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Form A Application and checklist for the results of applications and site-visit(s)

The checklist consists of two parts - one to be filled in by the community and one to be filled in by the certifiers.

The following information in column 1 is the application therefore please describe also all details!:

Column 1Questions to be answered by the communitySection 1 Community Overview1.1 Briefly describe the community and its historical development

Cardinia Shire is located south-east of Melbourne and is one of 10 ‘interface councils’ around the perimeter of metropolitan Melbourne, providing a transition between urban and rural areas. The primary urban centre is Pakenham, which is 55km from Melbourne’s CBD.

The Princes Highway and Gippsland railway corridor runs east-west through the centre of Cardinia Shire, providing a key road and rail link between Melbourne and West Gippsland. The western end of this corridor comprises the Cardinia Shire growth area (about 10% of the Shire’s land area).

With a population of just over 100,000; Cardinia Shire has a large rural population. 27 rural townships exist outside the urban growth area, resulting in unique service provision issues. The northern part of the Shire is set in the foothills of the Dandenong Ranges, and includes Bunyip State Park and Cardinia Reservoir. Koo Wee Rup swamp and Westernport Bay are significant features of the southern part of Cardinia Shire.

Cardinia Shire covers an area of about 1,280km² and has a rich diversity of both natural and cultural sites, from the waters of Western Port Bay to the foothills of the Dandenong Ranges, comprising places of local and state significance. These heritage places reflect the different periods and people who helped shape the Shire’s landscape; from Indigenous Australians, the first people to use and shape the rugged landscape, to logging and gold mining of the foothills, draining of the former Koo Wee Rup Swamp, and pastoral settlement. The landscape is again under a period of change as new development and new people move into the area every week.

Cardinia Shire Council – Application International Safe Community of 56

1.2 Describe the strategy, ambitions, objectives and work in the community in regard to safety. It must be a higher level of safety than average for a community in the country or region.

Cardinia Shire Council has a long-standing commitment to community safety and crime prevention. In 2014, Council made the decision to develop a more coordinated and structured approach to creating a safer community and agreed to begin working towards designation as an International Safe Community.

Priority Areas

Identifying the specific issues facing Cardinia Shire’s community was the first step towards developing an effective and appropriate community response. To accomplish this task, the following information was collected and analysed:

Insight from the Cardinia Safer Communities Strategic Committee, Council staff and other professionals

Information and advice obtained through a series of targeted and open community consultations

A literature review of government, academic and non-academic materials Collection and analysis of crime, safety and injury data and statistics

Six priority areas were identified:

Road, Pedestrian and Transport related issues Alcohol and Other Drugs Mental Health related issues Crime Family Violence Emergency Management

Cardinia Safer Communities Strategy

The Cardinia Safer Communities Strategy has been developed to provide the framework for the implementation of solutions that aim to improve safety, and perceptions of safety across the six priority areas within Cardinia Shire. The Cardinia Safer Communities Strategy is being implemented by the Cardinia Safer Communities Strategic Committee and assisted through the establishment of Action Groups.

Multi-disciplinary (Action) Groups are being established for each priority area where an existing group is not already in operation. Once established, they will develop action plans for their particular priority area of focus, and have an appointed chair that will join the Strategic Committee and facilitate the flow of information between the Strategic Committee and the Action Group.

It is recognised that there are a number of overlaps between the priority areas and it is expected that activities between the Action Groups will often intersect and involve many of the same organisations. It will be important for the Action Groups to communicate regularly through the Strategic Committee to ensure they do not duplicate each other’s efforts and maximise the use of available resources.

The Strategy is built on the guiding principles developed collaboratively by the Strategic Committee as listed below;


Vision

Cardinia is a community working together to build a safe place.

Strategic ObjectivesThe Cardinia Safer Communities Strategy will work toward its vision by:

Strengthening and developing a network of partnerships which enable collaborative approaches to creating a safer community

Establishing a commitment to long term, sustainable programs which take a whole of community approach to creating a safer community

Implementing programs and initiatives which take an equitable, tailored approach to meeting the needs of high-risk, vulnerable groups and environments throughout the Shire

Ensuring evidence based and best practice approaches are used to work towards cre-ating a safer community

Effectively monitoring the frequency and causes of safety related harm throughout the Shire

Implementing evaluation measures that assess the effects of change

1.3 How are the mayor (or similar function of the community) and the executive committee involved? Who is chairing the cross-sector group?Who is chairing the intersectoral group

Cardinia Shire’s Mayor is committed to the Safer Communities project and, more broadly, the safety of the community through involvement in the Cardinia Safer Communities Strategic Committee.

Crime prevention and safety, (in particular advocating for a safer community to live in and re-inforcing CPTED principles in the planning process) have been listed as the top aspiration and


priority for the Mayor and Councillors to address through 2017-21. This is of significant im-portance and demonstrates Council’s commitment to creating a safer community within Cardinia Shire.

Cardinia Safer Communities Strategic Committee:

The Cardinia Safer Communities Strategic Committee (CSCSC) was established in April 2016, with the purpose of addressing local community safety, injury and crime prevention issues by working in partnership with all major stakeholders. This governing body includes high level representation from a range of Local and State Government departments and key community services across the six key themes established during the research and data collection phase of the project. The CSCSC meets quarterly and current membership includes:

Two Cardinia Shire Councillors (including the current Mayor) General Manager Community Wellbeing Cardinia Shire Council (CSCSC Chair) Team Leader Safe and Inclusive Communities Cardinia Shire Council (CSCSC Deputy

Chair) Safer Communities Project Officer Cardinia Shire Council Victoria Police Department of Justice & Regulation Emergency Management Victoria VicRoads Department of Health and Human Services Alcohol and Drug Foundation Women’s Health in the South East Chair of each of the Cardinia Safer Communities Action Groups

The Cardinia Safer Communities Strategic Commitee work to support Cardinia’s designation as an International Safe Community, and provide leadership in the identification, development and evaluation of activities and programs by:

Developing a Safer Communities Strategy in collaboration with relevant agencies and the community which prioritises injury and safety issues for Cardinia Shire

Establishing effective partnerships with key stakeholders engaged in injury prevention and improving the safety of individuals and groups in the Cardinia region

Informing, lobbying and influencing relevant Government departments and/or organisations to improve levels of safety in the Cardinia region

Taking action to foster a positive image of community safety for residents, investors and visitors

Oversee and coordinate the activities of the Cardinia Safer Communities Action Groups

Multi-disciplinary (Action) Groups:

The Cardinia Safer Communities Strategic Committee are informed by multi-disciplinary groups (Action Groups) working to address priority issues in the key themes of:

Road, pedestrian and transport related issues Crime Mental health Alcohol and other Drugs Family violence Emergency management


In addition to Local and State Government department and key health and community service representation, these groups also consist of membership from local businesses, not-for-profits and the community.

1.3 Describe the injury risk-panorama in the community.

A review of statistical data was undertaken to establish the evidence based community safety issues within Cardinia Shire. The data was reviewed under the themes that were used to guide the line of questioning adopted during a community consultation process which was undertaken at the same time.

Crime

Upon review of the 2014 – 2015 Victoria Police data supplied by the Victorian Crime Statistics Agency (2015) the following crime data was noted as occurring in Cardinia Shire from the period April 2014 to March 2015:

Crime against the person – 1064.2 per 100,000 Property and deception offences – 3242.3 per 100,00 Drug offences – 425.9 per 100,000 Public order and security offences – 428.1 per 100,000.

Family violence

Family violence is an increasing problem within Cardinia Shire. According to Victoria Police reports, there were 1364 offences reported in 2014 - 2015 which was 15.58% higher than the Victorian average (Victorian Crime Statistics Agency, 2015). This number has increased steadily over the past three years. Cardinia Shire has the third highest number of family violence offences in the Southern Metropolitan Region (Victoria Police, 2014).

Undertaking a detailed analysis of data in 2009 – 2010, Victoria Police (2010) found that:

76% of family violence victims in Cardinia Shire were female 77% of perpetrators in Cardinia Shire were male. Of these perpetrators, the majority

were either current partners or ex-partners (48% and 17% respectively) Ages of both victims and perpetrators varied, however the majority were aged

between 25 - 44 years. In 2013 – 2014 children were reported as being present at 41.4% of family violence

incidents occurring in Cardinia Shire. This figure has remained relatively stable over the past three years, with children witnessing 38.9% of family violence incidents in 2012/2013 and 42% in 2011/2012 (Victoria Police, 2014).

Cases of child abuse are also recorded for Cardinia Shire. The latest data relating to child protection substantiations was in 2008 – 2009 where it was found that the rate of substantiations was 4.2 per 1000 children aged 0 to 8 years. Over a 5-year period ranging from 2004 – 2009 it was found that the rate of substantiated child protection cases has decreased at an average rate of 1.8 per 1000 children aged 0 to 8 years each year (Department of Education and Early Childhood Development, 2010).

The 2015 Communities that Care survey found that family conflict was rated highly by young people across years 6, 8 and 10 (ranging between 32% – 42%). Participants aged 12 – 17 who completed the 2015 Youth Forum Survey rated being safe at home within the top ten things that are important to them (43% of females, 33% of males and 30% of those who do


not identify as either male or female).

Mental health

Mental health has a two-fold link to safety. Firstly, mental health is a major contributing factor for intentional injury insofar as self-harm and suicide are concerned (which is discussed further under injuries) and secondly, the community can, at times, perceive people with a mental health issue as unsafe to be around.

According to the 2011-2012 Victorian Population Health Survey, lifetime prevalence of depression and anxiety amongst residents of Cardinia Shire was slightly lower than the Victorian average (15.6% and 19.9% respectively). Women had significantly lower levels of lifetime prevalence of depression and anxiety compared to the Victorian average (17.4% and 25% respectively) (Department of Health, 2014a).

The 2015 Communities that Care survey results indicated that depressive symptoms are high in school children who are in years 6, 8 and 10 (31% in year 6 and over 50% in years 8 and 10). Compared to year 8 Australian students, year 8 students in Cardinia Shire report significantly higher levels of depressive symptoms (Cardinia Shire 51% and Australia 41%).

The Department of Education and Early Childhood Development (2011) Adolescent Profiles which draws on data from the 2009 Adolescent Health and Wellbeing Survey, also collect data on the mental health of young people which can be used to support some of the Communities that Care survey results. The following mental health indicators were higher in Cardinia Shire than the Victorian average:

43.2% of adolescents do not have positive psychological development (Victorian aver-age – 38.9%)

17.2% of adults do not have someone to turn to for advice when they have problems (Victorian average – 13.9%)

25.9% of adolescents are not satisfied with their quality of life (Victorian average – 22.9%)

Adolescents in Cardinia Shire experienced psychological distress at levels 2.8% lower than the Victorian average (8.3% and 13% respectively).

The 2015 Youth Forum Survey indicated that the top 5 issues of concern for young people in the Shire all related to mental health. They were school or work related stress, stress, being unhappy, anxiety and body image.

Drug and alcohol

Alcohol consumption has obvious implications for an individual’s health including risks to personal safety from alcohol related injury and death; however, there are also significant social impacts. According to Planisphere (2013, p.8) the social impacts of alcohol consumption include:

Crime and disorder caused by intoxicated persons Public safety implications Family violence and the impacts on children, including underage drinking Road trauma when alcohol consumption contributes to car crashes.

The economic cost of alcohol related harm was estimated to be $4.3 billion in Victoria in 2007 – 2008 (Planisphere, 2013).

Alcohol consumption is described in relation to risk level. The table below describes risk level


in relation to the number of drinks consumed.

Table 11: Alcohol consumption risk level

Low risk Risky High risk

Males

On an average day Up to four per day Five to six per day Seven or more per day

Overall weekly level

Up to 28 per week 29 – 42 per week 43 or more per week

Females

On an average day Up to two per day Three to four per day

Five or more per day

Overall weekly level

Up to 14 per week 15 – 28 per week 29 or more per week

Source: (Department of Health, 2014)

Drinking is also described using either short or long term risk. Short term risk refers to the effect that alcohol has immediately following consumption, whereas long term risk refers to the more permanent effects of sustained patterns of alcohol consumption over time (Department of Health, 2014a).

Short term risk of alcohol related harm

According to the 2011-2012 Victorian Population Health Survey (Department of Health, 2014a):

33.6 per cent of the Cardinia Shire population who drank at low risk levels were at risk of short term harm and 49.9% who drank at risky or high risk levels were at risk of short term harm (Victorian average – 35.8% and 45.3% respectively)

30.3 per cent of men who drank at low risk levels were at risk of short term harm (Victorian average - 33.2%)

56.8 per cent of men who drank at high risk levels were at risk of short term harm (Victorian average – 52.6%)

36.2 per cent of women who drank at low risk levels were at risk of short term harm (Victorian average – 38.4%)

43.8 per cent of women who drank at risky or high risk levels were at risk of short term harm (Victorian average – 38.3%).

Long term risk of alcohol related harm

According to the 2011-2012 Victorian Population Health Survey (Department of Health, 2014a):

79.8 per cent of the Cardinia Shire population who drank at low risk levels were at risk of long term harm (Victorian average – 35.8%)

3.5 per cent1 of people who drank at risky or high risk levels were at risk of long term harm (Victorian average – 3.3%).

