Implementations of the Recommendations of the Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System - Status Update

The 'Implementations of the Recommendations of the Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System – Status Update' provides a detailed, evidence‑based view of the progress in implementing the recommendations of the Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System.

The timing of this paper comes at a pivotal phase of implementation, with 2026 being the midway point of the 10-year reform agenda since the Royal Commission’s Final Report was published in 2021.

Background

The Commission is charged with monitoring and reporting on the progress of the implementation of the recommendations made by the Royal Commission which set out a vision for a more responsive, person-centred and recovery-oriented mental health and wellbeing system.

Through this oversight role, the Commission supports transparency and accountability, ensuring that reform commitments translate into meaningful and sustained improvements in Victoria's mental health and wellbeing system.

The update reports progress at a sub‑recommendation level to provide a clearer picture of what has been achieved and where further work is needed. It draws on a range of information sources, including government reporting and stakeholder input, and reflects the Commission’s ongoing engagement with the sector.

This is a point‑in‑time assessment designed to support understanding, accountability and continued focus on delivering meaningful reform outcomes for Victorian communities.

An updated version of the recommendations’ implementation table will be published in the Commission’s annual report later this year.

Key messages

The paper is structured around each recommendation from the Royal Commission’s Interim and Final Reports. For each recommendation, it outlines:

• the status of the recommendation as reported by the Department of Health
• key initiatives linked to the recommendation
• the sub recommendations associated with the recommendation and the timeframe for implementation proposed by the Royal Commission
• the Commission’s assessment of progress in implementing each sub recommendation
• summary findings associated with the implementation of each recommendation
• potential ways of measuring some elements of the sub recommendations that can be readily quantified or assessed as complete
• information about the implementation of each sub recommendation.

Read the full Status Update by downloading the PDF or, choose the Word document for a version accessible to screen readers.