally changing organisational culture to align with the new strategic intent. CSA is also focusing on early intervention and connecting with other service providers to improve our support for parents.

The Strategic Plan 2006-08 also identifies CSA's approaches to managing risk and performance, and the values that guide its operation. The plan can be accessed through the Publications section of the website at www.csa.gov.au.

StructureTo improve the way the business supports service delivery, in 2006-07 CSA initiated a minor restructure into the six business groups shown in Figure 12.

Service DeliveryService Delivery is responsible for the registration and collection of child support, and responding to customers' needs through face-to-face, mail, telephone and online services. Service Delivery makes up 85 per cent of CSA's total operations.

Figure 12 CSA—organisational structure and senior staffing at 30 June 2007

External RelationsExternal Relations is responsible for the development and implementation of internal and external communication, marketing, and engagement programs for customers, community members, key stakeholders and staff.

Change ProgramChange Program is responsible for the implementation of CSA's reform agenda, which comprises the Child Support Scheme reforms and Building a Better CSA.

Service Quality and Corporate SupportService Quality and Corporate Support provides organisational support and other enabling capabilities in areas such as human resources, policy and legislation, business assurance and national complaints resolution.

Information and Communications TechnologyInformation and Communications Technology is responsible for providing all information and telecommunications services and solutions within CSA. The group also works with other Human Services agencies and participates in whole-of-government technology initiatives to share resources and ideas, and collaborates on opportunities to improve customer service, drive synergies and realise efficiencies through technology.

FinanceFinance is responsible for CSA's financial management. This includes maintaining the financial management and reporting framework that facilitates CSA's legislative and regulatory compliance and internal control, and supporting CSA's business managers, budget holders and staff with financial management, procurement and contract management services, advice and training.

Table 6 CSA—performance measures

Measure Performance

Cost Cost per case (estimate: $368) $367.18

Cost per dollar transferred (estimate: 11 cents) 11.1 cents

Effectiveness—Adequacy

Total amount of child support transferred between parents (estimate: $2.6 billion)

$2.68 billion

Effectiveness—Independence

Child support transfer rate (CSA collect and private collect) (estimate: 96%)

96.1%

Percentage of private collect cases to total cases (CSA collect and private collect cases) (estimate: 52.6%)

52.6%

Price Price of outputs $371.136 million Price of outputs $369.136 million

PerformanceCSA is responsible for Output 2 of the Portfolio Department of Human Services (DHS):

Delivery of child support assessment, registration, collection and disbursement services.

Table 6 reports CSA's results against the performance measures for Output 2 set out in the Human Services Portfolio Budget Statements, including adjustments in the Portfolio Additional Estimates Statements for 2006-07.

The following sections describe how CSA's performance contributed to Output 2 and met the objectives of its strategic plan in 2006-07.

Improved collectionChild support transfersIn 2006-07, CSA worked with separated parents to transfer a record $2.68 billion to financially support approximately 1.2 million children in separated families. This compared with $2.56 billion transferred in 2005-06. Total caseload growth was approximately 2.2 per cent, with 800,960 cases by 30 June 2007. The overall domestic collection rate was 92.8 per cent, similar to previous years' outcomes.

Through its targeted debt collection programme, CSA collected $48.7 million, an increase compared with $41.5 million in the previous year. This brought the total collected through the four-year programme to $141 million, well in excess of the target of $131 million.

For the first time in a number of years, the level of outstanding Australian- sourced child support debt increased, by $12.2 million (1.6 per cent) to reach $741.9 million, despite strong collection performance from compliance and enforcement activities. This can be partly attributed to the flow-on effects of compliance activities, such as the tax lodgement programme, which established higher liabilities in many cases.

CSA's international caseload continued to grow during the year, increasing by 5,981 cases to reach a total of 35,935, of which 27,562 are active cases. Of the total of $24.5 million transferred, $14 million related to children residing overseas and $10.5 million related to children residing in Australia. The overall collection performance of approximately 63 per cent was similar to outcomes in previous years but significantly lower than comparable domestic collection performance levels. This collection rate reflects the greater difficulty of building parental commitment to child support and enforcement when the parent is located outside Australia.

The bilateral agreement established last year with the New Zealand Government to collaborate on collecting outstanding payments in more than 4,000 cases proved effective in reducing outstanding child support for New Zealand families where the paying parent resides in Australia. In 2006-07, $4.7 million was transferred through this partnership.

CSA is committed to encouraging and supporting parents to manage their child support responsibilities independently through private collect arrangements. In 2006-07, 52.6 per cent of cases registered with the agency opted for private collect arrangements, the same level as in 2005-06.

Access to support programmesCSA continued to work in partnership with a range of government, community and private sector organisations to provide support for separated parents. This support is designed to help parents deal with and resolve specific issues impacting on their shared parenting responsibilities and to build understanding and commitment to meeting their child support responsibilities.

The acclaimed Staying Connected programme—a half-day programme delivered in the workplace to help men deal with separation—was promoted to human resource management and occupational health and safety professionals, and to large employers. For separated fathers, the programme has produced a significant increase in personal wellbeing and the ability to build a businesslike relationship with the other parent for the benefit of the children. For employers, the programme has delivered improvements to the bottom line through decreased unplanned leave, increased productivity and employee loyalty.

The Parent Support Service is a telephone counselling referral service for CSA customers who are displaying emotional and/or psychological distress. It is provided in recognition of the fact that there is often a connection between a parent's wellbeing and their ability to address the financial aspects of family separation. The Parent Support Service provides customers with self-help, parenting and relationship building skills. In 2006-07,377 CSA customers were supported through this service.

CSA's Being Connected programme continued to provide support for newly separated parents who are unemployed. This programme offers parents advice on ways to increase their motivation to return to work, look after themselves, stay connected with their children and have a workable relationship with their former partner. In 2006-07, 3,009 newly separated parents on Newstart Allowance were supported through this programme.

Compliance and enforcementIn 2006-07, CSA developed and implemented a comprehensive new compliance and enforcement programme to collect outstanding child support liabilities, particularly from people with the capacity to pay but who chose not to pay. The significantly expanded programme also sought to build greater integrity and public confidence in the child support system. For the first time, the compliance programme explicitly identified the importance of focusing on the incomes of both the paying parents and receiving parents.

Table 7 Child support compliance and enforcement actions, 2005-06 and 2006-07

Number of actionsChild support collected/corrected

(*collected figure only)

2005-06 2006-07 2005-06 2006-07

Tax lodgement enforcement*

24,000 125,000 Unknown $16 million*

TRIPs 80,873 95,935 $62,580.982* $72,816,349*

Serious avoiders 44,993 (over 4 years)

$141,652,722 (over 4 years)

Departure prohibition orders

482 474 $6,751,931 $5,945,144

Litigation Unknown 786 Unknown $9,349,697

TRIP = tax refund intercept payment

Key elements of the programme and the results of these actions are set out in Table 7.

Particular emphasis was placed on increased activity in tax lodgement enforcement and investigations of those who were thought to be trying to avoid their obligations by underdeclaring their true incomes. An additional 101,000 non-lodging customers were referred to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) for lodgement enforcement attention. An additional 100 financial investigators were employed in the latter half of the year to undertake comprehensive investigations into complex financial arrangements possibly designed to avoid paying the right amount of child support.

The tax lodgement and income minimiser initiatives not only contributed to increased child support payments, but also to improved accuracy and fairness of assessments. This resulted in many parents using the accurate information provided by CSA to enter into agreements and manage their own arrangements.

CSA received valuable assistance from the ATO, the Department of Immigration and Citizenship, the Australian Federal Police and the Australian Government Solicitor in achieving these positive outcomes for separated families.

The right amount of child support at the right timeChild support assessments are calculated using a basic formula that takes into account the parents' income, the number of children and the family's living arrangements. In some circumstances, child support assessments may be modified to make sure that assessments are calculated in a more accurate, balanced way. CSA may consider changing the assessment when parents' financial circumstances are not accurately reflected in the child support amount.

An example of CSA ensuring that parents pay the right amount of child support, at the right time, is a case where the paying parent is a nurse. The father provided regular care for their child, who suffered from a disability.

The paying parent's income for the purpose of the assessment was $34,686 (based on her estimate of income). In the past, she had accrued some outstanding child support debt that was later recovered by CSA directly through deductions made by her employer. The paying parent then reduced her estimated financial income, which in turn reduced the calculated amount of child support.

CSA investigated the customer's financial circumstances and found that her income was greater than the income supplied for the assessment. As a result, the child support income was increased to $56,493 to reflect the paying parent's actual base rate of pay.

Based on CSA's action, the annual rate of child support payable was increased from $1,604 to $5,530 and now more accurately reflects the paying parent's capacity to provide support for her child.

From a broader government perspective, this successful outcome also resulted in a saving for taxpayers by reducing the entitlement to Family Tax Benefit.

Customer service excellenceHigh-quality customer serviceDuring 2006-07, CSA took action to strengthen customer focus within the agency.

'Customer First' training for all staff commenced in the last quarter of the year and delivery of the first of four modules was completed by 30 June 2007. The training followed extensive development work on the materials in the modules based on customer feedback from workshops held across Australia. CSA staff attended these workshops and gained valuable insights into how CSA's customer service was being perceived by separated parents.

New CSA Customer Service Principles were developed on the basis of the customer feedback. These principles are being used to generate a new customer commitment charter—a clear statement of the standards of service separated parents can expect from CSA staff. The charter will be completed in 2007-08.

Other activities undertaken during the year to improve customer service included:

redesigning the change of assessment procedures to simplify the application form and make it easier for parents to provide the necessary information, and to institute telephone-based support and open exchange of information between the parents;

simplifying CSA letters and forms to make them easier for customers to understand;

halving the size of service delivery teams and creating new team leader roles and technical support arrangements to enable more effective team performance;

increasing the functionality of CSAonline to give parents greater flexibility in managing their child support arrangements, including the ability to access their information and update personal details outside business hours;

introducing Stage 1 of personalised services and more face-to-face service options for parents with complex cases, with national rollout planned in the first half of 2007-08;

simplifying employer withholding arrangements for paying parents and their employers;

linking CSA's Indigenous customers with Centrelink's Indigenous Advice Line; and

referring parents to other providers, including Family Relationship Centres and the Family Law Advice Line.

As a part of a Human Services portfolio- wide project, CSA worked on improving the readability of the agency's letters and forms. During the year, 23 forms and 76 of CSA's high-volume letters were reviewed to ensure that they represent best practice in government correspondence. Through the Department of Human Services' Ministerial Taskforce on Letters and Forms, headed by Senator Richard Colbeck, 65 of CSA's revised letters received approval.

The introduction of CSAonline has seen a significant growth in the number of parents using the 24-hour, seven-day service. At 30 June 2007, more than 50,000 parents and employers had enrolled for access. CSAonline was a finalist in the Excellence in e-Government Awards 2007.

During the year, CSA made 6,112 referrals to the Family Relationship Advice Line and Family Relationship Centres to help resolve child support matters and other separation issues. These services referred 133 parents to CSA. Parents appreciated the efforts to provide more seamless service delivery and help in navigating the family law system.

CSA's telephony performance remained strong, with 85 per cent of customer calls being answered within 30 seconds, a small decrease compared with 89.3 per cent in 2005-06.

Separated parents again reported improved satisfaction with CSA's customer service. Results from the agency's point-of-service 'Customers Having a Say' survey showed an increase in customer satisfaction rating from 5.7 in 2005-06 to 5.8 (out of a maximum score of 7.0) in 2006-07. CSA's other key customer service rating index— the Professionalism Survey—also confirmed positive gains in customer satisfaction. In 2006-07, the average rating of the professionalism of staff increased from 3.9 in 2005-06 to 4.1 (out of 5.0) in 2006-07.

Total complaints received in 2006-07 were 9,151, as against 10,403 in the previous year. This decrease of nearly 12 per cent, despite a 2.2 per cent growth in caseload, followed a 15 per cent reduction from 2004-05 levels.

Objections to CSA decisions also declined, with a total of 17,376 being received during 2006-07 compared with 19,148 in 2005-06. Seventy-five per cent of objections received in 2006-07 affirmed CSA's earlier decisions.

Improved accountabilityCSA introduced call recording in June 2007 to provide improved accountability trails for both customers and staff. More than 300,000 calls were recorded and feedback from both customers and staff has been

positive. This new system will also assist CSA staff to make better decisions by providing feedback for future training and development programs.

The implementation of Stage 2 of the Child Support Scheme reforms included the independent review of CSA's objection decisions by the Social Security Appeals Tribunal (SSAT). Since 1 January 2007, when the SSAT's jurisdiction over CSA decisions came into effect, less than 15 per cent of CSA objection decisions have been appealed. Of those, 44 per cent were changed as a result of the SSAT's decisions.

This new independent review mechanism will provide greater public confidence in CSA decisions, for which external review had previously been limited to more expensive and less timely court processes. It will also provide CSA with independent views of the policy positions adopted in its internal decision making, and will allow adjustments where appropriate.

Effective stakeholder relations and engagementStakeholder engagementThe development of a CSA stakeholder engagement strategy commenced during the year. To explore issues and opportunities to achieve mutual outcomes and strengthen relationships, CSA met with key stakeholders such as:

Australian Institute of Family Studies;

Dads in Distress;

Family Court of Australia;

Family Relationship Centre and Family Relationship Service providers;

Legal Aid;

Lone Fathers Association of Australia;

National Council of Single Mothers and their Children;

Shared Parenting Council of Australia; and

Sole Parents Union.

This engagement occurred at both national and state levels, including through State Manager Advisory Panels.

Most of these stakeholders are members of the Child Support National Stakeholder Engagement Group, established in November 2006 by CSA and the Department of Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs. The Group provides for effective engagement and consultation in relation to Child Support including the implementation of the Child Support Scheme reforms and Building a Better CSA. Three meetings were held in 2006-07 and feedback confirmed that the initiative was valued by all involved.

As a part of its plans to promote access to support services for separated parents, CSA initiated an employer engagement strategy which includes seminars titled 'Connecting with business to improve workplace productivity and support for separated parents'. This strategy also involves engaging with large employers and business groups to build greater understanding and collaboration in relation to the collection of child support and the administrative benefits of CSAonline. The first of the seminars was held in Perth in May 2007 and similar events are planned for 2007-08.

During the year, CSA continued to engage with key customer representative groups and attended their meetings and conferences. This cooperation continued to build stronger relationships and understanding of CSA and the child support system, as well as providing an effective avenue for customer concerns to be addressed.

CSA also worked closely with Members of Parliament, both through CSA's own local liaison programme and as a part of the Human Services Portfolio Local Liaison Network. This provided direct access to a nominated member of staff who took responsibility for helping the constituent navigate the child support system and get timely outcomes.

CSA invited the Attorney-General's Department to join CSA in working to develop new international agreements on child support collection and cooperation between countries at The Hague. This work is expected to be finalised in 2007-08, following a meeting of relevant officials.

Government and community partnershipsBuilding on a partnership established in May 2006, CSA and beyondblue—the national organisation working to address issues associated with depression—developed and launched a new information product, Separated parents and tough times. This resource and other CSA information products were distributed widely through a key partnership established in 2006-07 between CSA and the Australian General Practice Network (AGPN), which represents general medical practitioners.

The partnership with the AGPN has been valuable in supporting activities such as joint media releases and promotions of information resources and services, and the use of CSA's Community Services Directory to assist general practitioners with non-medical referrals. CSA sees this partnership as a good example of how joint activity can be leveraged to achieve outcomes that could not be achieved by the individual organisations.

Another important partnership established during the year involved the Starlight Children's Foundation. CSA established a memorandum of understanding with the foundation in February 2007, and has been working with the foundation on ways to derive mutual benefits from collaborative activities. In May 2007, CSA participated in Starlight Day, the annual fundraising event for the foundation. CSA believes the partnership has a strong affinity with the agency's mission and its focus on children, and will become an important vehicle for CSA staff who choose to contribute to the community outside their work.

Discussions commenced with a number of other potential partners that were identified as presenting opportunities to enhance the effectiveness of CSA's outreach activities.

Seamless referralsIn 2006-07, CSA focused on building commitment and processes to achieve seamless service delivery for separated parents. CSA worked with Crisis Support Services and Centrelink to provide support services for parents and, where appropriate, assisted other Human Services' customers using a customer-focused handover process which involves a three-way discussion between the customer, CSA's Customer Service Officer and the referral agency.

CSA worked closely with the Department of Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs, the Attorney-General's Department and the newly established Family Law Advice Line and Family Relationship Centres to ensure a smooth implementation of referrals between organisations. The new referrals network provided information and mediation services to support separating and separated parents, and to resolve difficulties they were experiencing with child support and related family law issues. A total of 6,112 referrals were made during the year. That number is expected to increase in the future as the number of centres grows and the value of their services becomes more widely known.

Informed customers and the communityCommunication and marketingAs foreshadowed last year, CSA continued to build on its investment in communication and education activities to increase customer and community understanding of child support and how it relates to the broader family law system.

During 2006-07, CSA established an integrated communication and marketing strategy to achieve a high level of awareness and understanding among CSA customers and the broader Australian community. The strategy outlines CSA's communication approach and activities to empower separated and separating families to make informed decisions about their responsibilities to provide financial and emotional support for their children, including transferring child support payments.

A network of External Relations Officers was established to work with media representatives and key stakeholders at a local level.

During the year, 35 national media releases were issued, relating to new service options, compliance initiatives, self-help tools and advice on how to handle specific child support issues. Collectively, the releases generated almost 5,000 media articles. This approach to greater media visibility and accountability has produced a significant increase in awareness of CSA activities. Independent analysis in May 2007 found that 53 per cent of paying parents, 60 per cent of receiving parents, and 65 per cent of the broader community were aware of CSA and agreed that CSA was improving its service delivery to customers.

CSA also ran the communication campaign to inform customers of the new Child Support Scheme. The campaign began in December 2006 to support the implementation of Stage 2 of the Child Support Scheme reforms from 1 January 2007. The campaign included a multimedia advertising campaign, new branding, a new website, a media plan, publications, e-bulletins and internal communication activities. The multimedia advertising component of the campaign began in May 2007 in preparation for implementation of the Stage 3 Child Support Scheme reforms from 1 July 2008.

Outreach activitiesA total of 62 community information sessions were conducted during the year in local communities, compared to 51 in 2005-06. Presenters from other government agencies and legal and financial advisers helped to provide a comprehensive briefing covering child support and issues relating to separation and family law.

CSA also joined with other Human Services agencies to conduct outreach activities in remote areas, including in Indigenous communities, to raise awareness of child support issues.

Information productsDuring 2006-07, CSA developed important new publications, refreshed some existing resources and, most significantly, greatly improved the distribution of publications to separated parents, stakeholders and the broader community. Simplified ordering and improved stakeholder connections led to more than three million copies being distributed in 2006-07, a considerable increase compared with approximately 200,000 in the previous year.

Child Support Matters, CSA's new customer newsletter, was launched during the year. The newsletter provides important information and self-help advice to separated parents, particularly in relation to the current reform agenda. A feedback form was included with each copy, and 2,254 customers submitted feedback. More than 88 per cent of feedback providers rated the newsletter as excellent or satisfactory.

Self-help booklets in the highly acclaimed 'Me and My' series were successfully promoted, with nearly 500,000 copies reaching separated parents and other members of the community. In an important step to assist non-English speaking parents, this series was translated into Arabic, Chinese, Spanish, Turkish and Vietnamese.

To assist newly separated parents to understand the Child Support Scheme and their responsibilities, 211,000 'Getting Started' publications were distributed during the year. This is significantly higher than the 2005-06 total of 88,000 copies, and reflects the importance that CSA places on providing these valuable resources to all new customers.

A feedback form was included with information products distributed by CSA's print warehouse starting in May 2007. Up to 30 June 2007,313 customers submitted feedback, with more than 99 per cent of feedback providers rating the 'Me and My' booklets, 'Getting Started' publication and 'Dealing with Separation' CD-ROM as excellent or satisfactory.

Excellence in service delivery capability2006-07 saw a continued focus on building corporate capability and developing increased organisational capacity to enable delivery of a demanding reform agenda and to sustain CSA's future performance

Improving our management systems and governanceSignificant work was undertaken during the year to improve the robustness of key management systems and governance.

Reviews were undertaken of financial management systems and frameworks, procurement processes and property management arrangements. Results have led to improved financial management accountability and a restructure of the property management division. The changes will ensure that CSA is better able to meet its responsibilities in terms of overall governance and compliance with Australian Government requirements.

