Ms Serena Wilson

Serena was appointed as Deputy Secretary, Social Policy, Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA) in March 2009. Prior to joining FaHCSIA, Serena was in the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet where she led the Social Policy Division from October 2005 to February 2009. Serena’s career has spanned many areas of social policy across a range of departments in the Commonwealth including Employment and Workplace Relations, Family and Community Services, Social Security, Health and Community Services and Housing and Construction.  In the eleven years she spent in the FaCS and DSS portfolios, Serena led work on welfare reform, income support for people of working age, fraud and compliance policy, carer policy and strategic analysis and research.

Serena assists the Secretary in managing the Department with particular responsibilities for strategic policy and budget strategy, the Age Pension, social security relationships and compliance, research and international engagement, the Tax-Transfer Taskforce and the Disability and Carers Group. She is chair of the Department’s Research and Evaluation Committee, Payments Committee and jointly chairs the Budget Policy Committee with Bruce Hunter. Serena is the FaHCSIA representative on the Board of the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.