January 2010

Mayor's Message

I would like to congratulate Councillor Charlie Pisasale and the team in the Council's Community Development Branch for developing a newsletter to better inform Ipswich residents, businesses and service providers alike about Council strategic social planning and community well-being initiatives.

The city's exceptionally high growth presents fantastic opportunities to strengthen the community spirit through effective social development and planning. 'Our City, Our Community' will provide periodical updates of what Council is doing to contribute to the management of this growth to ensure a sustainable and quality social future for Ipswich.

Looking forward to enjoying all the 'Our City, Our Community' newsletters have to offer.

Mayor Paul Pisasale
City of Ipswich

Chairperson's Message

It is with pleasure I introduce the first 'Our City, Our Community' Social Planning Project Update newsletter.

As you know, Ipswich is currently experiencing significant population and development growth which is projected to continue into the foreseeable future. 'Our City, Our Community' provides a great insight into the valuable range of strategic social planning products and services being undertaken by Council's Community Development Branch to prepare for this substantial growth and any challenges ahead.

'Our City, Our Community' will be a useful resource for residents, community groups, and Council staff. Readers will be rewarded with overviews, updates and 'points-of-interest' relevant to Ipswich City Council's social planning activities and corporate projects. In this update you will be introduced to the community guided plans presently being prepared by the Branch, namely the Community Social Plan; Social Infrastructure Plan; and Crime Prevention Plan

I would encourage you to look out for the 'Our City, Our Community' publications as the projected growth for the region presents an exciting time for Ipswich, and the Social Planning Project Updates will keep you informed of how Council is working to meet current and future community social planning needs.

Cr Charlie Pisasale
Chairperson Arts, Community and Cultural Services Committee

In this issue...

Mayor's Message
Chairperson's Message
Spotlight on Social Planning
Identifying Social Issues and Needs
Planning Community Facilities and Services
Contributing To A Safer Community
Ipswich Fast Facts
Contacts

Family Fun Day 2009, Queens Park Ipswich has it all - sunshine, smiles and friend

Spotlight on Social Planning

What is Social Planning?

Founded on the principles of social justice (equity, access, participation and rights), social planning is a process of investigating and responding to the needs and aspirations of people and communities.

With an emphasis on strategic policy and action, social planning aims to enhance community well-being and effectiveness, thereby providing a key contribution to the development of a vibrant and sustainable community.

As a simple distinction with other forms of strategic planning, social planning is generally people-focused and is sometimes also referred to as community planning, while physical planning is place-focused and corporate planning is organisationally focused. However, there is considerable interaction between all forms of planning, with the outcomes of each tending to be dependent upon and/or complementary with all.

Social Planning by Ipswich City Council

Cooking up a storm in the Ipswich Mall for the International Volunteer Day Breakfast 2009

As a local government, Ipswich City Council has an important role in ensuring that community facilities and services are provided in an effective and timely fashion. Dependent upon the facilities and/or services under consideration, the extent of this role moves across the spectrum of simple advocacy to full-scale planning, design, delivery and ongoing maintenance/management.

Social planning provides the research, planning and policy frameworks for Council's role in the delivery of required human services and physical infrastructure.

Within Ipswich City Council, social planning functions are provided by the Community Development Branch. In addition to daily requests for social planning information and support, the Community Development Branch is currently responsible for the management and delivery of three significant social planning projects: namely; the Community Social Plan; Social Infrastructure Plan; and Crime Prevention Plan (plan overviews provided further on). Each plan is being developed for the entire Ipswich Local Government Area and, as such, represents a significant commitment by Council in managing and responding to existing and emerging community needs and aspirations.

[ Back to Top ]

Identifying Social Issues and Needs

The Council's Community Social Plan aims to identify and address the major social issues and needs encountered within the community. The key elements of this process include an adequate socio-demographic description of the community, an analysis of the social issues and needs, and the development of an associated action plan.