An external review of CSA's information and communications technology governance and capability was undertaken, resulting in the development of a capability improvement programme. Examples of capability improvements included:

a greater focus on managing interface issues across the various reform initiatives and between organisational units within CSA;

the establishment of account managers and an ICT Planning Office to facilitate more effective partnerships;

an IT Service Management team to delineate and refine key internal processes, and create a single service desk to improve responsiveness for CSA users;

the establishment of contract arrangements with organisations that can perform systems development work, providing CSA with greater access to resources to supplement its own capacity in times of peak workload;

an integrated release schedule and supporting processes to manage the implementation of technology enhancements to support Child Support Scheme reforms; and

a review of systems architecture by Deloitte, providing a roadmap for the future development of CSA systems to support customers.

Other important systems improvements were effected during the year through the creation of a new Business Assurance Branch within the Service Quality and Corporate Support Group. Critical development work on a new learning management system to support the extensive training and development associated with the reform agenda was effectively finalised.

In 2006-07, work was initiated on improving CSA's data quality, data classification and security clearance issues ahead of the implementation in July 2008 of Stage 3 of the Child Support Scheme reforms. At 30 June 2006, 46 issues had been identified and are in various stages of remediation. This work has also identified changes to business processes to better support CSA customer service officers. Systems enhancements to CSA's information management system (Cuba) were effected to address Australian National Audit Office findings from 2005-06.

Supporting CSA staff

Increased emphasis was placed on supporting staff in 2006-07, because of the very significant impacts of the Building a Better CSA and the new Child Support Scheme change agenda.

In December 2006, smaller teams were implemented, with the appointment of an additional 100 team leaders. The average team size in CSA is now 13 staff; previously teams were typically 24 staff. This reduced team size allows team leaders to focus on supporting staff and delivering customer outcomes. A new leadership role called a 'service manager' was also introduced, to provide support to team leaders at their physical location. This local leadership capability allows for improved support for frontline staff, which in turn leads to improved performance for our customers.

During 2006-07, CSA successfully implemented a number of strategies specifically aimed at supporting managers and staff in business units to develop a healthier and more productive workplace, and to better manage workplace absence. These strategies included team leader training focused on improving people management skills—particularly in the areas of positive work behaviours, injury prevention and injury management—and implementing nationally consistent management guidelines and practices.

In addition, CSA revised its injury management processes to incorporate more emphasis on early intervention and timely rehabilitation, and established a network of rehabilitation case managers to service CSA business units.

Internal communicationDuring the year an Internal Communication Team was established to support CSA staff. CSA's internal communication system comprises intranet headlines (for up-to-date news), regularly updated intranet information channels, General Manager newsletters and emails, monthly news publications such as Snapshot, deskdrops, and team presentations produced as required. Part of the internal communication strategy is to ensure that information is given to staff at the right time and delivered in a consistent and integrated fashion.

'Roadshows' are one of CSA's primary ways of delivering information about the change programme to staff. Roadshows are national presentations delivered by senior staff across the organisation. In 2006-07, three national roadshows were delivered to staff to provide information on the implementation of Child Support Scheme reforms and to maintain the very high level of staff engagement with and support for CSA's new direction.

A number of different channels were established to give staff the opportunity to raise issues and seek clarification. One example is GM Direct, a forum of frontline staff who work with the General Manager to give their insights and provide a litmus test of how the change programme is being viewed by, and impacting on, staff. Leadership forums were also established, to promote engagement on key implementation issues and to increase the change leadership effectiveness of the teams.

Creating capacity and developing corporate infrastructureIn 2006-07, a national workforce plan was developed and implemented to adequately meet the recruitment required to roll out the CSA reforms and other business improvement programmes. The plan is supported by an accommodation strategy, and includes securing new leases on property, both for the longer term and as part of CSA's disengagement from the ATO.

The workforce plan sets out a strategy to ensure staff are recruited and trained well in advance of the implementation of Stage 3 of the Child Support Scheme reforms in July 2008.

More effective management of workplace injury and absence in 2006-07 resulted in significant reductions in the rate of unplanned absences, number of workers compensation claims, time lost due to workplace injury, and cost of workers compensation claims. These improvements represent the first year of a six-year plan of continuous improvement aimed at enhancing our service delivery capability.

CSA's continued efforts to reduce the amount of unplanned leave also increased the organisation's capacity during the year. In December 2005, CSA's unplanned leave rate was 17.86 days per full-time equivalent employee; at the end of June 2007, the rate was 12.44 days. This is a tremendous improvement, and means that CSA has saved approximately 8,000 days of productive capacity. More importantly, it means the workload of frontline staff is less affected by colleagues being absent. The proactive approach implemented during 2006-07 will continue during 2007-08.

The Information and Communications Technology group continued to build capacity and capability in 2006-07, particularly in the areas of technology independence, systems strategy and architecture and telephony.

Through the Technology Independence Programme, CSA is disengaging its technology infrastructure from that of the ATO. During the year, CSA developed an information and communications technology governance framework, in conjunction with the ATO; a CSA sourcing strategy; and detailed plans for infrastructure disengagement. Data requirements and arrangements for system access were defined and agreed with the ATO, and detailed interface design was completed.

CSA's telecommunications contract with NEC was finalised in 2006-07, delivering significant savings and providing for increased capacity and capability to cater for rapid growth in staffing, the commissioning of new sites and the introduction of new technologies such as call recording.

Management and accountability

Corporate governanceThis section reports on aspects of CSA's corporate governance that function within the whole-of-department measures and the Secretary's overall responsibility described in the Overview chapter.

The names and responsibilities of the senior executives of CSA are shown in Table 8.

CommitteesA number of committees assist in the effective governance of CSA, as described in Table 8.

Table 8 CSA—governance committees

Members Functions Meetings

CSA National Executive

General Manager (Chair) Matt Miller Develops strategic direction

Reviews performance and monitors the appropriateness of strategy

Develops priorities and strategic funding allocations

Monthly

Deputy General Managers Samantha Palmer

Patrick Hadley

Trevor Sutton

Dawn Casey

Michael Belcher

Jennifer Cooke

Adviser to the General Manager

Kylie Perrin

Service Delivery Executive

Deputy General Manager Service Delivery (Chair)

Jennifer Cooke Addresses operational performance issues

Monitors and proposes changes in service delivery priorities and strategies

Monitors the consistency of service delivery and reviews states' service delivery performance

Monthly

Assistant General Manager National Service Delivery

Bruce Young

State Managers (six) Lorna Andrews (Qld)

Mina Podbereski (NSW)

Bill Lodge (Vic.)

David Mole (Tas.)

Brenton Halliday (SA/NT)

Graeme Charlwood (WA)

Assistant General Manager Compliance and Enforcement

Angela Tillmanns

Assistant General Manager Transitions

Bill Volkers

Risk Management Committee

Independent member (Chair)

Glenys Roper Provides independent assurance and assistance to the General

Bi-monthly

Manager and National Executive on the risk, control and compliance framework

Independent member Di Fielding Meets compliance requirements of DHS, the Department of Finance and Administration, the Australian National Audit Office and other agencies such as the

Victorian State Manager Service Delivery

Bill Lodge Commonwealth Ombudsman and Comcover

Independent member from Centrelink

Brad Clark

Finance Steering Committee

Deputy General Manager Finance (Chair)

Michael Belcher Oversees CSA's funding agreement

Monitors financial position and ongoing financial

sustainability

Reviews and monitors processes, controls and procedures in place to maintain the integrity of accounting and financial records and statements Establishes and reviews the application of accounting policies

Monitors compliance with Australian Government budget and financial reporting requirements

Establishes, monitors and reviews financial management and budget management processes, including capital planning strategy

Monthly

Deputy General Manager Change Programme

Trevor Sutton

Deputy General Manager Information, Communications and Technology (ICT)

Patrick Hadley

Deputy General Manager Service Delivery

Jennifer Cooke

A/g Assistant General Manager People Services

Margaret Jamieson

Adviser to the General Manager

Kylie Perrin

Director National Financial Management

Rebecca Tyler

Management Accountant National Financial Management

Zoe Collison

National Executive Change Consultation Meeting

General Manager (Chair) Matt Miller Determines and monitors Monthly

performance of the change agenda strategies, priorities and funding

Determines the change governance framework Commissions change initiatives for review

Ensures effective integration between the change agenda and 'business as usual'

Deputy General Manager, Change Program

Trevor Sutton

Deputy General Manager, Service Quality and Corporate Support

Dawn Casey t

Deputy General Manager, Service Delivery

Jennifer Cooke

Deputy General Manager, Finance

Michael Belcher

Deputy General Manager, Chief Information Officer

Patrick Hadley

Deputy General Manager, External Relations

Samantha Palmer

Executive Director Reform Delivery

Greg Mills

External Delivery Assurance Adviser

Tarquin Ralph

Assistant General Manager Change Management

Angela Morella

A/g Deputy Secretary Core Department

Jeff Popple

Deputy Secretary Department of Immigration and Citizenship. Independent Member

Carmel McGregor

Deputy Secretary Department of Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs. Independent Member

Geoff Leeper

Security Committee

Assistant General Manager Business Assurance and

Tony Hanrahan Provides assurance and assistance to the General Manager and the National

Twice per year (minimum)

Governance (Chair) Executive on the security risk, control and compliance framework, and external security accountability responsibilities

Deputy General Manager Service Delivery

Jennifer Cooke

Deputy General Manager ICT

Patrick Hadley

Deputy General Manager Service Quality & Corporate Support

Dawn Casey

Director Security and Fraud Prevention

Darryl Prague

Director People Services Dominic Stokes

A/g Director Legal Services

Terri McGrath

National Occupational Health and Safety Committee

Assistant General Manager People Services (Chair)

Margaret Jamieson Advises on occupational health and safety matters in CSA

Quarterly

Director Workplace Health and Productivity

Tony Gilrane

National Community and Public Sector Union (CPSU) organiser

Stuart Brewer-McCabe

Two CSA staff CPSU delegates

Marcia Batton

Rennea Jochinke

Note: Details of the Audit Committee for the Core Department, CSA and CRS Australia are shown in Table 4.

AccountabilityThe General Manager of CSA is accountable to the Secretary of DHS for the overall performance of the agency, including its financial and risk management. The General Manager and Secretary meet regularly to ensure effective oversight and early identification of strategic issues. The General Manager attends meetings of the DHS Audit Committee.

The CSA Executive meets with the Secretary of DHS each month to review CSA's performance from a governance perspective, including financial performance and strategic issues.

Internal scrutiny

Internal auditEach financial year, CSA undertakes a planned series of compliance, operational and quality audits of its operations. Internal audits are performed by an independent provider (Ascent Governance), by CSA's Legal and Quality Assurance Team, or by CSA's Governance, Risk Management and Internal Audit Team.

In 2006-07, CSA conducted quality assurance audits in the areas of change of assessment, change in care and non- agency payments. An additional 'mini- audit' of the change of assessment process was conducted, focusing on the earning capacity provisions for which the legislation was amended in July 2006 in response to a Commonwealth Ombudsman report.

CSA completed compliance and operational audits and reviews of the following operations in 2006-07:

compliance with the Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997 (FMA Act) (quarterly review);

business continuity management;

corporate credit card use;

procurement within the CSA Change Programme;

data privacy and information technology security; and

consultation between Human Services agencies and CSA prior to procurement activities.

Audits were commenced but not concluded by 30 June 2007 in relation to:

project and change management in CSA;

payroll; and

the final review of FMA Act compliance for 2006-07.

No control weaknesses or material risks were identified in the audits, although audit recommendations identified opportunities for improvement.

Internal managers completed a twice- yearly governance and performance survey of the operations of areas under their responsibility. This manager self-assessment process ensures that managers and their staff understand the framework within which they work and against which they are required to report.

Senior staff completed quarterly FMA Act due diligence reports, a cornerstone of the FMA Act compliance framework. The framework provides the General Manager with assurance that CSA staff are using public funds appropriately, enabling the General Manager to provide the Secretary of DHS with the assurance needed to endorse the annual FMA Compliance Certificate.

CSA also monitored the publication of new guidelines and whole-of-government Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) audit reports to ensure that compliance and best practice were maintained within the organisation.

Risk managementThe assessment, treatment and monitoring of risk are integrated into CSA's business planning framework and guidelines for project management as core business activities.

Risk management is monitored through internal audit activities, and through:

regular review by the Risk Management Committee and Change Steering Committee (details of these committees are shown in Table 8);

regular monitoring of outcomes by the National Executive; and

management of programmes and contracts by line managers.

CSA continues to work toward an integrated approach to risk identification and management in all aspects of its business. The risk management methodology used by CSA is largely based on the Australia-New Zealand risk management standard AS/NZS 4360: 1999. In 2006-07, the CSA Executive conducted a risk management workshop where it identified the strategic risks facing the agency. The outcomes of the workshop were used to create the agency's annual strategic audit plans. Risk action plans are also being developed as a result of the workshop.

The objective of CSA's Risk Management Committee is to provide independent assurance and assistance to the General Manager and the CSA Executive on CSA's risk, control and compliance framework, and its external accountability responsibilities. The Risk Management Committee reports quarterly, through the General Manager, to the DHS Audit Committee.

Business continuity managementThroughout 2006-07, CSA refined its business continuity management framework to ensure the organisation is prepared to meet its ongoing service delivery and stakeholder commitments and to continue supporting business outcomes in the event of a major disruptive incident.

An overarching business continuity policy that sets out the roles, responsibilities, and accountabilities of CSA managers and staff concerning the continuity of child support payments, services and key business resources was completed. The policy is complemented by additional documents, including a disaster recovery framework and a comprehensive handbook of procedures for evacuation. CSA also began to develop an action plan to address issues arising from a possible influenza pandemic.

Fraud preventionCSA's fraud prevention activities include education, fraud control planning, investigation and prosecution of staff misconduct and fraud, and monitoring and protection of customer information.

All CSA staff are required to attend face- to-face training in fraud awareness every two years. CSA also has policies and guidelines relating to fraud and ethics awareness that are easily accessible to all staff via the agency's intranet.

CSA's current fraud control plan as required under the Commonwealth Fraud Control Guidelines was completed in 2006-07 and is in place for two years.

CSA views breaches seriously, and CSA's Fraud Prevention Team investigates all allegations of fraud and serious misconduct by CSA staff or fraud by CSA customers.

In 2006-07, the Fraud Prevention Team received 118 allegations of serious misconduct and criminal activity by staff, and 15 allegations of fraud by CSA customers.

As a result of the allegations:

49 allegations were found to be unsubstantiated;

22 matters were referred to CSA management or other agencies for action, including disciplinary action or criminal proceedings;

10 staff members resigned;

22 staff were sanctioned under the Public Service Act 1999; and

48 allegations were under investigation at 30 June 2007.

SecurityCSA uses the Australian Government's Protective Security Manual as the basis for security strategy, policy and procedures.

In 2006-07, CSA conducted formal security assessments of buildings and offsite records storage. Security assessments were also conducted on CSA's community information sessions. These security risk assessments were undertaken to identify and quantify the risks to CSA assets and operations. All identified risks were within an acceptable range or were reduced to an acceptable level.

The security clearance compliance section of the RACS (Restricted Access Customer System) reclassification project was completed in 2006-07. This ensures that all staff accessing RACS customer information are cleared to the appropriate security clearance level.

A total of 908 security incidents were reported in 2006-07, representing a slight decrease compared to 971 incidents reported in 2005-06.

The types of incidents reported in 2006-07 included:

allegations of theft in the workplace;

threats of self-harm, harm to children, assault of other customers, staff or third parties or damage to property by CSA customers;

bomb threats; and

losses of CSA keys, passes, phones and laptops.

Management of ethical standardsThe actions and behaviours of CSA staff are guided by the Australian Public Service Values and Integrated Leadership System. The CSA's Customer Service Principles outline how CSA staff members will treat their customers and colleagues. These principles apply to all CSA staff. As part of the engagement process all new staff receive the APS Values and Code of Conduct bookmark. Information on the APS Values and the APS Code of Conduct is included as part of the formal general induction program. The Entry Level Program for new customer service officers covers privacy and secrecy, fraud awareness and customer service principles. National Office staff are required to complete privacy and secrecy and fraud awareness training within six months of commencing work in CSA. Refresher training for fraud awareness and privacy and secrecy occurs for all staff every 18 months. Finance and procurement training is mandatory for all Executive Level staff and above and for those who are budget holders.

PrivacyCSA has a strong commitment to protecting its customers' privacy. CSA has a national network of privacy officers, who collectively ensure that concerns of customers and staff in relation to privacy are addressed quickly and efficiently.

All CSA staff are required to undertake training in privacy awareness when they join CSA, and again every 18 months to refresh their understanding. A newly developed search tool was implemented in October 2006 to assist in the detection of inappropriate access, and further enhancements are being developed to strengthen the regime even further.

Through more than 45,000 proactive checks conducted since October 2006, six suspected cases of unauthorised access to customer records by CSA staff were identified. Three staff members resigned or left CSA prior to final disciplinary action. One of these cases is being considered for criminal proceedings by the Director of Public Prosecutions. The remaining 3 cases were unsubstantiated. Since staff were made aware of this enhanced screening of access to customer records, only one possible instance of unauthorised access has been found.

In 2006-07, CSA developed a resource package in relation to privacy impact assessments for CSA business sponsors and project managers in the Change Program. The package raises awareness of

CSA's obligations to protect the privacy of its customers and staff, and provides instruction in relation to the development of privacy impact assessments.

Resolution of complaintsCSA has a three-step service for handling complaints, based on the principle of 'first point of contact resolution'. CSA customers can be confident that the first person they speak to about a complaint will endeavour to resolve the complaint as quickly as possible. Where resolution is not possible, the customer can access a more experienced and/or senior staff member who will try to resolve the complaint.

As a third option, a customer can make a complaint directly to the CSA's Complaints Resolution Service. This service operates outside the Service Delivery division, to ensure it has the independence and objectivity necessary to deliver a fair and transparent complaints service. After investigating a complaint, complaints resolution officers will decide whether to uphold or not uphold the customer's complaint, depending on whether the facts of the case support the complaint.

Over the past three financial years, the number of complaints made directly to CSA has been declining. This continuing decline is an indicator of CSA's success in delivering excellent customer service. Total complaints received in 2006-07 were 9,151, compared with 10,403 received in 2005-06, a decrease of 12 per cent.

External scrutinyAustralian National Audit OfficeThe interim audit of the financial statements for 2006-07 (Audit Report No. 51 of 2006-07) resulted in three B findings for CSA:

reconciliations;

SAP Access and segregation of duties; and

SAP configuration.

CSA considers that the reconciliation findings has been resolved. CSA are actively addressing the SAP-related findings.

The ANAO commenced one audit involving CSA in 2006-07, in addition to the routine audits of the financial statements. The objective of the audit is to examine the integrity of electronic records stored on the Child Support Register (and associated databases) and to report on CSA's management of the data.

In judging CSA's performance the ANAO applied four criteria which are being used to determine whether or not:

CSA's customer records (Child Support Register and any associated databases) are accurate and complete;

CSA's electronic customer records are reliable and internally consistent;

CSA has adequate controls and procedures to ensure a high quality of data capture and recording; and

CSA effectively manages electronic customer records.

CompensationThe Compensation for Detriment caused by Defective Administration Scheme (CDDA Scheme) was established in October 1995 to enable Australian Government agencies to compensate people who have been adversely affected by the defective actions or inactions of agencies and have no other avenues through which to seek redress.

In 2006-07, CSA made 41 offers for compensation, of which 37 were accepted. Compensation of $89,318 was paid under the CDDA Scheme (an increase compared with $41,252 in 2005-06), and $15,973 was paid for legal liability (a decrease compared with $39,706 in 2005-06). These figures include payments offered in previous financial years and accepted in 2006-07.

Commonwealth OmbudsmanAs part of its commitment to a fair and transparent complaint handling process, where appropriate, a CSA customer who is not satisfied with the outcome of a complaint managed by the CSA, may be referred to the Ombudsman.

The Ombudsman received a total of 1,790 complaints about the CSA in 2006-07. This is a decrease of seven per cent from the 1,927 complaints received in the previous year. The Ombudsman finalised 1,779 complaints about the CSA and of these 508 complaints were investigated.

From October 2006 the Ombudsman introduced new guidelines in respect of recording administrative deficiency. In the year 2006-07 the Ombudsman recorded administrative deficiency in 23 cases. Figures in relation to the previous year were not made available by the Ombudsman; however, in the 2004-05 year the Ombudsman identified 130 records of agency defect against the CSA.