1 Estimate has a relative standard error (RSE) of between 25 and 50 per cent and should be interpreted with caution.


According to Turning Point (2015), in 2012 – 2013 men represented the highest number of presentations to the emergency department and call outs for ambulance attendance due to alcohol related harm in Cardinia Shire, however the rate still remains below the Victorian average (16.1 and 17.2 per 10,000 respectively). Women in Cardinia Shire were more likely to be hospitalised at a rate of 36.17% higher than the Victorian average due to alcohol harm (50.6 and 35.1 per 10,000 respectively).

Men in Cardinia Shire presented to the emergency department for illicit drug related harm at higher rates than women and at a rate of 25.81% higher than the Victorian average (3.5 and 2.7 per 10,000 respectively). Although women presented at lower rates than men, they presented at rates 52.63% higher than the Victorian average (1.2 and 0.7 per 10,000 respectively).

Of concern are the rates of alcohol and drug use amongst Cardinia Shire’s younger population.

According to the same data provide by Turning Point (2015) those aged 15 – 24 in Cardinia Shire are overrepresented in drug and alcohol statistics. In 2012 – 2013 rates of presentation to the emergency department due to alcohol related harm amongst this cohort was 25% higher than the Victorian average (32.4 and 25.2 per 10,000 respectively).

Young people aged 15 – 24 in Cardinia Shire presented to emergency departments for harm caused by illicit drugs at a rate of 190.07% higher than the Victorian average (9 and 4.3 per 10,000 respectively) however rates of hospitalisations were 20.99% lower (16.2 and 20 per 10,000 respectively).

This supports the Adolescent Profiles provided by the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development (2012), which reports the following figures for 15 – 17 year olds within Cardinia Shire:

56.5 per cent reported drinking in the past 30 days (Victorian average - 24.7%) 13.9 per cent reported ever using marijuana (Victorian average - 10.9%) 6.9 per cent admitted to using other illegal drugs (Victorian average - 3%)

The 2015 Communities that Care survey results also indicated that adolescent alcohol use is common amongst young people in Cardinia Shire:

Lifetime alcohol use is high in each year level (year 6 - 22%, year 8 - 36%, year 10 - 52%)

Recent alcohol use (past 30 days) is reported by 29% of year 10 students Binge drinking in the last two weeks is reported by 2% of students in year 6, 6% in

year 8 and almost one fifth of students in year 10 (19%). These young people reported that the main supplier of alcohol is parents (year 6 –

60%, year 8 – 58%, year 10 – 36%). Compared to year 8 Australian students, year 8 students in Cardinia Shire report sig-

nificantly lower levels of lifetime and recent alcohol use and solvent use (Hall, Smith & Toumbourou, 2015).

Injuries

Intentional injury

From the period 2001 – 2005 the suicide rate across all age groups in Cardinia Shire was 13.6 per 100,000 persons which was the highest rate in the Southern Metropolitan Region and the third highest rate in Melbourne (Victorian Health Information Surveillance System, 2014).


Two people per 1000 population were treated in hospital for intentional injury (Department of Health, 2014b).

In July 2015, a coronial investigation was commissioned after a number of suicides were reported amongst youth aged 13 – 24 in Cardinia Shire. It was found that over a three year period there were ten suspected suicides which met the definition of a suicide cluster according to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Jamieson, 2015).

Hospitalisation due to self-harm amongst young people aged under 24 was reported as 107.9 per 100,000 in 2010 and 116.6 per 100,000 in 2011. However, since 2011 the rates of hospitalisations due to self-harm have reduced in this age category (Jamieson, 2015).

Unintentional injuryAccording to the Department of Health (2014b), unintended injuries occurring within Cardinia Shire which required treatment at hospital, occurred at a rate of 60 per 1000 population which is on par with the Victorian average of 59.1. Of these injuries, 36.5% were due to falls which again, is not dissimilar to the Victorian average of 37.3%.

Road safety

Number of fatalities on Cardinia Shire’s roads: There were 8 fatalities on Cardinia Shire’s roads in 2015. The total road toll for Vic-

toria in 2015 was 252. Over a 6 year period from 2010 to 2015 there were a total of 40 fatalities on Cardinia

Shire’s Roads:

In 2012 it was found that 55% of all fatalities in Victoria occur in rural and regional areas while only 25% of the Victorian population live outside the metropolitan area. This is an important statistic to note; given that Cardinia Shire comprises both rural and metropolitan areas.

Demographics of fatalities on Cardinia Shire’s roads from 2010-15*:From 2010 to 2015 there were 40 fatalities on Cardinia Shire’s roads; of these 62.5% were male and 37.5% were females:


From 2010 to 2015 the highest death rate was amongst those aged 18 – 20 years old Of the total fatalities, 1 was a cyclist, 1 was a pedestrian, 4 were motorcyclists and the

remaining were either drivers or passengers in a vehicle:

The majority of fatalities caused by road traffic incidents were as a result of running off a straight stretch of road

Transport Accident Commission claims involving hospitalisation from Sept 2009 - Aug 2015*:

In the 6 years from Sept 2010 to Aug 2015 there were 583 Transport Accident Com-mission claims involving hospitalisation across Cardinia Shire

Again, men were overrepresented in this figure, accounting for 359 of these claims The majority of injuries occurred in the age groups of 18 – 25(155) and 40 – 59(156) Of the 583 injuries, 11 were cyclists, 34 were pedestrians, 123 were motorcycles, 7

were unknown and the remaining were either drivers or passengers in a vehicle Just as with road fatalities, the majority of injuries caused by road traffic incidents

were as a result of running off a straight stretch of road

Hoon Driving:

During the 2014 Social Health Telephone Survey it was found that:

Traffic/speeding and antisocial behaviour/hoons were listed in the top three things that residents would like to see less of in their estates (11.9% and 8.1% respectively)


Hoons contributed to 6.3% of respondents experiencing sleepless nights 8.1 per cent of respondents reported that they would like to see less antisocial beha-

viour/hoons within their estate which was the third highest response (Lethborg, 2015).

In 2013 the rate of vehicle impounds was 7.4 per 10,000 population in Cardinia Shire. Victoria Police can impound a vehicle for high risk driving, dangerous driving or hoon behaviour (VicRoads, 2015). Cardinia Shire was ranked 14th of all LGAs in Melbourne for the number of vehicle impounds.

Natural hazards

Given Cardinia Shire’s vast and varying geographical region, almost all hazards that affect a community are present in the Shire (Cardinia Shire Council, 2015). This includes bushfires, grassfires, floods, storms and heatwaves. Typically the ‘hills’ areas of Gembrook, Cockatoo, Emerald and surrounds are at risk of bushfire, while those suburbs which lie south of the Princes Highway are located in a flood-prone area.

Cardinia Shire has a long history of flooding and bushfires which has resulted in property loss and damage, stock loss and even loss of life.

In 2015, the Council undertook consultations in Koo Wee Rup, Maryknoll and Emerald to establish which hazards were perceived to be the greatest risk to their community. Floods and fires were identified as the main natural hazards that were of concern to the community.

Flood was highlighted as the number one concern for those in Kooweerup Flood was rated as the second major concern for Maryknoll after bushfire Bushfire was rated as the main concern for the community of Emerald Storm was considered to be in the top five priorities for these communities Heatwave was also a concern to communities

Perceptions of safety

Perceptions of safety are important to consider, as areas which are perceived to be safe foster community participation and connectedness, encourage physical activity and improve the health and wellbeing of those who live, work and play in the area (Community Indicators Victoria, 2011). Anecdotally, it is understood that people will act on their perceptions, as their perception is their reality.

The 2011 VicHealth Indicators Survey found that 97.5% of adults in Cardinia Shire felt safe walking alone during the day which is on par with the Victorian average of 97%, however this dropped to 71.7% when participants were asked how safe they felt walking alone at night which is slightly above the Victorian average of 70.3% (Victorian Health Promotion Foundation, 2012).

The 2014 Social Health Telephone Survey conducted by Cardinia Shire Council, returned lower results than that of the VicHealth Indicators Survey. 74.9 per cent of residents surveyed reported that their estate is a safe place to live during the day; however, only 58.8% of the same sample reported that their estate is a safe place to live at night. Residents living in the estates of Heritage Springs and Arena rated significantly higher than average of all estates for feeling safe both during the day and at night.


Section 2 Structure of the community

2.1 Describe the demographic structure of the community

Cardinia Shire is among the fastest and largest growing Local Government Areas in Victoria and across Australia. Population features and trends include:

Approximately three to four families move into Cardinia Shire every day. This figure has recently decreased from five per day

Most recent population estimate is 87,008 (June 2014 ERP), an increase of 3,011 from 2013

Population is expected to increase by approximately 41,000 over the next 10 years (2025) and 81,887 over the next 20 years, to a total of 168,895 by 2035

Median age of residents is 34 which is two years younger than Greater Melbourne at 36

Largest age group cohort is zero to four years (currently 6,873), which is expected to increase by approximately 3,822 in the next ten years (2025) and 7,271 in the next 20 years (2035), totalling over 14,000 children

Higher than average youth population, with 21 per cent of the population aged between 10–24 years

By 2035, the 10–24 age group will increase by around 16,900

The Victorian Government has nominated the Casey–Cardinia region as one of five regions around the fringe of metropolitan Melbourne where new housing and population growth is to be concentrated. As a result, rapid population growth will happen for the next 20 years within the Shire’s designated growth area, comprising the townships of Beaconsfield, Officer and Pakenham.

Cardinia Shire has a higher proportion of young families than the Melbourne average. In con-trast, the proportion within the 60-plus age group is lower when compared with metropolitan Melbourne. These patterns are typical of growth areas on the fringe of large cities where young couples often move out from rental accommodation in inner suburbs in search of af-fordable housing and larger family-sized dwellings.

Approximately 13,940 residents aged 60 and over live in Cardinia Shire, representing 15.1 per cent of the total population. The number of senior residents, aged 60 plus, living in Cardinia Shire is expected to increase to approximately 30,477by 2035. This increase in the number of older residents will have a corresponding impact on the demand for community and aged ser-vices, health services, public transport and local infrastructure.

At the time of the 2011 census, 62 per cent of Cardinia Shire’s population identified as having a Christian faith and Catholic was the most prominent denomination chosen by residents. Just 2.9 per cent of residents identified with a non-Christian religion, the most common being Buddhism. Approximately 29.8 per cent of residents said they had no religion which is a higher proportion compared with Greater Melbourne (23.5%).

While CALD communities comprise only a small proportion of the overall Cardinia Shire pop-ulation, in line with current population growth, this number is increasing. The number of res-idents from non-English speaking backgrounds is now estimated to be approximately 15 per cent of the overall population. The most common countries of birth for non–Australian born residents are the United Kingdom, New Zealand, the Netherlands, India, Germany, and Sri


Lanka.

Households and housing

Cardinia Shire has 31,113 households Nearly 40 per cent of households are couples with children, more than the Mel-

bourne average Approximately 27.6 per cent are couples without children and 11 per cent are one-

parent families Overall 26 per cent of the population own their dwelling, 48.4 per cent were purchas-

ing and 20 per cent are renting

Education

In general, Cardinia Shire residents are achieving lower levels of educational and training at-tainment than elsewhere in metropolitan Melbourne. At the time of the 2011 census, 40 per cent of residents had completed Year 12 or equivalent, compared to the metropolitan Mel-bourne average of 54.6 per cent. At present, there is no university campus and there are re-stricted TAFE courses available in Cardinia Shire, which limits the availability of post-second-ary education opportunities for residents.

Industry and economy

More Cardinia Shire residents work in manufacturing than any other industry There are more technicians and trade workers in Cardinia Shire than any other occu-

pation Of the 16,537 people who work in Cardinia Shire, 64.9 per cent (or 10,560) also live in

the area Total of 24,471 jobs located in Cardinia Shire in the year ending June 2014 Approximately 36,270 persons (95.4%) were employed from a labour force of 38,008 Approximately 4.6 per cent of residents were unemployed which is less than metro-

politan Melbourne (5.5%)

2.2 Describe the SC/IP at present and the plans for the future.

Cardinia Shire Council recognises that a safe community is not just one that is free of crime, violence and anti-social behaviour; it is one that focuses on creating a safer community at all levels, within all areas. Prior to 2014, Council had not had a dedicated Community Safety Officer or community safety plan in place for a number of years. Activities within the community safety space had continued, but responsibility had been spread across and shared amongst multiple business units. In light of this, in 2014 Council made the commitment to develop a more coordinated and structured approach to creating a safer community and agreed to begin the process of designation as an International Safe Community. At the same time, a decision was made to move away from the term ‘community safety’ to ‘safer communities’ so that an all-encompassing, proactive approach was ensured. A full time Safer Communities Project Officer officially commenced in early 2015 and the ‘Cardinia Safer Communities Project’ was launched.

Prior to conducting any work within this area, it was important for Council to develop a thorough understanding of the real and perceived safety and injury concerns within the Shire and to understand what was already being done and what else could be done to make Cardinia Shire a safer place.


In order to do this, a three step process was adopted.

An internal scoping exercise Collection and review of data, statistics and research Community consultation

The first step was an internal scoping exercise to identify the services and initiatives that Council currently deliver which add to increased safety across the community. The second step involved a review of the existing data, statistics and research to establish the evidence based safety issues and causes of injury within Cardinia Shire, and the third step was to conduct an extensive community consultation to establish the community’s perceptions of safety and injury within the municipality.

