Tag: Community Engagement

Media Release: Community satisfaction results are in

Posted on by alex

The State Government’s 2010 Community Satisfaction Survey results have been announced and it’s great news for Maroondah.

The Survey is conducted by an independent research group for the Department of Planning and Community Development. This is the thirteenth annual Community Satisfaction Survey and results are used to measure how Victorian residents rate the performance of their local governments.

The random phone interview survey was conducted during February and March, with a minimum of 350 Maroondah residents asked to rate Council’s performance.

“Maroondah City Council’s overall results are excellent,” Mayor, Councillor Alex Makin said.

“The survey is an important measurement tool in gauging Council’s progress towards the goals stated in Maroondah 2025 and Council’s mission.

“It is one of many processes by which Council elicits important community feedback to ensure its activities are well targeted, performing efficiently and are relevant to the community,” Cr Makin said.

“Maroondah City Council was rated on par with the median result recorded for the group of “like” inner metropolitan Councils. In terms of overall performance, 84 percent of respondents rated Council’s performance as excellent, adequate or good with only four percent of respondents indicating Council’s performance needed a lot of improvement. Seventeen percent thought it had improved and 71 percent thought it had stayed the same,” said Cr Makin said.

“Community satisfaction with Council’s performance in eight of the specific performance areas remained unchanged, but we have seen a marked improvement in the scoring for recreational facilities,” Cr Makin said.

“We have also seen significant positive change in the delivery of health and human services,” Cr Makin said.

“The survey results for recreational facilities have reinforced what we in Maroondah have known for a long time – our municipality is home to a wealth of top class sporting and leisure opportunities,” Cr Makin said.

“Ninety-three per cent of residents scored Maroondah’s recreational facilities as excellent, good or adequate, with seven per cent indicating that Council’s performance in this area needed improvement,” Cr Makin said.

“The delivery of health and human services in Maroondah also received a solid response, with 88 per cent of respondents scoring Council’s performance as excellent, good or adequate,” Cr Makin said.

“And although there are areas where residents desire further improvement, Maroondah did relatively well compared to other councils in its group for traffic management and local roads and footpaths,” Cr Makin said.

  • Traffic Management and parking facilities were well above the respective median. (Maroondah scored 61 compared with the Group median of 57)
  • Customer Contact was slightly above the respective medium. (Maroondah scored 74 compared to the Group median of 73)
  • Town Planning Policy and Approvals were equal with the Group median of 57.
  • Local Roads and Footpaths and Advocacy Enforcement of Local Laws and Appearance of Public Areas were all just under the median.

Community Engagement and Waste Management were areas that the survey indicated had a need for improvement.

“This survey provides valuable feedback and assists Council to prioritise its resources. To ensure that continued improvement occurs, these areas will receive attention,” said Cr Makin said.

“However, I am very pleased with the ratings and believe this reflects our commitment to community partnership and is a reward for our efforts,” said Cr Makin.

– ENDS –

Delegates’ Report: Annual General Meetings, Promoting Harmony and Recognising Achievements

Posted on by alex

February and March have both been busy months with the opening of new facilities, annual general meetings and awards.

On the 19th of February I had the pleasure of opening the revamped Keystone Hall, located in Croydon. The project, which received Council and Federal funding, is a multi-purpose facility that houses several groups, including Croydon Little Athletics and the Croydon U3A. The facility includes accessibility improvements, as well as sustainability initiatives, through the installation of water tanks.

On the 4th of March, the City of Maroondah was officially presented an Award for achieving the Highest Level of Community Engagement during Walktober. Walktober is an event held each October, whereby Councils, community groups and organisations are encouraged to organise walks to promote sustainable transport and community wellbeing.

I would like to extend my congratulations to Maroondah’s Leisure Services Department for working collaboratively with community groups and registering 55 walks during Walktober.

Further details will be presented during tonight’s agenda.

On the 9th of March I had the pleasure of opening Maroondah City Council’s International Women’s Day Breakfast. 2010 marks the Centenary of the Girl Guides and we had the privilege of hearing from two speakers from Girl Guides Victoria, including local Guide leader Billee Henry who spoke passionately about the organisation and the opportunities to provides its members.

