Issuu

SUPPORTING PLAN

Community Engagement Framework JUNE 2025

destinations Safe & Strong A proud inclusive community that unites, celebrates and cares

Clean & Green A cool, clean and sustainable city with healthy waterways and natural areas

Prosperous & Innovative A smart and evolving city with exciting opportunities for investment and creativity

Moving & Integrated An accessible city with great local destinations and many options to get there

Safe & Strong documents cover such themes as being a child friendly City, social justice, children’s services, community safety and crime prevention, inclusiveness, community services, universal access, reconciliation, ageing, community harmony and youth.

Clean & Green documents cover such themes as managing our catchments and waterways, natural resources, environmental hazards and risks, weather/ climate emergencies, biodiversity, climate change, resilience, and corporate sustainability.

Prosperous & Innovative documents cover such themes as economic growth and employment, investment, art, culture, heritage preservation, pursuing digital solutions and being creative.

Moving & Integrated documents cover such themes as accessibility, pedestrian and cycling networks, pedestrian and road safety, transport hubs, and asset management.

Healthy & Active A motivated city that nurtures healthy minds and bodies

Liveable & Distinctive A well designed, attractive city which preserves the identity and character of local villages

Leading & Engaged A well-governed city with brave and future focused leaders who listen

Healthy & Active documents cover such themes lifelong learning, active and healthy lifestyles, open spaces, passive parks, play spaces, and providing quality sport and recreation infrastructure and programs.

Liveable & Distinctive documents cover such themes as preserving the character and personality of centres and revitalising them, affordable housing, well-managed development, and complying with local laws.

Leading & Engaged documents cover such themes as open government, managing assets, improving services, long term funding, operational excellence, monitoring performance, being a good employer, civic leadership, and engaging, educating and communicating with our community.

Strategic Planning Framework Summary The Strategic Planning Framework (SPF) maps out the role of all current and future Council strategies and plans that work to deliver the vision for the City. The framework works from the highest level of strategic direction from the Community Strategic Plan through to more detailed plans that will eventually drive works, projects and programs on the ground. The framework is comprised of the following levels:

The COMMUNITY STRATEGIC PLAN (CSP) is our highest level plan and translates the community’s desired outcomes for the city into key destinations. The CSP includes community suggested actions which can be tested in the development of all other plans.

1 2 3

SUPPORTING PLANS identify broad works projects and programs required to deliver on these actions. Supporting plans include indicative costing and resourcing requirements and delivery timeframes.

DETAILED ACTION PLANS take actions from SUPPORTING PLANS and identify specific works projects and programs required to deliver on these actions. These plans include detailed costing and resourcing requirements and delivery timeframes.

GUIDELINES, POLICIES AND CODES provide detailed information, rules for activities or guidance for specific works on Council or other lands.

The City of Canterbury Bankstown acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of the land, water and skies of Canterbury-Bankstown, the Darug (Darag, Dharug, Daruk, Dharuk) People. We recognise and respect Darug cultural heritage, beliefs and relationship with the land. We acknowledge the First Peoples' continuing importance to our CanterburyBankstown community.

Community Engagement Framework

Contents 1.

Your City ....................................................... 6

1.1

Your Community....................................................6

1.2 Our City’s vision and values....................................9 1.3

What do we mean by community engagement?........10

1.4 Why do we engage? ...............................................10 1.5

Why engagement is fundamental to our work...........10

Engagement Framework................................... 13

2.1

Community Engagement Strategy ...........................13

2.2 Our Community Engagement Policy ........................14 2.3 Our Community Engagement Framework .................14 2.4 Principles guiding our engagement .........................17 2.5 Participation spectrum ..........................................18 2.6 Community engagement model..............................20 2.7 How much time and effort is required for engagement?...................................................22 2.8 Reporting and evaluating .......................................22 2.9 Community Engagement Toolkit .............................22

Community Engagement Framework

Your City 17 kilometres

southwest of the Sydney CBD

41 suburbs AREA

110

square kilometres

156,400+

2,237,700+

employed residents

international visitor nights (2023/24)

99,000+

$17.75 billion

local workers

42,700+

gross regional product

businesses

YOUR ASSETS

river catchments

train stations

250+

playgrounds

416+ Council buildings

Community Engagement Framework

900+

kilometres Council roads

600+ parks

1,200+ kilometres footpaths

75+

sporting complexes

5,200+ traffic management devices

Your Community

385,242

500,000

population in 2024

median age

art centre

hospitals

45%

born overseas

126

schools

libraries

population by 2036

59%

speak a language other than English at home

20.5%

23.5%

over 60

under 18

university

TAFE campuses

680km+

Gross Pollutant Traps

drainage conduits

Community Engagement Framework

1.2 Our City’s vision and values As part of the establishment of our new City, Council has prepared a vision and set of values to guide our operations.