The CSA benefits greatly from the valuable feedback given by the Ombudsman and is committed to positive engagement so that it can improve the quality of its service to customers. CSA recognises that in the lead-up to significant reforms to the Child Support Scheme the Ombudsman may experience an increase in the number of complaints made by customers. The CSA will continue to work with the Ombudsman over the coming year to ensure that complaints are managed in a fair, effective and timely manner.

Minister for Finance and AdministrationThe FMA Act provides that, under certain conditions, the Minister for Finance and Administration may waive the Commonwealth's right to payment of an amount owing to the Commonwealth. Under this provision, CSA may consider requests to waive child support debts and refer these to the Minister for Finance and Administration for a decision.

CSA has experienced a steady increase in the number of waiver requests received from customers over the past four years. Requests for waivers of child support debts most commonly arise upon the death of a carer parent where the care of the children is transferred to the surviving parent.

During 2006-07, CSA finalised 51 requests for waiver of debts. The Minister for Finance and Administration waived 43 of those debts, totalling $219,869 (a decrease compared with $236,333 in 2005-06).

The Minister for Finance and Administration also has the discretion to make act of grace payments to persons who may have been unintentionally disadvantaged by the effects of Commonwealth legislation and have no other means of redress. Two act of grace payments, for a total of $15,778, were made during the reporting year (an increase compared with one payment of $1,296 in 2005-06).

Privacy CommissionerPrivacy is an integral component of CSA business practices. CSA has an important partnership with the Office of the Privacy Commissioner and benefits from the support and advices it provides in relation to privacy. CSA worked with the Office of the Privacy Commissioner during the year to address issues arising from complaints made by staff and customers.

In 2006-07, the Privacy Commissioner began a total of five investigations into CSA-related matters, the same number as in 2005-06. The investigations into these complaints had not been completed at the end of the financial year.

Social Security Appeals Tribunal (SSAT)From 1 January 2007, the SSAT became responsible for independently reviewing CSA objection decisions and decisions to refuse an extension of time in which to lodge an objection. 'Objection decisions' refer to CSA's internal process for reviewing customers' objections to the child support assessments they have received and/or objections to decisions made about the collection of child support. The new SSAT arrangements provide a review mechanism that is inexpensive, informal and quick, and improves the consistency and transparency of child support decisions.

From 1 January 2007 until 30 June 2007, CSA was advised by the SSAT of 679 applications for review. Of those 679 applications, 521 were valid. The other applications were generally invalid, either because CSA had not made an objection decision, or because the objection decision had been made prior to 1 January 2007.

Since 1 January 2007, applications for review to the SSAT were made in relation to less than 13 per cent of CSA objection decisions.

Until 30 June 2007,296 of the valid applications for review were in relation to decisions to change a child support assessment. The remaining 225 concerned CSA decisions in other areas, such as care, the credit of non-agency payments and the acceptance of estimated incomes.

At 30 June 2007, CSA had been notified of hearings in 265 matters and had received decisions from the SSAT in 127 matters. In those 127 matters the SSAT decided to affirm CSA's decision in 71 matters (56 per cent).

PeopleStaffing statisticsAt 30 June 2007, CSA employed 4,137 people (including employees on long-term leave) under the Public Service Act 1999. On average, 3,301 staff were employed over the year, 291 more than in 2005-06. The workforce included 97.4 per cent ongoing and 85.4 per cent full-time employees.

Detailed information on staffing is provided in Appendix 1.

Human resource managementAttracting and retaining staffRecruitment activities during the year were promoted through CSAs 'Great place to work' campaign. As CSA competes for a diverse and sophisticated workforce in a tight labour market, this campaign seeks to increase both the number of applications received and the retention of existing high-quality employees, by implementing communication activities to position CSA as an employer of choice.

Recent improvements to recruitment activities have impacted positively on the number of applicants registering their interest in working for CSA. For instance, the Casual Employment Register initiative has opened opportunities for targeting people who are not normally pursued by CSA recruitment campaigns.

Promoting a safe and supportive workplaceAppendix 7 provides details of Occupational Health and Safety performance in 2006-07.

RemunerationCertified agreementAt 30 June 2007, 3,857 staff were employed under Balancing Performance and Wellbeing, the Child Support Agency Certified Agreement 2005-07.

Salary ranges for employees under the certified agreement are provided in Appendix 1. Under the terms of the current certified agreement, staff will be entitled to a 4 per cent salary increase from 1 July 2007.

The agreement also provides the following non-salary benefits:

Flexbank, which provides for the accrual and storage of flex-time during CSA's peak business season and the conversion of up to five days of accrued flex-time annually to cash;

flexible working arrangements, including regular part-time agreements, regular- hours agreements, flex-time and time off in lieu;

study support;

an Employee Assistance Programme; and

year-end close-down.

The certified agreement has a nominal expiry date of 15 December 2007. A new agreement is currently being negotiated with staff and representatives of the Community and Public Sector Union.

Australian Workplace AgreementsCSA offered Australian Workplace Agreements (AWAs) to all Senior Executive Service (SES) and Executive Level officers in 2006-07.

Offers of AWAs are made to officers as individual circumstances arise, particularly to recognise specialist skills and knowledge or to facilitate unique employment conditions not provided for under the certified agreement.

CSA AWAs link individual performance to the achievement of corporate objectives and to pay outcomes, including payment of performance bonuses.

The numbers of CSA staff covered by AWAs and their salary ranges are set out in Appendix 1.

Performance payIn accordance with the SES and Executive Level Performance Management Schemes, CSA SES and Executive Level employees covered by an AWA may have been eligible for a performance bonus based on their individual performance assessment at the end of June 2007. SES employees who received a superior performance rating (4 out of 5) received up to 10 per cent of their annual base salary and those with an outstanding rating (5 out of 5) received up to 15 per cent of their annual base salary as performance pay. Executive Level employees who received a superior performance rating up to 5 per cent of their annual base salary and those with an outstanding rating received up to 10 per cent of their annual base salary as performance pay.

The performance bonuses paid in 2006-07 for performance during the 2005-06 financial year are set out in Table 9.

Table 9 CSA—performance pay for 2005-06

Level Staff eligible Staff paid Amount paid ($) Average ($)

EL 1 68 41 79,626 1,942

EL 2 52 34 150,411 4,424

SES Bands 1-3 11 9 102,665 11,407

Total all eligible employees

131 84 332,702 3,961

APS = Australian Public Service; EL = Executive Level; SES = Senior Executive Service

Note: Two payments were deferred salary payments of 6 per cent of salary. Range for SES classifications not disclosed to protect privacy.

Learning and developmentAs part of the organisational change in CSA in 2006-07, a core national learning and development structure was established. The structure includes strategies to ensure staff have the technical, customer interaction and leadership skills that they need to provide exceptional customer service. The endorsed training and development plan for CSA includes strategies to ensure a nationally consistent training outcome across a broad range of subject areas, including customer focus training and targeted technical training.

In 2006-07, CSA invested $2,755,003 in training activities delivered by external training providers. In addition, a range of learning programmes were developed internally to meet the special requirements of the CSA's organisational changes. As well as customer service training, there was a national emphasis on training in core areas such as employee induction, fraud awareness, privacy and secrecy, finance and procurement, and project management.

To evaluate the overall outcomes of CSA's learning and development activities, a range of input was sought from various parts of CSA to define the staff capability measure. In addition, each training programme was evaluated on completion, and the outcomes of these evaluations were reported to a reference group for review.

Workplace diversityUnder its Workplace Diversity Plan 2006-08, CSA worked to develop an inclusive and supportive workplace through a number of strategies and key performance indicators. For example, CSA applied the principles of reasonable adjustment and provided in-house rehabilitation case managers to support employees with disabilities. All formal communication and training in CSA used inclusive language and was delivered in formats accessible to the participants.

As an active participant in the DHS Indigenous Employment Taskforce, CSA sought to attract and retain Indigenous Australian employees to improve their employment and career opportunities and build the agency's capability for achieving improved service delivery to Indigenous Australians.

CSA's Indigenous Employment and Career Advancement Strategy 2005-08, which complements targeted recruitment programmes such as the Australian Public Service Commission Indigenous Graduate Programme, Indigenous Cadet Programme and Indigenous Trainee Programme, received a positive response. The number of Indigenous staff in CSA increased by 70 per cent, and the number of Indigenous staff in more senior positions increased by two people. The proportion of Indigenous

employees in CSA rose from 0.8 per cent of all employees in June 2006, to 1.8 per cent at 30 June 2007. CSA is progressing well towards a target of 2.2 per cent Indigenous employees by June 2008.

Indigenous staff were involved in recruitment processes and leadership and management training, and CSA's Indigenous Staff Network, which has improved retention by supporting Indigenous employees, grew to include Indigenous employees around the country. Training to promote awareness of Indigenous cultures is being delivered to all employees and more than 1,500 employees, (37 per cent) completed the training in 2006-07.

ResourcesFinancial managementCSA's operating surplus for 2006-07 was $1.6 million, a decrease compared with $7.7 million in 2005-06.

Expenses in 2006-07 amounted to $370.1 million, an increase of 28 per cent over the 2005-06 expenditure of $289 million. The increase resulted from an increase in employee expenses arising from an increase in staff levels and pay rises delivered under the certified agreement.

Financial assets at 30 June 2007 were $75.5 million compared with $42.2 million at 30 June 2006.

This balance comprises $3.4 million in cash at bank, $69.3 million in appropriations receivable and $2.8 million in other receivables.

The increase in financial assets is largely attributable to:

an operating surplus of $1.6 million;

anticipated 2006-07 capital expenditure of $18.8 million being deferred until 2007-08 because of delays in the fit-out of newly leased accommodation; and

working capital held against supplier and employee liabilities.

Administered appropriationsThe total administered annual appropriation drawn down in 2006-07 was $3.1 million. Of this, $0.7 million related to funding the Newly Separated Unemployed Parent initiative.

The total administered annual appropriation returned to the Official Public Account for 2006-07 was $2.2 million. Administered Special Appropriations drawn down in 2006-07 totalled $75 million. CSA collected and returned $74.7 million in special appropriations for this period. CSA transferred $949 million in child support payments in 2006-07, which is an increase of $46.9 million from 2005-06.

Consultants and services contractorsDuring 2006-07, CSA entered into 24 new consultancy contracts. This involved total actual expenditure of $1,298,458. In addition, three ongoing consultancy contracts were active during 2006-07, involving total actual expenditure of $911,388.

CSA engaged consultants to provide a range of services, including market research, business modelling and human resource services.

Detailed information on consultancy contracts is provided in Appendix 4. Appendix 9 corrects errors in the consultancy information provided in the Annual Report 2005-06.

Information on expenditure on contracts and consultancies in also available on the AusTender website, www.tenders.gov.au.

Office accommodation

In 2006-07, CSA leased 58,452 square metres of office accommodation at 22 sites, at a cost of $23 million.

CSA continued to work with other Human Services agencies to realise synergies in colocating offices, and gradually disengaged from shared accommodation arrangements with the ATO.

CSA has negotiated acquisition of an additional 21,925 square metres of office accommodation in Albury (New South Wales), Dandenong and Geelong (Victoria), Brisbane, Adelaide and Hobart. CSA will relinquish 14,707 square metres of this additional office accommodation by December 2009 when consolidation occurs in Albury and Wollongong (New South Wales) and Brisbane.

CSA will be independent from ATO sites in Albury, Sydney, Dandenong, Geelong and Townsville (Queensland) by 2008.

PurchasingIn 2006-07, CSA continued to follow the DHS Procurement Guidelines that took effect from 1 January 2006. The guidelines, which are in addition to the Commonwealth Procurement Guidelines that apply to purchasing by Human Services agencies, are published on the DHS website. All suppliers and potential suppliers are encouraged to recognise the guidelines in their offers to supply goods and services.

CSA's own procurement guidelines, processes, procedures and documentation were revised and reissued during 2006-07, focusing on compliance with the FMA Act and regulations.

CSA achieved efficiencies by participating in 11 cross-agency contracts in 2006-07. CSA has lead-agency responsibility for four procurement activities—market research, workstations and loose furniture, security and storage units, and office relocations.

Asset managementNo asset valuations were undertaken by an external valuer during 2006-07.

In 2006-07, CSA undertook a stocktake of information technology assets and other assets.

Asset capitalisation thresholds for 2006-07 remained the same as 2005-06. The thresholds were $200,000 for internally developed software, $25,000 for purchased software and $10,000 for leasehold improvements.

In 2006-07, CSA's computer systems were leased from and managed by EDS under contract with the ATO. CSA's telephony infrastructure was leased from and managed under contract with NEC.

Records managementIn June 2006, CSA completed the movement of paper records (with the exception of Tasmanian records which will be moved later this year) into the Centrelink Records Management Units. The records were previously kept with the ATO and the secondary storage providers Ausdoc and Recall.

The move to a centralised records registration and retrieval service with Centrelink achieves synergies between Human Services agencies. The new arrangement includes three years of free storage.

CSA staff register and retrieve documents using the TRIM interface on the CSA intranet (C3). To ensure appropriate file-naming conventions are used, CSA staff can seek advice from a Centrelink hotline.

Before the move to the centralised records management arrangement with Centrelink, only 14,500 files were registered on the database. CSA now has approximately 975,000 files registered on the database. Additionally, all documents can be tracked using the database. The new retrievals arrangement has improved both internal and external customer satisfaction levels.

A National Archives of Australia Commonwealth agency self-audit was completed in August 2006, resulting in 37 recommendations for improvements. Implementation of the recommendations, which address a large range of records management issues, began in February 2007.

Work on a new records disposal authority began in February 2006, with a view to addressing functions specifically required by CSA. The aim is to allow for a more efficient system for sentencing and disposing of records, clearer decision making on the filing of records, an eventual reduction of paper filing, and a cost saving.

Purchaser-provider arrangementsCSA had no purchaser-provider arrangements during 2006-07.

OutlookIn 2007-08, CSA will focus on implementing the most complex stage of the Child Support Scheme reforms and the CSA organisational change agenda, while maintaining services and support for 1.4 million customers. CSA will carefully manage the process of reform by continuing to inform customers and the wider community of the changes to the Child Support Scheme to give them confidence in the scheme. The agency will continue to communicate with a range of stakeholders, including government agencies, service providers, advocacy groups, academic researchers and potential support networks for separated families about the changes.

CSA will also continue to focus on improving collections by encouraging voluntary compliance, helping to improve the extent to which the Child Support Scheme meets the needs of separated parents, and building international partnerships to reduce the amount of debt for children of separated parents overseas.

OUTPUT 3 CRS AustraliaHighlights of 2006-07 Delivering an almost 30 per cent increase in new vocational rehabilitation programmes funded by the

Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR)

Placing 11,759 job seekers in employment, 8,312 of whom were still employed after 13 weeks, with more than 50 per cent of the 8,312 working 30 or more hours a week

Negotiating and implementing a new Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with DEWR to provide vocational rehabilitation services

Delivering job capacity assessment services on behalf of the Core Department

Opening new offices in Marrickville, New South Wales, and Northbridge, Western Australia, in response to increased demand for vocational rehabilitation programmes

Researching new approaches to personal disclosure, work training, administrative support and employment strategies and supporting job seekers with substance abuse

Finding, through the 2006-07 stakeholder satisfaction survey, that 89 per cent of job seekers are satisfied or very satisfied that their vocational rehabilitation programme meets their needs

Completing a comprehensive review of practice and business support resources

Developing employee self-service and business warehouse initiatives for implementation from 1 July 2007

Reducing unplanned leave to 8.40 days per full-time equivalent employee per year (from 10.40 days in 2005-06), which is below the Australian Public Service median of 8.90 days

General Manager's reviewIn 2006-07, CRS Australia continued to provide high-quality assessment and vocational rehabilitation services, helping Australians with disabilities, injuries or health conditions to enter or remain in the workforce. The number of new vocational rehabilitation programmes delivered on behalf of the Australian Government increased by close to 30 per cent during the year.

CRS Australia's continued focus on the ability of each individual job seeker resulted in 48,208 new and existing job seekers being assisted, with 8,312 of these achieving a 13-week employment outcome that was more than 30 hours per week in more than 50 per cent of cases. The effectiveness of vocational rehabilitation in building individual work capacity is evidenced by 39 per cent of all job seekers being in work three months after completion of their programme.

Positive outcomes for job seekers are made possible by an excellent network of allied health professionals, support staff and managers. CRS Australia staff continued to use innovative and flexible approaches to bring out the best in job seekers in 2006-07.

CRS Australia is constantly looking for ways to improve the effectiveness of its service delivery. In 2006-07, a number of new strategies ensured that services were either maintained at their existing high levels or improved, and that there were better processes to monitor and evaluate performance.

Other significant achievements included the launch of Focus for the Future, CRS Australia's Strategic Plan 2006-09, and the development of a new memorandum of understanding with the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations. The strategic plan provides a framework within which CRS Australia can continue to be a successful, robust and viable organisation.

CRS Australia ended the year with a budget surplus, primarily reflecting continued sound performance against key contracts. In the years ahead, this secure financial position, combined with expertise, flexibility and innovative practice, will help to ensure that CRS Australia achieves its vision—to remain the leading provider of vocational rehabilitation and related services in Australia.

Margaret Carmody

General Manager

Figure 13 CRS Australia—organisational structure and senior staffing at 30 June 2007

Output overviewPurposeCRS Australia's purpose is to meet the needs of customers by providing high-quality vocational rehabilitation, assessment, injury management and prevention services to people with a disability, injury or health condition to enable them to gain and maintain employment.

CRS Australia provides services to job seekers, as well as commercial and government customers, at more than 177 sites in urban, rural and remote areas across Australia, and through visiting and outreach services. The largest provider of expert assessment and vocational rehabilitation services in Australia, in 2006-07 CRS Australia was also the sole provider of vocational rehabilitation services to the Australian Government under the Disability Services Act 1986.

CRS Australia operates as a business unit within the Portfolio Department of Human Services.

StrategyCRS Australia meets its purpose through a set of goals that are clearly defined in a strategic plan. Focus for the Future, the Strategic Plan 2006-09, describes how CRS Australia will achieve its goals by pursuing four strategic themes:

exceeding customer expectations;

growing capability;

building reputation; and

improving effectiveness.

The Strategic Plan 2006-09 also identifies the opportunities, challenges and risks that CRS Australia faces, and the values that guide its operations. The plan can be accessed through the Publications section of the website at www.crsaustralia.gov.au.

StructureIn 2006-07, CRS Australia was structured into service delivery and support functions, as shown in Figure 13.

Table 10 CRS Australia—performance measures

Measure Performance

Quality Certification against Disability Services Standards

Certified

Quantity Number of new clients assisted on a rehabilitation programme

32,445

Number of rehabilitation clients achieving durable employment outcomes

8,312

Effectiveness and efficiency

Proportion of clients achieving durable employment outcomes

33%

Efficiency—CRS Australia must deliver effective rehabilitation programmes within the funding provided as a viable business unit

CRS Australia delivered effective programmes and had a surplus of $11.49 million in 2006-07

CRS Australia undertakes a range of other services for government and private agencies with each agreement requiring certain performance indicators to be met

CRS Australia met all performance requirements; results against key performance indicators for government agencies are detailed in their annual reports

Price Price of outputs $232.310 million Price of outputs:

$197.826 million total

Measure Performance

$166.312 million (vocational rehabilitation excluding unearned revenue)

Service Delivery PolicyService Delivery Policy is responsible for:

developing practice and delivery policy, including through research and innovation;

influencing purchaser policy to improve the effectiveness of vocational rehabilitation and related outcomes;

providing strategic and business analysis data and advice; and

ensuring the efficiency and effectiveness of services in New South Wales,

Victoria, Tasmania and the Australian Capital Territory.

Service Delivery OperationsService Delivery Operations is responsible for:

implementing new practice or process requirements;

conducting quality assurance and ensuring compliance with customer contracts and memorandums of understanding (MOUs);

managing key accounts and new business strategies:

developing and implementing effective internal and external communication strategies; and

ensuring the efficiency and effectiveness of services in Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia and the Northern Territory.

CorporateCorporate is responsible for:

providing efficient and effective support services to the network;

providing strategic financial advice and management;

managing infrastructure;

managing risk audit and compliance assurance; and

developing and implementing workforce planning to attract and retain staff.

Developments since the end of the financial yearCRS Australia receives more than 80 per cent of its revenue through an MOU with the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR). Income is payable on achievement of milestones and outcomes. The resource efforts in programme delivery for DEWR often occur over a 24-month period.

