Lin Hatfield Dodds (born Linda Hatfield), Australian social policy expert and former Churchill Fellow, is the CEO of The Benevolent Society, Australia's first and oldest charity, and was the Deputy Secretary for Social Policy in the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, and former National Director of UnitingCare Australia and Chair of the Australian Social Inclusion Board.

Early life and background

Educated at Page Primary School, Belconnen High School and

Hawker College Hawker College is a senior secondary college in Hawker, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb of Canberra Canberra ( ; ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the Federation of Australia, federation of the colonies of Aus ...

, Hatfield Dodds became active in the

Uniting Church in Australia The Uniting Church in Australia (UCA) is a united church in Australia. The church was founded on 22 June 1977 when most Wiktionary:congregation, congregations of the Methodist Church of Australasia, about two-thirds of the Presbyterian Church o ...

as a teenager. She has a master's degree in counseling psychology and has worked in the areas of drug rehabilitation, trauma, and abuse.

Social work

She has served on a number of Boards. Hatfield Dodds was a Director of the Australian Centre for Christianity and Culture from 2003 to 2016. She was Board Chair at UnitingCare Kippax 2009-2016. She was Chair of The Australia Institute from 2011- 2016. In 2004, Hatfield Dodds was awarded a

Churchill Fellowship Winston Churchill Memorial Trusts (WCMT) are three independent but related living memorials to Sir Winston Churchill, based in the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand. They exist for the purpose of administering Churchill Fellowships, a ...

to examine the design and implementation of holistic poverty reduction strategies that address the underlying causes of social disadvantage. After working in government and the community sector, she was appointed National Director of UnitingCare Australia in 2002, remaining until 2016.Lin Hatfield Dodds Appointed CEO of The Benevolent Society
Jonathan Foye, Insights (magazine), 2021-07-08 UnitingCare Australia is an agency of the

. UnitingCare is one of the largest non-government providers of community services, with 1,600 community service delivery sites located across every State and Territory providing services to over 2 million people each year. From 2004 to 2008, Hatfield Dodds was a member of the ACT Community Inclusion Board, serving as Chair from 2006 to 2008. From 2005 to 2009 she was President of the Australian Council of Social Service, the peak advocacy body representing people affected by poverty and inequality. From 2012 to 2013 she was Chair of the Australian Social Inclusion Board, the main advisory body to Government on ways to achieve better outcomes for the most disadvantaged people in our community. Hatfield Dodds has contributed to numerous government advisory bodies, including the Aged Care Sector Committee, the National Place Based Advisory Group and the National Youth Advisory and Consultative Forum, which advised the then Federal Minister for Children and Youth Affairs. She was a participant in the Prime Minister's Economic Forum (2012), the Australian Government Tax Forum (2011) and the Prime Minister's 2020 Summit (2007). She was a member of the national Community Response Task Force advising the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs during the

2008 financial crisis The 2008 financial crisis, also known as the global financial crisis (GFC), was a major worldwide financial crisis centered in the United States. The causes of the 2008 crisis included excessive speculation on housing values by both homeowners ...

. Hatfield Dodds has been active in public debate, a frequent media commentator and conference speaker across the spectrum of social and economic issues relating to children, young people, and families; older Australians and reform of the not for profit sector.

Federal government

In May 2016, Hatfield Dodds was announced as Deputy Secretary for Social Policy in the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, by the Secretary, Dr Martin Parkinson.Outrage over appointment of Lin Hatfield Dodds to Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet

Chris Uhlmann Christopher Gerald Uhlmann (born 24 June 1960) is a former security guard, Australian journalist and television presenter. Career Uhlmann was formerly a seminarian, a security guard, and a journalist with ''The Canberra Times'' before joining ...

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, 12 May 2016, accessed 21 October 2016 She served until 2019.

ANZSOG

From 2019 to 2021, Hatfield Dodds was an Associate Dean at the Australia and New Zealand School of Government.

The Benevolent Society

In July 2021, Hatfield Dodds was announced as the CEO of The Benevolent Society, Australia's first and oldest charity.

Politics

At the 2010 Federal Election, Hatfield Dodds was a candidate for political office for the

Australian Senate The Senate is the upper house of the Bicameralism, bicameral Parliament of Australia, the lower house being the Australian House of Representatives, House of Representatives. The powers, role and composition of the Senate are set out in Chap ...

in the

Australian Capital Territory The Australian Capital Territory (ACT), known as the Federal Capital Territory until 1938, is an internal States and territories of Australia, territory of Australia. Canberra, the capital city of Australia, is situated within the territory, an ...

for the

Australian Greens The Australian Greens, commonly referred to simply as the Greens, are a Left-wing politics, left-wing green party, green Australian List of political parties in Australia, political party. As of 2025, the Greens are the third largest politica ...

. She was defeated by long-serving Liberal Senator Gary Humphries.

Awards and honours

Hatfield Dodds has received a number of awards in recognition of her contribution to social and economic policy, including an International Women's Day Award in 2002 and an ACT

Australian of the Year The Australian of the Year is a national award conferred on an Australian citizen by the National Australia Day Council, a not-for-profit Australian Government-owned social enterprise. Similar awards are also conferred at the state and territor ...

award in 2008.

External links

UnitingCare Australia

Australian Social Inclusion Board

The Australia Institute: Organisational Structure

Uniting Church in Australia Leaders and Staff

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hatfield Dodds, Lin Living people Uniting Church in Australia people People from Canberra Australian public servants Australian activists 1965 births People educated at Hawker College