We STICC to our values

What We Believe Canterbury-Bankstown is thriving, dynamic and real

We are committed to safety

Our Purpose Together we create a great city we love We work as one team

We act with integrity

Our Ambition Our community loves their community

We care about our customers

We continuously improve

Community Engagement Framework

1.3 What do we mean by community engagement? The City of Canterbury Bankstown defines community engagement as the involvement of the community in the decision-making process of Council, where the community is encouraged to provide feedback on a range of issues that affect them to inform and influence Council’s initiatives. The International Association for Public Participation (IAP2), a peak body for engagement or public participation, define community engagement as,"..an intentional process with the specific purpose of working across organisations, stakeholders and communities to shape the decisions or actions of the members of the community, stakeholders or organisation in relation to a problem, opportunity or outcome" (IAP2, 2020: 9). 1.4 Why do we engage? At Council, we are committed to ongoing and meaningful engagement with our community and other stakeholders. Engaging with our community helps us to:

• Identify and understand what is important to our community - their needs, priorities and aspirations • Ensure that our services best meet the range of community needs - inclusive of cultural and social backgrounds • Allow a range of voices to be heard, not just those people who are articulate, angry, loud or with influence • Identify shared values, benefits and outcomes and how Council and community can work together to realise our goals • Manage risks by understanding and anticipating issues before they escalate 1.5 Why engagement is fundamental to our work By engaging with our community, we can understand what is of most importance to them now and into the future. Our aspiration is to be an organisation that puts engagement at the centre of everything we do. To succeed, we need to involve our community in a meaningful way in our operations and activities to build community trust. Ongoing discussions with our community will empower them and influence positive and sustainable Council decisions.

Community engagement is guided by the values of IAP2, of which Council is a member. IAP2’s Core Values are: 1. Public participation is based on the belief that those who are affected by a decision have a right to be involved in the decision-making process. 2. Public participation includes the promise that the public’s contribution will influence the decision. 3. Public participation promotes sustainable decisions by recognising and communicating the needs and interests of all participants, including decision makers.

Community Engagement Framework

4. Public participation seeks out and facilitates the involvement of those potentially affected by or interested in a decision. 5. Public participation seeks input from participants in designing how they participate. 6. Public participation provides participants with the information they need to participate in a meaningful way. 7. Public participation communicates to participants how their input affected the decision. (IAP2, 2015: 7)

Community Engagement Framework

Engagement Framework

This Community Engagement Framework is Council’s response to the Community Engagement Strategy requirements of Section 402A of the Local Government Act 1993. 2.1 Community Engagement Strategy Under Section 402A of the Local Government Act 1993 all councils in New South Wales are required to develop and implement a community engagement strategy. This diagram represents how the City of Canterbury Bankstown delivers community engagement. The City’s Community Engagement Strategy is comprised of our Community Engagement Policy, Community Engagement Framework and Community Engagement Toolkit, together with the Community Participation Plan, which guides development assessment and planning processes. In preparing the Community Engagement Strategy, we’ve taken into account: Community Engagement Charter

Community Engagement Strategy

Community Engagement Policy

Community Engagement Framework

• Legislative requirements e.g. Integrated Planning and Reporting under the Local Government Act 1993, and Community Participation Plans under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 • The International Association for Public Participation’s (IAP2) Quality Assurance Standard for Community and Stakeholder Engagement (2015) and the AccountAbility (2015) AA1000 Stakeholder Engagement Standard • Feedback from the 2023 review of Council's community engagement

Community Participation Plan Community Engagement Toolkit

• Council’s organisational vision and values • Existing project management, operational planning and reporting systems and processes

Community Engagement Framework

2.2 Our Community Engagement Policy Our Community Engagement Policy is a public document that has been endorsed by Council. The policy formalises our commitment to timely, appropriate and effective engagement and applies to all Council staff and those undertaking engagement on behalf of Council. 2.3 Our Community Engagement Framework This Engagement Framework should be read in conjunction with our Community Engagement Policy. It has been designed to guide a consistent, best-practice approach to engagement across our City. In general, this Framework will assist Council in developing project plans that will provide better informed decisions by Council. From time to time, Council may engage with members of the community on projects or decisions outside of its direct responsibility. Reflecting our value to continuously improve, we commit to evaluating and enhancing our engagement to ensure that all across our diverse community can easily participate, including those who do not speak English as their first language.

