Services Renewal

Renewing our services    Red Cross is undertaking a Services Renewal process to ensure we are working with the most disadvantaged people, in their most vulnerable times, and in the most disadvantaged places. This process is an outcome of the Administrative, Operational and Services Review, a review in 2007-08 of our administration, operations, and all 130 of our services. Recognising our strengths The Services Review recognised our strengths in the core areas of: disaster and emergency services international aid and development International Humanitarian Law   addressing the impact of migration.

The services renewal process ensures we are working with the most disadvantaged people in their most vulnerable times.

• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander disadvantage
• social exclusion issues related to people on the margins of society, such as homeless people, ex-prisoners and their families, and people with mental illness
• entrenched locational disadvantage in metropolitan, regional and remote areas.

Services Renewal is a three-year process

The Board mandated that the Services Renewal process be spread over three years in recognition of the many people involved. Beyond the three years, we will continue to develop and improve our services, consistent with our priority areas and emerging humanitarian needs.

To help guide Services Renewal, we have adopted a set of Foundation Principles for Managing Change which establish the fundamental standards that we will apply in implementing the changes. One of these core principles is that the Services Renewal process will take into account the needs of clients, members, volunteers and staff.

Making a lasting difference to clients

Within each of the Seven Priority Areas we are drilling down to identify the key focus areas to ensure we make a lasting difference for our clients. For instance, in international aid and development, we will focus on building the capacity of National Societies in disaster preparedness and on water and sanitation (among other areas), but we won't be involved in child education.

Similarly in addressing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander disadvantage, we will focus on food security among other things, but not on primary health or education.

Services will be improved or transitioned

Services Renewal fundamentally means we will develop new 'on strategy' services or re-focus our existing services so they meet client needs in the Seven Priority Areas. This process has already begun, particularly in the area of addressing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander disadvantage. 

Conversely, there will be some current 'off strategy' services that don't fit in the Seven Priorities and key focus areas. We will therefore need to transition these services in the most appropriate way possible, including, where appropriate, having another organisation take over that service.

Our decision to transition a service does not in any way reflect on the value of the service to the community. Rather, it is about its alignment to our priorities. 

Changes to services will occur at different speeds depending on a number of factors, ranging from funding arrangements and client needs, to size, scope and the history of the particular service. This process is also underway and is proceeding carefully and smoothly.

All change will involve discussions with Red Cross people - members, volunteers and staff - as required by our Foundation Principles for Managing Change.

Services to clients will be evidence based

A critical element of the new strategic direction has been the establishment of the Research and Social Policy unit, as part of the wider Strategy, Planning and Research Department, which will resource program managers and staff to ensure our services have a strong evidence base, draw on best-practice principles and are effective in our goal of working with the most disadvantaged people, in their most vulnerable times, and in the most disadvantaged places.