Level 4, 151 Pirie Street, Adelaide
Contact phone number: +61 8 8463 7140
Contact email: veteranssa@sa.gov.au
ISSN: 1836-1838
Date presented to Minister: 30 September 2022
To: Hon Geoff Brock MP Minister for Veterans’ Affairs
This annual report will be presented to Parliament to meet the statutory reporting requirements of relevant acts and regulations and the requirements of Premier and Cabinet Circular PC013 Annual Reporting.
This report is verified to be accurate for the purposes of annual reporting to the Parliament of South Australia.
Submitted on behalf of Veterans SA by: Chantelle Bohan
Director
Date 30 September 2022
(Signature)
From the Director
This year we have made great progress in positioning South Australia as a national leader in the area of veteran and veteran’s families wellbeing.
Our vision for a strong, vibrant, well-supported and represented veteran community, inclusive of all generations that is understood and acknowledged by all South Australians has been clearly mapped out with the release of the agency’s first 10-year Strategic Outlook.
Priority areas for the portfolio include regional outreach, promoting inclusion, empowering community, data informed consideration in policy development across government, and honouring service.
The agency conducted its first Younger Veteran and Family forum, giving a voice to a cohort who have felt marginalised so, that we are positioned to deliver relevant, tangible outcomes for this growing community.
Increasing workforce participation of women and men with military experience has been another priority this year. A pilot Veterans SA Mentor Program was launched to connect members of the veteran community to leaders and professionals across South Australia. This program delivered positive results for the mentees in the areas of employment opportunities, career changes, confidence building and successful grant applications, as well as beneficial educational aspects for the mentors.
Education and improved visibility of veterans who work in the public sector across the South Australian Government, the largest employer in this state, will realise further opportunities for veterans.
The agency continues to work across all levels of government to ensure the right support services are available at the most critical times for veterans and their families, especially as the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide progresses.
Although 2021-22 was another challenging year, significant progress across all levels of government, employers and South Australian community, paves the way to a bright future for veterans and their families.
(Signature)
Chantelle Bohan
Director
Veterans SA
Contents
Our strategic focus
Our organisational structure
Our Minister
Our Executive team
Legislation administered by the agency
Performance at a glance
Agency contribution to whole of Government objectives
Agency specific objectives and performance
Corporate performance summary
Employment opportunity programs
Agency performance management and development systems
Work health, safety and return to work programs
Executive employment in the agency
Financial performance at a glance
Consultants disclosure
Contractors disclosure
Other financial information
Fraud detected in the agency
Strategies implemented to control and prevent fraud
Public interest disclosure
Reporting required under any other act or regulation
Reporting required under the Carers’ Recognition Act 2005
Number of public complaints reported
Additional Metrics
Service Improvements
Compliance Statement
Appendix: Audited financial statements 2021-22
Overview: about the agency
Our strategic focus
| Our Purpose | Veterans SA works with state, national and community partners to support those currently serving and previously serving members of the Australian Defence Force and their families, including reservists, to live meaningful, fulfilling lives in South Australia. The agency also plays a role in sharing information on services and programs across South Australia that are available to those who have served and their families. |
| Our Vision | A strong, vibrant and well supported and represented veteran community, inclusive of all generations, that is understood and appropriately acknowledged by all South Australians. |
| Our Values | To uphold the provisions contained in South Australia’s Charter for Veterans by ensuring that the needs of veterans, government and the wider South Australian community are served through the provision of advice and expertise on veterans’ affairs and by influencing government decision making to ensure that the veteran community is well represented in South Australia. |
| Our functions, objectives and deliverables |
|
Our organisational structure
Our Minister
The Hon Geoff Brock MP is the Minister for Veterans’ Affairs. The Minister is responsible for the Local Government, Regional Roads and Veterans’ Affairs portfolios.
Minister Brock has strong family connections to the military, including his own service in the Army Reserves. This connection enhances his passion and commitment to the portfolio.
Our Executive team
Chantelle Bohan, Director
Chantelle Bohan is responsible for ensuring that the interests and needs of the community of those who have served in the Australian Defence Force and their families are represented across the South Australian Government.