On the 16th of March I had the honour of opening the Lighthouse Foundation’s Home for Mums and Bubs in Heathmont. The Home will provide a home for two homeless young mothers and their babies, providing a nurturing environment, combined with holistic support, counselling and education. I look forward to welcoming the residents of the home into the Maroondah community.

On the 17th of March I assisted in the preparations of the Ride2School program at Croydon West Primary. Ride2School is a program that aims to encourage walking and cycling and it was great to see so many students participating in the program.

The 18th of March saw the coming together of many organisations, including Maroondah Council, Eastern Regional Libraries, Centrelink, Department of Justice, Maroondah Police and Mission Australia to hold a festival marking Cultural Diversity Week and Harmony Day.

The event was held at the front of the Ringwood Library and saw the space come alive with songs, dance, story telling and face painting. Many members of our community participated in the festivities and it was fantastic to demonstrate the key message of Harmony Day, by showing that Everyone Belongs in Maroondah.

Lastly, on the 16th of March I attended the Central Ringwood Community Centre’s Annual General Meeting and the Annual General Meeting of Yarrunga Community Centre on the 17th. Both Community Centres, are overseen by a voluntary committee of management and it is great to see that they are both continuing to meet the needs of the wider community, through social groups, adult education and child services.

Walktober Awards – Highest Level of Community Engagement awarded to Maroondah City Council

Posted on by alex

Walktober is an annual event held during October, which encourages community groups, organisations and local government to organise walking as a form of transport within our community.

Alex at the Walktober Awards on behalf of Maroondah City Council
Alex at the Walktober Awards on behalf of Maroondah City Council

The Walktober Challenge is issued to encourage Councils, community groups and organisations to ‘set the pace’ by being the municipality with the most walking events registered during the month.

Within Maroondah over 55 walks were organised by community groups and Council during the 2009 Walktober, resulting in Council being awarded for achieving the Highest Level of Community Engagement within metropolitan Melbourne.

Alex with Frank Dixon, Maroondah's CEO and Staff for the Walktober Award for Highest Level of Community Engagement
Alex with Frank Dixon, Maroondah's CEO, Helen Croxford, Director of Community and Leisure Services, Council and Department of Transport Staff for the Walktober Award for Highest Level of Community Engagement

This morning I had the pleasure of accepting the award on behalf of Maroondah City Council. Community engagement and sustainable transport are two passions of mine and it is fantastic to be able to promote an event that achieves both objectives.

Council’s Leisure Services Department took the lead in promoting Walktober throughout Council and supported community organisations in holding walking events during the month.

Awards like this demonstrate the potential strength of collaboration between the community and Council. Walking promotes fitness, social inclusion and provides an affordable and sustainable form of transport and should be encouraged within our municipality.

Events like Walktober help raise the prominence of walking and encourage its use through our community, so stay tuned for Walktober 2010.

Media Release: Creating a safe community

Posted on by alex

Community Safety Month 2009 kicks off in October and there are a number of supporting events planned for the Maroondah community.

Councillor Alex Makin said the month aimed to promote awareness about a broad range of safety matters including crime prevention, personal safety, safe work practices, staying safe during emergencies, and improving the perception of safety.

“Community Safety Month is celebrating its 13th year in 2009 and it’s proven to be a valuable tool in raising community awareness of safety matters,” Cr Makin said.

“This October Council will be hosting several events to showcase the activities it is undertaking and supporting to address community safety issues in a variety of ways,” Cr Makin said.

