ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿

Acknowledgements

Acknowledgement of lived experience

The WA ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿ recognises the experiences and expertise of people with disability, including their families, carers and support networks. We commit to engaging with people with disability and ensuring they can live as they choose in a community where everyone belongs and is safe.

The WA ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿ fully supports the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability in its efforts to identify and respond to issues affecting people with disability and the opportunity it provided people with disability to share their experiences.

We would like to thank everyone who has been involved in the process so far, including people with disability, their families and carers who showed great courage in sharing their stories of lived experience and insights with the Disability Royal Commission.

Acknowledgement of Country

In the development of this implementation roadmap to address recommendations raised in the Disability Royal Commission the WA ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿ acknowledges the traditional custodians throughout WA and their continuing connection to the land, waters and community. We pay our respects to all members of WA’s First Nations Communities and their cultures, and to Elders both past and present.

Ministerial foreword

The WA Response to the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability (Disability Royal Commission) was released in July 2024, representing the first step by the WA ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿ towards actioning the vital reforms put forward by Disability Royal Commission.

The WA ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿ is now focused on delivering the next stage of our response, implementation. As highlighted through the Disability Royal Commission, it is essential that this stage of WA’s response is delivered in partnership with people with disability. That is why we are committed to consulting and designing these important reforms with people with disability, their families, carers and supporters.  

The WA Implementation Roadmap sets out our approach to stakeholder engagement, responsible government agencies, phases of work, and initial areas of action to implement the 100 recommendations the WA ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿ has accepted, accepted in principle and accepted in part. Implementation of 52 of the recommendations is already in progress, with work on others to commence soon. The Implementation Roadmap also lays out our plan for finalising positions for the 32 recommendations we have been considering further.

The framework for change proposed by the Disability Royal Commission is transformative and cuts across many service systems and government agencies. I want to acknowledge that implementing all the Disability Royal Commission recommendations will take time, careful planning, and significant consultation. As a government we want to ensure we remain accountable in our actions and progress towards implementing reforms in response to the Disability Royal Commission.

The Disability Royal Commission demonstrated that the status quo is unacceptable and has created an environment where people with disability are disproportionately victims of violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation. The WA ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿ is committed to building a more inclusive Western Australia, where people with disability, and those who share their lives, are empowered to participate meaningfully and are safe. While there continues to be progress, we acknowledge that there is a lot of work to do to fully achieve this vision.

I am pleased to present the WA Disability Royal Commission Implementation Roadmap. I look forward to continuing to partner with people with disability, their families, carers and supporters, to deliver these crucial reforms.

Hon Don Punch MLA​
Minister for Disability Services

Introduction

Following the release of the WA ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿â€™s response to the Disability Royal Commission, a Whole-of-ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿ plan has been developed to support the implementation of the 132 recommendations applicable to WA.

WA response to the Disability Royal Commission Final Report​

The Disability Royal Commission was established in April 2019 in response to community concern about widespread reports of violence against, and the neglect, abuse and exploitation of people with disability.​​

The Disability Royal Commission released its in September 2023, putting forward 222 recommendations for change, of which 132 are applicable to Western Australia.​​

The WA ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿ has released its response to these recommendations, which will result in better legal protections, safer services, and greater accessibility and inclusion, creating more empowering environments for people with disability across the State.​​​

Implementation Guiding Principles

Five principles will guide the WA ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿ and support the implementation of the Plan.

1. Lived experience - Engaging with people with disability and their families and carers is central to implementation design, and learning from their lived experience supports making WA more accessible and inclusive.
2. Sector engagement - Collaborating across the WA disability services sector and broader community is central to implementation and ensuring decisions are made that support a safer and inclusive society.
3. Whole-of-ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿ - Supporting the implementation of the recommendations is a long-term project requiring a whole-of-ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿ approach, commitment and co-ordination.
4. Refine and improve - Continuous monitoring and evaluation of implementation outcomes, along with stakeholder input, will inform refinement and improvement.
5. Accountability - Due to the number of recommendations and stakeholders involved, clear and transparent accountability is required to successfully manage implementation.

A Whole-of-ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿ approach

• Shared responsibility across a number of WA ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿ bodies, as well as between the Commonwealth and other states and territories, will be undertaken to support the implementation of recommendations.​
• The Department of Communities will coordinate the work being undertaken across government and the disability service sector.​

WA ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿ agencies leading recommendations:

• Department of Communities: Coordination and Stewardship
• Department of Justice
• Department of Health
• Department of Education
• Public Sector Commission
• Department of Energy, Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety
• Department of Premier and Cabinet
• WA Police Force

ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿ bodies supporting recommendations:

• State Solicitor’s Office
• Mental Health Commission
• Office of the Public Advocate
• Department of Local ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿, Sport and Cultural Industries
• Department of Treasury
• Department of Training and Workforce Development
• Health and Disability Services Complaints Office
• Commonwealth ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿
• Other State ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿s
• Territory ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿s

Structuring implementation

To support effective implementation and monitor progress towards making Western Australia a more inclusive and accessible society, recommendations have been assigned to key Reform Program areas.