Legislation administered by the agency
Veterans SA administers the ANZAC Day Commemoration Act 2005
The agency’s performance
Performance at a glance
- Developed and delivered three inaugural events/surveys (Veterans and Defence Families Forum, Veterans Mentoring Pilot Program and the South Australian ‘Australian Defence Force Arrivals Survey’) to assist better understanding of current issues of concern and requirements of our veterans and their families.
- Developed the agency’s first 10-year Strategic Plan and identified areas for whole of government collaboration, including Office of the Commissioner for Public Sector Employment, Office for Women and the Office of Data Analytics on key initiatives.
- Chaired the Commonwealth and State Veteran Health Working Group and presented a veteran credential and identity verification initiative for discussion at Digital Data Ministers Meeting.
- Attended the first post-COVID face-to-face Defence Transition Seminar.
- Delivered 15 grants totalling $83,736 to the South Australian community from the Anzac Day Commemoration Fund.
- Continued administrative and secretariat support for the Veterans Advisory Council.
Agency contribution to whole of Government objectives
Veterans SA collaborates across the South Australian Government to ensure policy and program departments consider the implications for veterans and their families and incorporate beneficial approaches for veterans and their families to live their most fulfilled lives. The South Australian Government recognises the vital role veterans and ex-service personnel play in the South Australian community, and Veterans SA supports leaders of the veteran community to collaborate and enable opportunities and/or support for veterans and their families to best suit their needs.
Veterans SA continues with cross agency collaboration and education to ensure state government agencies are provided with information on the unique needs and requirements of the veteran community. Broader community education was also undertaken in this area by presenting at the 2021 Community Centres SA symposium.
The SA Remembers election commitment was administered by Veterans SA and ensured that RSL sub-branches were able to deliver COVID-safe Dawn Services.
Agency’s contribution |
| Veterans SA will advocate across the South Australian Government on matters relating to veterans and their families.
Veterans SA continues to work with ex-service organisations and civic groups that provide support to members of the veteran community when and where it is needed most. The agency will continue to play a role in sharing information about services, programs and opportunities across South Australia that are available to those who have served in the Australian Defence Force and their families. Support for the Minister’s Veterans Advisory Council will continue in the role of secretariat support. Veterans SA will continue to work with the veteran community to ensure commemorative activities are supported and that occasions of military and historical significance are remembered and preserved for all South Australians. |
Agency specific objectives and performance
| Agency objectives | Indicators | Performance |
| To influence government decision-making at both state and federal level for future policy with respect to the relevance and delivery of services to the veteran community. | Support the work of the Department of Health and Wellbeing in their oversight of the services at the Veteran Wellbeing Centre. | Continued referral and promotion of the organisations and services available at the Veteran Wellbeing Centre. |
| Participation in cross-jurisdiction working groups and committees to ensure the impact on, and experience of veterans and their families is considered in a whole-of-South Australia context. | Veterans SA has representation on state and national working groups supporting their efforts to address issues impacting on the veteran community, including the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide. | |
| To be first with advice and expertise on veterans’ affairs to government and to position government to provide relevant high-level services. | Establishment of community forums and dialogue opportunities to collect views and feedback from veterans and their families to inform government decision-making. | Opportunities were provided for the veteran community to contribute to the development of the Veterans SA Strategic Outlook and identify priorities for the community looking forward to 2030. |
| In 2021-22, Veterans SA refreshed the e- news and social media approach to share more relevant and diverse content and engagement opportunities.
New communication opportunities were identified across print, digital partnerships and radio, in both metropolitan Adelaide and regional South Australia, to reach a wider audience of veterans and families. Facilitated community forums to provide opportunities for direct engagement and feedback to the agency on relevant issues. |
||
| Improve data collection and analysis to better understand the South Australian veteran community. | Established a partnership with the Office of the Commissioner for Public Sector Employment to improve return to work and training opportunities for veterans and their partners.
Undertook analysis of Department of Defence transition data to identify trends and opportunities for state government initiatives. |
|
| To support the sustainability of the veteran community. | Establishment of grant funds to support organisations to continue to provide services to the veteran community across South Australia | Delivered three new grant funding opportunities: Veterans SA Capacity Building, Seed Funding and Commemorative. |
| Veterans and their families are able to access the right information and support for their needs when they need it. | Attendance at Defence Transition Seminars to provide current, up-to-date information on South Australia.