Results and Key Findings:

A total of 640 individuals participated in the community consultations. They ranged in age from 4 – 90+ and came from a variety of geographic and demographic backgrounds.

A range of concerns were raised by the community however six key themes were clearly evident. These were (in no particular order):

Road, Pedestrian and Transport related issues Alcohol and Other Drugs Mental Health related issues Crime Family Violence Emergency Management

The evidence based data and research supported that these issues were in fact of concern in Cardinia Shire.

Participants were also given the opportunity to suggest strategies that could be implemented which would create a safer community. There were a range of suggestions put forward, however when considering the overall results, the following themes emerged:

Increased police/security Provision of services and amenities Community participation and connectedness Education, information and communications CCTV and surveillance Environmental design Harsher penalties

Action Based Work:

Armed with a comprehensive understanding of the current key safety issues and concerns, by early 2016 the project was ready to move forward onto the next phase of action based work.

The first step involved the formation of the Cardinia Safer Communities Strategic Committee (discussed in more detail in question 1.3). The Committee, which officially met for the first time in April 2016, provide governance to the process, act as the high level advocacy body, and were responsible for developing the Cardinia Safer Communities Strategy. Additionally, this Committee has overseen and endorsed the development of project wide Communication and Evaluation Plans, with responsibility for the implementation of these plans sitting with


the Safer Communities Project Officer.

Secondly, action groups are being formed to work on the six key priority areas. New groups are only being formed in areas where an existing Shire wide group or committee doesn’t already serve the purpose of building a safer community in their specific area.

Priority Area Status

Road, Pedestrian and Transport

Councils Traffic Management Team currently in operation with the need for an additional transport safety group to be explored in early 2017

Crime Cardinia Crime Action Group currently in operation (newly formed -June 2016)

Mental health Community Workers in Cardinia Shire network currently in operation. A new priority focus of metal health was established by the network in December 2016, with a Mental Health sub-group to commence in April 2017

Alcohol and other Drugs

Action Group currently in operation (newly formed –January 2017)

Family violence Together We Can Collective Impact project, Challenge Family Violence Project and Family Violence Action Team all currently in operation

Emergency management

Municipal Emergency Management Planning Committee currently in operation along with sub committee's in each of the areas of Fire, Flood and Storm and Resilience and Recovery

2.3 Describe the political support for the sustained injury prevention in the community and which parts of the program have been undertaken and/or supported by the regional government?

Two current Councillors, including the current Mayor are active members in the Cardinia Safer Communities Strategic Committee

Both State and Federal Government departments contribute funding and resources to initiatives delivered across Cardinia Shire. These include work delivered by Road Safe South East, Youth Support and Advocacy Service, Department of Health and Human Services, Victoria Police and the Primary Health Networks amongst many others (too numerous to mention them all)

Jason Wood, Federal Minister of La Trobe (which covers much of Cardinia), has a strong background and interest in public safety being a former Victorian Police Officer, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Justice and Public Security and Senior Sergeant of the Counter Terrorism Unit

Gembrook MP Brad Battin is the Shadow Minister for Emergency Services and holds a strong interest in both crime prevention and emergency management for the Shire

Brian Paynter, State Member for Bass, actively advocates for increased crime prevention resourcing for Cardinia Shire and is committed to improving outcomes in the areas of family violence and youth mental health and suicide


A priority budget bid has been put forward by the General Manager of the Council’s Community Wellbeing Division which should see the continuation of the Safer Communities Project Officers role beyond 2017 (currently a Council funded position from 2015-17)

2.4 Describe the strategic program concerning the safety promotion and injury prevention work, which has been formulated:

The program which Cardinia Shire has implemented to improve safety and injury outcomes for its residents consists of the formation of a Strategic Committee to provide governance and advocacy, the development of a Strategy to guide the work and the creation of Action Groups to drive the work.

The Cardinia Safer Communities Strategy outlines the overall vision and objectives guiding the project as a whole and the separate Action Groups’ work (details outlined in previous section):

The Action groups are formulating separate action plans which, while using the Strategy to guide their work, detail the specific strategies, timeframes and where responsibility for implementation sits:

Additionally a Communication plan and an Evaluation plan have been developed, which specify how the work of the Strategic Committee and the Action Groups will be disseminated

and how their outcomes will be measured.


2.5 Who is responsible for the management of the SP/IP program and where are they based in the political and administrative organization?

The lead governing body is the Cardinia Safer Communities Strategic Committee with responsibility for priority area actions sitting with action groups:

Priority Area Lead Agency

Road, Pedestrian and Transport Cardinia Shire Council

Crime Victoria Police

Mental health Cardinia Shire Council

Alcohol and other Drugs Cardinia Shire Council

Family violence Cardinia Shire Council

Emergency management Cardinia Shire Council

2.6 Which is the lead unit for the SP/IP program?

The Cardinia Safer Communities Strategic Committee is the lead unit for the project, with the lead organisation being the Cardinia Shire Council.

2.7 Is the Safe Communities initiative a sustained program or a project?

Currently the Cardinia Safer Communities work is project based. An initial three-year project was committed to from the period of 2015 to 2017; by the end of which time Cardinia Shire anticipates that it will have received designation as an International Safe Community. Council recognizes however, that three years will really only allow enough time for the formation of a strong, collaborative base for safety work and that if we want to see significant outcomes and positive changes for our community, the project must be funded in a long term sustainable manner. A priority budget bid for the role of the Safer Communities Project Officer to continue beyond 2017 is currently sitting with Council for approval.

Looking more broadly beyond the Safer Communities Project, it is evident that Council is firmly committed to sustainable programs which work to build a safer community, as this is reflected in Council policy and strategy priorities.

The following policies and strategies support the work of the Cardinia Safer Communities Strategy and Project overall:

Creating the future Council Plan 2013 – 2017The Council Plan sets out Cardinia Shire Council’s strategic vision and outlines Council’s commitment to the community, key priorities and anticipated challenges over a four year period.

The Council Plan outlines five key strategic objectives. Under the strategic objective of Our People, action six is directly related to community safety:

Increased awareness of safety

Work with the police, State Government and community to improve safety in homes,


businesses, public places and roads Improve awareness of township safety

Municipal Public Health and Wellbeing Plan 2013 – 2017

The Municipal Public Health and Wellbeing Plan (MPHWP) takes into consideration all aspects of Cardinia Shire’s environment and how these impact on the community’s health and wellbeing. The Municipal Public Health and Wellbeing Plan outlines four domains with a set of priority issues and actions under each. The four areas are Our People, Our Community, Our Environment and Our Economy. This work is reflected in Our Community.

Cardinia Shire Council has a variety of other policies that have implications and relevance for community safety. Key policies and plans include:

Road Safety Strategy

Bicycle and Pedestrian Strategy

Reconciliation Action Plan

Cardinia's Access and Inclusion Policy and Action Plan 2014 – 2017

Positive Ageing Strategy and Action Plan 2012–15

Risk management framework and policy

Injury management policy

Gender Equity Framework

Communities That Care Cardinia Action Plan

Cardinia Municipal Emergency Management Plan

Youth Strategy 2012–16

2.8 Are the political objectives covering the whole community? Which are they?

The objectives developed by the Strategic Committee had political input in the form of the two Councilors representation and participation in that Committee. The objectives were based on the International Safer Community key indicators and were deliberately left broad to ensure they were relevant for all of Cardinia’s diverse population groups and would be applicable across each of the action areas.

2.9 Who have adopted these objectives?

The objectives have been adopted by both the members of the Cardinia Safer Communities Strategic Committee and the Action Groups. Specific Organisations include (but not limited to) Victoria Police, Department of Health and Human Services, VicRoads, Cardinia Shire Council, Alcohol and Drug Foundation, Woman’s Health in the South East (WHiSE), Neighbourhood Watch, Department of Justice and Regulations, Emergency Management Victoria and South East Melbourne Primary Health Network.

Commitment to the objectives by these organisations has been demonstrated through the establishment and agreement to a Terms of Reference for each of the governing and action bodies, and their support of new initiatives, programs and advocacy activities.

2.10 How are the safe community objectives evaluated and to whom are the results reported?

The objectives are being evaluated as outlined in the evaluation plan which has been


developed by the Cardinia Safer Communities Strategic Committee.

The overall evaluation will be guided by a structured collective impact evaluation framework to provide a comprehensive picture which outlines the effectiveness of the process, the short to mid-term impacts and the overall outcomes of the project. Evaluation will assess not only the effectiveness of any initiatives and programs that are developed, but also the extent to which Council has effectively guided the partners through the International Safer Communities process.

Collective Impact projects take time and are emergent by nature. It is therefore unreasonable to expect significant progress on long term outcomes to happen quickly. During the initial stage of the project, focus will be placed on building relationships and designing, developing, and implementing the project foundations which will form the basis of future community safety work within the Cardinia Shire.

During the initial 3 year funded project from 2015-17, the Cardinia Safer Communities evaluation will focus on developmental evaluation and formative (early initiative/program level implementation) evaluation when possible. The ongoing Cardinia Safer Communities evaluation (2018 and beyond – Funding dependent) will implement more summative evaluation activities. Summative evaluation will look to understand what mid to longer term outcomes the project is achieving across the 6 key action areas of crime, emergency management, family violence, Alcohol and Other Drugs, mental health and road safety.

A set of key evaluation questions have been developed. These will be evaluated using a range of methodologies including a project reach table, a social network analysis tool, stakeholder and intervention level surveys, case studies, meeting records and a range of both internal and external population level data sets (e.g. ABS data, Crime stats etc.), survey data (e.g. Victorian population health survey, Cardinia Shire youth forum survey etc.) and community consultations (e.g. Cardinia Safer Communities Consultation, Cardinia Shire Public health plan consultation etc.).

All results are reported to the Cardinia Safer Communities Strategic Committee and higher level results are also reported to Councils Senior Leadership Team and at Council Briefings where appropriate and/or requested.

The developmental evaluation will be reported on late 2017 and the summative evaluation (the Safer Communities’ consultation and data analysis process) will be undertaken every four years, with the next to run in 2019. Data collection at the initiative level will rely heavily on individuals who are part of the Cardinia Safer Communities (CSC) project to design and conduct evaluation and report this back to the wider CSC Network.

Additionally, a Communications Plan has been implemented, which outlines how evaluation results are to be disseminated to the wider community.

2.11 Are economic incentives in order to increase safety used? If yes, how are they used?

Financial commitment to improving the safety of the community is critical to the ongoing success of the Cardinia Safer Communities Project. Funding for the wide range of programs and initiatives which contribute to building a safer community comes from Council, State and Federal Government Departments and various other partner agencies and sponsoring bodies. Some recent examples of the economic investments which can be seen across the project include:

Two recent successful funding bids by Council will see $136,950 from Federal


Government and $164,787 from State Government spent on improving the safety and amenity of local high risk community location, Bourke Park, in Pakenham. This money will see the installation of 11 public space CCTV cameras, path lighting and horticultural landscaping within the park. These projects also include an additional $40,000 financial commitment directly from Council to complete the works

A new ‘Youth Mental Health Pilot Project’ will provide funding of $135,000 to support youth and family mental health outcomes in Cardinia Shire. This project will contract a local mental health service to provide much needed outreach support to young people residing in Cardinia Shire and their families. The project will include a commitment to staffing equivalent to 1.5EFT over 12 months and will launch in January 2017

The ‘Together We Can’ family violence prevention project has been jointly funded by the Department of Social Services, Cardinia Shire Council, Family Life and the Ross Trust. This project includes a total financial commitment of $270,000 over two years from 2016-17

2.12 Are there local regulations for improved safety? If so, describe them

The Cardinia Safer Communities Project is guided by the following regulations, strategies and policies:

Local Government Act 1989 Creating the future Council Plan 2013 – 2017 Victoria’s Road Safety Strategy 2013-22 Cardinia Shire Council Road Safety Strategy 2016-25 Bicycle and Pedestrian Strategy Municipal Public Health and Wellbeing Plan 2013–17 Age Friendly Strategy 2015-19 Cardinia Shire Council Reconciliation Action Plan 2015-2019 Cardinia Shire Access and Inclusion Policy and Action Plan 2014 – 2017 Positive Ageing Strategy and Action Plan 2012–15 Risk management framework and policy Injury management policy Gender Equity Framework Communities That Care Cardinia Shire Action Plan Emergency Management Act (1986 and 2013) Cardinia Shire Municipal Emergency Management Plan Youth Strategy 2012–16 Children, Youth and Families Act 2005 (as amended 2014) Child Safety and Wellbeing Act Cardinia Child, youth and Family Strategy (2017) Cardinia Access and Inclusion Policy June 2014 Liquor Control Reform Act 1998


Section 3 Indicator 13.1 Describe the intersector group responsible for managing, coordinating, and planning of the SP/IP program.