On 30 June 2007, CRS Australia analysed its revenue and expenditure items for DEWR clients. Applying the percentage of completion method for revenue recognition, it determined that $6.5 million that had been received from DEWR was in relation to work to be performed in a future financial year. This amount of revenue has been recognised as unearned revenue on the balance sheet.

PerformanceCRS Australia is responsible for Output 3 of the Portfolio Department of Human Services (DHS):

Delivery of vocational rehabilitation services to eligible people who have an injury, disability or health condition.

Table 10 reports CRS Australia's results against the performance measures for Output 3 set out in the Human Services Portfolio Budget Statements and the Portfolio Additional Estimates Statements for 2006-07.

DEWR is the principal purchaser of CRS Australia services. Performance against the DEWR MOU is reported in more detail in that department's annual report. DEWR, which undertakes post-programme monitoring, advises that 39 per cent of all job seekers were in work three months following programme completion.

The following sections describe how CRS Australia's performance contributed to Output 3 and met the objectives of its strategic plan in 2006-07.

Meeting the needs of all customersOverall performanceCRS Australia met the requirements of DEWR and other purchasers, and had a surplus of $11.49 million at 30 June 2007.

Tailored servicesAs well as the suite of services provided to DEWR during 2006-07, CRS Australia provided a range of services to Australian Government agencies and other organisations, including:

rehabilitation services for veterans and military personnel for the Department of Veterans' Affairs;

occupational rehabilitation services for workers compensation insurers;

injury prevention services for a range of public and/or private organisations;

career planning services for the Department of Education, Science and Training;

wage assessments and case management in business services for the Department of Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs; and

job capacity assessments for the Core Department.

The requirements of each contract were clearly articulated to staff and supporting training was provided. Performance against each contract was actively managed to ensure delivery of purchased services.

Accessible servicesCRS Australia offices are located in areas that enable it to respond to demand for services.

Based on advice from DEWR on the distribution of funded programmes for each employment service area, CRS Australia fine-tuned service provision in 2006-07, furthering its aim of enabling people to access vocational rehabilitation services close to where they live.

CRS Australia maintained its commitment to rural and remote communities. More than 40 per cent of service units were located in those areas. CRS Australia sites provide a range of services including vocational rehabilitation, work capacity and complex assessments, injury prevention and return to work services.

New offices were opened in Marrickville, New South Wales, and Northbridge, Western Australia, in response to increased demand for vocational rehabilitation programmes.

Service charterIn delivering services to clients, CRS Australia staff continued to observe the standards set out in the Client Service Charter.

CRS Australia's service charter outlines its commitment to providing high-quality vocational rehabilitation and consultancy services to clients, and details what clients can expect. The charter is available online at the CRS Australia website, www.crsaustralia.gov.au, and is displayed at CRS Australia sites.

CRS Australia measures how well the charter is being met for service recipients, through its internal quality improvement programme—Quest for Quality. This programme includes:

quarterly audits of client files;

six-monthly site audits by the regional manager;

feedback sought from each service recipient during and at the end of their programme;

focus groups (conducted internally and by external consultants); and

surveys of service recipients.

The 2006-07 Stakeholder Satisfaction Survey found that 89 per cent of job seekers were satisfied or very satisfied that their vocational rehabilitation programme met their needs.

Certification auditCRS Australia maintained certification under the Disability Services Act 1986, with no deficiencies recorded, following an audit by accredited auditor SAI Global during 2006-07. The auditor congratulated CRS Australia, saying:

The review revealed a well managed system, with a clear focus on promoting consistent organisational values, ensuring systems were in place to provide services to clients in line with set objectives and timeframes.

There was a strong overall commitment from both staff and management of CRS Australia to the welfare of its clients and there is excellent compliance with the Disability Standards as evidenced through the client interviews, document review and observations made on site.

There was a strong teamwork approach utilised at audited locations with staff having an excellent understanding of their colleagues skills, expertise and how the team approach could assist in achieving positive outcomes for clients. The wide range of skills, experience and qualifications of CRS Australia staff also contributes to achieving good client outcomes.

Evaluation and feedbackFeedback received from employers during 2006-07 indicated a high level of satisfaction with their working relationships with CRS Australia and the ease of communication with CRS Australia's local offices. Employers valued the work done by CRS Australia to help job seekers and those wishing to return to work.

CRS Australia also received performance feedback from external job capacity assessors. Overall, assessors perceived CRS Australia as a caring organisation, with staff who treat people with dignity, honesty and respect, are approachable and are experts in their field.

As part of a strategy to improve service delivery effectiveness, CRS Australia also analysed feedback from job seekers, assessors and stakeholders. In 2006-07, on behalf of CRS Australia, a market

research firm independently surveyed 900 job seekers, asking them to provide feedback on the level of service provided. A significant proportion of those surveyed (82 per cent) rated CRS Australia staff highly for their helpfulness, understanding and ability to provide support and assistance to them in managing their disability.

Maximising employment outcomesIn 2006-07, CRS Australia continued to implement reforms announced in the 2005-06 Budget, including job capacity assessments and new mutual obligation requirements.

CRS Australia assisted a total of 48,208 job seekers through its Australian Government funded vocational rehabilitation programmes in 2006-07. The programmes comprised 32,445 new job seekers and 1 5,763 job seekers who were already on programmes at the start of the financial year.

All of the job seekers who were assisted in 2006-07 had disabilities. An estimated 26 per cent had mental health conditions as their primary barriers to entering the workforce. Of the 1 1,759 job seekers who were successfully placed in employment, 8,312 (71 per cent) achieved a 13-week employment outcome and more than 50 per cent of those outcomes involved 30 hours or more of work each week. A further 89 job seekers commenced study or apprenticeships.

Developing innovative strategies and service delivery modelsNew strategiesA number of new strategies were implemented during 2006-07 in anticipation of the introduction of partial contestability for vocational rehabilitation services from 1 July 2007. Strategies included:

ensuring that services remain flexible and responsive to local circumstances;

reviewing practices for supporting allied health professionals, to increase their time available for work with job seekers; and

reviewing internal and external benchmarks and performance indicators, to ensure they remained appropriate to drive effective practice and performance.

Agency efficienciesCRS Australia participated actively in portfolio-wide reforms to improve the overall efficiency and effectiveness of government service delivery in 2006-07. This included improvements in purchasing practice, better support for staff in delivering services to communities and more general sharing of better practice approaches.

Arrangements with the Department of Employment and Workplace RelationsCRS Australia maintained its good working relationship with its primary purchaser, DEWR, in 2006-07. Under the new MOU reached with DEWR during the year, CRS Australia retains an estimated 70 per cent of the Australian Government's vocational rehabilitation programme.

In 2006-07, the MOU resulted in new work processes and performance targets, and different funding arrangements. One significant outcome of the MOU is that from 2007-08 the majority of performance targets will enable CRS Australia's performance to be benchmarked with that of other service providers.

CRS Australia staff gained experience in working with the new DEWR funding model and MOU conditions during 2006-07. Significant training was rolled out to ensure staff were appropriately trained to use ES Smartclient, the case management system used by all providers of Australian Government employment services. ES Smartclient will allow staff to track and manage individual cases as job seekers move through CRS Australia programmes. This experience and training, along with strong existing expertise, will mean that CRS Australia staff are well prepared to deliver competitive levels of service when other service providers enter the vocational rehabilitation market from 1 July 2007.

Best practice and knowledge sharingCRS Australia's high-quality service delivery in 2006-07 was underpinned by a strong commitment to lifelong learning and active knowledge sharing.

Eight Networks of Excellence (Communities of Practice) continued to identify, support and promote opportunities to apply best practice and improve effectiveness and efficiency throughout CRS Australia. A range of research and evaluation projects were undertaken in areas such as seasonal employment, participation reporting and exploring vocational options. CRS Australia commenced a trial of the use of webcam technology to improve knowledge sharing across virtual teams.

CRS Australia also completed the development of a business warehouse that integrated the electronic information sources across CRS Australia and external sources into one database, and provided managers with a more flexible reporting tool. The warehouse will be implemented in July 2007 and will provide better management information to inform business operations.

Staff members also completed innovative research in a number of service-related areas, including substance abuse, personal disclosure, work training, administrative support and employment strategies. This research will be used to improve and enhance service delivery strategies to benefit all stakeholders.

CRS Australia staff made a range of presentations at international and national conferences, including meetings of the World Federation of Occupational Therapists, the International Forum on Disability Management, Services for Australian Rural and Remote Allied Health, the International Association for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Allied Professions, ACT Knowledge Management, the Case Management Society of Australia, and the Australasian Pain Society. Staff research papers were published in the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry and the Journal of Rehabilitation.

In January 2007, CRS Australia staff delivered presentations and training on case management, return to work services and the benefits of early intervention to 20 staff from the Malaysian Social Security Organisation, as part of a Malaysian Government initiative on return to work.

Supporting our staff and employing the right peopleAs well as the job seeker survey, which provided highly favourable feedback on staff performance, CRS Australia conducted a poll of 25 per cent of its staff members in 2006-07. The staff survey reported the agency's strengths to be its direct managers, client focus, use of effective methods of communication and the method of rewarding staff for good performance.

The survey results were provided to senior managers, who are using them to identify areas of improvement in each division and functional area. Strategies to implement improvements will be included in relevant business plans.

CRS Australia aims to provide a family-friendly workplace and relevant professional development opportunities for staff. Significant progress was made in 2006-07 to improve attendance rates and ensure that staff members experiencing personal or work tensions had access to support. Specific strategies reduced unplanned absences from 10.40 to 8.40 days per full-time equivalent by the end of June 2007. This significant change is equivalent to having 16 full- time staff now available to work with and support job seekers. CRS Australia also reinvigorated its occupational health and safety management approaches during the year, ensuring safer workplaces.

Extensive development and testing was undertaken in 2006-07 on the new Employee Self Services (ESS) programme that will enable staff to directly undertake leave and banking transactions and review their personnel profiles online. This initiative will result in the automatic processing of over 18,000 leave applications, thus freeing up staff to better support the organisation's workforce. The ESS programme will be fully implemented in 2007-08.

Positive attitude plus CRS Australia professionalism equals successKym Hayward, 33, was working as a chef when he was diagnosed with a cyst in his brain. Surgery was an option, but he faced the possibility of death or the effects of an acquired brain injury as a result. The risk was severe enough for Kym to be advised to say goodbye to his wife and two young children.

Fortunately, Kym survived the surgery, although not without injury. The side effects included slight short-term memory and concentration issues, persistent headaches, balance problems, reduced capacity to use his left hand, fatigue and, initially, social anxiety.

Kym wrote a note of encouragement to himself: 'Life is too short. Live now, not tomorrow and do what you can do today.' Following his own advice, he became an active participant in a vocational rehabilitation programme with CRS Australia, determined to return to his job.

From the outset, Kym's determination, positive attitude and commitment to his goal ensured he was focused on success. 'He never gave in, and did everything that was asked of him and more, ' says Kym's rehabilitation consultant, Leanne O'Leary.

During a graduated return to work, Leanne provided support, advice and information to Kym and his employer. She played a vital role in ensuring both Kym and his employer understood Kym's capabilities.

Kym trusted CRS Australia implicitly, and the outcome was a story of outstanding success. Not only did Kym regain his health and fitness—the further skills and experience he gained through the programme enabled him to continue working as a chef in a great new job.

Kym says, 'Nothing was too much trouble for CRS Australia, I couldn't have done it without them. '

Kym Hayward

Management and accountability

Corporate governanceThis section reports on aspects of CRS Australia's corporate governance arrangements that function within the whole-of-department measures and the Secretary's overall responsibility described in the Overview chapter.

The names and responsibilities of the senior executives of CRS Australia are shown in Figure 13.

Governance frameworkCommitteesA number of committees assist in the effective governance of CRS Australia, as described in Table 11.

AccountabilityThe General Manager of CRS Australia is accountable to the Secretary of DHS for the overall performance of the agency, including its financial and risk management. The General Manager and Secretary meet regularly to ensure effective oversight and early identification of strategic issues. The General Manager attends meetings of the DHS Audit Committee.

The CRS Australia Executive meets with the Secretary of DHS each month to review CRS Australia's performance from a governance perspective, including financial performance and strategic issues.

Table 11 CRS Australia—governance committees

Members Functions Meetings

Executive Committee

General Manager (Chair)

Margaret Carmody Develops and implements CRS Australia's strategic direction and priorities for the future

Fortnightly

Deputy General Manager Corporate

Michael Callan Monitors, reviews and manages progress against CRS Australia's Strategic Directions

Deputy General Managers Service Delivery

Carl Princehorn

Susan Kable

Seeks and responds to staff, job seeker and customer feedback Actively identifies and manages risks Approves national policies

Monitors financial performance and develops remedial action

Strategic and Business Group

General Manager (Chair)

Margaret Carmody Makes decisions on national issues where requested by the Executive, and provides advice and recommendations to the Executive Considers substantial issues relating to business operations

Monitors and provides input to national projects, Communities of Practice (Networks of Excellence) and other internal committees

Every six weeks

Deputy General Managers

Michael Callan

Susan Kable

Carl Princehorn

National Managers Jeremy Gregson

Chris Harvey

Gabriel Herr

Alison Lane

Geoff McInnes

Patricia McAlpine

Divisional Managers

Ademola Bojuwoye

Jan Byers

Peter Davies

Rowena Hodgson

Ian McInnes

Trevor Wilkins

Jacci Young

Chief Financial Officer

Peter Hausknecht

Information Technology Investment Board

General Manager (Chair)

Margaret Carmody Plays a key role in information technology (IT) corporate governance

Quarterly

Deputy General Managers

Michael Callan

Susan Kable

Carl Princehorn

Has a strategic, high-level and financial investment focus on IT

Ensures that IT is strategically aligned to business needs

National Manager Information Technology

Jeremy Gregson Oversees the IT asset replacement strategy Provides leadership in the evaluation and prioritisation of IT projects

Chief Financial Officer

Peter Hausknecht

An external representative

Vipan Mahajan

Risk Management Committee

Deputy General Manager Corporate (Chair)

Michael Callan Sets the direction of, monitors and reviews the risk management, fraud, audit and protective security control environments

Reviews the risk register on a quarterly basis Develops the forward audit programme for Executive consideration

Oversees business continuity management plans and activities

Develops and monitors risk management, fraud, audit and protective security policies and programmes of work

Provides advice and guidance on risk management issues as required

Quarterly

National Manager Information Technology

Jeremy Gregson

National Risk Manager (Agency Security Adviser)

Adam Smith

IT Security Adviser Chris Brookes

A divisional manager

Jacci Young

A regional manager Vacant

Independent representatives from the Core Department and CSA

Ray Gunning Tony Hanrahan

An independent observer

Tony Hoff

Occupational Health and Safety Committee

Divisional Manager (Chair)

Peter Davies Oversees the development of OH&S policies and strategies

Quarterly

National OH&S Advisor

Andrew Lott Oversees the implementation, operation and

Management representative

Janelle Graham review of the CRS Australia OH&S agreement Promotes the concept of a healthy workforce, safe

National Injury Prevention Coordinator

Sharon Leahy work practices and awareness of OH&S to employees

Health and safety representatives

Annie Moller

Sandina Bailey

Sandra Samarin

Krysten Bury

Jaspreet Cowley

Reviews statistics on hazardous incidents, injuries and illnesses related to the work environment and system of work

Promotes efficiency through the reduction of workplace hazards, accidents and injuries and minimising personal and organisational losses Oversees the application of Commonwealth and national OH&S regulations, standards and codes of practice

Note: Details of the Audit Committee for the Core Department, CSA and CRS Australia are shown in Table 4.

Internal scrutinyInternal auditCRS Australia's internal audit and quality assurance processes are used strategically to identify learning and development opportunities, undertake improvements to overall effectiveness and provide assurance of consistency in decision making, in particular as it applies to decisions under the Disability Services Act 1986 and the Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997 (FMA Act).

In 2006-07, extensive work was completed to ensure CRS Australia met new certificate of compliance requirements under the FMA Act. The work included education of managers and delegates, additional

audit processes and certification by managers that processes under their control had been reviewed for compliance. A breach register was established for reporting purposes.

CRS Australia also conducted a number of internal audits and participated in a variety of cross-agency audits, including audits of financial statements.

CRS Australia was again certified through the annual surveillance and certification audit conducted against the Disability Service Standards on behalf of the Department of Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs. No major non-conformities were identified during the audit.

CRS Australia maintains client files and other files that contain a range of personal information, some of which can be of a sensitive nature. CRS Australia has well-developed systems and processes to ensure an appropriate level of privacy is maintained. An internal review conducted in 2006-07 identified scope to improve compliance with privacy best practice, and its recommendations are being implemented.

All managers completed the twice-yearly self-audit package, which assists them to ensure that the business units for which they are responsible comply with relevant statutory and internal policy requirements. Self-audits were undertaken in November 2006 and April 2007.

CRS Australia monitored the publication of new guidelines and whole-of-government Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) audit reports to ensure that compliance and best practice were maintained within the organisation.

Risk managementCRS Australia's risk management plan is informed by risk assessments undertaken across all areas of the organisation, including staff management, business planning, continuity and management of major projects, change processes, and occupational health and safety (OH&S). During 2006-07, a strategic and operational risk assessment was conducted to determine the overall risk profile for CRS Australia and appropriate mitigation strategies were implemented.

As part of the organisation's commitment to continuous improvement, CRS Australia participates in the annual Comcover risk management benchmarking survey to ensure that process and practices reflect relevant legislation and standards. In 2007, CRS Australia obtained an eight out of 10 benchmark rating, which placed the organisation in the top five out of 125 Australian Government agencies covered by Comcover.

The membership and functions of CRS Australia's Risk Management Committee are outlined in Table 11.

Fraud preventionAs part of its responsibility to protect the public interest, CRS Australia maintains a fraud control programme that complies with the FMA Act and the Commonwealth Fraud Control Guidelines.

In 2006-07, the National Fraud Control Plan was reviewed and updated with the endorsement of the DHS Audit Committee. As part of the fraud control programme:

fraud risk assessments and fraud control plans are prepared;

appropriate fraud prevention, detection, correction, investigation and reporting procedures and processes are undertaken by qualified staff;

data on fraud is collected and reported annually; and

all processes and procedures are actively reviewed and, where appropriate, updated in accordance with CRS Australia's continuous improvement strategies.

Ten matters of fraud were investigated during the year with two matters not yet resolved. The other matters involved five external and three internal allegations of fraudulent activity, all of which were thoroughly investigated and reported to the appropriate delegate. Recommendations on appropriate sanctions and prevention strategies were approved and implemented. Where required, the fraud control plan and risk register were also updated.

SecurityCRS Australia's protective security framework is based on detailed risk assessments, security reviews of offices, and assessments of other threats and weaknesses, as required by the Australian Government's Protective Security Manual and the Australian Communications Security Instructions (ACSI 33).

Protective security activities in 2006-07 included a number of reviews of metropolitan and rural service delivery sites. Although no major control weaknesses or material risks were identified by the reviews, a number of recommended additional controls and remediation strategies were implemented.

Management of ethical standardsAll new staff members of CRS Australia receive a copy of the Australian Public Service (APS) Values and Code of Conduct as part of their welcome kit when they begin work. The values and code are reinforced through staff induction training, which is conducted at a national level, and in local presentations to staff by managers.

Managers and other staff are required to follow the APS Values and Code of Conduct both in their delivery of services and in their interactions with each other. Policies and procedures relating to breaches of the code are available to all staff on the CRS Australia intranet—CRSNet.

During 2006-07, there were 10 investigations for breaches of the APS Code of Conduct. Nine staff members were found, on the balance of probabilities, to have breached the APS Code of Conduct and one investigation is still in progress. Some staff members were found to have multiple breaches or were given multiple sanctions. The sanctions imposed were two terminations of employment, five reprimands, and one deduction from salary by way of a fine. No sanction was applied in relation to two staff who were found to have breached the APS Code of Conduct; however, an "other" management action was applied to one of these staff members.

Resolution of complaintsCRS Australia's complaints management process follows a three-tier resolution model. Complaints are made initially at the regional level, and escalated to divisional and national levels as required.

During 2006-07, there were five internal reviews of decisions. One related to a decision to close programmes, and four related to decisions not to waive programme costs. All requests for review were resolved.

The number of internal reviews was 40 per cent lower in 2006-07 than in the 2005-06 reporting period.