Provision of funding to enable ex-service organisations to attend regional field days with Veterans SA to reach regional veterans. Developed an online community resource (Home Base SA) that links visitors to reliable services, support and information. |
|
| To support the veteran community in delivering commemorative events which continue to reflect the significant impact of the service and sacrifice of veterans to the nation and to ensure that military historical significance is remembered and preserved. | Support ex-service organisations and community-led commemorative activities. | Provision of $100,000 of grant funding through the Anzac Day Commemorative Fund for commemorative activities across South Australia.
Provision of funding to the RSL-SA and RSL sub-branches to support COVID-19 compliant Anzac Day Dawn Services. Provision of funding to Reconciliation SA for the conduct of the annual Aboriginal Veteran Service. |
| Ensure public accessibility to recognise and commemorate military service. | Production and installation of additional military conflict recognition on the Anzac Centenary Memorial Walk. |
Corporate performance summary
Veterans SA is a government agency of the state of South Australia, established in 2008. The activities of Veterans SA are entirely funded from appropriation or other internal South Australian Government contributions.
Employment opportunity programs
| Program name | Performance |
| Internships – University of Adelaide | From July – December 2021, Defence SA offered internships for two data analysts to join the Veterans SA team. The interns were tasked with projects under the broad theme of ’Demographic Profile Indicators of Veterans in South Australia’, to gain a stronger understanding of the reach and profile of South Australia’s veteran community through the interrogation of administrative data collected by the State Government. This involved:
|
| Building Veteran Data Framework | From January – June 2022, a data analyst role was commissioned tasked with projects aimed at providing a demographic lens over South Australia’s veteran community. This included development of a hybrid consent-driven model for veterans to access State and Territory government services and a detailed analysis of concessions offered to veterans in South Australia, comparing them with those offered at a state level across Australia. |
| Veteran and Families Social Policy | From January 2022 – June 2023 a policy officer has been employed to undertake exploration into social policy opportunities in partnership with the responsible state government departments and agencies to establish a baseline of policy and program considerations for veterans and their families. To achieve these outcomes, the policy officer:
|
Agency performance management and development systems
| Performance management and development system | Performance |
| Staff Performance Management and Development System | All non-executive staff participate in an annual performance review process linked to training and development. This involves, a half-yearly review and an annual review. By 30 June 2022, 100% of non-executive staff had completed an annual review. |
| Director Performance Agreement | The Chief Executive undertook a review of the goals and objectives component of the annual performance agreement on 28 March 2022. |
Work health, safety and return to work programs
| Program name | Performance |
| First Aid | Veterans SA is co-located with Defence SA that has four qualified First Aid Officers who have completed accredited training. |
| Mental Health First Aid | Veterans SA is co-located with Defence SA that has Mental Health First Aid Officers who have completed accredited training. This complements the existing Employee Assistance Program. Some senior management have also received training on mental health first aid. |
| Workplace injury claims | 2021-22 | 2020-21 | % Change (+ / -) |
| Total new workplace injury claims | 0 | 0 | 0% |
| Fatalities | 0 | 0 | 0% |
| Seriously injured workers* | 0 | 0 | 0% |
| Significant injuries (where lost time exceeds a working week, expressed as frequency rate per 1000 FTE) | 0 | 0 | 0% |
*number of claimants assessed during the reporting period as having a whole person impairment of 30% or more under the Return to Work Act 2014 (Part 2 Division 5)
| Work health and safety regulations | 2021-22 | 2020-21 | % Change (+ / -) |
| Number of notifiable incidents (Work Health and Safety Act 2012, Part 3) | 0 | 0 | 0% |
| Number of provisional improvement, improvement and prohibition notices (Work Health and Safety Act 2012 Sections 90, 191
and 195) |
0 | 0 | 0% |
| Return to work costs** | 2021-22 | 2020-21 | % Change (+ / -) |
| Total gross workers compensation expenditure ($) | 0 | 0 | 0% |
| Income support payments – gross ($) | 0 | 0 | 0% |
**before third party recovery
Data for previous years is available at: https://data.sa.gov.au/data/dataset/whs-2020- 21-defencesa
Executive employment in the agency
| Executive classification | Number of executives |
| SAES1 | 1 |
Data for previous years is available at: https://data.sa.gov.au/data/dataset/executive- employment-2020-21-defencesa
The Office of the Commissioner for Public Sector Employment has a workforce information page that provides further information on the breakdown of executive gender, salary and tenure by agency.