The Cardinia Safer Communities Strategic Committee (CSCSC) was established in April 2016, with the purpose of addressing local community safety, injury and crime prevention issues by working in partnership with all major stakeholders. This governing body includes high level representation from a range of Local and State Government departments and key community services across the six key action areas established during the research and data collection phase of the project. The Cardinia Safer Communities Strategic Committee meets quarterly and current membership includes:

Two Cardinia Shire Councillors (including the current Mayor) General Manager Community Wellbeing Cardinia Shire Council (CSCSC Chair) Team Leader Safe and Inclusive Communities Cardinia Shire Council (CSCSC Deputy

Chair) Safer Communities Project Officer Cardinia Shire Council Victoria Police Department of Justice & Regulation Emergency Management Victoria VicRoads Department of Health and Human Services Alcohol and Drug Foundation Women’s Health in the South East Chair of each of the Cardinia Safer Communities Action Groups

The Cardinia Safer Communities Strategic Committee work to support Cardinia’s designation as an International Safe Community, and provide leadership in the identification, development and evaluation of activities and programs by:

Developing a Safer Communities Strategy in collaboration with relevant agencies and the community which prioritises injury and safety issues for Cardinia Shire

Establishing effective partnerships with key stakeholders engaged in injury prevention and improving the safety of individuals and groups in the Cardinia region

Informing, lobbying and influencing relevant Government departments and/or organisations to improve levels of safety in the Cardinia region

Taking action to foster a positive image of community safety for residents, investors and visitors

Oversee and coordinate the activities of the Cardinia Safer Communities Action Groups

3.2 Describe how the local government and the health sector are collaborating in the SC/IP work.

Council’s focus for the Cardinia Safer Communities project is on collaboration, with the recognition that a safer community cannot be achieved by one individual or organisation working in isolation. With the six priority areas having been established, one of the first sectors which were approached to be involved in the project was the health sector. In Victoria, the health sector is a complex and dynamic system which meant that approaching


multiple agencies for inclusion was necessary.

Critical to the work was the high level representation from several key health agencies/ser-vices on the Cardinia Safer Communities Strategic Committee. This included the Department of Health and Human Services, the South Eastern Melbourne Primary Health Network, Women’s Health in the South East and the Alcohol and Drug Foundation.

These four key health agencies regularly attend and participatein Strategic Committee meet-ings and provide input and advice in the wider Safer Communities Network as appropriate. One example which demonstrates the projects collaborative work in action was Michael Sillekens, PIR manager from the South Eastern Melbourne Primary Health Network, recently helping to plan and facilitate the recent Cardinia Mental Health Providers workshop alongside multiple Council staff.

Additionally, various services and agencies from across the health, mental health and AOD sectors are directly involved in multiple Council based initiatives, including Communities that Care, Age/Child Friendly Cities and the Safer Communities Action Groups working at a more local, target capacity within the community. These include (but are not limited to) Monash Health, Headspace, Windermere, Youth Support and Advocacy Service, Eastern Region Mental Health Association, Mind, Koo Wee Rup Regional Health Service and Eastern Access Commu-nity Health (EACH).

3.3 How are NGOs: Red Cross, retirement organizations, sports organizations, parent and school organizations involved in the SC/IP work?

There are multiple non-government agencies involved in the Cardinia Safer Communities project, all operating at various capacities and commitment levels. Some key examples of NGO involvement would be:

Red Cross, Rotary, Mecwacare and ECHO Youth and Family Services are all active members of Cardinia’s Municipal Emergency Management Planning Committee. This committee works in collaboration to identify and evaluate emergency management risk, and prioritise, implement and evaluate their treatments throughout the Shire. They are also responsible for the development, monitoring and review the Municipal Emergency Management Plan. The Red Cross and ECHO Youth and Family Services are also members of Cardinia’s Relief and Recovery Committee which, amongst other things, works to support, promote and identify opportunities for community resili-ence and recovery programs within the Shire

Neighborhood Watch, a volunteer based community crime prevention organisation is actively involved in the Cardinia Crime Action Group and leads work around community education, activation and empowerment

Pakenham Secondary College is also a member of the Cardinia Crime Action Group. Youth offending was identified by the group early on as a priority area of work and having the education sector’s support has been crucial to developing the groups understanding of the issue and producing targeted, appropriate responses

Council is working in partnership with Family Life, an independent community service organisation, on the Together We Can Collective Impact Family Violence project. Family Life is community owned and managed and offers various services including counselling, mediation, mental health services, support and community educational services, outreach to homes, case coordination and advocacy. In this instance Family Life has been contracted by Council to serve as the ‘Backbone Organisation’ to implement a range of prevention strategies designed to reduce the rates of family violence occurring across the Shire. This initiative takes a collective, whole of community approach and has many other Non-Government Organisations


and community groups involved in driving the work.

While these are only a few examples of the dozens which could be provided, they help to demonstrate the level of commitment that Cardinia Shire Council has to involving Non-Government Organisations and community groups in all safety promotion and injury prevention work that it undertakes. In turn, Council works to support and promote the relevant work which Non-Government Organisations and other community groups undertake in the safety arena independent of the Safer Communities project.

3.4 Are there any systems for ordinary citizens to inform about risk environments and risk situations they have found in the community?

There are multiple avenues available to the general public to report on risk environments and risk situations which they have identified in the Cardinia Shire. These include:

Crime Stoppers – Members of the general public who have information around a crime or suspicious behaviour are strongly encouraged to report what they know to Crime Stoppers on 1300 333 000 or via an online form. This line is available 7 days a week and is a not-for-profit organisation working in partnership with Victoria Police to keep the Victorian community safe

Police, Fire and Ambulance – If members of the general public witness or are involved in an emergency, they can call 000 at any time for immediate assistance

Cardinia Shire Council – Members of the public are encouraged to report community risks, which are not emergencies and are not to report a crime, directly to Council. Generally, when a member of the public contacts Council with a concern regarding an environmental/situational risk they will speak directly with a Customer Service oper-ator. The operator will collect initial information and then direct their call onto the most appropriate Council Officer to deal with the matter. If within their means, the Council Officer will put in place steps to eliminate the risk while following Council’s risk management processes. Occasionally a call will come through around a risk that falls outside of Council’s scope of responsibility. In a situation such as this, the officer taking the enquiry will refer the caller onto the appropriate authority who will be able to assist them.

3.5 Describe how the work is organized in a sustainable manner.

In order to ensure sustainability Cardinia Shire Council has taken a community development approach to the implementation of its Safer Communities project. Building a safe community is multifaceted and requires a coordinated, whole of community approach in order to respond effectively to local and regional issues. The formation of strong partnerships between a wide range of government and community services is critical to achieving outcomes that contribute to a connected, safe and empowered community. The approach that has been taken has allowed adequate time and resourcing to both the data collection and the partnership building phase of the project in order to produce a genuinely collective response.

In addition to taking a coordinated, whole of community approach to ensuring sustainability, a number of practical measures have been put into place to help drive the project over the long term:

Council’s commitment to ongoing funding in the form of a dedicated project officer to drive safer community work

Establishment of a high-level, cross-sector Strategic Committee to not only provide governance but advocate for continued, and even increased, injury prevention and safety promotion work/funding throughout Cardinia Shire

Ensuring that the membership of the action based groups are representative of all


those who have influence and relevance in the priority area which it is addressing Allowing for evolving membership and direction of work within the project’s

committees/groups Terms of reference for all committees/groups which outline an ongoing commitment

and responsibility for building a safer community Evaluation plan which reports on outcomes for continuous improvement,

accountability and future planning purposes Communication and dissemination strategies in place to ensure continued relevance

and community interest in the project


Section 4 Indicator 24.1 Describe the sustainable work in regard to SC/IP in following areas and how the different sectors including specific NGOs are involved in the work.

The Cardinia Safer Communities Project has worked to identify the key community safety concerns and implement interventions, programs and projects which are specifically targeted to the Shire’s population and their needs. These can be categorised under the identified six key themes for actions of Family Violence, Road, Pedestrian and Transport related safety is-sues, Alcohol and other Drugs, Mental Health, Emergency Management and Crime.

Interventions, programs and projects which fall under these include:

Key Theme Strategies, Programs & Projects

Description

Road, ped-estrian and transport related is-sues

L2P Learner Driver Program

Joint initiative between Koo Wee Rup Regional Health Service and Cardinia Shire Council that assists learner drivers to gain the minimum 120 hours of driving experience needed to get their license and drive safely.

Communities that Care: Smarter Genera-tion Program

Evidence-based multi-level intervention which aims to reduce adolescent alcohol use and incorporates road safety aspects.

Primary school programs

Delivered by Council in partnership with local Primary Schools, programs include:

- Stop and Drop zones- Linking families into child restraint

fitting services- Educate parents/ carers at key age and

stage visits on road safety- School crossing supervisors

Precinct Structure Plans and Township Plans

These plans detail specific safety requirements around physical infrastructure such as roads, safe bike paths and pedestrian crossings during new developments, or upgrades to existing developments.

Advocacy for improved transport systems

Including upgrades to roads and rail networks. Council works with VicTrack, Metro Trains and local Bus companies to deliver this.

Black Spot (road These grants and programs allow for


trouble spot safety) Programs

revitalisation of local spaces and infrastructure to improve the actual and perceived safety of these spaces for Cardinia Shire’s residents. Funding is provided by the Federal Government with works delivered by Council.

Cardinia Shire Council Road Management Plan

- Routine inspection programs and audits on physical infrastructure such as roads, footpaths, playgrounds and council buildings to ensure that they are compliant, safe and fit for use.

- Capital works programs which see the replacement and installation of new infrastructure such as roads, footpaths and bridges.

Roads and Footpaths Resheeting Program

Every year Council resurfaces 871 kilometres of unsealed roads and footpaths in Cardinia Shire as part this program. It ensures these roads are safe for drivers and pedestrians to use.

SAM Trailer Program Cardinia Shire Council purchased a Speed Alert Mobile (SAM) trailer for the Not So Fast program using the support from the TAC Community Road Safety Program. The Not So Fast program is run in partnership with RoadSafe SouthEast and Victoria Police through the Victorian Community Road Safety Partnership Program. The program’s goal is to reduce the number and severity of crashes on Council’s local road network caused by excess and inappropriate speed. It aims to increase driver awareness of safe speed limits at identified locations along particular roads and reinforce the speed limit to drivers, as well as providing road safety messages.

Vehicle Purchasing Policy

Council policy to only purchase of fleet cars which have a 5 star safety rating

Country Fire Authority Road Safety Program

Local CFA run regular road education programs

Bicycle Users Group (BUG)

Run with support from Council, this community lead group:

- Advocates for all people who use paths and identify and report weaknesses in paths

- Organises regular rides for all ages and abilities levels

- Contribute to community health and so-cial wellbeing


- Runs Bike Ed program with young mums

Pedestrian and Bicycle Strategy

Council has been working with Tract planning consultants to prepare a new strategy which incorporates the creation of new, safer bike and walking paths for the Shire

Crime Cardinia Safer Communities Crime Action Group

Action group made up of various local stakeholders including Police, Deptartment of Justice, Council, Neighbourhood Watch, Victims of Crime, community members, Schools etc. working towards reducing crime rates and improving perceptions of safety throughout Cardinia Shire.

Crime Prevention through Environmental Design Subgroup

A sub group of the Cardinia Safer Communities Crime Action Group has formed to lead the way in Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) advocacy. This group will include representation from Council, Police and Community. Additionally, the use of CPTED principles in the planning and development are used regularly. Assessment tools are used by Council’s Statutory Planning Department to ensure that these principles are followed (where possible) in all new developments as well as in the upgrade of existing areas.

Bourke Park Infrastructure Improvements and CCTV

A range of public infrastructure improvements have been delivered to revitalise and make Bourke Park, Pakenham (a Police identified high risk community location) a safer space. CCTV will also be installed within the Park in 2017. Funding provided by both State and Federal Government with works to be completed by Council in partnership with local Police.

CCTV cameras on Council facilities

Installation and maintenance of CCTV cameras on Council facilities. A CCTV Policy is in place to oversee the operation and maintenance of these cameras.

Graffiti Prevention Programs

- Policy and Action Plan – Regular removal of graffiti from Council buildings, facilities, structures and public spaces.

- Installation of the VandalTrak System- PB Ronald Reserve Street Art Project –

run in partnership with a local artist to engage with young residents

- Warner Youth Graffiti Education Pro-grams in Schools


Lighting Systems Installation and maintenance of public lighting and lighting on Council facilities across the Shire for example:

- The installation of additional lighting within local crime hotspot ‘Bourke Park’ in response to real and perceived community safety concerns

- The upgrade of the existing external lighting system and the installation of sensor lighting at the Pakenham Senior Citizens Centre in response to real and perceived community safety concerns

Blue Light Disco Police, Council Youth Services and Neighbourhood Watch are working together to engage positively with the young people who congregate outside the regular Blue Light Disco events in Pakenham.

Cardinia Shire Neighbourhood Watch

Community volunteer group working on crime prevention, education and neighbourhood strengthening activities across the Shire:

- Work with organisations such as VicPo-lice, VicRoads, TAC and Crime Stoppers. E.g. education programs in partnership with local Police addressing issues such as personal safety and home security

- Act as an intermediary between the com-munity and police, particularly in in-stances where people aren’t comfortable going directly to police.

- Provide Crime Stoppers endorsed sig-nage to display at each neighbourhood, towns and estate entrances to indicate that the community is a Neighbourhood Watch community.

Windermere Victims Assistance Program

Provides outreach case management services for victims of crime and witnesses of crimes. They will assist clients through the criminal proceedings of their case and also provide social support including referrals onto appropriates services etc.

Windermere work closely with many vulnerable groups including those experiencing mental health problems or CALD communities and have strong partnerships with Victoria Police.

