Victoria Police Annual Report 2023-24: Our organisation

Victoria Police was established in 1853 and provides policing services to the Victorian community 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Our mission is to keep everyone safe.

Our vision

Our vision is for a community in which:

everyone is safe and feels safe
those affected by crime feel supported
those who break the law are held to account
police work with the community and our partners to prevent crime, reduce harm and build a better, safer Victoria.

Our role

Our role, as defined by the Victoria Police Act 2013, is to serve the Victorian community and uphold the law to promote a safe, secure, and orderly society. We achieve this by:

preserving the peace
protecting life and property
preventing offences
detecting and apprehending offenders
helping those in need of assistance
working with local communities, partners, and reference groups.

Our values

Our organisational values underpin our policies, procedures, and practices and how employees interact with the community and each other.

Our services

Our services include:

responding to calls for assistance in matters of personal and public safety, emergencies, and serious incidents
preventing crime through a range of proactive community safety programs
detecting and investigating offences and bringing to justice those responsible for committing them
providing a visible presence within the community and at major events
supporting the judicial process to achieve efficient and effective court case management, providing safe custody for alleged offenders, supporting victims, and ensuring fair and equitable treatment of victims and offenders
providing professional prosecution services to support judicial proceedings
assisting coroners with their investigations into deaths and fires, and support to our members who are investigating matters on behalf of coroners
managing and coordinating major emergency responses with other agencies
promoting safe road-user behaviour
conducting private security and firearms licensing
conducting national police record and fingerprint checks.

Victoria Police regions

We provide policing services to the Victorian community 24 hours a day, seven days a week across the following four regions:

Western Region: The largest geographic area covering 60 per cent of the state, across six divisions
North West Metro Region: Encompassing inner, western and northern areas of Melbourne, across five divisions
Southern Metro Region: Aligned to the southern metropolitan region, across four divisions
Eastern Region: A geographically-diverse region, incorporating metropolitan, rural, and alpine areas, across six divisions.

These regional boundaries correspond with other Victorian Government departments, enhancing cross-government service delivery, particularly in emergency management.

Map of Victoria regions

Download map

Our operating environment

Victoria Police operates under the Victoria Police Act 2013. Disclosures required under the Act and other legislation, as well as additional reporting requirements, are presented in Chapter 5 – Other disclosures.

Our organisational structure

The Chief Commissioner of Police is supported by four Deputy Commissioners and two Deputy Secretaries.

The Deputy Commissioner, Regional Operations has overall responsibility and oversight of all four police regions and the State Emergencies and Support Command.

The Deputy Commissioner, Specialist Operations has overall responsibility and oversight of the Family Violence Command; Forensic Services Department; Legal Services Department; and Road Policing Command.

The Deputy Commissioner, Public Safety and Security has overall responsibility and oversight of the Counter Terrorism Command; Crime Command; Intelligence and Covert Support Command; Taskforce Reset; Transit and Public Safety Command; and Reliever and Special References.

The Deputy Commissioner, Capability has overall responsibility and oversight of the Capability Department; Media, Communications and Engagement Department; People Development Command; Professional Standards Command; and Service Delivery Transformation Command.

The Deputy Secretary, Corporate and Regulatory Services has overall responsibility and oversight of the Financial Services Department; Investment, Governance and Assurance Department; Human Resources Command; Regulatory Services Department; and Police Enquiry and Data Sharing Department.

The Deputy Secretary, Information Technology and Infrastructure Services has overall responsibility and oversight of the Digital Services and Security Department and Operational Infrastructure Department.

Chief Commissioner of Police, Shane Patton APM

Office of the Chief Commissioner

Deputy Commissioner, Regional Operations, Neil Peterson APM

State Emergencies and Support Command, Assistant Commissioner
North West Metro Region, Assistant Commissioner
Southern Metro Region, Assistant Commissioner
Eastern Region, Assistant Commissioner
Western Region, Assistant Commissioner

Deputy Commissioner Specialist Operations, Wendy Steendam AM APM

Road Policing Command, Assistant Commissioner
Family Violence Command, Assistant Commissioner
Forensic Services Department, Executive Director
Legal Services Department, Executive Director

Deputy Commissioner Public Safety and Security, Ross Guenther, APM

Crime Command, Assistant Commissioner
Transit and Public Safety Command, Assistant Commissioner
Counter Terrorism Command, Assistant Commissioner
Intelligence and Covert Support Command, Assistant Commissioner
Reliever and Special References, Assistant Commissioner
Taskforce Reset, Commander

Deputy Commissioner Capability, Robert Hill APM

Capability Department, Executive Director
Media, Communications and Engagement Department, Executive Director
Professional Standards Command, Assistant Commissioner
People Development Command, Assistant Commissioner
Service Delivery Transformation Command, Assistant Commissioner