Financial performance
Financial performance at a glance
The following is a brief summary of the overall financial position of Veterans SA extracted from Defence SA’s financial statements for 2021-22. The information is unaudited. Note that Veterans SA sits within Defence SA so reference can be made to the Defence SA Annual Report for 2021-22 for full data sets and data from previous years.
| Statement of Comprehensive Income | 2021-22 Budget $000s |
2021-22 Actual $000s |
Variation $000s |
2020-21 Actual $000s |
| Total Income | $ 25 | $ 215 | $ 190 | $ 261 |
| Total Expenses | $ 1,869 | $ 1,860 | $ 9 | $ 1,691 |
| Net Result | $ (1,844) | $(1,645) | $ 199 | $(1,430) |
| Total Comprehensive Result | $ (1,844) | $(1,645) | $ 199 | $(1,430) |
| Statement of Financial Position | 2021-22 Actual $000s |
2020-21 Actual $000s |
| Current assets | $ 14 | $ 56 |
| Total assets | $ 14 | $ 56 |
| Current liabilities | $ 236 | $ 281 |
| Non-current liabilities | $ 37 | $ 36 |
| Total liabilities | $ 273 | $ 317 |
| Net assets | $ (259) | $ (261) |
Consultants disclosure
The following is a summary of external consultants that have been engaged by the agency, the nature of work undertaken, and the actual payments made for the work undertaken during the financial year.
Consultancies with a contract value below $10,000 each
| Consultancies | Purpose | $ Actual payment |
| n/a | n/a | $ Nil |
Consultancies with a contract value above $10,000 each
| Consultancies | Purpose | $ Actual payment |
| n/a | n/a | $ Nil |
| Consultancies | Purpose | $ Actual payment |
| n/a | n/a | $ Nil |
| Total | $ Nil |
Data for previous years is available at: https://data.sa.gov.au/data/dataset/consultants-2020-21-defencesa
See also the Consolidated Financial Report of the Department of Treasury and Finance for total value of consultancy contracts across the South Australian Public Sector.
Contractors disclosure
The following is a summary of external contractors that have been engaged by the agency, the nature of work undertaken, and the actual payments made for work undertaken during the financial year.
Contractors with a contract value below $10,000
| Contractors | Purpose | $ Actual payment |
| All contractors below
$10,000 each – combined |
Various | $ 60,093 |
Contractors with a contract value above $10,000 each
| Contractors | Purpose | $ Actual payment |
| Dada Supreme | Creative services | $ 14,520 |
| Flying in Formation | Research for Torrens Parade Ground development | $ 30,000 |
| Total | $ 44,520 |
The details of South Australian Government-awarded contracts for goods, services, and works are displayed on the SA Tenders and Contracts website. View the agency list of contracts.
The website also provides details of across government contracts.
Other financial information
The Anzac Day Commemoration fund was administered by Veterans SA. The fund was established under the Anzac Day Commemoration Act 2005.
| Statement of Comprehensive Income | 2021-22 Budget $000s |
2021-22 Actual $000s |
Variation $000s |
2020-21 Actual $000s |
| Total Income | $100 | $100 | $ – | $102 |
| Total Expenses | $100 | $ 82 | $ 18 | $100 |
| Net Result | $ – | $ 18 | $ 18 | $ 2 |
| Total Comprehensive Result | $ – | $ 18 | $ 18 | $ 2 |
| Statement of Financial Position | 2021-22
Budget $000s |
2021-22
Actual $000s |
Variation
$000s |
2020-21
Actual $000s |
| Current assets | $ 77 | $ 95 | $ 18 | $ 77 |
| Total assets | $ 77 | $ 95 | $ 18 | $ 77 |
| Equity | $ 77 | $ 95 | $ 18 | $ 77 |
Risk management
Fraud detected in the agency
| Category/nature of fraud | Number of instances |
| n/a | Nil |
NB: Fraud reported includes actual and reasonably suspected incidents of fraud.
