Case Study 1
Hailey Rickard from Fraser Coast Regional Council describes how online engagement has completely transformed the engagement process here on the Fraser Coast . “ By using an online platform , we have been able to create a community space for the life of our projects – engaging with the community along the whole journey . From our Recycled Water Strategy , to our Planning Scheme to Small Community planning – Engagement Hub has been useful in a vast array of projects .”
“ As a local government , you are always concerned you aren ’ t reaching the whole community – not everyone wants or has the time to attend a workshop or a drop-in session . Online engagement provides the opportunity to contribute in your own time – you can be on the couch having a ‘ cuppa ’ – and providing your feedback at the same time . At Fraser Coast , we were able to easily adapt during COVID-19 last year as we already had an online engagement platform . We were able to create online portals ( private project pages ) for our community groups as a space where they could learn and work together . It also allowed us to be innovative in how we present information or engage with the community – including videos , interactive images and online mapping tools .
The reporting and data functions have enabled us to be able to provide more in-depth analysis which has helped to evaluate a project in real time .
Online engagement helps build our social license and community trust in what we are doing . It creates a space that the community know they can visit and see what you are doing , while also building your reach for community involvement and feedback
Case study 2
Community Engagement Officer Brooke Kirkman said that “ Based on a strong need to ensure social , environmental and economic community values and needs are incorporated into local service delivery , ( and a thing called a pandemic !) Central West Local Land Services took a leap towards online engagement and we haven ’ t looked back . By expanding on existing methods , we are now able to connect with a much broader audience . Reaching those who either simply prefer an online option or are unable to connect via more traditional channels .
In a relatively short time , this technology has already proven to be an invaluable tool with the ability to import historical data from a multitude of sources , improving the capacity to build on , and identify community aspirations . Central West Local Land Services undertook a large data migration process in an effort to design a new Local Strategic Plan . The process , along with an extensive consultation campaign enabled the business to identify key themes for strategic development .
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