Our Engagement Framework

Engagement Framework

This Framework outlines the Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission's (MHWC) commitment and approach to sector partner and community engagement.

We recognise that good engagement is vital to achieving our goals.

The Framework outlines the promises and expectations that guide our engagement. It demonstrates our commitment to working with others and explains how we will work with them.

Introduction

Who we are

The Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission (the Commission, MHWC) is an independent statutory authority that holds the government to account for the performance, quality and safety of Victoria’s mental health and wellbeing system. Our work includes promoting, supporting and protecting the rights of consumers, families, carers and supporters. The MHWC was established under the Mental Health and Wellbeing Act 2022 (the Act).(opens in a new window)

The Commission’s purpose is to ensure our work shines a light on systemic issues in the mental health and wellbeing system that hold back progress, as well as recognise what works well.

We achieve this through fearless independence, government accountability, and regular performance monitoring and reporting – all grounded in the expertise of people with lived experience of mental ill-health and recovery.

Our hope is that all Victorians are socially and emotionally well and can live the life they want to live. This means they can choose and access safe services when and where they need them.

Mental Health and Wellbeing Act 2022

The Commission operates under the Mental Health and Wellbeing Act 2022 (the Act). The Act commenced on 1 September 2023, replacing the previous Mental Health Act 2014.

The objectives of the Commission under the Act are to:

Ensure the Victorian Government is accountable for the performance, quality and safety of the mental health and wellbeing system.
Ensure that the mental health and wellbeing system promotes the health and wellbeing of consumers, families, carers and supporters and the mental health and wellbeing workforce.
Support and promote the leadership and participation of people with lived experience in decision-making processes.
Provide a complaints handling system and promote effective complaint handling by mental health and wellbeing service providers.
Reduce stigma related to mental illness.
Promote, support and protect the rights of consumers, families, carers and supporters.

Our commitments

At the Commission, we are:

The Commission will be: fearlessly independent, grounded in the expertise of people with lived experience, brave, fair, transparent and impartial in all our work, an exemplar organisation for lived experience leadership, a voice for inclusion, understanding and compassion, focussed on addressing the most important issues at the time that best suit public interest.

Using this Framework

The Framework outlines the promises and expectations that guide our stakeholder engagement. It demonstrates our commitment to working with our stakeholders and explains to our stakeholders how we will work with them.

Our approach

Engagement promise

While the Commission is an independent statutory authority, we rely on the knowledge, expertise, and contribution from others including sector partners and community. This includes elevating the experiences of those with living and lived experience of mental ill-health and recovery, and families, carers or supporters.

To achieve the Commission’s purpose, our work must be based upon engagement with others. Although the ways in which the Commission will work with sector partners and community will vary, the following promises will underpin and guide all our engagement.

We are respectful

We highly value the expertise, experience, and time of our sector partners and others and ensure they are meaningfully involved.
We give sector partners and others appropriate notice to contribute and ask if our engagement approaches match their needs.
We respectfully learn from expertise and experiences to help influence and shape reform that delivers a better mental health and wellbeing system.
We close the loop, so people and organisations know how their expertise and experiences have informed the work we deliver.

We are purposeful

We understand how our work can help to build our sector partners’ capacity to contribute to system reforms.
We are clear about the objectives of engagement and the opportunities to influence decision-making.
We are committed to genuine collaboration to ensure our work has meaningful impact.
We evaluate the effectiveness of our engagement and continuously improve our approaches to maximise our impact.

We are accessible

We provide accurate and transparent information, where and when we can, and seek to clarify what we don’t know.
We work as one organisation and ensure we give messages that are consistent with one another.
We use evidence as valuable insight to inform our work in the mental health and wellbeing system.
We remove barriers to participation for consumers, carers, families and supporters by providing widely accessible communications and engagement processes with resources and assistance to facilitate meaningful involvement.

We are inclusive

We listen with curiosity to understand unmet needs and inform our work.
We actively seek to hear from other voices and adapt engagement approaches to meet their diverse needs.
We are committed to fostering trauma informed and culturally safe environments where everyone can share their experiences without fear of judgment or reprisal.
We recognise and work to rebalance power imbalances by ensuring all voices, especially those from underrepresented communities, are heard and valued in our decision-making processes.