Some of the activities planned for Community Safety Month include:

  • Portraits of Positive Seniors – a project that aims to break down the negative stereotypes of the older generation while addressing the broader issue of safety by profiling local citizens and focusing on the positive outcomes of community engagement. The project aims to inspire the older generation to keep moving physically, mentally and socially by providing peer-based examples that are realistic, achievable and identifiable. Portraits will be on display at various Council facilities in the second half of October. Phone Council’s Community Safety Officer on 9294 5745 for further details.
  • Launch of Monkami Army in Main St, Croydon – a group of individuals from disability service provider Monkami will embark on a gardening project in Main Street, Croydon from 10.30am on Monday 26 October. The volunteers will help plant and maintain the garden in a bid to further enhance perceptions of safety and wellbeing in the area. Look out for the Monkami Army volunteers the next time you’re in Croydon.
  • Responsible service of alcohol – Council and Good Sports are subsidising a Responsible Serving of Alcohol course on Wednesday 21 October at Richard Silcock Pavilion, Croydon. The course, normally $100 per person, is just $15 for Good Sports members and $30 for non-members. Gain the knowledge and awareness to serve alcohol responsibly.

Community Safety Month is coordinated by the Victorian Safer Communities Network (of which Maroondah is a member), and supported by Victoria Police.

To find out more about Council’s community safety initiatives visit Council’s website at www.maroondah.vic.gov.au.

For further information on Community Safety Month in Maroondah, phone Council’s Community Safety Officer on 9298 4212 or email naomi.dashwood@maroondah.vic.gov.au

Rotary Club of Ringwood – August Board meeting

Posted on by alex

The Rotary Club of Ringwood meets each Wednesday evening at Club Ringwood at the corners of Oban Road and Maroondah Highway.

The Rotary Club is governed by a board with board members being responsible for specific aspects of the Club. As an example, I am responsible for Fellowship, which involves organising club activities within the broader community.

One of the initiatives of the club this year is to hold open board meetings, whereby all members are able to hear the reports presented during the board meeting and comment on specific proposals.

As part of tonight’s board meeting I encouraged members to volunteer ideas for Fellowship activities, as well as highlighting the club’s website and to ensure that it is viewed as an integrated component within the club’s broader promotional and marketing initiatives.

This year there will be an emphasis on community engagement within the Rotary Club to ensure that all members have input into club activities.

Inaugural Eastern Volunteers Community Conference – Day Two

Posted on by alex

The second day of the Eastern Volunteers Community conference explored the themes of managing volunteers, volunteering diversity, as well as supporting people with mental illness and engaging community engagement.

The conference opened with an address by the Victorian Council of Social Services, which explored the challenges in creating social inclusion during economic uncertainty. The presentation highlighted the difficulties the community sector is facing, particularly in regard to ensuring funding certainty and maintaining a focus on the core vision of an organisation.

I delivered a plenary session focused on harnessing the changing times faced by community organisations through embracing technology and building capacity through governance and professional development.

There is a need for strong governance and consistent policies that are supported through the adherence of procedures. All levels of government, as well as many philanthropic organisations, are expecting increasing levels of governance and accountability from the not-for-profit sector.

Strong governance is critical to creating an environment that harnesses the potential of an organisation and fosters its development. This creates a positive environment for volunteers, as well as staff and board members.

Data compiled by the Australian Bureau of Statistics demonstrates that less are volunteering on a per capita basis and that they are volunteering less of their time. In addition, there is a substantial gap between the rate of volunteering within rural areas versus our capital cities, with volunteering being less common in urban centres.

This demonstrates the strength of community identity, which is more commonplace within rural areas. Given that establishing this sense of community is more difficult within largely homogeneous urban centres, there is a need for innovation.

This is where community organisations need to explore the use of technology, such as interactive websites, using Web 2.0 technology like blogs and Facebook, to establish a new sense of community. Virtual communities are particularly useful in recruiting younger volunteers, who are often seeking opportunities to further their experiences within particular projects.

Younger people tend to be project focused rather than organisational focused and as a result community organisations need to tailor the way they attempt to recruit volunteers.

Technology such as wikis, which allows editable content, can be utilised to retain knowledge within an organisation through encouraging staff and volunteers to document their experiences and freely share information.

The use of technology should not increase the workload of an organisation, but instead should help automate some tasks. As an example, web based content management systems, can replicate web-content onto social networking tools such as Facebook, encouraging interactivity without requiring duplication or increasing workloads.

The conference concluded with positive feedback and a desire from participants for further events. There is strong interest in the sharing of knowledge and it was great that the participants found the conference to be informative and useful.

