Current FRSA Research
Australia’s Family and Relationship Services Workforce: Now and into the future
FRSA has commissioned the Centre for International Economics (The CIE) to undertake a workforce study to provide an authoritative national evidence base describing the size, composition, employment characteristics and key challenges of the Commonwealth-funded Family and Relationship Services (FRS) sector workforce. While this workforce is funded across multiple programs, it is rarely examined as a cohesive sector, limiting its visibility in workforce planning and policy development.
Family and Relationship Services (FRS) are a critical part of Australia’s human and community services system, supporting children, families, and communities through prevention, early intervention, crisis response, and recovery. Demand for services continues to grow in both volume and complexity, driven by cost-of-living pressures, natural disasters and an ageing population, placing sustained pressure on the workforce.
How will the family and relationship services sector be engaged in the project?
As well as input via the Project Advisory Group, engagement with the sector will be vital to the success of the project. Understanding workforce composition, characteristics and challenges will form the basis of this project, building a picture of the FRS workforce now, while looking to the future. Some of this information will be gleaned from key datasets and literature. But information from the sector itself will be crucial.
Organisational survey
Early June the CIE will undertake a voluntary online organisational survey with providers delivering one or more of the services listed above. This will include FRSA members and non-members.
The survey will seek to understand (non-identifying) characteristics of individual providers’ workforces – for example, staff numbers, occupations, skills and work conditions. This means the survey we need to be completed by those in HR/operational management roles.
Stakeholder consultations
Stakeholder consultation will be structured around data gaps and the key lines of enquiry. They will be used to develop case studies and obtain qualitative and quantitative information about staffing arrangements. Stakeholders will include a mix of service providers who volunteer to be further involved, and departmental representatives for example.
Why have we commissioned this project?
Across the FRS sector, organisations report persistent challenges in attracting, retaining, and supporting a skilled workforce. These challenges reflect broader instability across the community services sector and are compounded by constrained funding environments and inadequate indexation, and uncertainty associated with anticipated program reforms.
At the same time, broader industrial reforms, including the current review of the SCHADS Award, and program reforms have the potential to affect workforce roles, conditions, and service viability. Without robust, sector-specific evidence, there is a risk that these reforms will not adequately reflect the realities or value of FRS work.
With a strong evidence base, we will be able to increase the sector’s visibility and voice, supporting informed policy development, funding reform, industrial relations discussions, and future workforce planning.
About the project
The project commenced in April 2026 and will conclude end October 2026.
FRSA established a Project Advisory Group comprised of FRSA members with an interest in workforce matters via an expression of interest process. The Advisory Group helped shape the scope of the project and will continue to provide input at key stages of the project.
The project involves two key components:
- A Stage 1 National Profile Report will define, measure, and appropriately describe the FRS workforce and how it operates.
- A Stage 2 policy relevant report will illuminate workforce challenges and opportunities by demonstrating how well the labour market is operating in terms of barriers to market entry, barriers to retention and career progression, and the capacity of the workforce to be sustainable and aligned to the priorities of the two major grant programs that fund them.
In-scope services
The services in scope for this workforce project are those funded under the Department of Social Services Families and Children Activity and the Attorney-General’s Department Family and Relationships Services Program, as follows:
Families and Children Activity (funded by the Department of Social Services):
- Communities for Children Facilitating Partner
- Children and Parenting Support
- Family and Relationship Services:
- Family and Relationship Services
- Specialised Family Violence Services
- Adult Specialist Support:
- Find and Connect
- Forced Adoption Support Services
- Family Mental Health Support Services.
Family Relationships Services Program (funded by the Attorney-General’s Department):
- Family Relationship Centres
- Family Dispute Resolution
- Regional Family Dispute Resolution
- Family Law Counselling
- Parenting Orders Program
- Supporting Children after Separation
- Children’s Contact Services
- Family Relationship Advice Line.
If you have any questions about the project, please contact FRSA’s Policy and Project Officer, Lisa Curtis – projects@frsa.org.au
To view other FRSA work, please visit our Research, Corporate Publications, Submissions or Conference e-Journals pages.