Common and specialised activities for Child Support staff 277-01100020
Risks to a customer's privacy have been identified. See Separating Safely - protecting personal details to make sure the customer's personal details are safe before progressing.
The Customer Management Approach (CMA) provides a core service offer through a set of common work activities that all staff must complete. It also defines the areas that undertake more specialised activities and areas considered enabling or exceptions to the CMA.
On this page:
Common CMA activities
Specialised CMA activities
Exceptions to the CMA process
Enabling areas of the CMA
Common CMA activities
Table 1
Item |
Activity |
1 |
Minimum Collection Activity + Read more ...
- Discuss the importance of a correct assessment and updating incomes where new information is available, and
- Negotiate payment of overdue child support with payers, or
- Gather collection information from payees where the presenting issue is collection
- Negotiate repayment of recoverable overpayments with payees
See Debt repayment.
|
2 |
General + Read more ...
- General enquiries, for example disbursements, formula
- Explain administrative options
- Update customer details (including email address if required)
- Customer location (tracing)
- External referrals, and
- Level 1 complaint and feedback management
|
3 |
Assessment + Read more ...
|
4 |
Payment + Read more ...
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Specialised CMA activities
Table 2
Exceptions to the CMA process
Table 3
Item |
Exception area |
1 |
Complaints, External Complaints - Child Support (ExCCS) + Read more ...
- Level 2 Complaints and ExCCS facilitate resolution of customer complaints and other escalated issues for the Minister, Government and the Australian Community in consultation with team leaders and Service Officers. These will generally not lock customers
- Level 2 Complaints and ExCCS officers will use discretion to determine the best way to resolve a customer complaint. If an officer takes ownership of an issue, the officer will lock the customer and complete all common activities, including Minimum Collection Activity
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2 |
Decision makers, Agreements, General and Part 6A Objections + Read more ...
- Decision makers consider Change of assessment (COA) applications and decide if the assessment must change. The decision making process involves considering all circumstances of the case to determine if a change should be made
- Internal decision makers do not lock customers for the duration of finalising a COA application. All internal decision makers will undertake at least Minimum Collection Activity in real time and refer:
- other common or specialised activities to either Mainstream Services Teams or the owning business area for resolution
- follow up required from minimum collection activity, to Mainstream Services
- Contracted decision makers are exempt from minimum collection activity
- Agreements Officers:
- interpret child support agreements:
- decide whether an agreement is properly made and administrable
- decide how to administer clauses
- decide how to suspend or terminate an agreement, and
- handle the processing of agreements
- Agreements Officers lock customers. All Agreements Officers will undertake at least Minimum Collection Activity in real time, and refer:
- other common or specialised activities to either Mainstream Services Teams, or the owning business area for resolution
- follow up required from minimum collection activity, to Mainstream Services
- Objections Officers provide a formal full merit review for customers who believe Child Support have made a mistake or applied the law incorrectly
- General Objections Officers and Part 6A Objections Officers lock customers. All Objections Officers will undertake at least Minimum Collection Activity in real time and refer:
- other common or specialised activities to either Mainstream Services Teams or the owning business area for resolution
- follow up is required from minimum collection activity, this will be referred to Mainstream Services
Note: full CMA process applies to general enquiry telephony contribution. COA Internal Decision Makers, Agreements Officers, General Objection Officers and Part 6A Objection Officers will undertake full CMA action and retain relevant activities for work generated from these telephony shifts.
The exception where COA, Agreement and Objection staff undertake minimum collection only, applies to COA, Agreements or Objections customers where there is an active application/objection.
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3 |
Integrated Care + Read more ...
- Integrated Care teams complete change in care decisions for Services Australia
- Integrated Care teams:
- lock customers in line with existing instructions in the CMA for Child Support
- complete Minimum Collection Activity and common activities while a care decision is in progress, and
- refer outstanding collection or common activities to the owning business area after finalisation of a care decision
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Enabling areas of the CMA
Table 4
Item |
Description |
1 |
Enabling areas + Read more ...
Enabling areas support critical business functions and do not undertake regular and/or direct contact with payers or payees as part of their normal duties. These areas are exempt from the CMA and are:
- Appeals (AAT) support team
- Employer services
- Payment services
- Mail handling
- Technical support
- Central authority team (International)
- Centrelink Liaison Unit (CLU)
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