External scrutinyUnder the Disability Services Act 1986, a person affected by a decision, or failure to make a decision, of CRS Australia can appeal first to the Secretary of DEWR or their delegate, then to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) if the matter is not resolved to their satisfaction. Amendments to the Act will change review and appeal processes from 1 July 2007.

Administrative Appeals TribunalTwo clients lodged applications for the review of CRS Australia decisions with the AAT in 2006-07. One application was withdrawn and the other is continuing.

Australian National Audit Office

The Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) conducted one audit involving CRS Australia in 2006-07 in addition to the routine audits of the financial statements. This was a follow-up audit examining superannuation for independent contractors. CRS Australia also participated in the ANAO survey of labour hire arrangements.

One finding which arose from the audit of superannuation for independent contractors has been addressed and remediation action has been implemented to ensure best practice is achieved.

Commonwealth OmbudsmanThe Commonwealth Ombudsman's office received 31 inquiries about CRS Australia. Of these, two were investigated and resolved. No deficiencies were found in CRS Australia's administration.

Human Rights and Equal Opportunity CommissionThe Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (HREOC) made one inquiry into a matter related to CRS Australia during 2006-07. The matter was terminated on the grounds that it was misconceived.

CRS Australia was advised by HREOC of a number of other complaints made by one individual, all of which were terminated as being misconceived and/or lacking in substance. The individual has filed applications in the Federal Magistrates Court, naming CRS Australia as one of a number of respondents, as a result of the termination of these complaints.

PeopleStaffing statisticsAt 30 June 2007, CRS Australia employed 2,088 people under the Public Service Act 1999. On average, 2,084 staff were employed over the year, 83 more than in 2005-06. Of these, 86 per cent were ongoing employees and 62 per cent were full-time employees.

Detailed information on staffing is provided in Appendix 1.

Human resource managementAttracting and retaining staffIn 2006-07, CRS Australia built workforce capabilities through targeted recruitment, learning and development activities and coaching. Managers were assisted by a range of information resources, including regular workforce reports on relevant demographic information, staff absences and turnover.

An expression of interest database and portal for prospective and current employees was implemented to increase the pool of candidates for positions. Sessions on attraction and commitment drivers of the different generations of potential and existing employees were delivered at the CRS Australia National Managers' Conference.

To assist CRS Australia in responding to the growth in the number of funded vocational rehabilitation places, a major recruitment campaign was undertaken and a suite of advertising templates for branded recruitment was implemented. The lessons learnt from bulk recruitment exercises were discussed at the biennial National Conference of Services for Australian Rural and Remote Allied Health (SARRAH).

As part of its management of workforce capability, CRS Australia also participated in the Australian Public Service Commission (APSC) Absence Management Working Party, the DHS Absence Management Committee, the Workers' Compensation Premium Reduction Working Group and a DHS reference group examining superannuation choice of funds.

CRS Australia successfully implemented a range of strategies to reduce unplanned leave to levels below the APS median of 8.90 unplanned leave days per employee. As a result absences were reduced from 10.40 days per full-time equivalent in 2005-06 to 8.40 in 2006-07, a reduction of 19 per cent.

A range of commitments made in relation to the Certified Agreement 2005-08 were advanced in 2006-07. Extensive resources were applied to the review of workforce policies to ensure consistency and better practice. Work progressed on both a mature-aged worker policy and an overall workforce plan. These initiatives focus on attracting and retaining essential workforce elements to enable services to be provided to meet customer requirements. The increasingly tight market for allied health workers has required more active attraction and retention strategies; CRS Australia will continue to do work in these areas in 2007-08.

Promoting a safe and supportive workplaceAs part of the broader DHS initiative, CRS Australia joined with the Core Department and Child Support Agency in a commitment to implement strategies to meet the national OH&S and rehabilitation performance improvement targets. Those strategies include:

senior management commitment to improved practice;

pre-management information for all managers;

induction training encompassing OH&S;

manager training on early intervention in response to signs of stress; and

integration of OH&S with organisational risk and business management.

Through those strategies, and under the guidance of its new National OH&S Committee, CRS Australia reinvigorated its approach to OH&S during the year.

Appendix 7 provides more details of OH&S performance in 2006-07.

RemunerationCertified agreementAt 30 June 2007, 1,977 staff were employed under CRS Australia's Certified Agreement 2005-08.

Salary ranges for employees under the certified agreement are set out in Appendix 1.

The certified agreement provides for continued productivity gains and affordability, achieved through a shared commitment to improving the organisation's performance, productivity and work environment. This involves reviewing and improving practices and procedures, and gaining efficiencies through innovation and simplification. An element of salary increase is directly related to both productivity and performance.

Australian Workplace AgreementsCRS Australia offered Australian Workplace Agreements (AWAs) to both existing and new staff in 2006-07. As at 30 June 2007, there were 111 employees employed under AWAs.

The salary ranges of CRS Australia staff covered by AWAs are set out in Appendix 1.

Performance payThe Performance Achievement System is designed to align each individual employee's results, behaviour and development with the organisational and team objectives critical to the achievement of CRS Australia's goals. A three-point rating scale is used, and only those staff who achieve the top rating are eligible for performance pay.

The performance bonuses paid in 2006-07 for performance during the 2005-06 financial year are set out in Table 12.

Learning and development

In 2006-07, learning and development activities focused on strengthening CRS Australia's effectiveness and on training staff to meet the DEWR MOU requirements.

Table 12 CRS Australia—performance pay for 2005-06

Level Staff eligible Staff paid Amount paid ($) Average ($)

SES 4 3 28,079 9,360

EL 2 15 7 33,247 4,750

EL 1 120 39 126,013 3,231

APS levels 1-6 1,826 553 936,782 1,694

Total 1,965 602 1,124,121 1,867

APS = Australian Public Service; EL = Executive Level; SES = Senior Executive Service

New practice resources were developed, based on internal and international best practice, focusing on the nature of welfare reform and the increasing complexity of job seekers' needs. Staff completed extensive learning and development activities in the areas of expert assessments, employment strategies and ensuring compliance with purchaser requirements. Other priorities included developing facilitation and coaching skills for rehabilitation consultants and building Administrative Service Officer capability.

Human resource capabilities were also built through participation in projects and committees with other Human Services agencies, professional conferences and seminars, training with the Australian Human Resource Institute and the Australian Public Service Commission (APSC), and participation in other human resources professional development programmes.

In total, 879 staff (34 per cent) benefited from internal learning and development activities and computer-based training for staff learning to use the new DEWR vocational rehabilitation modules.

Evaluations of the effectiveness of training, including post-course feedback from participants, feedback from managers and surveys, inform the ongoing development and improvement of courses.

Workplace diversityIn 2006-07, CRS Australia developed its Workplace Diversity Plan 2007-10. The plan was developed with input from staff and stakeholders. CRS Australia recognises that having a talented and diverse workforce is a key competitive advantage and critical to meeting the needs of the community in which the organisation operates. The objectives of the plan are to provide a culture where diversity is valued and to encourage people from diverse backgrounds to work in CRS Australia.

CRS Australia continued to participate in the DHS Indigenous Employment Taskforce, which oversaw the development of both the CRS Australia Indigenous Employment Strategy and the CRS Australia Reconciliation Plan. These plans can be accessed online at www.crsaustralia.gov.au. CRS Australia's strategies aimed at increasing its proportion of Indigenous employees included participation in the APSC Indigenous graduate, cadet and traineeship programmes, and support mechanisms to improve retention of the Indigenous Australians already employed. CRS Australia recruited four Indigenous cadets who are studying to be allied health professionals.

Under the auspices of the taskforce, Indigenous employees attended conferences, and cross-cultural awareness training was delivered to many staff. CRS Australia participated in special Indigenous employment events and took part in advertisements promoting the Human Services Portfolio as an employer of choice for Indigenous Australians.

ResourcesFinancial managementCRS Australia continued to show a strong financial performance in 2006-07. Over the year this enabled growth in delivery of services, investment in additional staff and implementation of improved infrastructure.

CRS Australia is now in full compliance with the Australian Equivalents to International Financial Reporting Standards, and both its 2006-07 closing balances and its 2005-06 comparatives were calculated on this basis.

CRS Australia continued to adhere to its systematic internal budgeting and reporting framework. Each manager received timely management information on financial performance. In 2006-07, CRS Australia developed a forecasting tool for all cost centres that will help the organisation to manage its financial performance more effectively.

CRS Australia processed more than 50,000 invoices, worth more than $60 million, in 2006-07. These invoices were handled by a centralised accounts processing area with the assistance of a distributed administrative and financial officer network. High standards for the timely payment of vendors, including small businesses, were maintained, with more than 99 per cent of payments being made within 30 days. CRS Australia achieved this by ensuring sound working relationships with business partners.

Consultants and services contractorsDuring 2006-07, CRS Australia entered into 14 new consultancy contracts to the value of $10,000 or more, involving total actual expenditure of $395,000. In addition, 13 ongoing consultancy contracts were active during the year. Total actual expenditure on all consultancies was $938,000.

Consultants were engaged to provide specialist services where skills were not available in-house or where an independent and impartial view from outside CRS Australia was required.

Detailed information on consultancy contracts is provided in Appendix 4.

Information on expenditure on contracts and consultancies is also available on the AusTender website, www.tenders.gov.au

Office accommodationCRS Australia's national service delivery network consists of 177 permanent offices, with over 40 per cent of sites located in rural and remote Australia. Business support operations take place within the national office in Canberra and divisional offices in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide. CRS Australia seeks to locate service delivery outlets conveniently for clients, close to Centrelink offices, transport systems and other community facilities.

There were 12 moves and three major refits during 2006-07. Two new offices were opened, in Marrickville, New South Wales, and Northbridge, Western Australia. Twelve existing offices were relocated, in most cases with expanded capability, within the communities they serve. Partial refits were undertaken at a further five existing offices to improve facilities and enhance service delivery capabilities.

Purchasing

CRS Australia complied with the Commonwealth Procurement Guidelines and DHS Procurement Guidelines in developing and implementing purchasing decisions during 2006-07.

Asset managementCRS Australia's asset management decisions in 2006-07 were driven by business requirements and took life-cycle costs, benefits and risks into consideration.

Table 13 CRS Australia fixed assets at 30 June 2007

Asset class Write-down ($) Write-up or offset previous reserve ($)

Net effect ($)

Personal computers 844,105 14,862 829,243

Office equipment 42,014 -11,806 53,820

General equipment 26,177 -19,287 45,464

Other computer equipment 553,879 52,132 501,747

Leasehold improvement 493,935 1,492,171 -998,236

Furniture and fittings 36,329 -24,975 61,304

Total 1,996,439 1,503,097 493,342

A stocktake of assets, which confirmed the location and the condition of each asset, was undertaken in March 2007. All asset holdings are reviewed annually to ensure cost-effectiveness and whole-of-life utilisation. Depreciation/amortisation rates are also reviewed annually and necessary adjustments are recognised in current and future reporting periods.

In November 2006, a revaluation of all fixed assets, excluding land and buildings, was completed. The approach was to allow for the reinstatement of an asset on the basis of an estimated retail cost excluding GST and any allowance for discounts. The revaluation was carried out on a single asset basis (that is, not by asset class). The results are summarised in Table 13. The accounting impact of the variations is detailed in the Financial Statements in this annual report.

Knowledge managementCRS Australia's knowledge management strategies in 2006-07 included:

the quality assurance and improvement programme, which integrates the elements of best practice quality models, including maintaining quality service delivery practices and contributing to the continuous improvement cycle;

the CRS Australia intranet, which provides access to policy, practices and procedures, and supports discussion groups and chat rooms;

an organisational library, which supports case management, organisational research, and the communities of practice;

an active programme of research, evaluation and innovation;

learning and development and coaching strategies;

the eight Networks of Excellence (Communities of Practice);

the Business Warehouse initiative, which integrates CRS Australia's data systems to provide more accessible management information; and

a project with the National Archives of Australia to develop and implement a record-keeping system.

Purchaser-provider arrangementsIn 2006-07, CRS Australia had significant purchaser-provider arrangements in place with the Australian Government departments of Employment and Workplace Relations; Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs; Human Services; Education, Science and Training; and Veterans' Affairs.

Further performance information for CRS Australia is reported in the annual reports of those departments.

Outlook

Service deliveryThere will be some refinements to CRS Australia's MOU with DEWR in 2007-08. Changes in the mix of job seekers referred to CRS Australia are also expected to occur, when new participation requirements are introduced for recipients of parenting payments.

Strategies responding to feedback received in 2006-07 will be implemented with the aim of ensuring that CRS Australia remains relevant in the broader market, delivers on its promises, and grows and diversifies its revenue base.

CRS Australia's Service Charter will be reviewed in 2007-08 to ensure that it continues to meet the needs of service recipients and applies better practice.

CRS Australia will continue to work with communities, employers and job seekers to achieve mutually beneficial and sustainable outcomes.

StaffIn 2007-08, CRS Australia will implement human resource management and development strategies drawing on internal and external evidence of best practice. These strategies are directed towards ensuring CRS Australia is successful, sustainable and profitable by:

acknowledging that people are at the heart of CRS Australia's activities, and their engagement and development are key to CRS Australia, success and cannot be compromised;

recognising that CRS Australia's success depends on its ability to identify and respond to influences that shape the way work is done; and

continuing to encourage and support social and environmental responsibility.

The implementation of the Employee Self Services programme in the new financial year will provide automated processing of leave and personal details for staff, improving staff access to payroll services.

Risk managementTo position the organisation for a strong and sustainable future in an increasingly commercial environment, CRS Australia will also implement strategies to manage risks and enhance its demand management and financial management capabilities.

Financial StatementsAPPENDICESAppendix 1 Staffing statisticsThis appendix provides statistics on staff, including numbers, gender, locations and salaries, as stipulated in the Requirements for annual reports for departments, executive agencies and FMA Act bodies.

Core DepartmentTables A1.1 to A1.3 contain summary information on the Core Department's actual staffing, not including seconded staff. All staff of the Core Department were employed in the Australian Capital Territory.

All ongoing and non-ongoing staff of the Core Department are covered by Australian Workplace Agreements.

Table A1.1 Core Department—staff employed, by classification, gender and employment status, at 30 June 2007

Female Male

TotalPart-time Full-time Part-time Full-time

Secretary 1 1

Senior Executive Service Band 3

1 1 2

Senior Executive Service Band 2

4 5 9

Senior Executive Service Band 1

11 11 22

Executive Level 2 1 36 1 28 66

Executive Level 1 3 28 21 52

Australian Public Service Level 6

3 15 9 27

Australian Public Service Level 5

1 12 4 17

Australian Public Service Level 4

13 1 3 17

Female Male

TotalPart-time Full-time Part-time Full-time

Australian Public Service Level 3

3 3

Total 8 124 2 82 216

Table A1.2 Core Department—non-ongoing staff employed, by classification, gender and employment status, at 30 June 2007

Female Male

TotalPart-time Full-time Part-time Full-time

Senior Executive Service Band 1

1 1

Executive Level 1 1 1

Australian Public Service Level 6

1 1

Australian Public Service Level 5

2 1 3

Australian Public Service Level 4

6 2 8

Total 2 8 4 14

Table A1.3 Core Department—standard salary ranges at 30 June 2007

Minimum ($) Maximum ($)

Senior Executive Service Band 2 and Band 3

135,200 194,688

Senior Executive Service Band 1 108,160 129,424

Executive Level 2 93,342 106,429

Executive Level 1 77,226 88,475

Australian Public Service Level 6 62,408 72,035

Australian Public Service Level 5 56,351 59,812

Minimum ($) Maximum ($)

Australian Public Service Level 4 50,727 54,080

Australian Public Service Level 3 45,103 48,456

Notes: Median figures are not provided as they would allow the remuneration of individuals to be identified.

Child Support AgencyTables A1.4 to A1.8 contain summary information about the Child Support Agency's actual staffing.

Table A1.4 CSA—staff employed, by location, gender and employment status, at 30 June 2007

Female Male

Location Full-time Part-time Full-time Part-time Total

SES Band 3 National office

1 1

SES Band 2 National office

3 2 5

SES Band 1 National office

7 1 8 16

NSW/ACT 1 1 2

Qld 1 1

Vic./Tas. 2 2

WA 1 1

Executive Level 2

National office

35 4 32 71

NSW/ACT 6 3 9

Qld. 2 4 1 7

SA/NT 1 1

Vic./Tas 5 4 9

WA 1 1

Female Male

Location Full-time Part-time Full-time Part-time Total

Executive Level 1

National office

110 14 76 2 202

NSW/ACT 29 3 6 38

Qld. 9 3 12 25

SA/NT 7 1 1 9

Vic./Tas 17 4 12 33

WA 12 1 6 19

APS 6 National office

86 20 42 1 149

NSW/ACT 92 14 24 130

Qld. 69 8 24 1 102

SA/NT 22 2 8 32

Vic./Tas 79 14 34 127

WA 27 4 16 47

APS 5 National office

55 3 20 1 79

NSW/ACT 80 24 37 1 142

Qld. 65 12 22 2 101

SA/NT 33 3 8 44

Vic./Tas 74 15 28 1 118

WA 36 11 10 1 58

APS 4 National office

34 3 16 53

NSW/ACT 176 74 50 4 304

Female Male

Location Full-time Part-time Full-time Part-time Total

Qld. 116 27 45 3 191

SA/NT 29 6 11 46

Vic./Tas 163 54 57 10 284

WA 37 20 19 2 78

APS 3 National office

15 3 18

NSW/ACT 264 72 94 6 436

Qld. 191 28 66 3 288

SA/NT 85 9 37 131

Vic./Tas 217 61 117 6 401

WA 91 13 36 2 142

APS 2 NSW/ACT 4 4 6 14

Qld. 7 5 6 1 19

SA/NT 3 2 2 7

Vic./Tas 4 3 7 14

WA 1 1 2 1 5

APS 1 National office

0

NSW/ACT 1 1

Qld. 0

SA/NT 1 1

Vic./Tas 4 4

WA 1 1

Female Male

Location Full-time Part-time Full-time Part-time Total

APS Trainee National office

1 1

Qld 3 3

Vic./Tas. 1 1

APS Cadet NSW/ACT 1 1 2

Qld 1 1

Vic./Tas. 1 1

Total 2,408 545 1,025 50 4,028

APS = Australian Public Service Level, EL = Executive Level, SES = Senior Executive Service Band

Table A1.5 CSA—Actual non-ongoing staff employed, by classification, gender and location, at 30 June 2007

Classification Region

Female Male

TotalPart-time Full-time Part-time Full-time

SES Band 1 National office

1 1

Executive Level 2

National office

1 2 3

Executive Level 1

National office

9 2 6 1 18

APS 6 National office

3 2 2 2 9

APS 5 National office

6 1 3 10

Vic. /Tas. 1 1

APS 4 National office

6 1 7

APS 3 National 5 3 8

Classification Region

Female Male

TotalPart-time Full-time Part-time Full-time

office

Qld 3 2 5

Vic. /Tas. 5 1 6

WA 12 2 14

APS 2 Vic. /Tas. 10 1 3 14

WA 7 1 2 10

APS 1 National office

1 2 3

Grand Total 69 7 30 3 109

APS = Australian Public Service Level, EL = Executive Level, SES = Senior Executive Service Band

Table A1.6 CSA—staff employed under Australian Workplace Agreements and certified agreement at 30 June 2007

Australian Workplace Agreement

Certified agreement

Senior Executive Service 19 0

Non-Senior Executive Service 261 3,857

Total 280 3,857

Table A1.7 CSA—certified agreement salary ranges at 30 June 2007

Minimum ($) Maximum ($)

Executive Level 2a 84,572 84,572

Executive Level 1 74,909 80,890

APS Level 6/CSO Level 6 59,888 67,125

APS Level 5/CSO Level 5 54,102 57,995

APS Level 4/CSO Level 4 48,508 53,253

Minimum ($) Maximum ($)

APS Level 3/CSO Level 3 43,521 46,972

Graduate APS 43,521 43,521

APS Level 2/CSO Level 2 39,260 42,373

APS Level 1/CSO Level 1 34,897 37,475

APS = Australian Public Service, CSO = Customer Service Officer

a Temporary performance—the certified agreement applies to classifications up to EL1; permanent EL2s are covered by individual AWAs.