Deputy Secretary Corporate and Regulatory Services, Susan Delroi

Human Resources Command, Assistant Commissioner
Regulatory Services Department, Executive Director
Police Enquiry and Data Sharing Department Director
Investment, Governance and Assurance Department, Executive Director
Financial Services Department, Executive Director/Chief Finance Officer

Senior leadership group

The Executive Command Board comprises the Chief Commissioner, all Deputy Commissioners and Deputy Secretaries, and is the primary decision-making body for Victoria Police.
The board is responsible for providing leadership, strategic direction and oversight for the organisation, and setting and modelling appropriate culture and behaviours.
As of 30 June 2024, the members of the Executive Command Board are:
- Shane Patton APM - Chief Commissioner of Police
- Wendy Steendam AM APM - Deputy Commissioner, Specialist Operations
- Ross Guenther APM - Deputy Commissioner, Public Safety and Security
- Neil Paterson APM - Deputy Commissioner, Regional Operations
- Robert Hill APM - Deputy Commissioner, Capability
- Susan Delroi - Deputy Secretary, Corporate and Regulatory Services
- Karl Kent OAM - Deputy Secretary, Information Technology and Infrastructure Services.
The Chief Commissioner is the Chief Constable and the Chief Executive Officer of Victoria Police under the Victoria Police Act 2013 and the Public Administration Act 2004 respectively.
The Chief Commissioner of Police may delegate duties, functions and powers to employees at differing ranks and levels. Decision-making occurs through Instruments of Delegation and through functional lines across the organisational and governance structures, as set out and approved by the Chief Commissioner of Police.

Committees

Victoria Police is supported by several standing executive, corporate and advisory committees ensuring corporate governance focus on strategic objectives, managing relevant risks, and improving organisational performance.

Executive Command Board
Meets weekly on contemporary issues and meets monthly on strategic issues.
The primary decision-making and oversight body for Victoria Police on matters that have organisation-wide impacts including, but not limited to: strategic and long-term priorities; new policy and strategic projects; financial and resourcing matters; risk management; major investment and organisational reform.
Asset Strategy Committee
Meets every three months.
Provides oversight and governance of the strategic direction and policy priorities of asset management for Victoria Police. Also improves asset management maturity and capability. It does this through its approval of the Asset Management Strategy, Asset Management Plans for each asset class, and endorsement of asset management improvement plans.
Supports the Chief Commissioner of Police and Audit and Risk Committee to fulfill their responsibilities under the Victorian Government Asset Management Accountability Framework.
Digital Transformation Committee
Meets every two months.
Provides a strategic focus on digital innovation; technology project delivery and operations; information management and cyber security. Supports the implementation of the strategy to digitally transform Victoria Police by leading cultural change and providing advice to Executive Command regarding strategic directions and digital investment priorities.
Provides oversight and advice on enterprise information management and security related priorities, governance, risk management and compliance with organisational and government Information Management Frameworks, policies, strategic direction, and associated standards.
First Peoples Committee
Meets quarterly.
Provides oversight for the implementation, delivery, monitoring and acquittal of the actions outlined in the Chief Commissioner’s Statement of Commitment, which sets out areas Victoria Police will deliver in 2023–25.
The committee is co-chaired by the Deputy Commissioner, Capability and the co-chair of the Aboriginal Justice Caucus.
Operations Committee
Meets quarterly.
Provides a risk-based approach to identifying, coordinating, and responding to significant community safety issues with a progressive focus on developing policing services. Provides a strategic focus on potential policy changes required to support both the internal and external operating environment.
Police Procurement Board
Meets every two months.
Ensures our procurement strategy delivers effective outcomes that support organisational requirements, drives value, and ensures that procurement activity is conducted efficiently and in accordance with the commercial policy, processes and practices prescribed by the Financial Management Act 1994, Victorian Government Purchasing Board policies, and the Project Development and Construction Management Act 1994.
Safety, People and Culture Committee
Meets every two months.
Provides strategic direction regarding the development of safety, people and culture-related policies, strategies, plans and frameworks. Shapes organisational responses to emerging safety, people and culture-related issues, risks, and trends. Oversees safety and people and culture-related priorities, initiatives, and projects.
State Tasking and Coordination
Meets monthly.
Leads the tasking and coordination process at the state level. The committee supports work units to address organisational priorities.
It seeks to ensure that regions and commands deploy operational resources to maximum effect to enhance community safety in line with Keeping You Safe: Victoria Police Strategy 2023–2028.
Audit and Risk Committee _(a)
Required by the Standing Directions 2018 of the Minister for Finance under the Financial Management Act 1994, the Audit and Risk Committee provides independent assurance and assistance to the Chief Commissioner of Police regarding our financial, risk, control, and compliance frameworks, in addition to our external accountability responsibilities.
Maintains effective communication with external auditors and considers recommendations from internal and external auditors.
Victoria Police Finance Board_(a)
Meets monthly.
Provides oversight of our financial management to the Victorian Government and the Chief Commissioner of Police. Provides advice on new initiatives that may assist with longer-term budget reparation and alternatives to offset permanent cost drivers and funding misalignments.
The board is co-chaired by the Department of Treasury and Finance (DTF) Secretary and Chief Commissioner of Police.
Note: (a) Committee includes independent members.