Work has already commenced to progress 52 recommendations and to develop a position on the 32 recommendations requiring further consideration.

• Total recommendations applying to WA: 132
• Total recommendations: 222

Engaging people with lived experience

Prioritising engagement and consultation

The WA ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿ is committed to an inclusive and collaborative environment where the voices of people with disability, their families and carers are heard and valued. This must remain at the forefront of implementation.

An ongoing commitment to stakeholder engagement

• The importance of working in consultation with people with disability, their families and carers, all levels of government, the disability services sector, and the wider community is crucial to the success of implementation in WA.
• Consultation has commenced during the early stages of implementation, and the WA ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿ commits to embedding engagement as a cornerstone of implementation across the short, medium and long-term.
• Additional engagement forums include opportunities for public input and ongoing feedback from the Ministerial Advisory Council on Disability, the Disability Services Commission, and the Carers Advisory Council.
• The Department of Communities, in its stewardship role, has the unique opportunity to coordinate this engagement and ensure the lived experience of Western Australians supports WA becoming more accessible and inclusive.

Establishing a Lived Experience Advisory Panel

• The WA Disability sector has multiple existing groups representing the sector, including both Western Australians with disability and with lived experience of disability.
• In fostering strong working partnerships, the Department of Communities has established the Lived Experience Advisory Panel, comprising people with disability and their carers. The Panel will provide advice on the implementation of the recommendations of the Disability Royal Commission, and disability reform more broadly in WA.
• The Panel will be engaged to ensure changes made in implementing the recommendations contribute to making WA a more inclusive and accessible society for people with disability.
• Further information will be made available on the WA Department of Communities website.

Engaging people with lived experience

Implementation will be supported by the input and expertise of Western Australians with lived experience. This will occur through existing and new, dedicated Groups representing people with disability.

Existing stakeholder groups identified for consultation

• Ministerial Advisory Council on Disability
• Disability Services Commission Board
• WA Network of Disability Advocates (WANDA)
• People with Disability Western Australia (PwDWA)
• National Disability Services State Committee (NDS WA)
• Consumers of Mental Health WA (CoMHWA)
• Carers Advisory Council
• Youth Disability Advocacy Network
• Deafblind WA
• Council of Regional Disability Services
• Developmental Disability WA
• Kin Disability Advocacy
• Community Forums

How will engagement happen?

1. Detailed review of recommendations to determine engagement needs and key stakeholder groups to be consulted.
2. Determine recommendation areas requiring the input of different groups.
3. Identify the most appropriate Group/s to provide expertise and input on a case-by-case basis.
4. Communicate with individual stakeholders and/or groups and agree the engagement and feedback approach.
5. Provide ongoing feedback to stakeholder groups regarding how their input has contributed to the Disability Royal Commission reforms.

The Department of Communities is facilitating the engagement of people with lived experience across implementation.

Time periods for implementation

Introduction to the time periods

The Disability Royal Commission recommendations will be progressed by the WA ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿ over a number of years. Recognising this, three time periods have been developed to drive the progress of recommendations. The primary focus of this release is on actions occurring in the short-term.

Short-term action

Recommendations planned to be implemented by June 2026.

Common features:

• Agreed positions will be informed by consultation.
• Recommendation is already in progress as part of existing ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿ priorities and strategy.
• High urgency recommendations, for example addressing harm for people with disability.
• Serves as a foundational step for future recommendations.
• Require minimal legislative or policy changes.

Medium-term action

Recommendations planned to be implemented between July 2026 and June 2029.

Common features:

• Serves as a foundational step for long term recommendations.
• Implementation relies on input from multiple stakeholder groups and government agencies.
• Requires moderate legislative or policy changes to make WA safer and more inclusive.
• Requires moderate consultation or community engagement.
• Recommendations requiring strategic planning to ensure the desired outcomes for people with lived experience are realised.

Long-term action

Recommendations planned to be implemented from July 2029 onwards.