Some ways that work well in the way we engage our stakeholders and communities include: • Engaging with people where they are most comfortable: via existing social, cultural and sporting networks and clubs; engaging people in places they already visit and partnering with existing events and other bodies • Ensuring we explain why participating in engagement is important: by using clear and factual information to explain the benefits and impacts of activities on our communities • Ensuring we explain why participating in engagement is important: we will clearly explain what aspects of our decisions can be influenced by feedback or ideas from our community or stakeholders • Linking in with topical issues: being timely in messaging and consultation • Ensuring our engagement meets the needs of our communities: culturally appropriate staff and representatives • Engaging with a representative cross-section of the community: to understand the broad range of views on an issue. More information can be found in Community Engagement Toolkit – identifying stakeholders

We will continue to build and maintain relationships with our community and keep refining our engagement approach to best reach them.

At Council, we want to guide and direct planning for the future of our City so that it is an active, productive, livable, sustainable and resilient place. We have prepared this Engagement Framework to help us engage our communities in our decisions, plans, projects and policies in a fair and consistent way. More information on the steps and tools of engagement can be found in the Community Engagement Toolkit.

Community Engagement Framework

2.4 Principles guiding our engagement At the highest level our engagement is guided by the social justice principles of equity, access, participation and rights. In practice this is demonstrated in ways such as translating information into key languages spoken in the community and using technology to make information more accessible to those living with disability.

Our approach to engagement is also underpinned by a set of principles which define what members of the community should reasonably expect from Council when it is engaging on its plans, policies or projects. Our principles, informed by the 2023 review of Council's engagement, are timely, open, clear, accessible, responsive and inclusive. Our principles are consistent with international best practice, most notably the International Association of Public Participation’s (IAP2) Core Values.

Figure 2: Community Engagement Principles Timely

We engage as early as possible to provide opportunities for influence and to identify issues.

Open

We are open about how community feedback has influenced decisions. There may be occasions where Council makes decisions that don’t reflect community sentiment. When this happens Council will communicate openly about why.

Clear

We clearly communicate why we are engaging. We strive to communicate clearly on what can and can't be influenced.

Accessible

We use a range of engagement methods, plain language, translation and interpretation services and accessibility tools to support participation from across our community.

Responsive

We report back to our community, providing a summary of community feedback.

Inclusive

We strive to hear views from across our diverse community, actively working to engage under-represented and vulnerable individuals and groups to support their participation.

Community Engagement Framework

2.5 Participation spectrum Engagement can take many forms and range from informing stakeholders about a plan, project or policy, to obtaining input and feedback, or including stakeholders in decision-making.

Figure 3: IAP2 public participation spectrum (IAP2, 2018)

Increasing impact on the decision

Inform

Consult

Involve

Collaborate

Empower

Public participation goal

To provide the public with balanced, objective information to assist them in understanding the problems, alternatives and/or solutions

To obtain public feedback on analysis, alternatives and/or decisions

To work directly with the public throughout the process, to ensure that public issues and concerns are consistently understood and considered

To partner with the public in each aspect of the decision including the development of alternatives and the identification of the preferred solution

To place final decision-making in the hands of the public

Promise to the public

We will keep you informed

We will keep you informed, listen to and acknowledge concerns and aspirations, and provide feedback on how public input influenced the decision

We will work with you to ensure that your concerns and aspirations are directly reflected in the alternatives developed, and provide feedback on how public input influenced the decision

We will look to you for advice and innovation in formulating solutions and incorporate your advice and recommendations into the decisions to the maximum extent possible

