Council is seeking community feedback on a revised Community Engagement policy to guide its decision-making, in line with new legislation.
Community engagement is the process by which Council gathers information to make decisions on a range of outcomes such as policies, projects, plans and service delivery that impact the community.
Where members of the community can influence a decision, they are provided with information to form an opinion and an opportunity to provide input through a community engagement process.
The draft Community Engagement Policy outlines Council’s commitment to genuine community engagement. It aims to provide staff and councillors with a consistent and inclusive approach to community engagement based on best practice principles to inform decision-making.
Under the Local Government Act 2020, Victorian councils are required to have a community engagement policy in place by the 1 March 2021. We have updated the policy to apply deliberative community engagement practices as required by the new legislation.
This means that Council community engagement must be representative, deliberative and influential.
The principles in the draft policy confirm our commitment to transparent, timely and relevant, inclusive, accessible, evaluated and influential community engagement, with a promise to close the loop.
Provide your feedback on the policy by making a submission or by completing an online survey by 5.00pm on Monday 18 January 2021.
• Complete the online survey , or
• Forward your feedback outlining what you like about the policy, what you would like to see improved, and if you would like to stay informed about Council’s Community Engagement Policy and Engagement Framework.
Send to Communications and Customer Services Manager, Mount Alexander Shire Council, PO Box 185, Castlemaine 3450 Victoria, or email info@mountalexander.vic.gov.au.
Key documents
• Media release
• Online survey
• Draft Community Engagement Policy