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About the Commissioner
Who is the Disability Services Commissioner?
Mr Laurie Harkin is Victoria's first Disability Services Commissioner (the Commissioner) and commenced his role and functions on 1 July 2007.
The Disability Services Commissioner was established created to work with people with a disability and disability service providers to resolve complaints.
Mr Harkin brings extensive experience to the role of Commissioner, having worked in a range of social and community services including disability services, spanning a period of three decades. During that time, Mr Harkin has held senior executive positions within State and local government agencies, non government services and in the private sector.
Role and functions of the Commissioner
The Commissioner works with people with a disability to resolve complaints about disability service providers, and works with disability service providers to improve outcomes for people with a disability.
The Commissioner encourages and assists the resolution of complaints in a variety of ways including informal discussions, conciliation processes and under certain circumstances, formal investigation.
As well as his work that is directly focused on resolving individual complaints, the Commissioner also has a range of other important functions including conducting education, training and research to improve disability services complaints systems.
What authority does the Commissioner have?
The Commissioner was established under the Disability Act 2006 which brought in major reforms aimed at improving services for people with a disability in Victoria. The legislation commenced on 1 July 2007.
The Commissioner is independent of government, the Department of Human Services and disability service providers, and reports through the Minister for Community Services to Parliament each year.
The legislation gives the Commissioner wide ranging powers to undertake the various functions required of the role.
Values and Principles of the Disability Services Commissioner (DSC)
Values
The Commissioner is committed to the following values which inform the way the work is approached:
Rights – We affirm that people with a disability have the right to participate in the social, economic, cultural political and spiritual life of society.
Respect – We treat all people with dignity, sensitivity and courtesy. This includes respecting the privacy and confidentiality of the information relating to individuals and treating all complaints seriously.
Fairness – We build trusting relationships through treating people equally demonstrating integrity through open and honest communication. The principles of natural justice will be applied so that all parties are given the opportunity to respond to any issues raised.
Principles
The Disability Services Commissioner is committed to the highest quality service provision for people with a disability and places emphasis on people with a disability being at the centre of its activities. The following principles guide the work of the Commissioner. These principles are consistent with the Disability Act 2006, the State Disability Plan 2002-2012, the Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act 2006 and relevant UN Conventions.
Accessible – We will be easily accessible to people with a disability and other key stakeholders through clear and effective communication methods. This information will be easy to understand and use and will clearly articulate the right to complain, how to do it, where to do it and how the complaint will be handled.
Person centred – We will respect and value the knowledge, abilities and experiences of people with a disability and support them to make choices about their lives to enable each person to live the life they want to live. We will take actions that will seek to achieve the best possible outcomes for people with a disability.
Responsive – We will provide timely assistance to people with a disability, families, carers and service providers, within established timelines. The complainants will be kept informed of the progress of their complaint through the complaints-handling process, with the emphasis on addressing the issue and not on assigning blame.
Accountable – We will work to clear objectives in a transparent manner and will accept responsibility for decisions made. Part of this is being open to appropriate levels of scrutiny and ensuring all conflicts of interest are disclosed and acted upon. We will report on the operation of the complaints process against documented performance standards and ensure that disability service providers are also accountable in this way. There will be a clear expectation of the implementation of corrective/remedial action in response to an individual complaint.
Excellence – We will strive to do our best and continually seek ways to improve the ways we do things. In doing this we will also seek to promote a learning culture within disability service organisations to ensure that complaints are seen as integral to an organisation committed to continuous improvement.
