The City of Ballarat is committed to listening to our community and working together to shape decisions that affect our city.

We want community members to have meaningful opportunities to participate in Council projects, policies, plans and decisions — whether it’s big-picture planning or improvements in your local neighbourhood.

This platform — MySay Ballarat — is where you can find out what’s happening, share your ideas, and help us understand your needs, hopes and priorities.

We use the Engagement Institute framework (formerly knowns as International Association for Public Participation (IAP2), which outlines best-practice principles for community engagement. This helps us to:

• Be open and transparent about how decisions are made
• Involve the right people at the right time
• Use your feedback to help shape the outcome
• Close the loop by reporting back on what we heard and what we’re doing

We also follow our adopted Community Engagement Policy, which provides clear guidance on how we plan and deliver engagement across Council.

City of Busselton Example.docx - Image

Every Council decision is shaped by a number of important factors that help ensure outcomes are in the best interest of the community — both now and into the future.

These factors include:

• Community and Public Interest: Council considers community views, public opinion, and potential social impacts. Engagement helps ensure decisions reflect local needs and values.
• Legal, Regulatory and Governance Considerations: Decisions must comply with relevant laws, policies and regulations. Transparency, accountability, and the influence of key stakeholders are also factored in.
• Risk and Safety: Council weighs up potential risks to community safety, health and wellbeing, using a risk management approach to protect people and places.
• Expert Advice and Evidence-Based Decision Making: Research, data and expert advice support informed and effective decision making.
• Financial and Economic Impact: Council assesses the budget implications, financial sustainability and broader economic impacts of each decision.
• Strategic Planning and Long-Term Vision: All decisions are guided by Council’s long-term goals and plans, including infrastructure development, timelines and priorities.
• Environmental and Sustainability: Considerations Council factors in environmental impacts and the need to address climate change and conservation.

By taking all of these into account, Council strives to make balanced, well-informed decisions that serve the whole community. This process also helps elected Councillors understand the broader context and evidence behind each recommendation they vote on