Responsibility: Australian, state and territory governments
Joint Response: Subject to further consideration
Status: Subject to further consideration
What has been achieved to date
All governments remain committed to considering this recommendation further.
The Australian Government has committed $15.6 million over 5 years from 2024-25 for the design and implementation of a Disability Support Quality and Safeguarding Framework (the Framework) and a Disability Support Ecosystem Safeguarding Strategy (Strategy).
The Commonwealth Department of Health, Disability and Ageing (the department) is leading the Framework and Strategy, which will establish a coordinated and unified approach to quality and safeguarding across the disability support ecosystem. This measure will build on existing efforts to ensure that any reforms to quality and safeguarding arrangements are person-centred and designed in step with community expectations.
The department will work with states and territories to develop the Framework and Strategy in close consultation with people with disability, their families, Disability Representative Organisations and service providers.
The Commonwealth has engaged with states and territories to provide a comprehensive overview of the Commonwealth’s work to date and enable states to identify the scope and stages of the work they wish to be involved in.
Initial work proposed through 2025 will focus on the Framework, with development of the Strategy to occur subsequently. The Framework will be informed by people with disability. The first stage of consultation and engagement with disability sector stakeholders started in May 2025.
What the Disability Royal Commission said in the final report
The Australian Government should incorporate the National Adult Safeguarding Framework proposed in Recommendation 11.1 into the Safety Targeted Action Plan within Australia’s Disability Strategy or another suitable authorising document.
Joint Government response July 2024
The Australian Government and state and territory governments support a strong, connected safeguarding system to reduce the risk of harm to people with disability and will work together through the Disability Reform Ministerial Council to consider reform options to develop a nationally consistent and a unified approach.
As a first step, the Commonwealth will work with states and territories to develop a framework that sets out the standards and culture of how the disability ecosystem will work to strengthen safeguarding for people with disability.
More recommendations
View progress on other recommendations made by the Royal Commission.