Strategies implemented to control and prevent fraud
All staff completed the SA Public Sector Code of Ethics refresher training during June and July 2022 During the year staff undertook Cyber Security and Awareness training in September 2021 and Fraud and Corruption Awareness training in June 2022. The Fraud and Corruption policy was reviewed and updated in September 2021.
Data for previous years is available at: https://data.sa.gov.au/data/dataset/fraud- detection-2018-21-defencesa
Public interest disclosure
Number of occasions on which public interest information has been disclosed to a responsible officer of the agency under the Public Interest Disclosure Act 2018:
Nil
Data for previous years is available at: https://data.sa.gov.au/data/dataset/whistle- blower-2018-21-defencesa
Note: Disclosure of public interest information was previously reported under the Whistleblowers Protection Act 1993 and repealed by the Public Interest Disclosure Act 2018 on 1/7/2019.
Reporting required under any other act or regulation
Reporting required under the Carers’ Recognition Act 2005
Veterans SA is not required to report under the Carers Recognition Act 2005.
Public complaints
Number of public complaints reported
Reporting on the number of complaints received is mandated. If your agency does not have an approved set of complaint categories in place, please use the complaint categories in the table below.
| Complaint categories | Sub-categories | Example | Number of Complaints
2021-22 |
| Professional behaviour | Staff attitude | Failure to demonstrate values such as empathy, respect, fairness, courtesy, extra mile; cultural competency | Nil |
| Professional behaviour | Staff competency | Failure to action service request; poorly informed decisions; incorrect or incomplete service provided | Nil |
| Professional behaviour | Staff knowledge | Lack of service specific knowledge; incomplete or out-of-date knowledge | Nil |
| Communication | Communication quality | Inadequate, delayed or absent communication with customer | Nil |
| Communication | Confidentiality | Customer’s confidentiality or privacy not respected; information shared incorrectly | Nil |
| Service delivery | Systems/technology | System offline; inaccessible to customer; incorrect result/information provided; poor system design | Nil |
| Service delivery | Access to services | Service difficult to find; location poor; facilities/ environment poor standard; not accessible to customers with disabilities | Nil |
| Service delivery | Process | Processing error; incorrect process used; delay in processing application; process not customer responsive | Nil |
| Policy | Policy application | Incorrect policy interpretation; incorrect policy applied; conflicting policy advice given | Nil |
| Policy | Policy content | Policy content difficult to understand; policy unreasonable or disadvantages customer | Nil |
| Service quality | Information | Incorrect, incomplete, out dated or inadequate information; not fit for purpose | Nil |
| Service quality | Access to information | Information difficult to understand, hard to find or difficult to use; not plain English | Nil |
| Service quality | Timeliness | Lack of staff punctuality; excessive waiting times (outside of service standard); timelines not met | Nil |
| Service quality | Safety | Maintenance; personal or family safety; duty of care not shown; poor security service/ premises; poor cleanliness | Nil |
| Service quality | Service responsiveness | Service design doesn’t meet customer needs; poor service fit with customer expectations | Nil |
| No case to answer | No case to answer | Third party; customer misunderstanding; redirected to another agency; insufficient information to investigate | Nil |
| Total | 0 |
| Additional Metrics | Total |
| Number of positive feedback comments | 0 |
| Number of negative feedback comments | 0 |
| Total number of feedback comments | 0 |
| % complaints resolved within policy timeframes | N/A |
Data for previous years is available at: https://data.sa.gov.au/data/dataset/public- complaints-2020-21
Service Improvements
(Not applicable)
Compliance Statement
| Veterans SA is compliant with Premier and Cabinet Circular 039 – complaint management in the South Australian public sector | Y |
| Veterans SA has communicated the content of PC 039 and the agency’s related complaints policies and procedures to employees. | Y |
Appendix: Audited financial statements 2021-22
See PDF copy for original appendices.
