RESIDENTS of the Surf Coast Shire will get to have their say on a 10-year plan that will help determine what is important for the collective future of the region.<\/p>\n
The Shire last week announced a major engagement and strategy project called People Place Future which will call on community input to establish long-term plans across the Surf Coast.<\/p>\n
A 10-year community vision will be the main purpose for the project as well as establishing several strategic documents including a four-year Council Plan, Municipal Health and Wellbeing Plan and a finance and assets plan.<\/p>\n
The strategy will feature two major community engagement phases with the first now open to the public on a participatory basis until February 28.<\/p>\n
Phase one will invite community members to share their big ideas for the future of the shire and to provide answers on what they value most about their local community.<\/p>\n
The second phase will involve a deliberative process centred on a representative community panel made up of 35 people from across the region.<\/p>\n
Under the second phase the panel will review the initial feedback received from the broader community while exploring the topics through a series of online meetings and resources.<\/p>\n
Guided by an independent facilitator, the panel will meet between March and May before handing down a recommendation report to the council reflective of the community’s needs and values.<\/p>\n
Surf Coast Shire mayor Libby Stapleton said the council looked forward to hearing the results of the engagement project.<\/p>\n
“Using deliberative engagement means community members have the opportunity to dive deep into the data, learn about the issues in a more complete way and provide a rich level of feedback to council,” she said.<\/p>\n
Council will use its email database and advertising channels to invite residents to express their interest in joining the representative community panel, however a date has yet to be confirmed.<\/p>\n
“The recruitment panel is being managed by an independent company that specialises in establishing groups that reflect the make-up of a given community,” Mayor Stapleton said.<\/p>\n
“This means, amongst other things, we will have representation of our age profile, geographic spread and a mix of permanent and non-permanent residents.”<\/p>\n
The People Place Future survey is currently available at www.surfcoast.vic.gov.au\/peopleplacefuture<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
RESIDENTS of the Surf Coast Shire will get to have their say on a 10-year plan that will help determine what is important for the collective future of the region. The Shire last week announced a major engagement and strategy project called People Place Future which will call on community input to establish long-term plans […]<\/p>\n