Family viol-ence

Cardinia Shire Council Family Violence Action Team and White Rib-bon accreditation

Internal Council Family violence action group consists of four parts

- Family Violence Action Team (e.g. organ-ising family violence awareness training for all staff).


- White Ribbon (e.g. White Ribbon Day event),

- Family Violence Networks- White Ribbon Accreditation – Now an ac-

credited organisationMembership is made up different business groups across the organisation with various staff across the organisation taking the lead in differ-ent areas.

Together We Can Pro-ject

Collective impact initiative implemented to work towards stopping family violence in Cardinia. The initiative is working to address this complex and deeply entrenched social problem by implementing sustainable long term community lead actions in tandem with government departments and the philanthropic sector projects. Partners range from community groups and individuals, sporting organisations, local services and agencies, media and police.

Communities That Care: Respectful Rela-tionships

Primary prevention education program run in Secondary Schools. Run as partnership between Department of Education and Training and Cardinia Shire Council with support from the Together We Can initiative.

Enhanced maternal and child health ser-vice

The Enhanced service is available to parents who are experiencing significant early parenting diffi-culties. Council Maternal and Child Health nurses visit families in their homes to offer sup-port and are trained to recognise family violence and help support victims.

WHISE Regional strategy to prevention violence against wo-men and their children

Women’s Health In the South East has developed ‘Preventing Violence Together’: A Strategy for the Southern Metropolitan Region’ which was launched in April 2016, and is a region-wide strategy for the Prevention of Violence Against Women and their Children.

Gender equity framework

Councils Gender Equity Framework includes an Action Plan incorporating five categories:

1. Leadership, accountability & focus 2. Learning and development 3. Flexible working

arrangements/initiatives supporting women & men with family care

4. Employee consultation5. Preventing sex-based harassment &

discrimination

Challenge Family Viol- Challenge Family Violence is a four year project


ence project targeting the municipalities of Casey, Cardinia and Greater Dandenong and is funded by the Department of Justice. Modelled on the White Ribbon Campaign it involves male community leaders working to prevent violence against women and children.

Regional Management Forum (RMF)

Have family Violence as one of two priority issues for their work. This committee is working to develop a gender framework which could be rolled out across the different council areas. Cardinia Shire Council is represented on a sub group of the RMF which has developed an action plan.

Mental health re-lated issues

Cardinia Mental Health Providers Workshop

Council ran a workshop in December 2016 with the aim of bringing together a group of interested mental health stakeholders to form the foundation for a collective approach to addressing mental health concerns in Cardinia Shire. On concluding the workshop, it was decided that as a form of ongoing networking between stakeholders, Council would extend an invitation to participate in the ongoing CWICS network meeting. CWICS (Community Workers In Cardinia Shire) is held bi-monthly at Cardinia Shire Council and provides networking and information sharing opportunities for community based organisations servicing Cardinia Shire. In 2017 the issue of mental health will be featured heavily on the CWICS agenda to determine the ongoing actions for the group in relation to this far reaching and complex issue.

World Health Organisation recognition as an Age Friendly City and member of the Global Network of Age Friendly Cities

The Age Friendly Strategy (AFS) 2015-19 was adopted by Council in July 2015. An age-friendly community is developed through addressing eight priority areas all of which con-tribute to improving the health and wellbeing of Cardinia’s aging population

Staff mental health training

Cardinia Shire Council recognises the importance of mental health and wellbeing on the lives of Cardinia Shire employees and their families. In the interest of promoting a healthy workplace we are undertaking a process to raise awareness of mental health and how it relates to the workplace.

Child Friendly Cities Cardinia Shire formally endorsed the Child


accreditation Friendly Cities and Community Charter in January 2015. The principles of this charter are key to all work within the Community and Family Services department and are embedded in key strategic documents e.g. Health and Wellbeing Plan, Youth Strategy and Child and Family Plan.

Youth Services pro-grams

Social programs, delivered in partnership with local groups and agencies such as the Pakenham Library and Youth Support and Advocacy Ser-vice, designed to support positive mental health and wellbeing amongst local young people. Pro-grams include:

- Catch Up: A social group for young people aged 17 to 24 years who want to meet new people and get involved with outings and activities

- School holiday programs- Beats and Lyrics: A fun program teaching

skills in music production, create your own loops, record audio and instruments

- Art VS Science: messy, wacky and fun activities

Youth mental health pilot project

Council run pilot project to deliver outreach mental health services to young people in the context of their family setting. Delivered in part-nership with Windermere.

Be Ur Self Social group supporting young people who identify as gay, bi-sexual, lesbian, transgender or intersex and their allies/friends.

Parenting Teens A five week program for parents and carers, to better understand and communicate with teens.

Young Mums A social and supportive environment for preg-nant and parenting young women (up to 25 years old). Mothers attend with or without their infants from birth to 12 months.

Communities that Care: Kids Matter Program

Whole of primary school approach to improve mental health and wellbeing. Run at primary schools across the Shire in partnership with the Principals Australia Institute.

Communities that Care: Mind Matters Program

Whole of secondary school approach to improve mental health and wellbeing. Run at schools across the Shire in partnership with the


Principals Australia Institute.

Communities that Care: my Friends Program

Program to improve resilience and reduce depression and anxiety in youth. Run in partnership with Koo Wee Rup Secondary College

EAP policy Cardinia Shire Council has developed the Em-ployee Assistance Policy (EAP) to assist employ-ees, volunteers, and their immediate families during emotional difficult times through the pro-vision of free counselling services.

Alcohol and Other Drugs

Communities that Care: Smarter Genera-tion Program

Evidence-based multi-level intervention which aims to reduce the sale of alcohol to underage youth and educate students and parents on the recommended guidelines for alcohol consumption. Delivered in partnership with local schools and Deakin University.

Grounded A social support program for young people who are impacted by family drug and/or alcohol ab-use. The free weekly program is for young people aged 14-21 years old which explores ba-sic drug and alcohol information, resilience and self-esteem, goal setting, food and nutrition and sexual health. Grounded is a partnership pro-gram between Council and YSAS (Youth Support and Advocacy Service).

Sharp Safe Container Exchange Program

Collection of sharps on Council property and general provision of sharps containers to the community.

Cardinia's FReeZA committee (Electric Productions)

Electric Productions is a FReeZA committee made up of local young people aged 14-25 that put on fun, exciting, safe, professionally run drug, alcohol and smoke free events for young people in the Cardinia area.

Good Sports Program Good Sports is Australia’s largest preventive health program for the community sport sector. The program supports clubs to progressively in-troduce a set of practices and policies that create a culture of responsible drinking within the club. Developed by and run in partnership with the Al-cohol and Drug Foundation, Council supports this program to be delivered in multiple sporting clubs throughout the Shire.

Tackle the issue Forum Ice, alcohol and other drugs forum run by the Alcohol and Drug Foundation in Cardinia on a semi regular basis.


Alcohol and Other Drug Action Group

Action group made up of various local stakehold-ers including Police, Australian Drug Foundation, Council, Ambulance Victoria, local health ser-vices, Drug and Alcohol Services etc. working to-wards reducing harms related to alcohol and drug misuse and improve perceptions surround-ing alcohol and other drug use throughout Cardinia Shire.

Emergency management

Municipal Emergency Management Planning Committee (MEMPC) chaired by Council and sub committees and plans:

o Municipal Flood Emergency Plan-ning Sub Commit-tee – chaired by VICSES

o Municipal Fire Management Plan-ning Sub Commit-tee – chaired on a rotational basis

o Municipal Relief and Recovery Plan-ning Sub Commit-tee - chaired by Council

These committees bring together all relevant agencies and organisations to plan, prepare, respond and recover from emergencies and to ensure there is a common approach in order to reduce the adverse consequences of emergencies for the communities within Cardinia Shire. Committee members include (but not limited to: Council, Country Fire Authority (CFA), Victoria Sate Emergency Service (VICSES), Victoria Police, Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Environment Land Water and Planning, Vic Roads, St John’s Ambulance, ECHO Youth and Family Services and the Red Cross.

Building Materials Polices

Use of materials in all new Council buildings which increase safety and reduce injury eg: fire resistant materials and non-slip surfaces.

New Residents Kits Council distributes kits to all new residents containing information on local emergency risks and how to prepare for these emergencies.

Ready2go The Ready2Go program connects volunteers with vulnerable residents to support them with heat health awareness and planning for emer-gencies including relocation on high risk days. Development of the ‘Ready2Go’ model included Township Committee reps, St Luke’s Anglican Church, MecwaCare, Monash Community Health, local Country Fire Authority and Police, Red Cross, St Patricks Church Pakenham, Living Learning Pakenham, ECHO Youth and Family Services & Cardinia Council.


Gembrook Emergency and Resilience (GEaR) group

GEaR was developed from an identified need for Gembrook to have a local coordinated response to emergencies. GEaR works with emergency re-sponse agencies and Council to increase pre-paredness and community resilience to emer-gencies in Gembrook.

Emerald Emergency Support Team

The Emerald Emergency Support Team com-munity based planning model is focused on early recovery after emergencies. By assisting the community immediately after the emergency the impact of the emergency is reduced.

Bounce back A Council managed eNewsletter focusing on building community resilience to emergencies across Cardinia Shire.

Neighbourhood safer places

Council audits and maintains the Shire’s Neigh-bourhood Safer Places (NSPs)/places of last re-sort. Cardinia Shire has three designated neigh-bourhood safer places – places of last resort which can be used during a bushfire. These places have been assessed by fire agencies and a multi-agency working group (the Municipal Emergency Management Planning Committee) for their ability to provide some protection against radiant heat, the biggest killer during a bushfire.

Vulnerable Persons Register

Cardinia Shire Council is responsible for main-taining a Vulnerable Persons Register which can be used by Victoria Police during emergencies to identify who may need assistance with evacu-ations if ordered.

Cardinia Emergency Planning video series

This award winning video series provides vital information to assist the community to prepare and respond to emergency events, including simple tips on preparing emergency plans and how to support the most vulnerable in our com-munity. The six-part series of two-minute videos, endorsed by Emergency Management Commissioner for Victoria Craig Lapsley was filmed at various locations across Cardinia Shire and featured local actors and community volun-teers.

Fire Inspection Program

Conducted by Council on residential properties in order to identify fire hazards. Where hazards are identified, fire prevention notices are issued and if necessary fire infringement notices are issued.

Open Air Burning Management of open air burning including


Policy issuing of permits and infringement notices. The objective of the policy is to ensure that open air burning (commonly known as ‘burning off’) is used to minimise the risk of bushfire across the Shire in a safe manner and where alternative methods of vegetation waste disposal may not be practicable.

Fuel Management Framework

Management and reduction of fuel loads in open spaces and on Council land.

Fire access tracks Support the upkeep of fire access tracks across the Shire.

Road Management Plan

Installation, inspections and maintenance of drains to ensure that water is moved away from areas.

Community management risk assessment

Victorian State Emergency Service organised community risk assessment of Cardinia Shire.

4.2 Describe the work with genders, all ages and all environments and situations. Describe all activities like falls prevention and how the work is done

Elderly Residents (65+)

Age Friendly Cities Participation: Cardinia Shire is a recognised World Health Organisation Age Friendly City and member of the Global Network of Age Friendly Cities. An Age Friendly Strategy (AFS) 2015-19 was adopted by Council in July 2015. The strategy is Council's response to its emerging ageing population. The Cardinia Shire Age Friendly Strategy Action Plan 2016/17 includes:

o An asset-based community development project on transport solutions for older adults

o ‘Be in the Know Before you go’ social participation program in partnership with local service providers

o Seniors Festival eventso The creation of a small brokerage fund (partnership with Mecwacare) to help seed

activities and new initiatives for social inclusiono Work with Organisational Development to incorporate Age friendliness into induction

sessions as well as a video moduleo Promote World Elder Abuse Day to staff and seniors groupso Review of synergies with relevant Council plans and policieso Work with community services organisations to identify health and wellbeing issues

in the aged population and help build the capacity of organisations/partners to find local solutions

Pakenham Seniors Citizens Lighting Project: Cardinia Shire Council has partnered with the Pakenham Senior Citizens Centre to address both actual and perceived safety issues associ-ated with the Pakenham Senior Citizens centre, through the installation of sensor lights and


an upgrade of the currently inadequate, existing lighting system including:

o Replacing existing faulty/aged fluorescent lighting around external eves of the build-ing

o Installing new fluorescent lights with movement sensors on the north and west sides of the building

o Upgrading the existing switchboard to install safety switches to lighting circuits

Young People (12-25)

Youth Services: Council’s Youth Services team operate and coordinate many services and programs aimed at improving the safety and wellbeing of the young people residing in Cardinia Shire. These include:

o The Cardinia Shire Freeza Committee – Safe, drug and alcohol free music events for young people

o Be Ur Self - Social group supporting the safety of young people aged 16 to 21 who identify as gay, bi-sexual, lesbian, transgender or intersex and their allies/friends

o Grounded – drug and alcohol program run in partnership with Youth Support and Advocacy Service

o Catch Up – Social support programo School holiday programs - Variouso Beats and Lyrics – Music Programo Art VS Science – Science programo Lets’s get started – Trade pathway program run in partnership with the Men’s Shedso PB Ronald Reserve Street Art (graffiti prevention) programo Youth Action Group – Youth leadership programo Cardinia Shire Council Youth Network - aimed at professionals and community organ-

isations that work with young people in Cardinia Shireo Youth support services – Supporting at-risk youth, free for young people aged 12 to 24

Youth Strategy and Youth strategy reference groupThe Youth Strategy Reference group are responsible for maintaining a strategic focus in order to contribute to the implementation of the eleven Youth Strategy Strategic Actions and six key deliverables which are in the 2012-2016 Youth Strategy. The reference group consists of membership from key mental health services and government departments working through-out the region.