Table A1.8 CSA—Australian Workplace Agreement salary ranges at 30 June 2007

Minimum ($) Maximum ($)

Senior Executive Service Band 2 and Band 3

140,000 200,000

Senior Executive Service Band 1 115,000 135,000

Executive Level 2 92,986 111,051

Executive Level 1 78,655 89,114

Note: A remuneration band does not apply to employees on Indigenous Cadet Australian Workplace Agreements. Remuneration consists of an annual allowance and pro rata salary depending on the length of the work placement.

CRS AustraliaTables A1.9 to A1.15 contain summary information on CRS Australia's actual staffing. They are not directly comparable to the corresponding tables in the Annual Report 2005-06, which recorded substantive staffing figures.

Table A1.9 CRS Australia—ongoing staff employed, by gender and employment status, at 30 June 2007

Female Male

TotalPart-time Full-time Part-time Full-time

Senior Executive Service Band 2a

0 1 0 1 2

Senior Executive Service Band 1

0 1 0 1 2

Female Male

TotalPart-time Full-time Part-time Full-time

Executive Level 2A 0 0 0 2 2

Executive Level 2B 1 6 0 10 17

Executive Level 1 15 56 0 49 120

Rehabilitation Consultant Level 2

432 450 24 102 1,008

Rehabilitation Consultant Level 1

24 83 1 14 122

Australian Public Service Level 6

7 24 1 21 53

Australian Public Service Level 5

24 34 5 31 94

Australian Public Service Level 4

25 56 2 20 103

Australian Public Service Level 3

29 69 0 7 105

Australian Public Service Level 2

72 79 1 4 156

Australian Public Service Level 1

3 5 0 1 9

Australian Public Service Cadet

0 4 0 0 4

Total 632 868 34 263 1,797

Note: Totals include 37.06 per cent part-time staff.

a SES Band 2 nominal occupant on leave at 30 June 2007.

Table A1.10 CRS Australia—-ongoing staff employed, by location and employment status, at 30 June 2007

NSW Vic Qld WA SA Tas. ACT NT

PT FT PT FT PT FT PT FT PT FT PT FT PT FT PT FT

SES 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0

SES 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0

EL 2A 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0

EL 2B 0 5 1 4 0 3 0 1 0 2 0 0 0 1 0 0

EL 1 2 26 4 20 3 28 2 6 2 10 0 3 2 10 0 2

RC 2 160 197 120 94 75 115 39 51 40 59 13 15 6 10 3 11

RC 1 10 28 3 11 4 16 3 14 5 21 0 5 0 0 0 2

APS 6 0 6 1 6 4 20 1 1 0 3 0 0 2 9 0 0

APS 5 13 14 5 22 3 8 3 6 2 2 2 4 1 7 0 2

APS 4 13 14 2 12 6 25 3 6 1 7 0 3 2 8 0 1

APS 3 16 21 10 18 2 20 0 2 0 5 0 0 1 8 0 2

APS 2 38 27 9 14 8 16 8 9 4 14 5 3 0 0 1 0

APS 1 0 2 1 2 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0

APS Cadet

0 0 0 0 0 2 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0

Total 252 340 156 204 106 254 60 97 54 125 20 33 14 58 4 20

APS = Australian Public Service Level, EL = Executive Level FT = full-time, PT = part-time, RC = Rehabilitation Consultant Level, SES = Senior Executive Service Band

Table A1.11 CRS Australia—non-ongoing staff employed, by gender and employment status, at 30 June 2007

Female Male

TotalPart-time Full-time Part-time Full-time

Executive Level 1 0 0 1 1 2

Rehabilitation Consultant Level 2

35 24 2 7 68

Rehabilitation Consultant Level 1

11 45 1 11 68

Australian Public Service Level 6

1 1 0 0 2

Australian Public Service Level 5

5 3 2 3 13

Australian Public Service Level 4

5 9 2 6 22

Australian Public Service Level 3

11 17 0 2 30

Australian Public Service Level 2

35 24 2 4 65

Australian Public Service Level 1

12 7 1 1 21

Total 115 130 11 35 291

Note: Totals include 43.30 per cent part-time and irregular/intermittent staff

Table A1.12 CRS Australia—non-ongoing staff employed, by location and employment status, at 30 June 2007

NSW Vic Qld WA SA Tas. ACT NT

PT FT PT FT PT FT PT FT PT FT PT FT PT FT PT FT

EL 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

RC 2 13 7 11 12 8 7 2 2 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 1

RC 1 1 17 6 10 1 15 3 5 0 2 0 3 0 0 1 4

APS 6 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

APS 5 2 3 3 1 0 1 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

APS 4 5 4 0 1 1 7 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 2 0 0

APS 3 2 5 3 3 4 7 0 1 1 3 0 0 1 0 0 0

APS 2 8 8 12 5 8 6 0 2 7 4 0 2 1 1 1 0

APS 1 5 5 1 0 2 2 4 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

APS Cadet

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Total 37 49 36 34 24 45 11 12 11 11 1 6 4 3 2 5

APS = Australian Public Service Level, EL = Executive Level, FT = full-time, PT = part-time, RC = Rehabilitation Consultant Level

Table A1.13 CRS Australia—certified agreement salary ranges at 30 June 2007

Minimum ($) Maximum ($)

Executive Level 2A $99,917 $99,917

Executive Level 2B $83,696 $96,627

Executive Level 1 $72,414 $79,933

Rehabilitation Consultant Level 2 $57,165 $68,925

Rehabilitation Consultant Level 1 $43,522 $56,661

Australian Public Service Level 6 $57,165 $66,274

Australian Public Service Level 5 $52,450 $56,661

Australian Public Service Level 4 $47,119 $52,108

Australian Public Service Level 3 $42,283 $46,416

Australian Public Service Level 2 $37,075 $41,864

Australian Public Service Level 1 $32,860 $36,804

Table A1.14 CRS Australia—staff employed under Australian Workplace Agreements and certified agreement at 30 June 2007

Australian Workplace Agreements

Certified agreement

Senior Executive Service 4 0

Executive Level 2 18 1

Executive Level 1 74 48

Australian Public Service levels 1-6 15 1,928

Table A1.15 CRS Australia—Australian Workplace Agreement salary ranges at 30 June 2007

Minimum ($) Maximum ($)

SES Band 1 and Band 2 $108,160 $158,000

Executive Level 2A $97,957 $100,887

Executive Level 2B $83,696 $100,000

Executive Level 1 $70,304 $80,793

Rehabilitation Consultant Level 2 $57,165 $73,655

Rehabilitation Consultant Level 1 $43,522 $56,661

Australian Public Service Level 6 $57,165 $70,000

Australian Public Service Level 5 $52,450 $57,211

Australian Public Service Level 4 $47,119 $56,661

Australian Public Service Level 3 $42,283 $46,416

Australian Public Service Level 2 $37,075 $41,864

Australian Public Service Level 1 $32,860 $36,804

Appendix 2 Freedom of informationSection 8 of the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the FOI Act) requires each Australian Government department or agency to publish a statement setting out its roles, structure and functions, its arrangements for persons outside the organisation to participate in policy making or implementation, the documents it has available for public inspection, and the procedures for gaining access to those documents. This appendix, in conjunction with information in the body of the annual report, meets those requirements.

Annual statistics on the handling of freedom of information (FOI) requests by Australian Government departments and agencies are reported on the website of the Attorney- General's Department, www.ag.gov.au.

Arrangements for outside participationThe Department of Human Services is open to the views of non-Australian Government organisations or members of the community and provides opportunities to contribute to the development of policy and the implementation of that policy. A non-Australian Government organisation or a person interested in participating in the core Department's formulation of policy or development of programmes to implement a policy should write to the Minister for Human Services or the Secretary of the Department of Human Services.

Core Department

Procedures and contact pointsContact officers at the Core Department can advise on FOI matters and discuss the nature and scope of an intended request.

A request to the core Department for access to documents under the FOI Act must be in writing, should enclose a $30 application fee and should state an address in Australia to which notices can be sent.

In certain circumstances, the fee is not required or can be remitted.

FOI inquiries relating to the Core Department may be addressed to:

FOI Contact Officer

Department of Human Services

PO Box 3959

Manuka ACT 2603

Phone: 1300 55 44 79

Fax: 02 6223 4499

Categories of documentsThe Core Department holds:

internal administration papers and records;

ministerial, interdepartmental and general correspondence and papers;

policy documents, including recommendations and decisions;

requests for legal advice and copies or notes of advice given, and other legal documents;

papers relating to new and amending legislation, drafting instructions and draft legislation;

media releases;

copies of text of various public addresses;

briefing papers prepared for the Minister for Human Services;

records of Cabinet matters, including Cabinet submissions and Cabinet minutes;

records prepared for the Executive Council;

documents that relate to the Core Department's specific functions—for example, finance;

manuals, instructions and guidelines for staff;

reports relating to research and investigations; and

tender documents.

Child Support Agency

Procedures and contact pointsA request to CSA for access to documents under the FOI Act must be in writing, should enclose a $30 application fee and should state an address in Australia to which notices can be sent. In certain circumstances, the fee is not required or can be remitted.

Where people seek documents containing their own personal information, CSA follows informal guidelines that eliminate the need for a formal FOI application in most cases.

General FOI information for the Child Support Agency (CSA) is available from the website at www.csa.gov.au or from any CSA office or regional service centre.

Contact details for CSA offices and regional service centres can be accessed from the website or by telephoning 131 272. FOI enquiries and application relating to CSA may be addressed to:

Victoria & Tasmania

FOI Contact Officer

Child Support Agency

GPO Box 9815

Melbourne VIC 3001

Phone: 03 9659 5188

Fax: 03 9659 5854

Queensland

FOI Contact Officer

Child Support Agency

PO Box 9815

Brisbane QLD 4001

Phone: 07 3001 4151

Phone: 07 3001 4160

Fax: 07 3001 4391

Western Australia

FOI Contact Officer

Child Support Agency

PO Box 9815

Perth WA 6848

Phone: 08 9338 2584

Fax: 08 9338 2899

New South Wales & Australian Capital Territory

FOI Contact Officer

Child Support Agency

PO Box 474

Newcastle NSW 2300

Phone: 02 4908 7561

Fax: 02 4908 7873

South Australia & Northern Territory

FOI Contact Officer

Child Support Agency

PO Box 9815

Adelaide SA 5001

Phone: 08 8112 1876

Fax: 08 81 12 1854

Categories of documentsCSA holds:

ministerial, interdepartmental and general correspondence;

CSA legislation and policy documents and procedural instructions;

proposals for legislation, drafting instructions and draft legislation;

copies of instruments of delegation or authorisation given to, or by, the Child Support Registrar and regional registrars;

transcripts of proceedings before courts and tribunals;

financial reports, expenditure estimates and expenditure reports;

statistical reports detailing the number of child support cases, assessments issued and amounts collected;

accounting records;

speeches by senior agency officers, media releases and press clippings; and

the CSA business plan.

Public access to documentsCSA makes child support forms, brochures and booklets freely available to the public. Free copies of policy guidelines, procedural instructions, rulings and determinations are also available. Many of these documents are available at www.csa.gov.au.

CRS Australia

Procedures and contact pointsA request to CRS Australia for access to documents under the FOI Act must be in writing, should enclose a $30 application fee and should state an address in Australia to which notices can be sent. In certain circumstances, the fee is not required or can be remitted.

To enable a prompt response, the applicant should provide as much information as possible about the documents they are seeking. It is also advisable for the applicant to include a telephone number or an email address to allow officers handling their request to contact them if clarification is needed. Applicants may be liable to pay charges at rates prescribed by the Freedom of Information (Fees and Charges) Regulations.

Where people seek documents containing their own information, CRS Australia follows informal guidelines that eliminate the need for a formal FOI application in most cases. An informal request for access to documents can be made either verbally or in writing to the relevant rehabilitation consultant.

Information sheets outlining the FOI application process and the general release process are available for potential applicants. CRS Australia officers who can advise on FOI matters and discuss the nature and scope of an intended request can be contacted through the FOI Coordinator, whose contact details are below.

Formal requests for access should be sent to:

The FOI Coordinator

CRS Australia

PO Box 2691

Sydney NSW 2001

Phone: 02 9242 4852

Fax: 02 9242 4855

Categories of documentsCRS Australia holds:

briefs, submissions and reports;

administration documents from areas such as human resources, finance, property management and resource management;

documents relating to the provision of CRS Australia rehabilitation services, individual case files and papers;

separate records of management meetings, such as agendas and minutes;

general correspondence and associated categories of documents according to subject matter;

documents, maintained separately, which relate to specific functions;

ministerial, interdepartmental and general correspondence;

internal administration papers;

CRS Australia policy documents;

copies of instruments of delegation;

requests for legal advice and copies of notes and advice given;

briefing papers prepared for ministers, and answers to parliamentary questions;

training materials;

FOI request files and papers relevant to the consideration of those requests; and

financial reports, expenditure estimates and expenditure reports.

Public access to documentsCRS Australia makes brochures and pamphlets freely available to the public. Free copies of the service charter, code of conduct and the mental health and acquired brain injury kits are also available.

Many of these documents are available at www.crsaustralia.gov.au

Appendix 3 Advertising and market researchSection 311A of the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 requires the annual report of each Australian Government department or agency to include a statement setting out particulars of all amounts paid by, or on behalf of, the department or agency during the financial year to advertising agencies, market research organisations, polling organisations, direct mail organisations and/or media advertising organisations. For the 2006-07 financial year, particulars of payments of value less than $10,300 (inclusive of GST) are not required. This appendix meets those requirements.

Table A3.1 Core Department—payments for advertising and market research

Advertising agencies

Payee Purpose Amount

Eardrum To provide radio advertising services for the drought assistance campaign and Access Card campaign

$86,787

George Patterson Y&R To provide creative advertising services for the drought assistance campaign and Access Card campaign

$764,003

Grey Worldwide Pty Ltd

To purchase creative advertising services for the Medicare Easyclaim campaign

$327,533

Universal McCann To purchase advertising space for the drought assistance campaign and Access Card campaign

$4,037,992

Market research organisations

Payee Purpose Amount

Blue Moon Research and Planning Pty Ltd

To undertake market research for the Medicare Easyclaim campaign

$578,503

Open Mind Research Group

To undertake market research for the drought assistance campaign

$325,990

Orima Research To undertake market research for the Access Card campaign

$1,076,399

Polling organisations

Payee Purpose Amount

Nil Nil Nil

Direct mail organisations

Payee Purpose Amount

Solutions Marketing and Research Pty Ltd

To conduct direct mail for the drought assistance campaign $143,200

Media advertising organisations

Payee Purpose Amount

hma Blaze To provide employment and tender advertising $291,313

Table A3.2 CSA—payments for advertising and market research

Advertising agencies

Payee Purpose Amount

Universal McCann To communicate phase 1 of the Child Support Scheme reforms

$3,260,687

Market research organisations

Payee Purpose Amount

Blue Moon Research and Planning

To conduct a market evaluation of an additional publication in the Me and My series of support booklets

$20,727

Chat Link and Associates

To conduct a professionalism survey $39,550

Client Wise Pty Ltd To provide monthly and quarterly Clients Having a Say reports

$69,520

Colmar Brunton Social Research Australia

To conduct research to gain feedback on the proposed changes to CSAonline

$55,200

Hitwise To analyse customer internet behaviour $90,000

mediascape To conduct a 12-month tracking study to evaluate media response to CSA initiatives, legislation reforms and new service delivery arrangements

$60,000

Millward Brown Voice Box recording (quarterly analysis) $30,909

Open Mind Research Group

To evaluate the Child Support Scheme reforms communication campaign

$166,486

Open Mind Research Group

To evaluate and make recommendations for the development of new products for teenagers from separated families

$50,000

The Value Creation Group

To evaluate customer preferences for service delivery $158,556

Polling organisations

Payee Purpose Amount

Nil Nil Nil

Direct mail organisations

Payee Purpose Amount

Rothfield Print Management

To provide storage, distribution and printing services for CSA bulk publications (including management of the CSA 1800 call centre service and CSA Webmaster order service)

$885,000

Salmat To manage document distribution (including CSA customers' monthly statements)

$2,482,238

Media advertising organisations

Payee Purpose Amount

Google To provide links to CSAonline website (three-month trial) $30,000

hma Blaze To place recruitment advertising (national and regional) $1,176,909

hma Blaze To place non-campaign, non-recruitment advertising $277,000

Telstra White Pages To place advertising in the 2007 White Pages directory (capital cities, regional directories and Telstra White Pages online)

$448,835

Table A3.3 CRS Australia—payments for advertising and market research

Advertising agencies

Payee Purpose Amount

Nil Nil Nil

Market research organisations

Payee Purpose Amount

Fenton Communications

To develop, design and market test publications targeted to employers

$21,800

Fenton Communications

To research, assess and make recommendations on how to improve CRS Australia's communications, particularly publications

$30,500

Market Solutions To conduct a stakeholder survey $86,557

Polling organisations

Payee Purpose Amount

Nil Nil Nil

Direct mail organisations

Payee Purpose Amount

Nil Nil Nil

Media advertising organisations

Payee Purpose Amount

hma Blaze To place recruitment advertising $244,879

Australian Public Service Commission

To place recruitment advertising in the Australian Public Service Gazette

$21,564

Seek To place recruitment advertising on www.seek.com.au $18,750

hma Blaze To place non-campaign, non-recruitment advertising in newspapers

$14,462

Sensis To place advertising in local, regional and metropolitan Yellow Pages directories

$95,312

Telstra To place advertising in White Pages directories $70,451

Appendix 4 Use of consultants and service contractorsUnder the Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997, Australian Government departments and agencies are required to describe their policies for the selection and engagement of consultants, and to publish details of all contracts let during the reporting year to the value of $10,000 or more in their annual reports. This appendix, in conjunction with information in the body of the annual report, meets those requirements.

PrinciplesThe Portfolio Department of Human Services (DHS) follows the Commonwealth Procurement Guidelines and adheres to the principle of achieving value for money by:

encouraging competition by ensuring non-discrimination in procurement and pursuing competitive procurement processes;

promoting the efficient, effective and ethical use of resources; and

making decisions in an accountable and transparent manner.

The use of consultants by DHS also reflects the department-wide principles of:

alignment with government strategic direction;

innovation;

consultation with Human Services agencies to capitalise on purchasing; and

access by the Core Department and Human Services agencies to each other's contracts, where appropriate.

Selection processesThe tables in this appendix note the selection process used for each contract in 2006-07. The Commonwealth Procurement Guidelines allow consultancies to be procured through four types of selection process:

open tender—a procurement procedure in which a request for tender is published inviting all businesses that satisfy the conditions for participation to submit tenders. Public tenders are sought from the marketplace using national and major metropolitan newspaper advertising and the Australian Government AusTender internet site;

select tender—a procurement procedure in which the procuring agency selects which potential suppliers are invited to submit tenders. Tenders are invited from a short list of competent suppliers;

direct sourcing—a form of restricted tendering, available only under certain defined circumstances, with a single potential supplier or suppliers being invited to bid because of their unique expertise and/or their special ability to supply the goods and/or services sought; and

panel—an arrangement under which a number of suppliers, usually selected through a single procurement process, may supply property or services to an agency as specified in the panel arrangements.

The following tables detail the use of consultancy service contracts by the Core Department, the Child Support Agency (CSA) and CRS Australia in 2006-07.

Table A4.1 Core Department—summary of consultancy services contracts, 2005-06 and 2006-07

2005-06 2006-07

Number of new contracts let 21 43

Total actual expenditure on new contracts $3,271,449 $26,738,435

Number of active ongoing contracts 1 3

Total actual expenditure on ongoing contracts $52,800 $87,905

Number of contracts exempt from AusTender Nil Nil

Note: Expenditure totals include GST and have been rounded to the nearest dollar.

