Plans and strategies are an important process in ensuring that there are formal structures to hold councils’ decision-making accountable to and representative of the local First Peoples communities' views and needs.
The 2020 Reconciliation Barometer found that 95% of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples and 91% of the general community feel our relationship is important. Developing plans and strategies helps to strengthen these relationships by demonstrating council’s formal commitment to the local community and to reconciliation.
Council’s should engage with the local First Peoples community at all stages of developing and implementing plans and strategies. There are many ways that plans and strategies can be developed in consultation with First Peoples.
The most suitable structure for councils’ plans and strategies is a structure that local Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community members believe will foster the most meaningful engagement.
Glenelg Shire Council’s ‘Glenelg Aboriginal Partnerships Agreement’ is the third document developed between Council and the local community, building on previous agreements. The Agreement is structured in two parts. The first part outlines the broad principles that underpin the Agreement and frames the purposes and context of the Agreement. The second part outlines the specific tasks that have been agreed to be completed within the timeframe of the Agreement and allocates the responsibility for the completion and reporting on the work. Included in this second part is the requirement for an independent evaluation of what is being done to ensure that the aims of the Agreement are being best met.
The Glenelg Aboriginal Partnerships Agreement was created through Council’s partnership with Winda-Mara Aboriginal Corporation, Dhauwurd-Wurrung Elderly and Community Health Service and Gunditj Mirring Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation.
Ministerial Good Practice Guideline and General Guidance for Councils Engaging with Aboriginal Victorians | Department of Jobs, Precincts and Regions
Victorian Aboriginal and Local Government Strategy | Maggolee