I have recently formed a consultancy service to assist organisations in meeting the challenges of these changes times. For a copy of the presentation I delivered at the Eastern Volunteers Community Conference please visit my consultancy site at www.alexmakin.org.

Eastern FM – discussing the Community Wellbeing Plan

Posted on by alex

Eastern FM, is based at Wyreena Community Arts Centre and broadcasts on 89.1 FM. The Friday morning breakfast program includes a number of community guests, with the first Friday of each month featuring a Councillor from the City of Maroondah.

This morning it was my turn as the guest for Eastern FM, where I discussed the purposes of the Community Wellbeing Plan and the opportunities that exist for community engagement.

A large number of responses were received from the Maroondah Focus survey, where residents had the opportunity to identify the top five issues relating to their views on community wellbeing. In addition, the online survey, which was available on the Council website, also attracted a large number of responses.

This feedback will be collated and assist council, as well as the Maroondah Partners in Health, Safety and Wellbeing Committee in being able to ascertain the major concerns identified by the community.

Further opportunities also exist for input, with surveys being conducted as immunisation sessions and as part of Council’s Picnic in the Park program. The next Picnic in the Park is scheduled for Saturday the 16th of May at Brentwood park in Croydon, followed by Saturday the 23rd of May at McAlpin Reserve, off Wonga Road in Ringwood North.

Both events run from 10am to 1pm and will include activities and a sausage sizzle. The community will also have the chance to provide further feedback which will be incorporated into the Community Wellbeing Plan.

Participating within Eastern FM provides a further opportunity for the community to speak with their local councillors and it was encouraging to receive several calls while I was in the studio.

For further details on Eastern FM please visit www.easternfm.com.au.

Partners in Health, Safety and Wellbeing Committee – final meeting for 2008

Posted on by alex

This morning marked the final meeting of the bi-monthly Maroondah Partners in Health, Safety and Wellbeing Committee for 2008. The committee includes council and a number of external bodies, including Victoria Police, Connex, Department of Human Services, Outer East Primary Care Partnerships and the Department of Education, to implement a collaborative approach to enhancing the health, safety and wellbeing of Maroondah.

Today’s meeting examined food security within the eastern region, exploring the effects of rising food costs and the level of access to nutritious food. While Maroondah may be relatively well served with supermarkets and fresh food outlets, there are some pockets where there is a lack of access, particularly for people without access to a car.

The rising cost of living has also had an impact, particularly for people on fixed incomes, such as pensions, who are sacrificing food so that they can pay for other living expenses, such as rent, electricity and water.

The Primary Care Partnerships will be finalising a report on their findings in regard to food security with the aim of alerting governments to the food security difficulties experienced within the eastern region.

An update was also provided in regard to the Maroondah Community Wellbeing Plan, where the feedback provided by service providers is currently being considered. Community engagement and discussion over the plan will begin early to mid next year to provide an opportunity for widespread public comment.

I would like to thank the members and organisations who have been a part of the committee over the past three years and also to Cr. Jo-anne Taylor who was the previous chair.

Councillor Magazine: How councillors can harness the Internet

Posted on by alex

Councillor is a quarterly magazine designed to help educate current councillors and demonstrate innovative approaches to local government.

I was contacted by Councillor Magazine to write an article on how councillors can harness the Internet to assist in encouraging dialogue with their community. The article was featured in the September/October edition of the magazine:

How Councillors can harness the Internet

City of Maroondah councillor Alex Makin has operated his own website and blog since 2004. In this article, Cr Makin describes how councillors can also establish their own website and blog, and why more elected members need to use the Internet to engage the community.

Compared to the UK and the US, Australian politics has been relatively slow to embrace the capabilities of the Internet and its potential to re-engage the community and our constituencies.

While the use of websites is not new, Australian politics is still typically not using the Internet for more than a digital version of their off-line campaigns. The Internet, through the use of blogging has the potential to be so much more.

As local Councillors, representing the needs of our local constituencies, we are best placed to take a leadership role of embracing the Internet to create dialogue and re-engage with our communities.

