Community & Local Indicators

1. Community & Local Indicators Geoffrey Woolcock NatStats08 Melbourne Thursday, November 20, 2008

2. Community Indicators – Key Questions - How can community indicators link to global initiatives? - How local should local indicators be? - What are the links between headline or outcome indicators and detailed data need to develop policy responses? - Is standardisation a necessary objective? - How might we get long term commitment from key partners - what is the long term value proposition?

3. Measuring Social Progress: Policy Context • National debates dominated by economic and some human capital indicators • Limited national agreement on national measures of social wellbeing • Endless debates about social capital not resonating with public policy makers • Evidence (political/policy/research) that the ideas matter and the determinants of wellbeing and prosperity are interdependent • Importance of communities, climate change

4. Other Relevant Examples in Australia • Australian Unity Wellbeing Index • Social Inclusion measures • Onyx & Bullen Social Capital Scores • Community Capacity Building Indices • Healthy Communities, Healthy Cities • Child Friendly Communities/Cities • WACOSS Social Sustainability Indices • Indices of Social Disadvantage (SEIFA, Vinson)

5. Community Indicators Queensland (CIQ) Stakeholder Analysis: Goals • Gain an understanding of the value of the various Community Wellbeing Indicators toeach agency,and those that are important to present on the CIQ website • Gain an understanding of the challenges identified as being associated with providing data to the CIQ website • To ascertain how agencies envisage CIQ best working

6. Community Indicators Queensland (CIQ) Partners Following a program of briefing sessions and round table meetings, stakeholders actively involved in, development are: • Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) • Office of Economic and Statistical Research (OESR), Queensland Treasury • Queensland Health • Environmental Protection Agency • Department of Communities (including OATSIP) • Arts Queensland • Department of Premier and Cabinet • Local Government Association Queensland & a number of individual Councils from across the state • Queensland Council of Social Services • EIDOS • IBM Ltd

7. Community Indicators Queensland (CIQ) Progress • In 2008, partly supported by internal grant funding, IBM conducted a business and technical analysis and its report details the primary data sources that would populate the CIQ and the technical connections that would facilitate development • A formal Steering Committee, chaired by Professor Ross Homel, and Indicators Working group, chaired by A/Prof Geoff Woolcock, have been established to progress phased development of this statewide initiative, including securing financial sustainability. • For Phase 1, a submission to the Queensland Smart Futures scheme will be made in 2009.

8. Utility of Social Capital Hence, a clear distinction between participation levels, social capital and community functioning. Getting people participating in a wide range of community activities can lay the foundations for the emergence of SC where SC is identified as social linkages that are functional for getting things done in the community, problems addressed and needs met.

9. Who was surveyed?

10. Local Govt & Social Capital Action Research Project (LGSCARP) 2002-2004 LGSCARP objectives 1. Identification and documentation of the role, and potential role, of Queensland Local Governments in building communities and building social capital; 2. Provide clear policy direction for Queensland Local Governments to take up or continue undertaking the work of building social capital; and 3. Through undertaking tasks above, continuing to strategically inform Queensland Local Government Corporate Planning Processes.

11. SIP Goodna Doing What We Know We Should: Reflections on the Goodna Service Integration Project (SIP) 2000-2003

12. THE GOODNA SERVICE INTEGRATION PROJECT (SIP) – TOOLS RELATIONSHIP BUILDING LEARNING By & Between: ·Community Leaders & Members ·Elected Representatives ·Frontline Staff ·Senior Govt. Representatives ·Other Similar Projects By: ·Community leaders & members ·Regional & Area Managers (& equivalent) from 3 tiers of Govt. ·Frontline staff from Govt. & Non-Govt. Agencies Respect, trust & co-operation through renewable relationships & social structures Via: ·Forums ·Targeted Workshops ·Shared Projects ·Goodna Office Via: ·Graduate Certificate in Social Science (Interprofessional Leadership) UQI ·Action research projects eg. School pool & Peace Builder expansion VISION Working better together for sustainable community well-being in Goodna That: ·Engages & involves ·Harnesses & optimises energy, goodwill & investment ·Maximises flexibility & responsiveness ·Supports service ·integration That: ·Builds capacity ·Maximises innovation ·Builds on best practice Encourages stakeholder participation in identifying & monitoring indicators of community well-being Learning supports measurement, modelling & scenario testing that informs learning MEASUREMENT & MODELLING By: ·SIP team ·Queensland Treasury ·Goodna stakeholders Via: ·Measurement of baselines ·Negotiation of indicators ·Data collection ·Place modelling ·Causality modelling ·Management for outcomes modelling ·Action research ·External evaluation That: ·Understands the present ·Enhances prevention through intervention ·Measures outcomes ·Drives collaboration ·Predicts future outcomes Sustainable community well-being = balance of social, economic & environmental aspects of life DIAGRAM 4

13. Doing What We Know We Should: Reflections on the Goodna Service Integration Project (SIP) 2000-2003 Communities for Children NGO Forum, Adelaide, March 1, 2006 Dr Geoffrey Woolcock, The University of Queensland

14. John Stuart Mill (1850s) "Those only are happy who have their minds fixed on some object other than their own happiness.“ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/happiness_formula/4809828.stm