Common features:

• Multi-generational reforms requiring significant planning efforts to ensure sustainable benefits.
• Complex and long-term projects.
• No current WA policy or outside current policy settings.
• Requires significant ongoing consultation or community engagement.
• Reforms where alternative pathways and opportunities for people with disability is required.
• Multiple dependencies to implementation.
• Requires input from multiple government agencies.

Implementation Roadmap

Following initial implementation planning coordinated by the Department of Communities, planned time periods for implementing the 100 recommendations Accepted, Accepted in Part and Accepted in Principle are displayed below.

Work has already commenced to progress 52 recommendations.

Please note: Positions or timeframes may be subject to change following consultation with people with lived experience, review and reporting on progress.

Recommendations requiring further consideration

The WA ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿â€™s priority is reaching a confirmed position on the 32 recommendations requiring further consideration. 

The following key activities have been identified to help progress towards an updated position.

Please note: WA has committed to developing a position for all recommendations requiring further consideration in 2025.

Short term priorities

Whole-of-ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿ planning has determined the following priority actions.

Improving conditions, supports and legislative responses

WA agency with lead responsibility for action: Department of Justice.

• WA is reviewing disability training programs for staff in youth detention to ensure alignment with the requirements in the Disability Royal Commission, including training and support on trauma-informed, culturally appropriate and gender responsive approaches.
  Department of Justice
• The Department of Justice is implementing a Model of Care which assists with managing detainees with disability in a therapeutic, non-punitive, trauma informed and culturally competent way.
• The review of recruitment and retention strategies to improve youth detention staff retention are in progress, including the consideration of strategies that promotes recruitment of people with disability and First Nations people.
• WA will review the effectiveness of its strategies provided for cultural safety for First Nations people in justice settings.
• Implementation of the Criminal Law (Mental Impairment) Act 2023 WA provision for communication partners and modified special hearing process, in line with the National Principles which is reviewed every 5 years by the Australian ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿.

Improving inclusive access to education

WA agency with lead responsibility for action: Department of Education.

• Support the provision of equal access to mainstream education, WA is reviewing the School Education Act 1999 with consultations exploring whether an explicit right to enrol would provide enhanced access and inclusion for students with disability. Review of the Act will also progress reforms related to inappropriate use of discipline against students with disability, and improved policies and procedures.
• WA has launched the Aboriginal Advisory Board in the provision of independent advice to inform the strategic and cultural changes required to strengthen education outcomes for Aboriginal students. The state is closely monitoring the progress of this Body which aims to improve inclusive and culturally appropriate education.
• WA is working to enhance workforce capabilities and expertise and progressing towards agreement of a National Teacher Workforce Action Plan agreed by Education Ministers. WA is collaborating with the Commonwealth and other states and territories, together with local consultation with students and parents, professional bodies, unions and teachers.
• WA is progressing actions related to career guidance and transition support and gathering feedback on the Pathways to Post-School Success Expert Panel Report. Consultation is ongoing across government, the education sector and with students and parents / carers.

Increasing opportunities for participation in the workforce

WA agency with lead responsibility for action: Public Sector Commission.

• WA will commence scoping and engaging on disaggregated targets for disability employment in the public sector, together with targets for new public service hires. This scoping phase will include feedback from people with lived experience, across government and with public sector unions and employers.
• In the short-term WA will work across government and with public sector employers to consider the approach on future reporting of public sector disability employment strategies and targets.

WA agency with lead responsibility for action: Department of Finance / Department of the Premier and Cabinet.

• WA has completed a literature review and commenced consultation aimed at strengthening disability employment procurement policies. In the short-term WA will continue consultation, including with people with lived experience, with the aim of developing a policy approach and Implementation Plan for Social Procurement Policy for Disability Employment.
• The strengthening of disability employment procurement policies will involve investigation of the State’s Information and Communications Technology (ICT) infrastructure and readiness to incorporate new requirements into current tendering processes.

Enhancing health system capacity and capability

WA agency with lead responsibility for action: Department of Health.

• The immediate priorities for WA include progressing the planning of specialised service implementation through consultation between the Department of Health, Disability Health Network and the Mental Health Commission to further improve the capacity of the WA health systems of people with cognitive disability, including prevention of chronic health and their complex health mental needs.
• WA is engaging with the Commonwealth to commence planning for the expanded role of the Health Ministers Meeting to monitor workforce capability development. The final deliverable, expected to be delivered in the medium term is development of reporting to track actions under the National Roadmap for Improving the Health of People with Intellectual Disability.
• WA will begin working with the Commonwealth and the Australian Commission of Safety and Quality in Healthcare in the short-term with the objective of embedding the right to equitable access to health services in key policy instruments. This will ensure key instruments promote equitable access for Western Australians living with disability.

