A review of community planning in Central Goldfields
A review of community planning in Central Goldfields is now complete.
It has been four years since the completion of eight community plans for Bealiba, Bet Bet, Carisbrook, Dunolly, Majorca, Maryborough, Talbot and Timor and so the review was an ideal time for us to learn about and reflect on the achievements, challenges and needs of each township and how community planning might better support the aspirations of each town.
The review involved:
- Talking with key community leaders, groups and partners who have been involved in implementing community plan activities to better understand progress, achievements, challenges and ideas for improvements
- The Let's Get Better at Community Planning Workshop on Wednesday 31 May which was an opportunity for us to hear about what is already happening in our local towns and districts and what community members are interested in pursuing next. You can read the workshop notes here.
- Learning from other successful community plan projects
Review outcomes
At the June, 2023 Council Meeting a report on the key recommendations and findings on the Community Planning Review Project were delivered.
The Review identified that Council’s next steps fall into three key areas:
- small triumphs
- building a partnership model
- funding a Community Development Officer role to support community planning.
The review identified that whilst Council endeavors to facilitate a range of small successes for the community identified in the review, within the existing budget, it's clear that sustainable traction and change depend on the appointment of a Community Development Officer.
There is a strong desire for setting priorities and identifying community projects, the Community Development Officer will enable us to better support our community by connecting townships, leading improvements and developing a range of resources and tools we can use for community planning and ongoing funding.
Council will recruit for the Community Development Officer in September.
To find out more about the reccomendations identified as part of the review, you can read the Phase 1 - Summary Report here.
Key recommendations identified through community planning review
Key recommendations and findings on the Community Planning Review Project were delivered during the June Meeting of Council on Tuesday 27 June, 2023
The report was based on feedback provided by community through conversations with local leaders and groups in Bealiba, Bet Bet, Carisbrook, Dunolly, Majorca, Maryborough, Talbot and Timor as well as the ‘Let’s Get Better at Community Planning’ workshop held in May.
The Review identified that Council’s next steps fall into three key areas: small triumphs, building a partnership model and funding a Community Development Officer role to support community planning.
The review identified that whilst Council endeavors to facilitate a range of small successes for the community identified in the review, within the existing budget, it's clear that sustainable traction and change depend on the appointment of a Community Development Officer.
There is a strong desire for setting priorities and identifying community projects, the Community Development Officer will enable us to better support our community by connecting townships, leading improvements and developing a range of resources and tools we can use for community planning and ongoing funding.
To find out more about the reccomendations identified as part of the review, you can read the Phase 1 - Summary Report here.
Please read more about the project below
A community plan is a document that sets out the community’s vision for the future and sets priorities for progress. Community plans are developed and owned by community and capture the community’s voice for what is most important for them.
In 2019, 1035 residents across eight districts - Bealiba, Bet Bet, Carisbrook, Dunolly, Majorca, Maryborough, Talbot and Timor - came together to outline a ten-year plan for each of their communities.
Completed in 2020, the plans identified what residents love about their community, the challenges they face and priority areas for change and improvement.
Since completion, many of the identified infrastructure improvements have been implemented by Council (with Federal government funding) and community groups have also been busy delivering an exciting range of community festivals and other critical projects.
The delivery of key actions within each community plan is the shared responsibility of community members, Council, other government agencies, businesses and key stakeholder groups and organisations.
The Community Planning Review Project will review the eight community plans developed in 2019 for the communities of: Bealiba, Bet Bet, Carisbrook, Dunolly, Majorca, Maryborough, Talbot and Timor.
It is an ideal time for us to learn about and reflect on the achievements, challenges and needs of our place-based community plans since they are now almost halfway through their ten year life.
In phase one of the project we will:
- talk with key community leaders, groups and partners who have been involved in implementing community plan activities so we can understand progress, achievements, challenges and ideas for improvements
- learn from other successful community plan projects
- work together with key community groups and leaders to design a local process for implementing community plans
In phase two of the project we will:
- ‘refresh’ the eight community plans using the information you shared in phase one
In phase three of the project we will:
- work together with community leaders, groups and partners to plan for and make improvements suggested in phase one
March 2023: Project Planning
April/May: Engagement activities
June: Analyse data and draft findings
June/July: Test findings with Councillors and key community stakeholders