Table A4.2 Core Department—consultancy services to the value of $10,000 or more let during 2006-07

Consultant Name

Description Pricea Process Reasonb

Acumen Alliance

Review and develop overarching DHS risk, security, governance and information, communications and technology policies

$62,370 Panel C

Acumen Alliance

Provide specialist procurement and tender services advice for the Office of Access Card

$1,056,918 Select B

Acumen Alliance

Provide assistance in a benchmarking review

$80,000 Panel C

Australian Government Solicitor

Provide legal services $16,500 Panel B

Australian Government Solicitor

Provide legal advice on establishing a secure customer registration system for the Access Card

$45,863 Panel B

Australian Government Solicitor

Provide probity advice relating to interacting with industry providers and the Medicare Easyclaim project

$115,000 Panel B

Australian Government Solicitor

Provide legal advice in contract negotiations with Lead Advisor and advice to the Office of Access Card

$41,446 Select B

Consultant Name

Description Pricea Process Reasonb

Australian Government Solicitor

Provide probity advice relating to procurement activity for the Access Card programme

$682,000 Panel B

Australian Government Solicitor

Provide legal advice $682,000 Panel B

Booz Allen Hamilton

Provide expert advice on banking and payment system issues related to procuring services from industry providers

$120,000 Open B

Booz Allen Hamilton

Provide lead adviser services specific to the health and social services Access Card

$2,000,000 Open B

Booz Allen Hamilton

Provide a lead technical adviser to the Office of Access Card

$4,300,000 Open B

Booz Allen Hamilton

Provide lead adviser services specific to the Office of Access Card

$5,035,966 Open B

Booz Allen Hamilton

Provide lead adviser services specific to the health and social services Access Card

$6,291,980 Open B

Booz Allen Hamilton

Provide lead adviser services specific to the health and social services Access Card

$7,247,000 Open B

Clayton Utz Provide legal services for the Medicare Easyclaim project

$491,000 Panel B

EDS (Australia) Pty Ltd

Review administrative activities in DHS $60,000 Panel C

Holocentric Pty Ltd

Provide services for the development of business modelling

$211,000 Direct A

Hope Reviews Pty Ltd

Review the development of the search and seizure budget proposal

$17,600 Direct C

KPMG Provide programme monitoring and assurance services specific to the health

$32,677.70 Open B

Consultant Name

Description Pricea Process Reasonb

and social services Access Card

KPMG Provide programme monitoring and assurance services specific to the health and social services Access Card

$48,950 Open B

KPMG Provide programme monitoring and assurance services specific to the health and social services Access Card

$250,000 Open B

KPMG Provide programme monitoring and assurance services specific to the health and social services Access Card

$431,750 Open B

KPMG Provide programme monitoring and assurance services specific to the health and social services Access Card

$656,700 Open B

KPMG Provide programme monitoring and assurance services specific to the health and social services Access Card

$681,450 Open B

KPMG Provide programme monitoring and assurance services specific to the health and social services Access Card

$844,580 Open B

KPMG Provide programme monitoring and assurance services specific to the health and social services Access Card

$1,254,000 Open B

KPMG Provision of specialist advice to OAC in preparation for Senate inquiry

$42,240 Direct B

McGrath Nicol and Partners

Review of fraud and compliance in Centrelink

$116,600 Panel C

Mike Goldstein

Provide specialist consulting services for the Office of Access Card

$74,250 Direct B

Mike Goldstein

Provide specialist consulting services for the Office of Access Card

$48,400 Direct B

Mike Goldstein and Associates

Provide specialist consultancy services for the Office of Access Card

$79,200 Direct B

Consultant Name

Description Pricea Process Reasonb

Pty Ltd

Minter Ellison Provide legal adviser services to the Office of Access Card

$20,000 Open B

Minter Ellison Provide legal adviser services to the Office of Access Card

$200,000 Open B

Minter Ellison Provide legal adviser services to the Office of Access Card

$930,000 Open B

Minter Ellison Provide legal adviser services to the Office of Access Card

$1,630,000 Open B

Minter Ellison Provide legal adviser services to the Office of Access Card

$1,900,000 Open B

Office of the Privacy Commissioner

Provide privacy advice in relation to the health and social services Access Card system

$1,650,000 Direct B

Peter Ilyk Provide legislation consultancy services $78,000 Direct B

Phillips Fox Provide a legal officer $31,878 Panel B

Porter Novelli Pty Ltd

Conduct communications and issues management for the Office of Access Card

$428,883.40 Select B

Pricewater House Coopers

Provision of financial accounting services for the Health Benefits, Veteran's and Social Services Access Card

$49,500 Open B

SMS Consulting Group Ltd

Provide consultancy services for the flexible service delivery project

$142,575 Panel B

a Contract prices include GST

b Justification for decision to use consultancy:

A—skills currently unavailable within agency

B—need for specialised or professional skills

C—need for independent research or assessment

Table A4.3 CSA—summary of consultancy services contracts, 2005-06 and 2006-07

2005-06 2006-07

Number of new contracts let 20 25

Total actual expenditure on new contracts $1,847,816 $1,298,458

Number of active ongoing contracts 18 3

Total actual expenditure on ongoing contracts

$3,152,273 $911,388

Number of contracts exempt from AusTender

Nil Nil

Note: Expenditure totals include GST and have been rounded to the nearest dollar.

Table A4.4 CSA—consultancy services to the value of $10,000 or more let during 2006–07

Consultant Name

Description Pricea Process Reasonb

Ascent Consulting

Review nature and scope of the CSA change agenda

$450,000 Panel B

Ascent Consulting Pty Ltd

Provide an implementation plan for the introduction of the Child Support Scheme reforms

$77,760 Panel B

Axiom Associates Pty Ltd

Develop a methodology for administered provision for doubtful debts

$19,360 Direct B

Changedrivers Pty Ltd

Provide a research report of the Australian employment market in the medium term and identify issues for recruitment and retention of CSA staff

$22,000 Panel B

Convergence e-business Solutions Pty Ltd

Provide assessment and advice services regarding the Australian Government authentication framework for CSAonline

$14,882 Panel B

CPT Global Ltd Conduct a data management and corporate services analysis and review

$35,310 Panel B

CPT Global Ltd Develop an ICT infrastructure sourcing strategy for CSA

$40,000 Panel B

Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu

Conduct business process mapping $26,840 Panel B

Consultant Name

Description Pricea Process Reasonb

Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu

Provide business continuity management services

$75,000 Panel B

Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu

Develop CSA business architecture with service-oriented architecture principles as part of an overall enterprise architecture project

$80,000 Panel B

Dominic Downie and Associates

Review CSA human resources functions $33,000 Direct B

Gartner Australasia Ltd

Provide a conceptual design and implementation plan for an Australian Taxation Office-CSA data link

$36,740 Panel B

Informatica Pty Ltd

Review and advise on PowerCentre software implementation and utilisation

$13,717 Direct B

PA Consulting Services Pty Ltd

Clarify information and communications technology technical parameters and convene a workshop

$15,000 Panel B

People and Strategy

Review and redesign existing performance management process

$75,000 Direct B

Plaut IT Australia SAP Financial Management Information Integration review

$50,010 Panel B

Programming Planning Professionals Pty Ltd (Pcubed Australia)

Provide programme and portfolio management capability

$49,500 Direct B

SMS Consulting Group Ltd

Provide advice on ICT Capability Improvement Project

$106,920 Panel B

SMS Consulting Group Ltd

Establish an effective ICT engagement model and implement a number of strategies and planning recommendations for the Capability Improvement Project

$150,480 Panel B

The Open Mind Research Group

Communicate the Child Support Scheme reforms

$165,110 Direct B

Three S Review call authentication for CSA $65,000 Direct B

Consultant Name

Description Pricea Process Reasonb

Holdings Pty Ltd

Yarrendale Pty Ltd

Developing the Rewards and Recognition implementation plan

$35,000 Direct B

Yellow Edge Provide independent advice on corporate services positioning within CSA

$21,000 Panel B

Yellow Edge Conduct a management review of CSA's Western Australian office

$23,320 Panel B

Yellow Edge Review national office outposted functions

$50,000 Panel B

a Contract prices include GST.

b Justification for decision to use consultancy:

A—skills currently unavailable within agency

B—need for specialised or professional skills

C—need for independent research or assessment

Table A4.5 CRS Australia—summary of consultancy services contracts, 2004-05 to 2006-07

2004-05 2005-06 2006-07

Number of new contracts let 10 9 15

Total actual expenditure on new contracts $247,526 $236,410 $410,462

Number of active ongoing contracts 12 9 13

Total actual expenditure on ongoing contracts

$725,248 $221,418 $528,019

Number of contracts exempt from AusTender Nil Nil Nil

Note: Expenditure totals include GST and have been rounded to the nearest dollar.

Table A4.6 CRS Australia—consultancy services to the value of $10,000 or more let during 2006-07

Consultant name

Description Pricea Process Reasonb

Aulich and Co Pty Ltd

Conduct a privacy review $21,890 Select B

Candle Australia Provide project management advice for $20,000 Select B

Consultant name

Description Pricea Process Reasonb

Ltd the project preparation phase of the Customer's Business Warehousing/Employee Self Service solution

Fenton Strategic Communications Pty Ltd

Develop, design and market test new publications

$46,200 Select C

Fenton Strategic Communications Pty Ltd

Audit and review communications $47,124 Select C

Gartner Australia Pty Ltd

Provide research and advisory services $49,280 Direct B

Gibson Quai-AAS Pty Ltd

Provide mobility strategy consultancy services

$42,526 Select B

HBA Consulting Provide an assessment and review of salary levels

$20,000 Direct B

iFocus Pty Ltd Conduct an information architecture review of the CRSNet

$79,464 Select B

Key Energy and Resources

Provide energy consultancy services $27,225 Select B

Market Solutions Pty Ltd

Conduct the Stakeholder Survey 2006-07

$79,680 Select C

SAP Australia Pty Ltd

Provide development of SAP Smart Forms and Web Dynpro Consultancy developmental services

$11,220 Direct B

Southern Cross Computing Pty Ltd

Provide a SAP business intelligence consultant

$60,720 Select B

Supply Chain Consulting Pty Ltd

Provide a human resources functional consultant

$84,700 Select A/B

Supply Chain Consulting Pty Ltd

Provide a SAP workflow consultant $93,940 Direct A

a Contract prices include GST.

b Justification for decision to use consultancy:

A—skills currently unavailable within agency

B—need for specialised or professional skills

C—need for independent research or assessment

Appendix 5 Commonwealth Disability StrategyThe Commonwealth Disability Strategy provides a framework to assist Australian Government departments and agencies to meet their obligations under the Disability Discrimination Act 1992. Australian Government organisations are required to annually report on their performance in implementing the strategy. This appendix meets that requirement.

In the following tables, performance in 2006-07 is reported against measures identified in the Department of Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs guide to reporting against the Commonwealth Disability Strategy.

The Core Department reports on its performance against the roles of policy adviser, purchaser and employer. The Child Support Agency reports against their roles of policy adviser, purchaser, provider and employer. CRS Australia reports against their roles of purchaser, provider and employer.

Table A5.1 Commonwealth Disability Strategy—policy adviser role

Performance indicator

Performance measure

Core Department Child Support Agency

CRS Australia

New or revised programme/policy proposals assess the impact of the proposals on the lives of people with disabilities before a decision is made

Percentage of new or revised policy/programme proposals that document that the impact of the proposal was considered before the decision-making stage

Measured by: an annual sampling of new or revised policy/programme proposals developed by the agency

The Core Department, in consultation with CSA and CRS Australia as appropriate, assesses the impact of new or revised programme/policy proposals on the lives of people with disabilities

Currently the Core Department undertakes no annual sampling of the proposals it develops

CSA, in conjunction with the Core Dept and CRS Australia as appropriate, assesses the impact of new or revised programme/policy proposals on the lives of people with disabilities Currently CSA undertakes no annual sampling of the proposals it develops

CRS Australia, in conjunction with CSA and the Core Dept as appropriate, assesses the impact of new or revised programme/policy proposals on the lives of people with disabilities Currently CRS Australia undertakes no annual sampling of the proposals it develops

People with disabilities are included in consultations about new or

Percentage of consultations about new or revised policy/ programme

Policy advisers consult the Human Services agency responsible for

Policy advisers consult the Human Services agency responsible for

DEWR, as primary purchaser of CRS Australia's services, undertakes

Performance indicator

Performance measure

Core Department Child Support Agency

CRS Australia

revised policy/programme proposals

proposals that are developed in consultation with people with disabilities Measured by: an annual sampling of new or revised policy/programme proposals developed by the agency

delivering the proposed policy and, where appropriate, also consult stakeholders who may be affected by the policy The process ensures that the service delivery impact of new policies on people living with disabilities is considered and that targeted communication strategies are developed to support successful service delivery

In developing and revising policy for the Job Capacity Assessment programme, the Core Department regularly seeks input from, and consults with, a wide range of representatives of people with disabilities, such as the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission, ACROD (National Industry Association for Disability Services) and the National Disability Advisory Council

delivering the proposed policy and, where appropriate, also consult stakeholders who may be affected by the policy The process ensures that the service delivery impact of new policies on people living with disabilities is considered and that targeted communication strategies are developed to support successful service delivery

consultation with disability stakeholders on policy and programme issues that CRS Australia is subsequently funded to deliver

Public announcements of

Percentage of new, revised or

Policy announcements

CSA provides information to

Policy announcements

Performance indicator

Performance measure

Core Department Child Support Agency

CRS Australia

new, revised or proposed policy/programme initiatives are available in accessible formats for people with disabilities in a timely manner

proposed policy/programme announcements available in a range of accessible formats. Time taken in providing announcements in accessible formats

Measured by: annual sampling of the accessibility of the mediums used for new, revised or proposed policy/ programme announcements

are available on the website in accessible formats

Job Capacity Assessment (JCA) information is available in accessible formats on the JCA website

customers online via multiple formats (HTML, RTF and PDF) to improve accessibility. CSA ensures that web pages and PDF documents are visible to screen readers in an appropriate reading flow.

CSA also provides media releases online in HTML format and information on major initiatives in the three formats above

are available on relevant websites in accessible formats

Table A5.2 Commonwealth Disability Strategy—purchaser role

Performance indicator

Performance measure

Core Department Child Support Agency

CRS Australia

Publicly available information on agreed purchasing specifications is available in accessible formats for people with disabilities

Percentage of publicly available purchasing specifications requested and provided in:

accessible electronic formats; and

accessible formats other than electronic

Average time taken to provide accessible material in:

electronic formats; and

Purchasing and procurement guidelines are made available in accessible formats upon request

100 per cent of these documents are

available in electronic formats and other

accessible formats

The time taken to provide

these documents has not been

routinely recorded

There were no requests for

documentation in

Purchasing and procurement guidelines are made available in accessible formats upon request

All requests for information (in accessible formats) are fulfilled within an average time of 24 hours

Performance indicator

Performance measure

Core Department Child Support Agency

CRS Australia

formats other than electronic

Measured by: annual sample of publicly available specifications developed during the period

other formats

Processes for purchasing goods or services with a direct impact on the lives of people with disabilities are developed in consultation with people with disabilities

Percentage of processes for purchasing goods or services that directly impact on the lives of people with disabilities that are developed in consultation with people with disabilities

Measured by: annual assessment of new purchasing processes that directly impact on the lives of people with disabilities, developed by the agency

No tenders placed had a direct impact on people with disabilities

No tenders placed had a direct impact on people with disabilities

All contracts include the requirement that a contractor must meet all requirements as outlined in the Disability Discrimination Act

Purchasing specifications and contract requirements for the purchase of goods or services are consistent with the requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act

Percentage of purchasing specifications for goods and services that specify that tender organisations must comply with the Disability Discrimination Act

Percentage of contracts for the purchase of goods and services that require the contractor to

All tender documents made reference to compliance with relevant Commonwealth legislation, including the Disability Discrimination Act

All tender documents made reference to compliance with relevant Commonwealth legislation, including the Disability Discrimination Act

All tender documents made reference to compliance with relevant Commonwealth legislation, including the Disability Discrimination Act

Performance indicator

Performance measure

Core Department Child Support Agency

CRS Australia

comply with the Disability Discrimination Act Measured by: annual sampling of tenders for the provision of goods and services required by the agency Annual sampling of contracts for the provision of goods and services required by the agency

Publicly available performance reporting against the purchase contract specifications requested in accessible formats for people with disabilities is provided

Percentage of publicly available purchasing specifications requested and provided in:

accessible electronic formats; and

accessible formats other than electronic

Average time taken to provide accessible material in:

electronic formats; and

formats other than electronic

Measured by: annual assessment of all performance reports undertaken for purchase contracts

Website material complies with Web Accessibility Guidelines where possible

Website material complies with Web Accessibility Guidelines where possible

Website material complies with Web Accessibility Guidelines where possible

CRS Australia did not release any performance measures or reports against contract purchasing specifications Performance reports can be made available (in accessible formats) upon request

Performance indicator

Performance measure

Core Department Child Support Agency

CRS Australia

Complaints/grievance mechanisms, including access to external mechanisms, in place to address concerns raised about the providers' performance

Established complaints/grievance mechanisms, including access to external mechanisms, in operation Measured by: annual assessment

All tender documents contain specific clauses on complaint-handling procedures

All tender documents contain specific clauses on complaint-handling procedures

All tender documents contain specific clauses on complaint-handling procedures

Table A5.3 Commonwealth Disability Strategy—provider role

Performance indicator

Performance measure

Core Department Child Support Agency

CRS Australia

Providers have established mechanisms for quality improvement and assurance

Evidence of quality improvement and assurance systems in operation

Measured by: annual assessment of quality improvement and assessment systems

Job Capacity Assessment Providers are required to have quality improvement and assurance mechanisms in place.

In addition, the Core Department runs independent quality assurance audits to provide feedback to JCA providers and to continually improve the quality of the JCA programme

CSA has developed and implemented a comprehensive integrated business management system that includes frameworks for managing quality improvement and assurance

In 2006-07, CRS Australia:

was recertified under the Disability Services Standards of the Disability Services Act 1986:

continued implementing the Quest for Quality Programme cycle and use of quality data to ensure the highest standard of service is provided to clients with disabilities; and

continued evaluating quality in service delivery through quality assurance and

Performance indicator

Performance measure

Core Department Child Support Agency

CRS Australia

improvement reviews and analysis of client and customer feedback

Providers have an established service charter that specifies the roles of the provider and consumer and service standards which address accessibility for people with disabilities

Established service charter that adequately reflects the needs of people with disabilities in operation

Measured by: annual assessment of provider's service charter

Job Capacity Assessment Providers are required to display the DHS approved JCA charter in all their sites. This document is also available on the JCA website.

All JCA providers are obliged under the terms of their contract to operate from premises that are fully accessible to all customers referred for an assessment, and conform to all relevant legislation

DHS contracted the services of a consultant with expertise in accessibility to develop a fact sheet and checklist about accessibility requirements.

