Positions Vacant

National Delegate for Central & Northern NSW
National Delegate for Northern Territory
National Delegate for Western Australia

Email your resume and the selection criteria below to convenor@dfa.org.au.

Ongoing:
Local Family Representative positions in posting locations in all states

DFA relies on the generosity of Defence Partners to offer their time to support the Defence community through DFA. Volunteering for DFA is a valuable and rewarding experience and makes a huge difference to improving the conditions of our unique lifestyle and our Defence community in turn.

Mobility means that DFA has a regular turnover of volunteers as families post in and out of locations. Living the lifestyle, spouses are well placed to represent other families from all over Australia.

Read more about the origins of DFA by visiting the History page.

National Delegates (ND)

National Delegates are selected by the Convenor and members of the National Executive, and appointed by the Minister responsible for Defence Personnel. We have eight National Delegates in regions across Australia.

Download the selection criteria and duty statement.

Read about the partners who currently volunteer on Our Executive.

National Delegates are partners of current full time serving members of the Australian Defence Force; have prior involvement with the DFA and/or knowledge, empathy and understanding of Defence families. Delegates liaise with local DFA members, Base Commanders, Managers and staff of DHA, DCO, Toll Transitions and Defence.

National Delegates develop and maintain excellent working relationships with Regional Managers of DHA, DCO, Defence support services, Toll Transitions, Commanding Officers/Units in each region. They attend consortium or stakeholder meetings at least once a quarter.

They also hold regional meetings before and after the DFA Annual Conference, prepare submissions on current issues as required; and provide feedback to the Convenor on local and national issues.

Policy Officer

The National Policy Officer will assist the Convenor with analysing trends in the views of Defence Families from around Australia, writing the Annual Survey, Survey Report for Defence stakeholders and annual policy document.

The role requires two week-long meetings with the DFA executive in Canberra for training and the DFA National Conference.

The role requires occasional meetings with Defence policy teams so it would be preferable if the candidate resided in the ACT.

Download the Selection Criteria and Duty Statement.

Local Family Representatives (LFR)

DFA tries to have a Local Family Representatives on all bases in Australia. Senior Representatives are partners of current full time serving members of the Australian Defence Force. They are selected by the National Delegate and the National Convenor.

Local Family Representatives are in regular contact with DFA Family Network Members. They provide feedback to the National Delegate and Convenor on local issues and concerns that families have raised ensuring confidentiality and privacy of individual families. They advise families on the processes for making formal complaints, keep families informed of DFA activities, refer families to the appropriate person within the Defence organisation and attend regional meetings with the National Delegate. Local Family Representatives in Very Remote Localities may also need to attend an annual workshop in Darwin to specifically discuss very remote localities and their effect on families.

For more information on becoming a Senior Representative email convenor@dfa.org.au.

Download the duties statement and selection criteria.

Project work

There may be some scope to help DFA using your specific skills. This could involve developing and implementing short projects which could help DFA or families on a particular issue or program. For example, if you have a strong background in education and policy, you may offer to volunteer your input in the preparation of a DFA submission on consistency to a national curriculum. You may be a professional trainer and could offer to volunteer to train other DFA volunteers in certain skills.

DFA Family Network Members

When you register on our website you automatically become a DFA Family Network Member. Members can contribute to policy discussion relating to families at any time by leaving feedback on our website or by discussing issues with your National Delegate or our National Convenor. By becoming a Family Network Member and leaving your feedback DFA is better able to represent the diverse and challenges facing a modern Australian Defence Force Family. Register now.

If you are interested in volunteering for DFA in your area, please contact your local National Delegate or email convenor@dfa.org.au

For more information on any of the positions above please email convenor@dfa.org.au.