Strengthening governance processes and forums

WA agency with lead responsibility for action: Department of Communities.

WA will engage with the Commonwealth and all states and territories on the development of the National Disability Agreement and to review and update Australia's Disability Strategy 2021-2031 to reflect the issues and recommendations outlined in the Disability Royal Commission. This includes the development of three new Targeted Action Plans (TAPs) to drive action across the areas of Community Attitudes; Inclusive Homes and Communities; and Safety Rights and Justice (to be released by December 2024).

WA will initiate the development of a workforce strategy to increase the number and quality of Auslan interpreters, following agreement with the Commonwealth, states and territories regarding the strategy development process.

Continue to progress work in relation to the National Disability Advocacy Framework (NDAF) and associated Disability Advocacy Work Plan. The NDAF aims to improve national consistency and access to advocacy services for people with disability across Australia. A key part of this is prioritising work on increasing culturally appropriate and accessible advocacy services for First Nations people with disability, people with disability from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, including the Auslan-using and Deaf communities, and LGBTIQA+ people with disability.

WA will work with First Nations people to develop options for the establishment of a National First Nations Disability Forum or other appropriate shared decision-making mechanism to support the cross-cutting outcome of disability under the National Agreement on Closing the Gap and inform policy design, reform and implementation.

WA is working with other states and territories to deliver the National Disability Data Asset (NDDA) under the NDDA Memorandum of Understanding. WA continues to participate in joint governance arrangements with data experiences and community representatives, as well as in the development and agreement on funding arrangements for long-term support to the NDDA.

Continue to work with the Commonwealth, states and territories to improve data collection and publication to enable an evidence-based approach to ongoing reform and support better outcomes for people with disability. WA has contributed to the Revised Australia’s Disability Strategy 2021-2031 Data Improvement Plan, which will improve reporting on outcomes for people with disability.

Work with the Commonwealth, states and territories to agree on a nationally consistent framework and approach to support reporting on the progress of implementing the Disability Royal Commission recommendations, including how progress is reported publicly.

Improving access to housing

WA agency with lead responsibility for action: Department of Communities.

• WA will work in partnership with the Commonwealth and state and territory governments on national housing and homelessness approaches for people with disability.
• Work with the Commonwealth and other states and territories as appropriate to ensure Australia’s Disability Strategy has a renewed focus on homelessness.
• Continue to improve and implement accessible and inclusive processes for allocating and modifying social housing for people with disability.
• Continue to build all new social housing and new crisis housing properties to the silver standard as a minimum where practical.
• Improve processes for allocating and modifying social housing for people with disability to be more accessible and inclusive, through existing business improvement practices. Full implementation is subject to determining responsibility for organising and funding housing modifications, including the outcome of the Applied Principles and Tables of Support (APTOS) review, and the conclusion of an operational review of policies and procedures currently underway.
• Begin planning with the Commonwealth and other states and territories to prevent homelessness when people with disability transition from service or institutional settings, with the medium-term aim of ensuring a policy of no leaving into homelessness for people with disability.

Enhancing supports available under the NDIS

WA agency with lead responsibility for action: Department of Communities.

• Support the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission during its regulatory review and reform program.
• During Commonwealth-led policy design and implementation, WA will advocate for First Nations people with disability, people living in remote areas, and people with cognitive and complex disability, ensuring reforms to pricing, services and regulation reflect their needs.
• Explore measures for improving the disability sector workforce

Strengthening protections available to reduce harm

WA agency with lead responsibility for action: Department of Communities.

• Engage with the Commonwealth and other jurisdictions on an agreed approach to developing accessible complaint pathways, including consideration and possible integration of current reviews of the Health and Disability Services (Complaints) Act 1995 and review of Disability Services Act 1993.
• Develop a new legislative model for authorisation of restrictive practices, to replace the current Authorisation of Restrictive Practices Policy.
• Work collaboratively with the Commonwealth, states and territories on an agreed whole-of-government approach to improving the collection and reporting of restrictive practices data, including consideration of consistent data definitions, as well as targets and performance indicators to drive the reduction and elimination of restrictive practices.
• Support the establishment of a Quality and Safeguarding Framework and Disability Support Ecosystem Safeguarding Strategy to unify quality and safeguarding arrangements for people with disability across Australia.
• Development of an Aboriginal Cultural Framework to support staff to apply a cultural lens when configuring terms of reference for Parenting Capacity Assessments of Aboriginal people with disability.
• Consider a WA Community Visitor Scheme (CVS) that is nationally consistent through consultation with the Commonwealth, states and territories and the disability community.