Mental Health Commission
The Mental Health Commission (Commission) recognises lived experience as a valued form of expertise and is committed to embedding lived and living experience across all aspects of its work. By partnering with people with lived and living experience, the Commission strengthens decision-making, policy, service design, delivery and evaluation. These voices are essential to driving meaningful reform and improving mental health, suicide prevention, and alcohol and other drug outcomes for all Western Australians.
Our Commitment to Lived Experience Inclusion
The Commission has released its Lived Experience Inclusion Plan (LEIP), a key initiative of the Joint Leadership Group (JLG) and an important component of system-wide transformation.
WA Lived Experience (Peer) Workforces Framework
The Western Australian Lived Experience (Peer) Workforces Framework provides a contemporary approach to developing the Lived Experience (Peer) workforces in Western Australia.
The Framework is supported by guiding resources including:
- the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Lived Experience-led Peer Workforce Guide, which supports organisations with establishment, sustainability, and continuous improvements in the Aboriginal Lived Experience workforces space
- the Lived Experience (Peer) Workforces website, a practical online toolkit that provides resources, tools, and guidance to help organisations, leaders, and individuals embed and strengthen Lived Experience (Peer) roles across Western Australia’s mental health, alcohol and other drug, and suicide prevention systems.
Lived Experience Governance at the Commission
Alongside designated lived experience roles at the Commission, Lived Experience expertise has been enabled through four key mechanisms within the new governance arrangements for the mental health and alcohol and other drug systems.
Current Initiatives
The Lived Experience (Peer) Workforces Development Steering Committee, co-chaired by the Commission, has supported the sector to develop guidance on Lived Experience Supervision Frameworks. This work began with the publication of Lived Experience (Peer) Supervision: An Overview for All Stakeholders, providing foundational information for employers, supervisors, and workers.
Building on this work, the Commission is partnering with Lived Experience leaders to expand these resources. New materials are currently in development to strengthen understanding and implementation of high-quality supervision practices across the sector.
New resources will include:
- Lived Experience Supervision – Domains of Practice
This resource will outline the domains, elements and criteria for effective supervision, along with organisational considerations. It is designed for all stakeholders involved in Lived Experience supervision, including Lived Experience (Peer) workers, discipline supervisors and employing organisations. The aim is to support informed decisions when seeking, funding, or applying supervision to ensure quality practice.
- Lived Experience Supervision – Implementation Checklists
This practical tool will provide information and checklists to guide organisations and supervisors in implementing Lived Experience Supervision and measuring its effectiveness.
Together, these resources will offer comprehensive guidance to support the integrity and sustainability of Lived Experience workforces.
A Lived Experience (Peer) Worker Handbook (Handbook) is being developed to increase understanding of what to expect and what is required in Lived Experience (Peer) roles within the expanding Lived Experience (Peer) Workforce(s).
Its content will be informed by the personal work experiences and perspectives of consumer and family/significant other Lived Experience (Peer) workers, as well as input from organisations across a range of settings.
While the Handbook is primarily designed for people currently in a Lived Experience (Peer) role or considering joining the workforce, it will also be a valuable resource for:
- employers with an existing Lived Experience Workforce
- organisations planning to implement or expand Lived Experience roles
- colleagues working alongside Lived Experience workers.
Page last updated18 August 2026