We will implement what you decide

Some examples

Factsheets, letters, Have Your Say website and media releases

Focus groups, surveys, public comment on Have Your Say website and pop-up stalls

Workshops and deliberative polling

Advisory committees and participatory decision-making

Citizen juries, ballots and delegated decisions

Community Engagement Framework

The IAP2 Public Participation Spectrum is an industry-recognised tool designed to assist in selecting the public’s level of participation in a community engagement program. Levels of participation run from inform to empower and are determined by factors including: • An analysis of the objectives of the engagement process • The level of impact the decisions being made are likely to have on members of the community • The levels of interest and influence on the decision to be made • The resources, budget and timeframes dedicated to engagement When engagement is led by other groups such as local sporting groups, clubs, businesses, schools or other government organisations etc, Council should be proactive in awareness of these conversations to identify opportunities presented for Council to investigate or become involved in. In Canterbury-Bankstown, this could mean that engagement: • Is planned and led by the Community Engagement Team • Is led by other parts of Council, and supported by the Community Engagement Team • Might be led by other levels of government, with aspects delivered by Council • May originate from the community itself Figure 4 represents the IAP2 community engagement model, where there are five ways engagement is considered.

Community Engagement Framework

2.6 Community engagement model

Shared leadership in action (green quadrant)

Community advocacy (yellow quadrant)

Leadership and actions can be shared, where communities and organisations participate and contribute to the decisions; and also lead and take responsibility for action towards shared outcomes.

The community leads and the organisation acts. An example could include Council’s Youth Advisory Committee leading the project plan for Youth Week annual festivities and Council implementing the actions to deliver the event. Community act and contribute (pink quadrant) The community leads and acts. Examples include sport and recreation clubs or environmental education and action groups that design, resource and deliver their own programs, services and activities. Council might at times provide sponsorships or in-kind support for these initiatives. Behaviour change (blue quadrant) The organisation leads and the community acts. An example includes Council’s waste reduction and recycling strategies. Organisation implementation (grey quadrant) The organisation leads and acts. Most of Council’s work sits in this quadrant and includes public domain projects, community strategic planning and infrastructure delivery.

Community Engagement Framework

An example of shared leadership and action include Community Voice Panels where a randomly selected and demographically representative panel of residents are gathered to examine a complex planning issue and make recommendations. The panel met multiple times and were provided detailed and balanced information and presentations by experts. Working with the principles and guidance outlined in this framework, Council has an opportunity to distribute work across all quadrants of the model and to extend its work into shared leadership and action. Doing so would enable Council to meet the principles and values outlined in this framework.

Figure 4: IAP2 community engagement model (IAP2, 2014: 1)

Community Engagement Framework

2.7 How much time and effort is required for engagement? The time and effort we expend on engagement is determined by factors including: • The level of complexity of the activities we’re undertaking • The level of impact they are likely to have on our communities and other stakeholders • The level of public interest they are likely to generate The Community Engagement Toolkit includes a tool which can be used when analysing the level of impact and interest from the perspective of our community and other stakeholders. 2.8 Reporting and evaluating Evaluation should be undertaken throughout a project's engagement period, to ensure that if any improvements are required (e.g. additional promotional activities), they can be implemented during the engagement process.

Council is committed to reporting back to the community after engagement, by providing an update on Council's digital engagement platform, Have Your Say (https://haveyoursay. cbcity.nsw.gov.au). This update will provide a summary of: • The engagement and promotional activities used • The feedback received • The engagement outcomes and decisions 2.9 Community Engagement Toolkit The Community Engagement Toolkit includes practical resources to assist Council staff and others undertaking engagement on behalf of Council to fulfill their obligations and deliver effective engagement.

Engaging well is the business of everyone in Council.

The evaluation process allows Council to measure the participation satisfaction and experience. It also allows Council to action what the results are telling us. Beyond individual projects, Council strives to continuously evaluate its engagement, knowing that we won't always get it right and that we can always improve. Engagement will be evaluated against the principles, reach, implementation and outcomes.

References: AccountAbility (2015) AA1000 Stakeholder Engagement Standard 2015, available at: https://www.accountability.org/ IAP2 (2014) Community Engagement Model, available at https://iap2.org.au/ IAP2 Australasia (2020) Engagement Essentials, available at https://iap2.org.au/ IAP2 (2015) Quality Assurance Standard for Community and Stakeholder Engagement, available at https://iap2.org.au/ IAP2 (2018) Spectrum of Public Participation, available at https://iap2.org.au/

Community Engagement Framework

Have Your Say