A child, youth and family plan is under development currently to replace the 2012-2016 Youth Strategy.

Communities That Care:o Respectful Relationship Program – Family Violence primary prevention education

program run in Secondary Schools. Run as partnership between Department of Education and Training, Cardinia Shire Council with support from the Together We Can initiative

o Smarter Generation Program - Evidence-based multi-level intervention which aims to reduce the sale of alcohol to underage youth and educate students and parents on the recommended guidelines for alcohol consumption

o Teen and Youth Mental Health First Aid Training – School based preventative health training to help youth identify and respond to mental health issues amongst their peers

L2P Learner Driver Program: Joint initiative between Koo Wee Rup Regional Health Service


and Cardinia Shire Council that assists learner drivers gain the minimum 120 hours of driving experience needed to get their license and drive safely.

Blue Light Positive Policing Programs : Programs and activities aiming to increase protective factors and reduce risk factors in a young person’s life. All events are conducted in a safe su-pervised environment by police members and community volunteers. They are free from al-cohol, drugs and violence and are available to all young people between 5- 18 years.

Children (0-12)

Child friendly cities: Cardinia Shire formally endorsed the Child Friendly Cities and Com-munity Charter in January 2015. The Charter has been developed in line with UNICEF guidelines specifically for local governments, organisations and individuals to take action.

Key Outcomes:To the community, a Child Friendly City and community is one that:

o Asserts the rights of every child and values children as equal citizenso Builds spaces with children in mind so they can actively be part of social and

community lifeo Creates workplace environments that are family friendlyo Demands safety in all dimensionso Ensures children have access to affordable services such as specialist health services,

early childhood care, lifelong learning opportunities and support services

The Charter principles remain key to all work within the Community and Family Services department and are embedded in key strategic documents e.g. Health and Wellbeing Plan, Youth Strategy and Child and Family Plan. The Child Friendly Cities and Communities Network, of which Cardinia Shire Council is a member, is a voluntary network of councils and peak bodies that have formed with a common agenda to promote child friendly cities.

Better Connections, Better Outcomes Collective: A local response to improve the life outcomes (including safety) of children in Cardinia Shire. Programs include:

o Best Start Program - Aims to improve the health, development, learning and wellbeing of children (0-8 years).

o Linking Learning Project - Aims to improve learning outcomes for children by focus-sing on enabling parents, educators and other practitioners and professionals to work effectively together in an integrated manner to support children’s learning and assist in smooth transition processes.

o Municipal Association of Victoria Central Enrolment Project - aims to increase link-ages between Maternal and Child Health Services and the central enrolment scheme and increase the enrolment of vulnerable families into the central enrolment scheme.

o Communities That Care ‘Kids Matter Program’ - Whole of Primary School approach to improve mental health and wellbeing. Run at primary schools across the Shire in part-nership with the Principals Australia Institute.

Road Safety Primary School Programs:o ‘Streets Ahead’ in primary school’s program: Covers topics like ‘Stop Look Listen

Think’, hold hands, driveways, Bike Edo Stop and Drop zoneso Link families into child restraint fitting serviceso Educate parents/ carers at key age and stage visits on road safety


o School crossings

Smalltalk Program: A supported playgroup program aimed at disadvantage or vulnerable families which work to increase parents’ confidence to do the things known to have a positive impact on their child’s learning and wellbeing. It uses a set of evidence-based parenting strategies that parents can use to enhance the home learning environment for their children from birth up to 4 years of age.

Male Residents

Men’s Shed: Operating at multiple locations across the Shire; Men’s Shed is a community-based, non-for-profit, non-commercial organisation that is accessible to all men and whose primary activity is the provision of a safe and friendly environment where men are able to work on meaningful projects.

Female Residents

Young Mum's Group/Mother Goose program:o Young Mums - A weekly support group for pregnant and parenting young women (up

to 25 years old). Mothers attend with or without their infants from birth to 12 months.

o Mother Goose - Mother Goose offers young women (up to 25 years old) the opportunity to delight in sharing songs and rhymes in a weekly group setting with their child/children under three years.

Environment

Cardinia Shire is made up of 3 distinct natural regions, with each experiencing their own unique environmental challenges:

Ranges Ward - The northern part of the Shire is set in the foothills of the Dandenong Ranges. The green, hilly townships of Gembrook, Cockatoo, Emerald and surrounds are at high risk of bushfires. Port Ward - This southern, low-lying region of the Shire consists of flatter, agricultural land prone to riverine and tidal flooding and fast running grass fires.Central Ward: The smallest of the wards, this region consists of Cardinia Shires growth area and houses a large percentage of the total population. This more built up ward is at risk of heat wave, storms and flood and structural and residential fires which can happen at any time.

Interventions, programs and projects which seek to reduce environmental safety risks across these wards include:

o Municipal Emergency Management Planning Committee o Municipal Flood Emergency Planning Sub Committee o Municipal Fire Management Planning Sub Committee o Municipal Relief and Recovery Sub Committee o Community Fire Guard Groups, run in partnership between community and Country

Fire Authorityo Fire Inspection Programo Early Fire Safe Program (Cardinia Shire Council, Maternal Child Health Service and

Country Fire Authority)o Gembrook Emergency and Resilience (GEaR) group


o Ready to Goo Council’s open air burning policyo Bounce Back community newslettero Cardinia Emergency Planning video serieso Vulnerable Persons Registero Neighbourhood safer place – Place of last resorto Fuel Management Frameworko Fire access trackso Community management risk assessment – (Cardinia Shire Council and VIC State

Emergency Service)o Residents information guides and kits


Section 5 Indicator 35.1 Identify all high risk groups and describe what is being done to increase their safety:

Indigenous people:Reflection Garden/Healing SpaceCouncil is currently working with the Southern Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Network(LAN) and other agencies to provide and create culturally safe space where Aboriginal elders could plant native fauna in memory of those in the local Aboriginal community who have passed. The BJ Wallace Reserve has been earmarked for this project and Council’s Open Space team will provide the funds to undertake the landscaping works. The garden will provide a cultur-ally safe space to allow for natural and reflection activities to support the mental health of lo-cal Aboriginal communities. The design and activities for the garden will be the responsibility of the Local Aboriginal Network in order to ensure appropriateness and community owner-ship of the space. The ongoing maintenance of the space is planned to be provided by the lo-cal Department of Justice and Regulation Community Corrections office. The young offenders undertaking the maintenance work will also be encouraged to develop a sense of ownership and value of the space.

Homeless and low-income groups:Story Drive – Social Housing ProjectHomelessness and the shortage of appropriate housing is a critical social issue for Cardinia Shire. A council owned parcel of land has been identified as an ideal location for the construc-tion of social and affordable housing. In partnership with housing associations and a number of other social and community organisations, Council is working to make social and affordable housing options available within Pakenham.

Food Van Collective Impact Project ( Bless Collective Initiative) and Police Champions initiat - iveA review of the current support services and a community worker consultation revealed that that there were a large number of residents experiencing financial hardship with limited ac-cess to meals in the evening and a gap in police knowledge around this issue. In response to this the Bourke Park Food Van Collective Impact Project was implemented in Pakenham. Mul-tiple partners have come together to drive this project including Council, local church groups, Pakenham Police, Orange Sky Laundry service and Clean as Casper mobile shower. With the Follow Church taking the lead, the food van partners are now located at the park two evenings per week from 6-9pm to offer those experiencing homelessness or financial difficulties a free hot meal, warm shower and some clean clothes. In line with the soup van, the Police Champi-ons initiative was implemented to build the knowledge of local Police around the issue of homelessness and financial hardship and to improve community relationships. This initiative included the provision of training, and resources and the designation of two Police ‘Champi-ons’ to support the ongoing work of the initiative. The key outcomes of these combined pro-jects are:

o ‘Engaging the disengaged’ o Improved referral processes o Support for familieso Culturally inclusive o Activation of Bourke Park (a local crime hotspot)o Community owned initiative (sustainable) o Improved social connection o Address gap in support available after hours


Those at risk of intentional injuries, including victims of crime and self-harm:Windermere Victims of Crime ProgramIndependent community organisation, Windermere, offer support for victims of crime who reside in Cardinia in the form of outreach case management. Victims of crime are supported through the criminal proceedings of their case, provided social support including referrals onto relevant additional services as required and are offered brokerage services in the form of financial help. The Windermere Victims of Crime Manager currently sits of the Cardinia Crime Action Group.

Employee mental health trainingCardinia recognises the importance of mental health and wellbeing on the lives of Cardinia employees and their families. In the interest of promoting a healthy workplace Council is un-dertaking a process to raise awareness of mental health and how it relates to the workplace. Employees will be provided with training around identifying and responding to signs of men-tal health concerns in both themselves and others. Council is currently in partnership talks with several community mental health providers to deliver the training.

Youth mental health projectIn partnership with Windermere Child and Family Services, Council will deliver a 12-month Youth Mental Health Pilot Project to support youth mental health outcomes in Cardinia, paying particular focus to metal health within the family context. This project will provide much needed outreach support to young people aged 10-17 residing in Cardinia and their families. The project will include a commitment to staffing equivalent to 1.5EFT over 12 months and will launch in January 2017.

My PlaceA Council run dedicated Youth Services Facility located in Pakenham. This facility provides nine different services to help support the mental health of Cardinia’s young people including a General Practitioner, Psychologist and services such as Headspace and Youth Support and Advocacy Service.

Abused women, men and children:Together We CanCardinia Shire is currently experiencing high rates of family violence across the municipality. The Together We Can collective impact project has been implemented to work towards stop-ping family violence across Cardinia Shire. Together Cardinia Shire Council and Family Life, a family services and research centre, are combining their knowledge of the community and the issue to build community support for a collective response. After officially launching in April 2016; the initiative is working to address this complex and deeply entrenched social problem by implementing sustainable long term community lead actions in tandem with government departments and the philanthropic sector projects.

The project is also working with those with a lived experience of family violence and those with the experience of supporting families through this issue to help build a greater under-standing, reduce stigma and provide opportunities to look at how the community can come together to find local solutions for a local problem.

White Ribbon AccreditationCardinia Shire Council has recently officially achieved White Ribbon Accreditation. For the past 18 months Council has worked hard to create a safer and more respectful workplace, through education and training, enhanced resource allocation, improved workplace policies, effective leadership, and involvement in initiatives such as Together We Can and White Rib-bon Day. Internationally recognised, White Ribbon accredited workplaces have to provide or-


ganisational evidence that has been independently reviewed by experienced specialists across organisational development, gender equity, and health.

CHALLENGE Family Violence projectThis project involved a partnership between the City of Casey, Cardinia Shire Council, City of Greater Dandenong and Monash Health. The project has adopted and implemented primary prevention strategies through a gendered lens, the development of community and local government partnerships and harnessing leadership at a community and institutional level to prevent men’s violence against women. The project engaged community leaders across various settings including sport, education, business, faith, culturally and linguistically diverse communities and state/local government to address the factors and conditions that underpin men’s violence against women.

The CHALLENGE Family Violence project devised two project components that sought to respond to the social determinants of violence against women: i) a male leadership modelii) a faith-based resource model. The underlying goal of each model is to prevent and reduce men’s violence against women; however the structure and strategies employed are funda-mentally different.

Prevention of Violence against Women Regional Strategy‘Preventing Violence Together – A Strategy for the Southern Metropolitan Region’ was launched in April 2016, and is a region-wide strategy for the Prevention of Violence Against Women and their Children (PVAW&C). This Strategy is the result of a consultative process with 28 organisations in the Southern Metropolitan Region, including Community and Wo-men’s Health Services, Local Government Areas, Primary Care Partnerships, and key health organisations. The role and purpose of the Strategy is to explain the causes of violence against women and make a case for collective action in the region. WHiSE, the coordinating agency for this strategy, currently sit on the Safer Communities Strategic Committee.

People with mental illness, AOD issues or disabilities:Cardinia Mental Health Providers WorkshopRun in December 2016, this Council facilitated workshop brought together a group of inter-ested stakeholders to inform local public health plans, State level regional plans and to form the foundation for a collective approach to addressing mental health concerns in Cardinia Shire. Council’s Social and Community Planners are now working with this group of pro-viders to further clarify the key priorities for a new public health plan and form the partner-ships which will be integral to progressing preventative mental health work in Cardinia Shire going forward.

Cardinia Alochol and Other Drug Action GroupFormed in January 2017, this group brings together relevant local stakeholders from across the Alcohol and Other Drug sector to develop an action plan aimed at reducing the impact that alcohol and other drugs have on individuals and the community.