We need to move beyond static webpages and move into an era of dynamic blogging and dialogue.

Going beyond a website

Some Councillors already have experience with establishing a website. A blog extends the capabilities of a website by providing interactive content.

A website can be likened to a static shop window, which displays information but provides little opportunity for someone to interact with the content.

Standard websites can also become difficult to maintain over the longer term as information becomes out of date.

A blog, otherwise known as weblog, is an interactive website, likened to a diary, that allows you to post new entries, keeping content relevant and allows people to post comments and subscribe to updates.

Blogs use categories and tags to file new content and provides readers with the opportunities to subscribe to updates so they are notified when new content is posted.

Getting started – what do you need?

Establishing a website is neither difficult nor expensive.

There are numerous free tools, such as www.wordpress.com or www.blogspot.com, which provide templates and a basic blogging presence free of charge. Using these tools you can set up your blog, complete with photographs and content within 10 to 15 minutes.

While these free tools provide you with a good start, there are advantages in having your own web presence.

To do this you firstly need a domain name. A domain is the physical name of the site, such as www.alexmakin.com.au. Domain names are easier for people to remember and also provide greater flexibility in how your site will look and function. A .com.au domain normally costs around $65 per year, US .com domains are slightly cheaper.

Secondly, you need a web host. The host provides the computing system that stores your website and makes it viewable on the Internet. Total costs for hosting a site varies but you generally do get what you pay for.

If you want to set up a blog you’ll need a host that supports database and dynamic capabilities, namely functionality called mySQL and PHP. Most mid-level hosting packages provide these features.

I use a carbon neutral hosting provider that provides maximum reliability and detailed site statistics, my costs are roughly $300 per annum.

While free blogging providers certainly have their use, your own dedicated web presence will provide you with greater flexibility in the functionality and features of your site.

In addition many hosting providers are able to supply detailed site statistics so you can ascertain how people are accessing your website and the content they are accessing.

Getting your blog online

One of the common mistakes people make is keeping their blog separate to the rest of their website.

Web users typically dislike navigating through a site; so if the content isn’t there when the page loads, it is unlikely that they will look to find what they want.

Likewise don’t reinvent the wheel. There are many blogging programs, such as WordPress (www.wordpress.org) that are available free of charge and provide the functionality that you need.

WordPress and other blogging tools, such as Movetable Type use templates that guide the layout of a site. There are many templates that are available and these can be further customised.

Once you have downloaded WordPress or a similar package, you will need to upload to your website. Your hosting provider should be able to assist with this, once uploaded you will be able to install the package and begin blogging.

WordPress (which is the program I use), allows you to create two types of content, pages and posts. Pages are designed to be static content that is always available, like contact or about pages. These are the links across the top of my site.

Pages contain information that generally does not change, such as my contact details or information about the ward I represent.

Posts are the blogging element of your site. Posts are filed in specific categories (such as urban sustainability, accessibility, delegates reports that I use on my site), as well as tags, which help define the content of the post (such as accessibility, public transport, planning and so on).

Posts relate to a certain event or activity that occurred at a point in time and hence newer content appears towards the top of the page. Blog posts can be used to discuss council events, community meetings or other activities you undertake as a councillor.

When I first designed the website in 2004, the concept of blogging was still relatively new, so I referred to the blog as an Internet Journal.

The Journal stores the posts I created with the five newest entries listed first.

Each blog post provides an opportunity for people to comment. This way your community can add their thoughts or ask for additional information.

Blog posts can also be linked to each other, meaning you can provide an easy chronology of events. For example, I link my delegates’ reports, to each event that I discuss so that people can easily find additional information on the activities I attend and speak about.

Posts and pages are created just like using a standard Word Processor or email program. Like email you can also attach other documents to your posts to allow people to download additional content, I normally discuss presentations I deliver and include the slides for people to download.

The template system in WordPress or similar tools controls the layout of the post so you simply need to type its content. This means each post and page will have a similar look and make it easier for people to navigate throughout your site.

My website has had three substantially different designs and the template system meant the content of my site was unaffected by these changes.