Community needs to be addressed in the Community Social Plan include

Outcome areas

Regional Councils included in project scope

Transport and Mobility
Affordable Housing and Homelessness
Public Space and Safety
Health and Well-being
Natural Environment
Education and Employment
Recreation

Target Groups

Children 0-12 Years and Families
Young and Older People
Women and Men
People with Disabilities
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders
Culturally and Linguistically Diverse

Working with neighbouring Councils

Early in the development of the project an opportunity to expand the proposed Community Social Plan to a regional level was identified.

Many of the community services provided by organisations and agencies based in the Ipswich area also provide for the surrounding peri-urban and rural areas of Somerset and Lockyer Valley Regional Councils through outreach and/or outpost models. By recognising and responding to the interdependence of community infrastructure and services in the adjoining local government areas of Lockyer Valley and Somerset, it is anticipated that the Community Social Plan will support development of innovative and flexible service delivery models and partnerships across the region, with Plan completion scheduled for August 2011.

[ Back to Top ]

Planning Community Facilities and Services

Social infrastructure can be broadly defined as the community facilities, services and networks which help individuals, families, groups and communities meet their social needs, maximise their potential for development, and enhance community well-being. They include:

universal facilities and services such as education, training, health, open space, recreation and sport, safety and emergency services, religious, arts and cultural facilities, and community meeting places.
lifecycle-targeted facilities and services, such as those for children, young people and older people.
targeted facilities and services for groups with special needs, such as families, people with a disability and Indigenous and culturally diverse people (SEQ Regional Plan Implementation Guideline No.5, Social Infrastructure Planning June 2007).

What is considered when planning social infrastructure?

What type and level (hierarchy) of facilities already exist?
What is the spatial distribution of existing facilities (concentrated/evenly dispersed/ poorly distributed)?
How well do existing facilities meet current and projected demand?
What are the requirements for, and appropriate sequencing of, future facilities in order to adequately maintain pace with projected growth?
Are there any target groups not being catered to through existing facilities?
How might progressive funding options and partnerships be utilised in the timely delivery and ongoing maintenance of social infrastructure?

What social infrastructure planning is Ipswich City Council undertaking?

Ipswich City Council commenced preparation of a city-wide Social Infrastructure Plan in July 2008, with the final plan currently scheduled for completion in July 2010. The project comprises three major phases as illustrated in the below diagram.

[ Back to Top ]

Contributing To A Safer Community

Cooking up a storm in the Ipswich Mall for the International Volunteer Day Breakfast 2009

"A Safe Community" (CSW Goal 6) was identified in the Ipswich 2020 and Beyond council visioning document by the local Ipswich community as a priority for the city's future development. Council is committed to contributing to an Ipswich where people are able to "live, work, play and move freely”: in regards to their personal safety, and is in the process of preparing a Crime Prevention Plan for the area (Ipswich 2020 and Beyond 2005 p49).

What Is A Crime Prevention Plan?

Effective crime prevention can be defined as any action that causes a reduction in criminal activity and the impact on the community, or in the number of criminal offenders and their victims (Australian Institute of Criminology 2003). The Crime Prevention Plan will provide an 'action plan' framework for a range of crime prevention actions, with the aim when implemented to enhance community feelings of safety and contribute to reducing the incidence and effect of crime in the Ipswich area. Focus will be on the support and ongoing development of existing crime prevention actions and initiatives in the area, and, if identified, the implementation of new initiatives. Such initiatives and or actions could include:

designing safety orientated buildings and landscapes
supporting school programs
assisting parenting support groups
promoting greater home security by residents
removing graffiti
employing security cameras

Why Do We Need A Crime Prevention Plan?

Considerable community safety related achievements have already been made by Council, local businesses, service providers and the Ipswich community.

To further strengthen this great work, and the city's capacity to strategically address local crime issues over the long term, the development of a city-wide council facilitated Crime Prevention Plan is being undertaken.

Who Will Be Involved?

The Plan is being developed in partnership and collaboration with stakeholders from government, community and private sectors of Ipswich.

What is the Crime Prevention Plan Process?

The creation of the Plan will involve several key stages:

[ Back to Top ]

Ipswich Fast Facts

Population Summary

The Ipswich Local Government Area currently has 160,000 residents, with a projected average annual population growth of 4.6% over the next 25 years (Ipswich City Council, Planning and Development Department, 2009).