Access and Inclusion Advisory CommitteeThe Cardinia Access and Inclusion Advisory Committee is a Section 86 Committee of Council. The purpose of the Cardinia Access and Inclusion Advisory Committee is to:

o Monitor and review Council’s Access & Inclusion Policy & Action Plano Provide information and timely advice to council on issues impacting upon people

with a disability which prevent their full participation in community lifeo Have input and participation in strategic planning issues affecting people with a

disability in the Shire


o As determined or approved by Council, be represented on Council Community Advisory Committees for local projects

o As required, liaise with Cardinia Shire Council business units on Council related matters

o Develop an annual action plan to achieve the above

The Committee regularly reviews the progress of Cardinia’s Access and Inclusion Action Plan, currently the 2014 – 2017 Action Plan, and as well, progress against actions is reported each year in Councils Annual Report; the latter being a compliance / legislative requirement.

Packaged Liquor Policy

Council is currently working on developing a policy which will apply to all applications for new package liquor premises, the expansion of a licensed area for a package liquor premises, or the extension of trading hours of an existing packaged liquor premises, where a permit is required. The basis for this policy is that licensed premises can make a positive contribution to local economies, provide a source of employment and create opportunities for social inter-action and entertainment, however Council recognises that they can also have a negative im-pact on amenity, affecting the use and enjoyment of public and private spaces; as well as com-munity and personal health and safety.

Communities That CareCommunities That Care (CTC) is an evidence-based, community-change process for reducing youth problem behaviours, including harmful substance use, low academic achievement, early school leaving, sexual risk-taking, and violence. Communities That Care is currently rolling out several evidence based programs throughout Cardinia Shire:

o Parents building solutions implemented in target communityo Smart Generation Program which, in partnership with Deakin University, aims to

discourage adolescent alcohol useo Kids Matter and Mind Matterso My Friends programo Better connections better outcomes: The 0-12 Better Connections Better Outcomes

program will connect a range of services so they can work together to collectively im-prove outcomes for children aged 12 and under, and their families in Cardinia Shire. This program has a committee which includes school principals, network, Department of Health and Human Services, Monash Health, Anglicare and the Department of Edu-cation and Training

People at risk for injuries from natural disasters:Vulnerable Persons registerCouncil’s Resilience and Recovery Officer coordinates the Cardinia Shire Vulnerable Persons Register. This register contains the names and contact details of particularly vulnerable peo-ple residing within the municipality which need to be contacted directly in the event of an emergency and may require assistance. Regular contact is also made with each resident on the register to ensure that their details are still accurate.

Ready 2goBased around heatwave conditions, Ready2Go is a unique small-scale resilience program fo-cussed on people with a set of distinct vulnerabilities. It is designed around supporting people living independently in the township of Cockatoo who due to age, frailty, health issues or lack of transport are unable to protect themselves adequately from the effects of heatwave conditions and other emergencies. The program assists those identified to relocate ‘off the hill’ ahead of any extreme conditions, by planning the day before to relocate to pre-arranged safer locations away from Cockatoo.


Ready2Go aligns individual participants with one or more local volunteers who can offer sup-port with the decision making around leaving early. It also offers suggestions to participants on putting together ‘a ready relocation kit’ which may include requirements such as clothing, toiletries and most importantly, medication planning for the duration of their stay away from home.

Gembrook Emergency and Resilience (GEaR) groupGembrook Emergency and Resilience group (GEaR) was developed after identifying a need for the township of Gembrook to have a local coordinated response to emergencies. GEaR works with emergency response agencies and Council to increase preparedness and resilience in Gembrook.

People at risk due to religion, ethnicity or sexual preferences:Be Ur SelfBe Ur Self is a social group supporting young people aged 16 to 21 who identify as gay, bi-sexual, lesbian, transgender or intersex and their allies/friends. The group meets in Pakenham every Thursday throughout the school term. This program allows GBLTI young people a safe space to be themselves, feel valued and respected, access support and services, make friends and participate in activities.

Cardinia Shire Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) NetworkCardinia Shire’s Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) Network comprises of a range of community service organisations, community health services and state and federal family support agencies. It provides a forum for information exchange and partnership opportunities. The Network meets bimonthly and the meeting format includes a presentation on topics of interest to the network which is followed by a round table information sharing/networking session.

Victoria Police Cultural Diversity Recruitment ProgramLocal Police have held recruitment events to specifically attract and support those from the South Sudanese community into jobs in law enforcement. Recent disunity and cultural differences in the community have highlighted the need for a more collaborative, inclusive approach to reducing crime in Cardinia Shire. While the number of Sudanese families moving into the area is on the rise, there are currently no South Sudanese Police Officers in Victoria. It is hoped that by seeing some of their own working as a Police Officers it will encourage respect, unity and a sense of belonging throughout the wider community.

Ucan2 ProgramCouncil’s Cultural Diversity Officer is currently working with Foundation House to identify and provide suitable venues for the delivery of their Ucan2 programs throughout the Muni-cipality. Ucan2 aims to facilitate and support the social inclusion of recently arrived young people of refugee background, aged 16-25. It does this by fostering cooperation between pro-viders of education, social support, training and employment services to provide refugee background young people with:

o access to, and engagement in education, training and employmento mental health and wellbeing supporto social connections and networks

Ucan2 was developed and is delivered through a collaborative partnership between Founda-tion House, Centre for Multicultural Youth (CMY) and Australian Multicultural Education Ser-vices (AMES).5.2 Give examples of high risk environments:


Describe how risk environments in the community are identified:High risk environments are identified via a number of sources:

o The Safer Communities consultation process was undertaken to identify high risk community concerns and environments

o Natural Hazards are identified by the Municipal Emergency Management Planning Committee (MEMPC) and it’s sub committees:

o Municipal Flood and Storm Emergency Planning Sub Committee o Municipal Fire Management Planning Sub Committee o Municipal Relief and Recovery Sub Committee

o Road and Pedestrian Hazards are currently identified by the Traffic Management Group which consist of membership of a Council based Traffic Engineer, VicRoads and Victoria Police. Once the Road, Pedestrian and Transport Action Group is underway in 2017 this group will also play a role in identifying and acting upon these risks

o Councils Social Planning team tracks population trends and growth across a number of environmental concerns

o Areas of high risk of crime are tracked via Victoria Police and the Victoria Crime Sta-tistics Agency

Other risk environments are identified on a more ad hoc basis via general networking, consul-tation and engagement activities.

Describe prioritized environments:Cardinia Shire is made up of three distinct Wards each with this own unique set of high risk environmental features:Ranges ward - Comprises the small but well-established ‘hills’ and farming communities of Upper Beaconsfield, Emerald, Cockatoo, Pakenham Upper and Gembrook, as well as the growth corridor communities of Beaconsfield and Officer. This range includes large sections of the Dandenong Ranges and its foothills making the area of high risk to bushfires. It’s hilly and heavily forested geography also makes for some dangerous road and driving conditions.

Central Ward – Encompasses the growth-area township of Pakenham and with almost 16,790 rateable properties is the largest of the three wards in terms of population density but is the smallest in size. The ward forms part of the urban growth corridor, comprising a land area of 2,875 hectares. This ward, while less prone to natural hazards than the other two wards, is seeing a rise in crime and road management issues due to its rapidly expanding population growth and the challenges that come along with this.

Port ward – Physically the largest of the Shire’s wards covering 84,655 hectares but with a smaller population than the Central Ward. The ward encompasses the ‘swamp’ communities of Koo Wee Rup, Lang Lang, Bayles, Catani and Cardinia, plus the ‘railway towns’ of Bunyip, Garfield, Nar Nar Goon and Tynong. This ward is at risk of expansive and fast running grassfires, pockets of bushfire risk and also floods.

Are there specific programs for safe environment in the community:The Municipal Emergency Management Planning Committee (MEMPC) and it’s sub commit-tees operate a number of regular programs to reduce and manage the risk of emergencies within the Shire, these include:

o Community Fire Guard Groups, run in partnership between community and Country Fire Authority

o Fire Inspection Programo Early Fire Safe Program (Cardinia Shire Council, Maternal Child Health Service and the

Country Fire Authority)o Gembrook Emergency and Resilience (GEaR) group


o Ready to Goo Open air burning Policyo Bounce Back community newslettero Cardinia Emergency Planning video serieso Vulnerable Persons Registero Neighbourhood safer places – Place of last resorto Fuel Management Frameworko Fire access trackso Community management risk assessment (Cardinia Shire Council and VIC State Emer-

gency Service)o Residents Information guides and kits

Multiple road safety programs are run throughout the Shire including:o L2P Learner driver safety programso Primary school based road safety programso Roads and Footpaths Resheeting Programo Black spot programso Smart Generation Program

Describe the timetable of the work:All programs described above are currently operating and run on a regular basis driven by either Council or one of the Cardinia Safer Communities partner agency/organisations.


Section 6 Indicator 46.1 Describe the evidence-based strategies/programs that have been implemented for different age- groups and environments.

The implementation of evidence based and best practice strategies and programs within the Cardinia Safer Communities project are considered fundamental as to whether or not the project will succeed over time. Once a community safety concern has been identified, scoping work is undertaken by the action groups who will determine which evidence based strategies could be used to address the issue. At a minimum, promising and innovative strategies, with newly emerging evidence will be considered. Best practice examples from around Australia and Internationally are researched, literature reviews are undertaken and consultations are among the methods used to inform decisions regarding what strategies/programs will be undertaken.

Some examples of the evidence based strategies currently employed to address safety and injury risk within the Shire include:

o Communities that Care: This is an evidence- based prevention initiative that is focused on improving the environments that lead to problem behaviours (such as drug and alcohol abuse and early school leaving). Multiple studies have been published on the effectiveness of the Communities That Care process both in American and Australia

o Age Friendly Cities: This project has been implemented using the World Health Organisations ‘Age Friendly Cities and Communities’ Framework

o Bourke Park and PB Ronald Reserve Projects: Several projects are currently running throughout the Shire which seek to address criminal and antisocial behaviour by implementing evidence-based Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) principles

o Good Sports Program – This program was developed by project partner the Alcohol and Drug Foundation, is grounded in the principles of Primary Prevention and designed as an alcohol management program. The Good Sports Program is well researched and is the first program of its kind to be proven successful in the world. Participation in the program has been shown to greatly reduce the odds of risky drinking in clubs. The Goods Sports Program currently runs in several sporting clubs across the Shire.

6.2 Has any contacts been established with ASCSCs , WHO CCCSP, other scientific institutions, or knowledgeable organizations about the development and/or implementation of evidence-based strategies? Which ones? What has been the extent of their counsel?

Council has been in close contact with the Victorian Safe Community Network and the Pan Pacific Safe Communities Network from the very early stages of project scoping work in 2014. The contacts and the communication streams provided by this Network has offered the Cardinia Safer Communities project information on various evidence-based programs and strategies which have been used to inform project direction and implementation.

When looking to implement new initiatives, project partners look to best practice and evidence based examples from both local and international sources. As an example, in a recent application for a youth crime prevention grant both local experts and the Australian Research Alliance for Children and Youth (ARACY) ‘What works for Kids’ website were consulted. This website provides a search engine of evidence based programs that seek to improve the health and wellbeing of children and youth.


Additionally, some specific programs in which budget and resources have allowed, have es-tablished formal evaluation partnerships with academic and research institutes. The To-gether We Can collective impact family violence project has an established research partner-ship with the University of Melbourne and Tamarack Institute. The Communities That Care project has a formal evaluation partnership with Melbourne based Deakin University. These research partnerships were set up prior to commencement and ensure that an evidence based approach is undertaken.


Section 7 Indicator 57.1 What local data is used to determine the injury prevention strategies?

Results from the following community surveys and consultations, and population and local level data are analysed to inform injury prevention strategies and evaluate project outcomes and implementation level actions.

Safer Communities Community Consultation: This consultation helped to establish the set of baseline data in terms of perceived and actual safety levels for Cardinia Shire across the 6 key action areas. It included consultation with over 640 community members and an analysis of the following internal and external data sources. The safer communities’ consultation process will be undertaken every four years, with the next to conducted in 2019.

Internal Council Data Sources:

2014 Social Health Telephone Survey (Growth Area) and 2016 Social Health Tele-phone Survey (rural and township areas) – These surveys are conducted on bi-annual basis and incudes questions on sense of community, safety concerns, cultural di-versity, access to services, main concerns having negative impact on them personally and captures a good range of demographic data

The Municipal Public Health and Wellbeing Plan consultation – undertaken to determ-ine Councils goals and priorities to enable people living in the municipality to achieve maximum health and wellbeing

2015 Youth Forum Survey – undertaken to determine what is important to Cardinia Shire’s younger population and consider the kinds of services and support young people would like and need

2015 Communities That Care Survey - an on-line questionnaire assessing a wide range of risk and protective factors relevant to Cardinia Shire’s youth. The survey instru-ment measures a broad range of behavioural outcomes and risk and protective factors in four domains: Community, School, Family and Peer/Individual

Age Friendly Cities Survey

External Data Sources:

Victorian Crime Statistics Agency (CSA) – CSA receives raw data from the Victoria Police Law Enforcement Assistance Program (LEAP), checks for data quality issues and applies counting rules to produce the final CSA population datasets

Australian Bureau of Statistics - Australia's official statistical organisation. Provides high quality, objective, and responsive national statistical service

Primary Health Network – provide localised mental health data including local needs assessment and heat mapping

Transport Accident Commission Statistics – Provides Local government area level data on road tolls and hospitalizations

The Alcohol and Drug Foundation national statistics – Alcohol and Drug Foundation data website collates a selection of Australian and international websites and publications, which provide detailed statistics related to alcohol and other drugs

Hospital admissions and emergency department data (Victorian Injury Surveillance Unit)

Victorian Population Health Survey (VPHS)(Dept. of Health) - Collects valuable information about the health and wellbeing of people living in Victoria. The information collected in this survey will be used to improve the targeting, delivery and quality of health services to the community.