Separating the layout of a site from its contents makes it much easier to maintain and extend compared to traditional web pages.

Extending your blog

Comments are usually moderated meaning that they need your approval prior to being included on your blog. This means you have the possibility to prevent inappropriate comments from being included on your site. Likewise spam filters exist which block spam comments from appearing.

While you have the ultimate control over what comments are included within your blog, do not go overboard in preventing feedback.

The purpose of a blog is to encourage dialogue and interaction and all relevant comments should be encouraged. Also make sure that email and phone details are available as some people will prefer these methods of communication.

Once you have established your blog and website it is worth considering ways of expanding its reach. Blogs utilise RSS feeds which allows people to be notified when new posts are created.

RSS feeds operate similarly to email where a subscriber receives the content of the post. RSS feeds are a standard feature of blogs and it is worth encouraging your readers to subscribe to them.

In addition you can also create an email subscription list for people that prefer to receive emails. This way email subscribers can receive an email message of your blog post and raise awareness of the activities you undertake as a councillor.

Just as newsletters assist in informing the community about our activities as a councillor, an electronic newsletter or RSS feeds can expand the reach of your communications with the public.

WordPress has a number of plugins, which can add additional features. Examples of plugins include the calendar and event system I use on my site. This enables me to post details of meetings I attend. Likewise previous posts can be accessed through the calendar or using the search functionality.

The web as an accessible medium

The Internet, through accessible web standards, means we can truly create a medium that can be experienced and accessed by all people.

Screen readers, larger font sizes, colour contrast and other technologies are available to assist people with disabilities to view content on the Internet and your website should be mindful of accessibility issues.

For example screen readers cannot read images so any graphics you include on your site should not be used in place of text.

In addition, the layout of your site should be mindful of people who prefer larger font sizes and your site should adapt to these requirements.

Future use of the Internet by councillors

Councils are the closest form of government to the community and we need to consider new methods of encouraging community engagement and interaction. In particular the web has the potential to assist us in communicating with younger people, as well as people with disabilities and the many other people in our community that prefer communication via the Internet.

Just as mobile phones are now considered essential equipment for Councillors, no doubt a web presence will be seen as a necessity shortly into the future. As councillors we have an obligation to remain relevant and keep pace with new technologies.

Creating a web presence is neither difficult nor time consuming and while purchasing your own domain and hosting provider may incur some expense it will be of benefit to the wider community and assist in conveying the work you undertake as a councillor.

Media Release: Ringwood Station announcement only half-complete

Posted on by alex

MEDIA RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE DISTRIBUTION
Thursday, 25 September 2008

Station Announcement only half-complete

Alex Makin, Councillor for Loughnan’s Hill Ward and public transport advocate, has welcomed the $39 million State Government announcement for Ringwood Station but expressed concern over the failure to fund accessibility improvements

“After years of public pressure and campaigning the State Government has finally delivered $39 million to begin the redevelopment of Ringwood Station”, Cr. Makin said. “While the State Government deserves congratulations for this belated announcement, their commitment is only half complete and further funding is required.”

Ringwood has been identified as a Transit City under the State Government’s Melbourne 2030 planning framework. The transit city policy aims to create urban centres with diverse housing and employment opportunities, interlinked by frequent and efficient public transport services.

“This announcement will provide improvements to the station forecourt and bus interchange and it must be accompanied by pedestrian improvements across Maroondah Highway”, Cr. Makin said. “It is extremely disappointing that the current funding will not provide accessibility implements for Ringwood Station itself.”

“The steep gradient of the ramps at Ringwood Station means it fails disability compliance standards. It is critical that further funding is announced so that people of all ages and abilities can partake in our community. I will continue to campaign for an accessible Ringwood Station to ensure that we can create an inclusive and sustainable community”, Cr. Makin concluded.

About Alex Makin:
Alex Makin was elected in November 2005 as the Councillor for Loughnan’s Hill ward in the City of Maroondah. Alex is focused on accessibility, sustainability, public transport, planning and community engagement.

ALL MEDIA ENQUIRIES: CR. ALEX MAKIN ON 0408 311 645

– ENDS –