Oversight and assurance

The Audit and Risk Committee is established under the Financial Management Act 1994. Its objective is to provide independent assurance and assistance to the Chief Commissioner of Police in relation to our risk, control and compliance framework, and external accountability responsibilities.
The committee has no executive powers, except those expressly provided by the Standing Directions 2018 of the Minister for Finance, and powers that may be delegated to it from time to time by the Chief Commissioner of Police.
All committee members are external to, and independent of, Victoria Police. The Audit and Risk Committee members as of 30 June 2024 were:
- Sandra (Sam) Andersen (Chair) LLB CPA FAICD FFin
- Leanne Close APM
- David Cullen
- Megan Haas
- Ramaswamy (Narayan) Prasad MBA FCPA GAICD.
In accordance with the Standing Directions 2018 issued under the Financial Management Act 1994 (Standing Directions), Victoria Police maintains an internal audit function (Standing Direction 3.2.2 – Internal Audit).
Where the requirement to have an internal audit function arises, internal audit provides independent and objective assessment of the efficacy of the organisation’s governance, risks, and controls. As required by the Standing Direction, the internal audit function must be independent of management.
In 2023–24, our internal audit function continues as a co-sourced arrangement under commercial contract with KPMG. Our internal audit program includes compliance and performance reviews, with outcomes and mitigation actions reported to the Executive Command Board and the Audit and Risk Committee.
Victoria Police may receive recommendations to enhance business practices through reviews, audits, and inquiries that are conducted internally, or by external agencies and oversight bodies.
These reviews generally result in mitigation strategies aimed at addressing the risks identified in the findings.
External reviews of Victoria Police are undertaken by a range of bodies including:
- Victorian Auditor-General’s Office (VAGO)
- Victorian Ombudsman
- Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission (IBAC)
- Office of the Victorian Information Commissioner
- Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission
- Coroners Court of Victoria.
We may also assist in other public Inquiries including but not limited to Royal Commissions and Parliamentary Inquiries.

Risk management

Under Standing Direction 3.7.1 - Risk Management Framework and Processes, Victoria Police must apply the 2020 Victorian Government Risk Management Framework. We must consider material risks in decision making, and appropriately manage risk taking into account our obligations, constraints, and objectives.

Effective risk management enhances service delivery and community safety outcomes.

The Victorian Government Risk Management Framework describes the minimum risk management requirement to demonstrate that risks are managed effectively.

It adopts the ISO 31000:2018 Risk management - Guidelines, an internationally accepted basis for best practice risk management.

Risk management obligations include the requirement that risk considerations are documented and reflected in the organisation’s overall governance, strategic planning, performance management, financial management and service delivery processes and outcomes.

The Victoria Police Risk Management Framework aligns to the Victorian Government Risk Management Framework and incorporates the Victoria Police Risk Appetite Statement and risk evaluation matrix. Strategic risks are managed collaboratively and reported on regularly.

Executive Command Board recognises risk management as an integral part of organisational culture, policies, systems, and processes required to ensure community safety. Executive Command Board is committed to advancing a positive risk culture to enhance understanding by all employees and contractors.

This will support all employee to manage risks in their areas of responsibilities through sound risk management practices.

Strategic planning

The Keeping You Safe: Victoria Police Strategy 2023–2028 (Keeping You Safe) sets our organisational direction and focus. It ensures that we continue to deliver policing, law enforcement and crime prevention activities in an evolving operational environment, keeping the Victorian community safe.

We will continue to realise the vision set out in Keeping You Safe through a suite of initiatives and projects under the pillars of:

Policing: highly visible and responsive policing
People: skilled people, ready and able to respond
Partnerships: strong partnerships across community, government and business.

These commitments are realised through activities undertaken by regions, departments, and commands, reflected in their annual plans and reported publicly in the Victoria Police Corporate Plan. Published annually in August, the Corporate Plan forms part of an integrated organisational planning framework and maintains focus across the organisation.

It is refreshed every year to reflect changes in government and organisational objectives, emerging priorities, and community safety needs.

Updated 31 October 2024