Engagement objectives

We aim to achieve the following objectives when engaging:

Deliver on our promises to ensure the MHWC is respectful, purposeful, inclusive and accessible.
Foster deeper relationships and build trust to deliver on our purpose and functions.
Actively seek external contributions to shape our work, and to keep participants informed through proactive engagement.
Contribute to system reform, protect the rights and experiences of consumers, carers, families and kin, and make a meaningful impact on their mental health and wellbeing.
Elevate mental health and wellbeing as priorities for the government and the community.
Reduce stigma and discrimination around mental illness.

Definitions

Engagement

Engagement is the intentional process of actively involving stakeholders who have an interest in, or are impacted by, the Commission’s activities in meaningful and purposeful interactions. It involves fostering relationships, seeking input, and considering perspectives to inform decision-making, enhance transparency, and building trust.

Effective stakeholder engagement aims to ensure that stakeholders' voices are heard, their needs are addressed, and their contributions are valued in shaping the MHWC’s initiatives and actions.

Sector Partner

Sector partners are individuals, groups or organisations that have an interest in, or are impacted by the MHWC’s activities, decisions, or outcomes. This encompasses internal stakeholders such as staff members, as well as external parties who are affected by the MHWC’s activities.

For the MHWC, stakeholders include individuals and groups outlined in Royal Commission reports and recommendations, as well as those identified in the Act.

Why we engage

We value the knowledge and perspectives that our stakeholders bring to improving the mental health and wellbeing of all Victorians. We engage to:

Support and protect the rights and experiences of consumers, families, carers and supporters and learn from this to contribute to system oversight, improvement, and reform.
Elevate lived experience and leadership through training and learning.
Share knowledge to increase mental health awareness and reduce stigma and discrimination.
Inform our project planning and deliverables, to learn and improve how we deliver engagement, and to ensure stakeholder feedback is included at key stages of our work.

How we engage

The MHWC's engagement process

The MHWC engages with its sector partners and community using multiple tools and techniques and in ways that meet the needs of our stakeholders. We use the table below[1] to help define the stakeholder’s role in an engagement process and the methods of engagement.

Table 1. How the MHWC engages

	Role of Participant	Role of the MHWC	Examples of Engagement	Methods of Engagement
Inform	To listen	To provide timely, accurate and accessible information	Sharing knowledge about the MHWC, our work and our role in the mental health and wellbeing system.	MHWC website, Social media, Publications, Posters / displays, Webinar, Media
Consult	To contribute	To listen to and acknowledge concerns and aspirations, and provide feedback on how contributions have informed our work	Listening to consumers and carers giving feedback (positive and negative) on their experiences with mental health and wellbeing services. Conducting a survey to hear feedback from stakeholders.	Surveys, Informal discussions, Submissions, Interviews, Meetings
Involve	To participate	To actively involve sector partners and others, ensuring concerns and aspirations are consistently understood and considered; to provide feedback on how contributions have informed our work	Holding a workshop to listen to feedback and generate new ideas about mental health and wellbeing reform.	Workshops, Meetings, Round tables, Advisory Panels
Collaborate	To co-design	To co-design with sector partners and others to develop our work, seek their advice; and so our services will best serve their intended purpose	Coordinating a co-design process to develop a specific service outcome (e.g. guidelines) to ensure it meets the needs, expectations, and requirements of all those who participate in and are affected.	Meetings, Round tables, Advisory Panels, Reference groups, Expert Panels
Empower	To co-produce	To facilitate a space where sector partners and others develop and design their preferred solution and implement what they decide with support from the MHWC	Co-producing targeted communication materials to identified groups to expand awareness and understanding of the work of the commission.	Partnerships, Working groups, Service innovation projects

[1]Developed using the International Association for Public Participation (IAP2) Public Participation Spectrum. IAP2 is the global body advancing the practice of community and stakeholder engagement through education, advocacy, and partnerships.

Contributing to meaningful engagement

Everyone with a relationship with the MHWC helps contribute to the successful implementation and ongoing improvements to this Framework. Engagement with the Commission is a shared experience – where we are share a common goal of improving mental health and wellbeing for all Victorians. There are roles for both the MHWC and our sector partners and other participants in initiating, leading, contributing to and delivering engagement activities.

The contribution we provide is described in the table below.

Table 2. Roles and contribution

Role

Contribution

MHWC

To have a good level of understanding of the Framework and adhere to the engagement promises in their day-to-day interactions with sector partners and community.

