Part 1 - Vision and Mission

Vision - Western Australia: A creative community that participates in and values culture and the arts as essential to our well-being

This vision statement evokes a futuristic picture of Western Australia where people are connected to their history, their culture and celebrate and share their experiences and stories.  

The statement recognises that Western Australia is distinguished through its culture and arts and suggests a dynamic and vibrant place for the exchange of ideas, cultures and the expression of life.
The people of Western Australia support the expression of culture and arts as part of everyday life.

• The value of culture and arts is recognised in planning for future generations.
• Artists and communities are supported to realise their artistic and cultural needs and aspirations.
• Regardless of location, all Western Australians have access to a wide range of culture and arts services and opportunities.
• Visitors to the State are attracted by the creativity, celebration of difference and quality of cultural experiences available.

The increased community participation and valuing of culture and arts results in government responding to the demands of its people to expand the infrastructure to improve access to culture and arts for all people including residents of and visitors to Western Australia.

Importantly, the culture and arts of Western Australia is in demand within Australia and overseas, and government and business are working in concert to support and promote the benefits to society of our vibrant culture and arts sector.

The positive effects of culture and the arts in growing the economy, improving health and education, and creating a more enriched society that embraces difference, provides the opportunity for even greater harmony and an enhanced state of well-being. 

Mission - Guiding the delivery of culture and the arts for Western Australia 

This statement expresses the purpose of the DCA alone and each portfolio organisation has its own mission.

The Government created the DCA firstly, to guide and implement Government policy; secondly, to provide support and resources for the development and delivery of culture and arts; and thirdly, to align the services delivered by the culture and arts portfolio with Government policy objectives. These obligations are well expressed in the mission.

‘Guiding’ implies a two-way communication channel between the Minister (representing the Government) and the DCA in which the policy settings of Government are influenced by the advice of the DCA – based upon our connection, support and engagement with the culture and arts sector in particular and the community generally.  Implicit in this word is the “alignment” of resources in accordance with Government policies.

‘Delivery’ is about action, it is what we do.  It is about ensuring that adequate resources of money, people and infrastructure are made available to realise the agreed outcomes.

‘For Western Australia’ focuses the policy setting on the benefits for the State and is deliberately specified in this way so as to include Western Australians, visitors to our State and the export of product nationally and internationally.

Outcomes

Departments of State are formed by governments to deliver specific outcomes for the people of Western Australia.  The agreed outcomes for the DCA are:

1. A creative, sustainable and accessible culture and arts sector.
2. Western Australia’s natural, cultural and documentary collections are managed, conserved and accessible.

The mechanisms of how the DCA will achieve its outcomes are underpinned by our values and guiding principles.

Values and Guiding Principles

People
We value our people and will invest in ongoing learning and professional and personal development.

Creativity and Innovation
We value imagination, freedom of expression and access and exposure to innovative ideas, events and debates.  We value the talents of our people and understand the need to develop and use those talents to their potential.

Integrity
We value honesty, trust, respect and openness and we will act ethically in all relationships and dealings.

Excellence
We strive to achieve the best results in all we do.  We value professionalism and recognise the qualities of artistic and cultural excellence.

Respect and Inclusiveness
We acknowledge and respect the independence, interdependence and uniqueness of the ideas, values and abilities of our people, the culture and arts sector, organisations and community.  We also understand the right of every person to participate and encourage the principles of equity and diversity in all we do.

Preservation and Development of Indigenous Cultures
We consider it fundamentally important to support the preservation and development of Indigenous art and culture as an integral part of Western Australia’s cultural heritage and contemporary arts activity.  We commit to involving and working with Indigenous communities in all stages of the development of policies and projects.

Preservation, Development and Expression of Western Australia’s Unique Identity
We value Western Australia’s unique cultural and artistic life and will work to promote, preserve and develop this.

Capacity Building and Consultation
We commit to undertaking consultation and achieving cooperation with local communities at all stages of the development of relevant policies and projects.

Corporate Governance
We will work within the legal framework of the State to serve the interests of Western Australia. We will be accountable for all decisions and obligations will be clear, measurable and transparent.

Guiding Principles

These Values and Guiding Principles guide our behaviour.

We have established five guiding principles that underpin the basis of all actions.

Everyone, including the Director General, will be held to account against these principles.

It is the basis of our individual and corporate integrity.

The test for any decision is to be based on the following principles.

Every decision must satisfy each principle, or at least not be inconsistent with any.

Our actions:

• Encourage our people to grow to their potential
• Strive for excellence
• Value creativity
• Recognise the independence, uniqueness and heritage of the organisations within the portfolio
  
• Unify the portfolio and contribute to the Department’s outcomes