Citizen/Community Engagement
See handbook below!
Citizen/community engagement is a broad field which includes a range of activities including public consultation. In discussing these issues people use a range of terms without a high level of common definition. For the purposes of a 2007 survey the LGA applied the following definition:
"Citizen/community engagement is about involving the community in the decision making process and is critical in the successful development of acceptable policies and decisions in government, the private sector and the community."
Source: adapted from http://www.dpi.wa.gov.au/communityengagement/727.asp
For the same purposes the LGA has undertaken work with the International Association for Public Participation's (IAP2 - see link below) public participation spectrum, recognising that a range of processes and activities are parts of a whole and the whole rests on the need for a community well educated about civics and well informed on key issues affecting the community. In Australia, Local Government plays a vital role in this process. The IAP2 categories of public participation are:
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Inform
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Consult
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Involve
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Collaborate
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Empower
Councils are involved in all aspects of these processes from publishing information on websites, distributing information in communities and working with schools on civics education (see http://www.localstuff.sa.gov.au/) through to partnering with community and sporting groups and to the voting process which decides on who governs Councils and their communities.
Project
The LGA recognises that engagement of and consultation with the community is an area of ongoing development and debate within Local Government and communities (as well as for other governments). Local Government is involved in a higher level of engagement with communities on a regular basis than other governments - sometimes on behalf of other governments - and hence grapples more regularly with the challenges of applying appropriate techniques to particular circumstances.
To assist Councils further in this area, the LGA has commenced a project on Citizen/Community Engagement with State Government support through the Office of State/Local Government Relations. The project is aimed at:
- highlighting good practices in SA;
- developing a draft Citizen Engagement Strategy with a focus on the role of Local Government;
- developing and promoting tools to assist in effective citizen engagement; and
- conduct of a conference with a focus on citizen engagement in 2008.
As the first step in this project the LGA gathered information from Councils including case examples. The survey used can be found here: Circular 11.12.
A summary of survey responses can be found here: Community Engagement Snapshot of Councils April 2007 
(149 kb)
Showcase & Handbook
A publication documenting case examples of citizen/community engagement can be found here: Community Engagement Showcase - June 2007 (967 kb). Click here to view a joint media release between Minister Rankine and LGA President, Mayor Joy Baluch.
The second phase of the project has involved the development of the Community Engagement Handbook - A Model Framework for leading practice in Local Government in South Australia:
Community Engagement Handbook March 2008 - PDF (1346 kb)
Community Engagement Handbook - March 2008 
(922 kb)
The principle aim of the Handbook is to provide Councils with a model framework to adapt to local circumstances for effective planning and implementation of community engagement processes for small and large projects. The Handbook is based squarely on the principle that effective planning needs to precede the selection of techniques for community engagement, and will be a valuable tool for all those across a range of disciplines who have an interest in and responsibility for designing and implementing community engagement initiatives.
Your feedback on the Handbook is invited, and would be welcomed via the Feedback Form, by 30 May 2008. Feedback Form - Community Engagement Handbook (94 kb)
Case Studies
Mount Barker Case Study (89 kb)
Campbelltown Case Study (42 kb)
Training in the use of the Handbook will be offered through the LGA Training and Education Program. For further information contact LGA Education & Training, email training@lga.sa.gov.au, or telephone 8224 2035.
For further information
Queries regarding the project can be directed to project consultant, Margaret Heylen, telephone 8389 7971, mobile 0419 818 166, email margheylen@bordernet.com.au or to LGA Director of Government Relations and Communications, Chris Russell, on 8224 2030 or chris.russell@lga.sa.gov.au.
The LGA appreciates input from the Adelaide Chapter of the International Association for Public Participation (IAP2) and the Office of State/Local Government Relations.
Links
International Association for Public Participation (IAP2) - http://www.iap2.org.au/