Sector partners and community

To be open to learning about the MHWC role and functions.

To review engagement materials as required for specific engagement activities

To always be respectful of other ideas and opinions.

To understand that diverse voices contribute to better outcomes.

Our sector partners and other engagement participants

We’ve captured the varied groups we routinely engage with in Table 3. The list is not exhaustive, the groups are descriptive only. This list has been developed referencing the Royal Commission's Final Report on Victoria's Mental Health System.[1]

We acknowledge that people and organisations may be part of many groups. The way we engage with each group will vary depending on the nature of the relationship, the point in time we engage, and the different initiatives we engage on.

Table 3. Our sector partners and engagement participants

Group	Description
Lived experience	People with lived experience identify either as someone who is living with (or has lived with) mental illness or psychological distress, or someone who is caring for or otherwise supporting (or has cared for or otherwise supported) a person who is living with (or has lived with) mental illness or psychological distress.
Consumers	People who identify as having a living or lived experience of mental illness or psychological distress, irrespective of whether they have a formal diagnosis, who have used mental health services and/or received treatment.
Families, carers and supporters	A family member and/or carer who has experience in supporting a person living with mental ill-health and recovery. Families may refer to family of origin and/or family of choice, a carer means a person, including a person under the age of 18 years, who provides care to another person with whom they are in a relationship of care.
First Nations consumers and families, carers and supporters	A key priority for our Commission is to enhance our engagement with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, ensuring that our services are not only accessible but also culturally safe and responsive. We strive to better support the mental health and wellbeing of these communities in a manner that respects and upholds their cultural heritage.
MHWC	Refers to individuals who work directly within the MHWC including Commissioners, Executive and all other employees.
Designated Lived Experience Roles	Individuals who have designated lived experience roles in the Commission who leverage personal mental health experiences to enhance care quality, advocate for rights, reduce stigma, and drive system improvements. This includes two Lived Experience Commissioners, a General Manager Lived Experience, and others.
Other stakeholders	MHWC has oversight and responsibility within Victoria, and our stakeholders are mostly within the state, however, we can learn from the collective wisdom of others who have a level of interest or influence on mental health and wellbeing.
Community organisations	These are community organisations or groups that advocate for mental health awareness at local, regional, or national levels.
General community	Victorians who may not have direct involvement in mental health services but can contribute to reducing stigma and creating supportive environments for people with lived experience.
Government Departments and Agencies	Bodies responsible for mental health policy-making, funding, and regulation. This includes the Minister for Mental Health, the Department of Health Mental Health and Wellbeing Division, other Ministers and Departments focussed on social services, and other relevant government agencies.
Media	Traditional and social media outlets and journalists, editors and producers and prominent mental health advocates that play a role in shaping public perception, awareness, and discourse around mental health issues.
Mental Health and Wellbeing Service Providers	Organisations or professionals that offer mental health services and support, such as counselling, therapy, psychiatric care, and rehabilitation services.
Mental Health and Wellbeing Workforce	Professionals working directly in the mental health sector, including psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, counsellors, nurses, and peer support workers
Non-Regulatory and Regulatory Authorities	Entities that may influence or enforce regulations and standards within the mental health sector, ensuring quality of care and ethical practices. This could include professional associations, accreditation bodies, and regulatory agencies.
Peaks	These are organisations or groups that advocate for mental health awareness, provide support services, and promote policy changes at local, regional, or national levels. Peaks also include organisations that represent the interests of various mental health and health professionals.
Research and Academic Institutions	Universities, research centres, and academic organisations conducting research on mental health issues, treatment modalities, prevention strategies, and related topics. And Universities and other education providers who deliver education and training related to mental health in Victoria.

[1] See vic.gov.au/royal-commission-victorias-mental-health-system-final-report

Monitoring and evaluation

Evaluating engagement and the implementation of the Framework is crucial to ensuring its effectiveness.

The MHWC will implement a program of work to support this framework including routine monitoring of progress towards the engagement objectives.

The Framework will be initially reviewed after 12-months, then every two years to ensure it is effective and having the desired impact.

Engagement initiatives will be evaluated so we know whether we’ve reached our interested sector partners and community and so we learn and improve how we deliver engagement.

Updated 18 October 2024