The checklist has been applied by site managers at all JCA sites. The Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission helped to produce

CSA has a client service charter that specifies the roles of the provider and the consumer; this document is available on the CSA website

CRS Australia's Service Charter specifies the role of the agency and the consumer and identifies CRS Australia's performance standards

The charter is available on CRS Australia's website, which isWC3 compliant for accessibility

The charter is also available to clients by request at commencement of their programme

Appropriate assistance is arranged where the client may have difficulties in understanding the service charter; for example, where an Auslan interpreter may be required

Performance indicator

Performance measure

Core Department Child Support Agency

CRS Australia

these documents

Complaints/grievance mechanism, including access to external mechanisms, in place to address issues and concerns raised about performance

Established complaints/grievance mechanisms, including access to external mechanisms, in operation

Measured by: annual assessment

Job Capacity Assessment Providers are required to establish and maintain a complaints register for all sites and ensure all stakeholders are aware of the complaints handling procedures. Clients are made aware of complaint handling processes through the JCA Service Charter and the client Fact Sheet, this includes access to external mechanisms such as the Centrelink Customer Relations Unit and the Commonwealth Ombudsman

Feedback is actively sought from clients through the JCA Hotline and mailboxes managed by the Core Department Data collected from complaints is analysed and integrated into improvements to service delivery

CSA has a well-established complaints service that includes access to external mechanisms such as the Commonwealth Ombudsman

Information from complaints is fed back to business decision makers to improve service delivery

CRS Australia has a comprehensive complaints/grievance mechanism which permits access to internal and external mechanisms such as the Administrative Appeals Tribunal, the Commonwealth Ombudsman and the Complaints Resolution and Referral Service Feedback is actively sought from clients and customers

Data collected from complaints is analysed and integrated into the business planning process to improve service delivery

Table A5.4 Commonwealth Disability Strategy—employer role

Performance indicator

Performance measure

Core Department Child Support Agency

CRS Australia

Employment policies, procedures and practices comply with the requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act

Number of employment policies, procedures and practices that meet the requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act

Measured by: annual assessment of employment policies, procedures and practices

Requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act are incorporated in employment policies, procedures and guidelines

A log of policy and procedural compliance with the Act is maintained The department has established human resources policies and governance committees which raise and support disability issues

The CSA Certified Agreement 2005-07 adheres to relevant Commonwealth legislation, including the Disability Discrimination Act CSA regularly reviews the following policies and programmes to ensure they comply with the Disability Discrimination Act:

orientation programme;

entry-level training programme;

graduate programme;

team leader development programme;

human resources management procedures and corporate guidelines; and

recruitment management procedures

Requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act are incorporated in employment policies, procedures and guidelines, and a log of policy and procedural compliance with the Act is maintained

CRS Australia annually reviews the following policies or programmes in keeping with the Act:

orientation programme;

human resources management procedures and corporate guidelines; and

recruitment management procedures

CRS Australia has reviewed its Workplace Diversity Action Plan to ensure it complies with the best practice

Recruitment information for potential job applicants is available in

Percentage of recruitment information requested and provided in:

100 per cent of recruitment information is provided electronically

Potential applicants are informed through the CSA website that service

Potential applicants are informed through the CRS Australia website that

Performance indicator

Performance measure

Core Department Child Support Agency

CRS Australia

accessible formats on request

accessible electronic formats; and

accessible formats other than electronic

Average time taken to provide accessible information in:

electronic format; and

formats other than electronic

Measured by: annual sampling of all recruitment information

through the Core Department website

Potential applicants are informed through the website that recruitment information can be provided in other accessible formats on request No requests for information in other accessible formats were received in 2006-07

information can be provided in alternative formats

Of the applicant information provided in 2006-07:

95 per cent was provided in electronic formats such as PDF and RTF via the website and email; and

5 per cent was provided in hard-copy formats such as printed packs

On average, applicant kits are sent:

to the applicant by email on the same working day as the request is received; and

to Australia Post for delivery on the same working day as the request is received; delivery by Australia Post occurs within 24 hours

service information can be provided in alternative formats Internal and external recruitment agencies and panels are made aware of procedures for handling requests for information in accessible formats

Applicant kits are provided in accessible formats via website, email or by printed packs sent by post

A disability register is created to capture details of applicants requiring information in alternative formats

The closing date for receipt of applications can be extended by the manager upon request on a case-by-case basis

Agency recruiters and managers apply the principle of 'reasonable adjustment'

Percentage of recruiters and managers provided with information on 'reasonable

100 per cent for recruiters 100 per cent for managers All recruitment contracts specify that reasonable adjustments are to

100 per cent for recruiters 100 per cent for managers All recruitment contracts specify that reasonable adjustments are to

100 per cent for recruiters 100 per cent for managers All recruitment contracts specify that reasonable adjustments are to

Performance indicator

Performance measure

Core Department Child Support Agency

CRS Australia

adjustment'

Measured by: annual sampling of information provided on 'reasonable adjustment'

be made during the recruitment and selection process

be made during the recruitment and selection process

be made during the recruitment and selection process

Training and development programmes consider the needs of staff with disabilities

Percentage of training and development programmes that consider the needs of staff with disabilities

Measured by: annual sampling of training and development programmes

100 per cent of programmes

The needs of participants with disabilities continue to be considered and integrated into all planned learning and development activities

All learning and development programmes consider the needs of staff with disabilities

100 per cent of programmes

The CSA training database enables employees to identify specific needs at the time of nomination

Training programmes are developed taking into account individual learning styles, needs and preferences for accessing information

All training evaluations seek to identify needs not met during the training

100 per cent of programmes

Training and development programmes include information on disability issues as they relate to the content of the programme

Percentage of training and development programmes that include information on disability issues as they relate to the programme

Measured by: annual sampling of training and development

100 per cent of programmes

100 per cent of programmes

100 per cent of programmes

Performance indicator

Performance measure

Core Department Child Support Agency

CRS Australia

programmes

Complaints/grievance mechanism, including access to external mechanisms, in place to address issues and concerns raised by staff

Established complaints/grievance mechanisms, including access to external mechanisms, in operation

Measured by: annual assessment

The Core Department has established processes for handling complaints and grievances, including access to external mechanisms

The complaints/grievance mechanism is detailed in the HR Principles and Policy Manual available on the intranet, to which all staff have access The intranet also provides links to the Australian Public Service Commission website

New employees are provided with information on the processes and policies for resolving complaints and grievances, during their induction

The CSA Certified Agreement 2005-2007 and CSA's Corporate Guidelines set out established processes for handling complaints, including access to external mechanisms

All staff are provided with advice on the complaints/grievance process during orientation and can access the relevant guidelines via CSA's intranet on an ongoing basis

All relevant human resources policies include reference to complaints and grievance mechanisms that include access to external mechanisms

Staff are advised of complaints and grievance mechanisms, as well as any changes to human resources policies, through the certified agreement, the intranet and induction processes

Exit interview data and Employment Assistance Programme service reports are monitored

The agency's internal and external complaint mechanisms are continually assessed to identify the potential barriers for staff with disabilities

Appendix 6 Environmental performanceUnder section 516A of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999, Australian Government departments and agencies are required to report on:

how the organisation's outcomes, activities and administration of legislation during the period accorded with the principles of ecologically sustainable development;

the effect of the organisation's activities on the environment;

any measures the organisation is taking to minimise the environmental impact of its activities; and

any mechanisms for reviewing the effectiveness of those measures.

This appendix meets those requirements.

Shared activitiesIn 2006-07, the Core Department, the Child Support Agency (CSA) and CRS Australia drew up a cooperative agreement and took part in several shared activities to improve environmental performance across the Portfolio Department of Human Services (DHS).

The use of 'Green Teams' was extended across DHS as a mechanism to champion environmental initiatives at the local level and to share approaches to improving environmental performance between organisations at the national level. Green Teams are site-based, with the ability to promote and implement national environmental initiatives locally to improve the environmental performance of individual sites.

The three groups of the Portfolio Department joined Australian Greenhouse Office's Greenhouse Challenge Plus, a programme to lower the carbon dioxide emissions generated by the use of electricity, fuels and waste. By joining, DHS made a commitment to:

reduce greenhouse emissions;

accelerate the uptake of energy efficiency;

integrate greenhouse issues into its business decision-making; and

provide more consistent reporting of greenhouse emission levels.

DHS subscribed to Greenfleet, a not-for- profit organisation that plants native trees to offset the greenhouse gas emissions produced by motor vehicles during the year. Greenfleet will facilitate, on the Portfolio Department's behalf, a one-off planting of 17 trees for each vehicle in the three fleets.

Representatives of the three groups discussed and developed strategies at monthly environmental forum meetings and the first annual Environmental Champions Conference.

Core DepartmentIn line with Australian Government policy, ethanol-enriched fuel was used in the Core Department's vehicles whenever possible. By June 2007, the rate of ethanol use in the Core Department had reached 10 per cent of fuel consumption.

Under the Greenfleet initiative, a total of 129 trees were planted in 2006-07 on behalf of the Core Department. Each year the trees will offset the carbon emissions of the Department's fleet. As vehicles are added to the fleet they are automatically signed up to this initiative.

The Core Department purchased electricity with at least eight per cent 'greenpower', and actively participated in recycling waste paper, with 21 recycling containers provided to employees for use. These containers were collected on a weekly basis for recycling. Energy use and paper consumption were continually monitored to identify potential for further efficiencies and for opportunities to enhance the Core Department's environmental performance. On 5 June 2007, the Department of Human Services signed up to the Greenhouse Challenge Plus Programme run by the Australian Greenhouse Office. This

program is voluntary and is aimed at improving energy efficiency and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.

Child Support AgencyIn 2006-07, CSA continued to develop a corporate environmental management system (EMS), based on existing CSA and DHS best practice, to satisfy the requirements of:

Australian Government environmental guidelines;

the Greenhouse Challenge Plus Cooperative Agreement;

the Department of Environment and Water's Energy Efficiency in Government Operations (EEGO) Policy; and

the recommendations in the report of the Australian National Audit Office's cross-portfolio audit of green office procurement (tabled in parliament on 22 December 2005).

Environmental issues were highlighted for CSA staff through the introduction of environmental awareness training into the induction process, and the promotion of events such as World Environment Day, National Walk to Work Day and National Recycling Week.

CSA decreased its impact on the environment during the year by:

requiring all fleet vehicles to have four cylinders, a Green Vehicle Guide rating of 10.5 or greater and a fuel consumption rating of no more than 10.8 litres per 100 kilometres;

revising and strengthening the ethanol- blended fuel policy for fleet vehicles, to increase the proportion of E10 fuel consumed;

monitoring the amounts of electricity and paper used, and the number of printer and fax cartridges recycled;

negotiating to have a 'green lease schedule' attached to the leases of four new sites, setting out the legal mechanisms for CSA and the building owners to achieve energy efficiency in leases;

working with building owners and agents to implement the terms of the revised EEGO Policy to ensure the appropriate Australian Building Greenhouse Ratings are achieved; and

increasing energy efficiency in new fit-outs in line with the initiatives of the EEGO Policy, such as energy-efficient lighting and switching, timers on appliances, and power saving features on office equipment.

CRS AustraliaIn 2006-07, CRS Australia strengthened its commitment to the protection of the environment by endorsing a new environmental management plan and manual. The plan integrates environmental considerations into business planning and decision-making processes including using a lifecycle costing approach in purchasing decisions, and including environmental clauses in tender and contract documentation.

The launch of the plan was supported by a comprehensive communication strategy that included establishing an online environmental discussion group, expanding the existing eco-aware intranet site, and using email and internal news articles to deliver information to staff. Staff were also encouraged to participate in external activities with environmental objectives, such as Earth Hour and Clean Up Australia Day.

CRS Australia also developed an action plan to reduce waste and promote recycling in accordance with the National Packaging Covenant. The action plan builds on existing recycling programmes such as the

Close the Loop toner cartridge programme and programmes to reduce the amount of waste from mobile phones and personal computers sent to landfill.

Reductions in energy and paper consumption were achieved, by:

investigating sites using more than 10,000 megajoules of electricity per person per year, conducting regular reviews of the operating times of larger air-conditioning systems, commencing a strategy to replace fluorescent lights with more efficient incandescent bulbs, and minimising the use of non-essential equipment; and

enabling multi-function devices, making duplex printing the default on replacement printers, encouraging the use of electronic publishing and communication, conducting awareness campaigns to encourage less printing, and purchasing paper with 50 per cent recycled content.

CRS Australia also adopted an environmentally friendly motor vehicle policy that requires four-cylinder cars to be used for the business fleet in metropolitan offices, promotes the use of alternative fuel vehicles and encourages the use of ethanol-blended fuel in government vehicles. On average, all vehicles in the CRS Australia fleet exceeded the government Green Vehicle Guide efficiency target, and 43 per cent of the CRS Australia fleet were rated in the top half of the Green Vehicle Guide. The Green Vehicle Guide determines a car's environmental footprint in terms of its fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.

Appendix 7 Occupational health and safetySection 74 of the Occupational Health and Safety Act 1991 (the OH&S Act) requires each Australian Government department to include details in its annual report of:

the health and safety management arrangements of the department;

initiatives taken during the year to ensure the health, safety and welfare at work of employees and contractors of the department;

statistics of any accidents or dangerous occurrences during the year that arose out of the conduct of undertakings by the department or authority and that required the giving of notice under section 68;

any investigations conducted during the year that relate to undertakings carried on by the employer, including details of all notices given to the employer under sections 29,46 and 47 during the year; and

such other matter required by guidelines approved on behalf of the Parliament by the Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit.

This appendix, in conjunction with information in the body of the annual report, meets those requirements.

Core DepartmentAmendments to the OH&S legislation in 2006-07 introduced new requirements to be implemented in consultation with employees before September 2008.

In 2006-07, the Core Department undertook a number of activities, including the election and training of health and safety representatives and deputies and the establishment of designated work groups, in line with the new requirements.

A Health and Safety Committee, with membership drawing on a cross-section of the Core Department, was established. The Committee reports quarterly to the Executive Management Committee. Through the Committee, consultations commenced on ways to support and meet obligations under the new legislative requirements.

The Core Department also participated in the Human Services cross-agency working group to identify, develop and implement consistent strategies to address OH&S requirements.

During 2006-07, the health, safety and welfare of Core Department employees were supported by:

education, information and activities, in particular through Health Week activities, which included the provision of free influenza vaccinations;

workstation assessments conducted for all new employees and existing employees whose circumstances changed;

training in OH&S requirements provided for new employees through induction programs; and

the appointment and training of first aid officers to cover the Core Department's work areas.

During 2006-07, one employee lodged a compensation claim.

There were no accidents or dangerous occurrences during 2006-07 that required the giving of notice under section 68.

There were no notices given to the Core Department under section 29 (Provisional Improvement Notices), section 46 (Power to issue prohibition notices) or section 47 (Power to issue improvement notices) of the Occupational Health and Safety Act 1991 during the year.

Child Support AgencyIn 2006-07, CSA worked to improve overall health and safety across the organisation by:

engaging a consultant to review the customer service officer role to identify inherent job requirements and job stressors and to review CSA recruitment practices accordingly (the consultant's report was received in June 2007 and a number of recommendations are currently under consideration);

conducting quarterly workplace inspections at each site to identify and address any potential OH&S risks;

conducting workstation assessments for all staff;

training team leaders to improve their knowledge of OH&S and their role in providing a supportive and productive work environment for staff;

assessing new projects and work sites for health and safety; and

increasing OH&S content in induction training for new staff.

CSA also focused on reducing injury- related time off work through timelier and more effective return-to-work strategies. These included:

engaging an additional five rehabilitation case managers, bringing the total number of case managers to 14 nationally;

implementing early intervention by immediately reporting any injuries or illnesses arising from employment, initiating contact with injured employees within 24 to 48 hours, arranging early assessment of an employee's capacity for return to work, and providing access to employer-funded medical intervention in certain cases to reduce the number of claims;

engaging Comcare-approved rehabilitation providers for complex cases and psychological stress injuries; and

continuing to work with CRS Australia, Comcare and the HSA Group to devise additional strategies.

By establishing targets, CSA actively engaged its leaders in managing the workers compensation premium.

Better reporting and analysis of claims information provided managers with up- to-date status reports on their progress towards targets. Table A7.1 shows the success of the strategies and targets in reducing Comcare claims and lost time.

Table A7.1 CSA—Comcare compensation claims 2005–06 and 2006–07

2005-06 2006-07 Decrease (%)

New claims lodged with Comcare 126 89 29

Claims accepted by Comcare (with a date of injury in any financial year)

101 49 51

New compensation claims that incurred five or more days of incapacity (per 1,000 full-time equivalent employees)

18.2 14.3 21.4

Total weeks of compensation leave incurred by new and existing claims (per 1,000 full-time equivalent employees)

601 498 17

During 2006-07, CSA had three workplace incidents that required notification to Comcare. No notices were given by or to CSA under sections 29, 46, 47 or 68 of the OH&S Act during the year.

CRS AustraliaCRS Australia reinvigorated its approach to OH&S during 2006-07. Its National OH&S Committee was reactivated in October 2006, and subsequently:

met at approximately six-weekly intervals by teleconference;

endorsed the Organisational Occupational Health and Safety Business Plan 2006-08; and

began a systematic review of OH&S policies and education in CRS Australia.

An election for health and safety representatives was conducted, establishing a representative in every designated work group. Work commenced on an online hazard and injury report form to replace the current manual system and assist CRS Australia to identify and address injury trends and meet its reporting obligations to Comcare.

The requirements of the improvement notices issued in 2005-06 under section 47 and section 68 of the Occupational Health and Safety Act 1991, regarding necessary risk assessments for motor vehicle selection, driver education and training and for not complying with mandatory reporting periods, were met, and the investigations were closed. All managers completed a risk assessment relating to motor vehicle selection, driver education and terrain, and were educated about the requirements of section 68 reporting.

In 2006-07, 29 staff and seven clients lodged compensation claims. At 30 June 2006, 23 claims by staff and three claims by clients had been accepted.

The Staff Health Team case managers provided support to staff with compensable or non-compensable conditions, as well as clients who injured themselves while on CRS Australia programmes. The Staff Health Team had 18 fitness for continued duty cases at 30 June 2007, and documented 50 'one-off' cases (cases that can be handled quickly and are not ongoing) during the year. Case managers focused on early intervention and effective return-to-work programmes.

As a result of changes to the Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1986 and to insurance arrangements for CRS Australia clients, the number of compensation claims is expected to decrease in 2007-08. In addition, an early intervention scheme commencing on 1 July 2007 will provide funds enabling managers to implement interventions such as workstation assessments and to engage rehabilitation consultants to facilitate the safe, early return of ill and injured staff.

No notices were given by or to CRS Australia under sections 29, 46, 47 or 68 of the OH&S Act during the year.

Appendix 8 Discretionary grantsThis appendix provides details of discretionary grant programmes administered during the year, as stipulated in the Requirements for annual reports for departments, executive agencies and FMA Act bodies.

Discretionary grants are payments in relation to which the minister or paying department or agency has discretion in determining whether or not a particular applicant receives funding and may or may not impose conditions in return for the grant.

Core DepartmentThere were no discretionary grant programmes administered by the Core Department in 2006-07.

Child Support AgencyThere were no discretionary grant programmes administered by the Child Support Agency in 2006-07.

CRS AustraliaThere were no discretionary grant programmes administered by CRS Australia in 2006-07.

Appendix 9 Corrections to errors in the previous Annual ReportThis appendix provides corrections to material errors in the Department of Human Services Annual Report 2005-06.

Core DepartmentThere were no material errors in the Core Department's reporting in the Department of Human Services Annual Report 2005-06.

Child Support Agency

ConsultanciesThe Child Support Agency information in the Annual Report 2005-06 incorrectly omitted one consultancy (see Table A9.1). The omitted consultancy was originally not on the contract register.

Customer service—complaintsThere was an error in CSA's Goal 2: Customer Service Excellence section. It read:

"Another indicator of CSA's success in improving customer service is the continuing decline in complaints received and upheld under independent review.

Total complaints received in 2005-06 were 10,403 compared with 12,258 in 2004-05, a decrease of nearly 18 per cent."

It should have read:

"Another indicator of CSA's success in improving customer service is the continuing decline in complaints received and upheld under independent review. Total complaints received in 2005-06 were 10,403 compared with 12,258 in 2004-05, a decrease of 15 per cent."

Financial managementOn page 82 of the 2005-06 annual report, CSA reported total financial assets of $42.1 million. However this figure should have been $42.2 million. The error occurred due to the rounding down of the full figure $42.172 million to $42.1 million rather than rounding up to $42.2 million in line with all other figures reported in commentary of the annual report. The actual amount of $42.2 million has been used in comparative statements in the 2006-07 annual report.

Table A9.1 CSA—consultancy services to the value of $10,000 or more incorrectly omitted from the 2005-06 Annual Report

Consultant Name Description Contract price (GST inclusive)

Selection process Justification

Tarcus Pty Ltd External delivery assurance adviser implementation of CSA's service delivery and scheme reforms

$588,000 Panel (Centrelink) Ba

a Need for specialized or professional skills.

Comcare claimsThe figure of 114 claims accepted in Appendix 8 on page 255 of the 2005-06 annual report has been amended to 101 claims accepted. (This has been amended for consistency in reporting).

CRS AustraliaThe schedule of commitments on page 191 for the 2005-06 financial year reported $52.586 million. However subsequent to the publishing of the annual report it was discovered that amount was erroneous and that it should have been $29.260 million. In the 2006-07 annual report the comparative 2005-06 data in the schedule of commitments has been changed to the correct amount of $29.260 million.

Appendix 10 Fraud control certification

REFERENCESAbbreviations list

AAT Administrative Appeals Tribunal

AEIFRS Australian Equivalents to International Financial Reporting Standards

AGDRC Australian Government Disaster Recovery Committee

AGPN Australian General Practice Network

ANAO Australian National Audit Office

APS Australian Public Service

APSC Australian Public Service Commission

ATO Australian Taxation Office

AWA Australian Workplace Agreement

CDDA Scheme Compensation for Detriment caused by Defective Administration Scheme

COAG Council of Australian Governments

CSA Child Support Agency

DEWR Department of Employment and Workplace Relations

DHS Portfolio Department of Human Services (includes Core Department, CSA and CRS Australia)

EEGO Policy Energy Efficiency in Government Operations Policy

EMS environmental management system

FaCSIA Department of Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs

FMA Act Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997

FOI Act Freedom of Information Act 1982

HREOC Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission

Human Services Portfolio

DHS, Centrelink, Medicare Australia, Australian Hearing, HSA Group

MOU memorandum of understanding

NECC National Emergency Call Centre

OH&S occupational health and safety

OH&S Act Occupational Health and Safety Act 1991

RACS Restricted Access Customer System

RAP Reconcilliation Action Plan

SES Senior Executive Service

SSAT Social Security Appeals Tribunal

TRIP tax refund intercept payment