VicHealth Indicators Survey - Victorian community wellbeing survey which focuses on the social determinants of health. The survey compliments other Victorian population health surveys such as the Victorian Population Health Survey and when combined, these two data sets enable local government planners to gain a comprehensive picture of health and wellbeing in Victoria

Victorian Health Information Surveillance System – Provides data on selected public health indicators

Department of Education and Early Childhood Development – Provides data on education and development services for child, young people and adults

7.2 Describe how data are presented in order to promote safety and prevent injuries in the community.

Cardinia Shire Council’s Social and Community Planning team are dedicated to undertaking a range of research and policy activities that seek to develop holistic community-focussed strategies to enhance community wellbeing, safety, health and quality of life. This team con-sists of:

1 x Full Time Social and Community Planning Team Leader 1 x Full Time Community Planner 1 x Full Time Healthy Communities Coordinator

The social planning teams role includes tracking statistics and demographic trends, and chan-ging social needs; critically assessing how trends will impact upon Cardinia Shire residents and Council operations; undertaking social research particularly pertaining to land-use plan-ning and strategy development; identifying key infrastructure requirements and service gaps; developing policy and strategy responses to social and community issues; tracking policy trends and developments within other levels of government; and preparing submissions for government enquiries.

Information on key statistics and demographic trends are available to Shire residents through the Cardinia Shire Council website and more in depth data is available to staff via a compre-hensive intranet based statistics website titled ‘Cardi Stats’.

More specifically to the Cardinia Safer Communities project, data is interpreted and reported on as per the Evaluation Plan; and a complementary Communications Plan outlines how this information should be disseminated to the Cardinia Safer Communities Network and the wider public. Key outcomes and demographic trends are reported to the Cardinia Safer Com-munities Strategic Committee and the Senior Leadership Team. The Communications Plan utilises multiple methods in order to achieve maximum efficiency when sharing key messages and data with the wider community. Various communication tools are employed including media releases, quarterly ‘Safer Community’ Electronic Newsletter, Flyer/posters, Connect magazine, social Media - Facebook, twitter and LinkedIn, Cardinia Shire Council Website, gen-eric letter/email, school/community newsletters and CardiNet – a staff intranet.

7.3 Describe how the community documents and uses knowledge about causes of injuries, groups at risk and risky environments. How does the community document progress over time?

The Cardinia Safer Communities action groups prepare annual action plans which are reported to the Cardinia Safer Communities Strategic Committee. The Chair of each individual action group then provides a quarterly progress update to the Strategic Committee. Responsibility then sits with the Strategic Committee to monitor that the action planning and


work of each action group is aligned with the Cardinia Safer Communities Strategy’s overarching vision and objectives.

At the same time, the Safer Communities Evaluation Plan and a complementary Communications Plan outline how progress is to be documented over time. While a number of methods are employed in order to achieve this, the ‘Safer Communities Consultation Report’ is the key tracking report which documents data and progress over time about the causes of injuries, at risk population groups and risky environments in the Shire. The original report established the baseline data for the project in terms of both perceived and actual safety levels and defined the 6 key action areas for work. It included consultation with over 640 community members and an analysis of multiple internal and external data sources. The safer communities’ consultation and data analysis process will be undertaken every four years, with the next to run in 2019.

Data on progress is also collected at the initiative level. Individual initiatives running as part of the Action Group’s work are evaluated to determine their outcomes and successes. Data collection at the initiative level relies heavily on individuals who are part of the Cardinia Safer Communities project to design and conduct evaluation and report results back to the group and then the Strategic Committee via their groups Chair. This data is then used for continu-ous improvement purposes and to inform the continued action planning of the group.


Section 8 Indicator 68.1 How does your community analyze results from the injury data to track trends and results from the programs? What is working well and has given you good results. What are the plans to continue? What needs to be changed?

Prior to commencing any work on the Cardinia Safer Communities Project, Council established a set of baseline data which would dictate the areas of focus for the project and provide comparison data which could be analysed over time to track trends and results. The 2015 ‘Safer Communities Consultation Report’ (discussed in more detail in previous sections) provided this data and the plan is for the same consultation and data analysis process to be undertaken every four years, with the next to run in 2019. The baseline data has been analysed in great depths by the action groups; who used this data to inform discussions and determine their action plans. The 2019 data will be reported directly to the Safer Communities Strategic Committee who will determine the appropriateness of the approaches which the project has been undertaking and if any changes need to be made to the projects priority areas.

In the interim the Council’s Social and Community Planning team (discussed in more detail in section 5.2) are continually undertaking a range of research activities designed to track trends in the health and safety of Cardinia Shire’s residents over time. This research is communicated with the Safer Communities Team via internal meetings and the Cardi Stats website. Responsibility then sits with the Safer Communities team to report relevant trends to the Cardinia Safer Communities Strategic Committee and the Action Groups as appropriate. It is up to these groups to then determine what the most appropriate course of action is. This may be a change to intervention level focus or as simple as communicating the trend to wider network and community via one of the methods outlined in the Communications Plan.

Intervention level evaluation is currently going on across the priority areas in which work has commenced. Outcomes and results of these evaluations are discussed in Action Group meetings to establish whether or not the intervention was a success and if any modifications should be made if it is to continue. In addition results are reported to the Strategic Committee via Action Group representation in the quarterly committee meetings and via annual reports.

8.2 Describe how the results from the program evaluations are used

Results determined via program evaluation are used for multiple purposes:

Communication/Dissemination – Outcomes and results are shared to inform the wider Cardinia Safer Communities network and the community as a whole about what is being achieved by the project. This helps to build support for continued action, keeps people up to date about what is going on and helps to generate interest in the project as a whole

Advocacy – Outcomes and results are used to inform advocacy directions for the project. The Cardinia Safer Communities Strategic Committee consists of high level representation from key organisation that are well placed to advocate for increased resources, services and funding to be made available where needed across our six action areas. As the action based groups identify gaps and needs in their work, this provides an opportunity to advocate for the required resources to be made available. Results obtained from the Safer Communities Consultations also help to inform advocacy directions for not only the Strategic Committee but Council and other project partners as relevant. Additionally positive program results provide a strong


platform for advocacy for continued funding to be made available in instances where a program’s continuation is dependent on the further allocation of funds or resources etc.

Continuous improvement – The outcomes and results achieved through different projects, allow us to adapt and continue to improve on their delivery over time. Results which indicate a negative or only very minor change flag a need to establish why the program was unsuccessful and change it in order to improve it. Successful outcomes allow an opportunity to track what the successful elements were and build upon these to further improve them or duplicate the successful elements for similar programs as appropriate

Strategic Planning – Program evaluations and their results are used to inform Council’s strategic planning; this includes all community planning and municipal health and wellbeing planning. Other project partners are encouraged to use the available data to do the same

8.3 Describe the changes in pattern of injuries, attitudes, behavior and knowledge of the risks for injuries as a result of the programs.

While the official Cardinia Safer Communities Project is still in its early stages and compre-hensive evaluation data is not yet available; we are already seeing the formation of strong, collaborative partnerships across the organisations, agencies and community groups who have a role to play in creating a safer community across the municipality. This is evident in the commitment of the newly formed action groups and the participation in the networking opportunities that have been provided over the past 12 or so months.

Some Council led projects which fall under the Safer Communities umbrella which have been running for longer periods of time have achieved some strong results:

A 2014 Bourke Park CPTED project incorporating urban design and landscape improvements resulted in:

o People reported more positive feeling towards the part post works , 30% pre works compared with 57% post works

o A 36% decrease in calls for assistance in the Park from 8 months pre works to 8 months post

That Communities That Care Project has seen a number of new partnerships formed and existing partnerships strengthened through the Communities That Care process with formal evaluation results to be available in the second half of 2017

A 2015 Graffiti Education Program delivered in schools throughout the Shire and reached 988 students, found that:

o 99% of primary and 98% of secondary students believed they had a better understanding of the differences between graffiti and street art following the presentation

o Following the presentation 99% of primary and 98% secondary students agreed that doing graffiti is a crime

o A number of students both primary (16% or 11 students) and secondary (8% or 73 students) indicated that they have considered doing graffiti but that following the presentation both primary students (97%) and secondary students (95%) indicated that they now think graffiti is not cool

Road Safety:o L2P Program – Over the 2015/2016 activity period the L2P program provided

learner driver mentoring services to 101 new drivers, with a combined total of 989 hours of supervised driving between them and a 100% success rate in achieving their probationary licence

o The Streets Ahead Program has seen an increase in the number of children


wearing their helmets when riding to and from school. Students who participated in the program reported feeling safer travelling to and from school and report a greater knowledge of road safety rules and principles

o Stop and Drop Zones – There are now 15 Stop & Drop Zones across the Shire which are audited for safety and parents and their children are encouraged to use to active travel to and from school

Together We Can – Formal evaluation of this project is being undertaken currently but an already strong project reach is a good indication as to the success of the initiative so far and the impact it may be having. Over 260 people have signed the Together We Can pledge, 145 have joined the Facebook group, 2118 have attended Together We Can aligned events and 51 media articles haven been published under the Together We Can banner in the local news

Be Ur Self - Social support program for young people who identify as gay, bi-sexual, lesbian, transgender or intersex and their allies/friends. The program has run since 2013 and has achieved positive outcomes including:

o Building young people’s confidence and self esteemo Increasing young people’s awareness of what local services and support

networks are available to themo Increasing young people’s ability to realise their potentialo Increasing young people’s safety


Section 9 Indicator 79.1 Describe how the community has joined in and collaborates in national and international safe community networks.

Cardinia Shire Council has been an active member of the Victorian Safe Community Network (VSCN) since Mid-2016. Key members of Council’s Safer Communities team receive all communications from VSCN and have actively contributed content for inclusion in these communications on the work being undertaken through the Cardinia Safer Communities Project. Additionally, Cardinia Shire Council currently sits on the Victorian Safe Communities Network Executive Committee.

9.2 Will the designation ceremony coincide with any international conference, seminar or other forms of international or national exchange?

The Cardinia Safer Communities designation ceremony will coincide with Community Safety Month 2017. This event will bring together the Safer Communities Network, relevant Local and State Government departments and local organisations to hear from keynote speakers and will enable the promotion of local community safety efforts.

9.3 Which already designated Safe Communities will be invited for the designation ceremony?

All of the International Safe Communities from Victoria will be sent formal invitations to at-tend the designation ceremony. These include Hume City Council, Latrobe City Council and Melbourne City Council.

9.4 Which international conferences and national Safe Community conferences has the municipality participated in?

Cardinia Shire Council attended and presented at the Safety 2016 World Conference in Finland. David Lane, Safe and Inclusive Communities Team Leader, presented a poster titled ‘Collecting perceptions: reaching the hard to reach.’ The poster presentation looked at the difficulties involved in gathering genuinely representative safety data across the whole of a community. It discussed the methods employed by Council to reach the hard to reach groups across the Shire in the lead up to applying for designation as an International Safe Community.

Cardinia Shire Council was recognised in the prestigious International Safety Media Awards at the 2016 World Safety Conference in Finland as the Bronze Award winners for Media Campaigns. Our innovative Planning for Emergencies video series was recognized for “excellence in safety and injury prevention messages”. The six-part series of two-minute videos, which was endorsed by the Emergency Management Commissioner for Victoria, was filmed at various locations across Cardinia Shire and featured local actors and community volunteers. The videos provide vital information to assist the community to prepare and respond to emergency events, including simple tips on preparing emergency plans and how to support the most vulnerable in our community.

Cardinia Shire Council featured in a number of awards presented at the 2016 Victorian Fire Awareness Awards, with the Ready2Go program winning the Access and Inclusion Award. Ready2Go is a heat health and bushfire program which matches volunteers with local vulnerable residents who check in with them on days of extreme heat, and assist with relocation on days of extreme bushfire danger. The Ready2Go program is a community led initiative which is supported by the Emergency Management Team at


Council. Council was also a finalist in the Community-Led Preparedness Award for the ‘Preparing for Emergencies’ video series discussed above.

9.5 In which Regional Network for Safe Communities is the community a member or planning to seek membership? (Asian, European, Pan-Pacific, African or Latin-American Regional Network)

Pan-Pacific

WHO links to evidence- based interventions (See 6.2):

Violence prevention: http://www.who.int/violence_injury_prevention/violence/4th_milestones_meeting/publications/en/index.html

Child injury prevention:http://whqlibdoc.who.int/publications/2008/9789241563574_eng.pdf

Road traffic injury prevention:http://www.who.int/violence_injury_prevention/publications/road_traffic/world_report/en/index.htmlhttp://www.who.int/roadsafety/projects/manuals/seatbelt/en/index.htmlhttp://www.who.int/roadsafety/projects/manuals/helmet_manual/en/index.htmlhttp://www.who.int/roadsafety/projects/manuals/alcohol/en/index.htmlhttp://www.who.int/roadsafety/projects/manuals/speed_manual/en/index.html


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