The final report of the Victorian Community Indicators Project (VCIP) August 2006

The VCIP Final Report entitled Measuring Wellbeing, Engaging Communities was launched on 23 August 2006 by Dr Rob Moodie, Executive Officer of VicHealth, Professor John Wiseman, Director of the McCaughey Centre: VicHealth Centre for the Promotion of Mental Health and Community Wellbeing and Vince Lazarro, ABS Regional Director.  The report provides a comprehensive background to the development of a Community Indicators Victoria Framework, the design and process that was implemented through the VCIP project, a detailed summary of the outcomes of consultations that were held throughout Victoria, details of the community indicators framework that has been agreed upon by all of the Project stakeholders and a description of the next steps that are currently being implemented as an outcome of the VCIP.

It is hoped that the report will be used as a resource for local government and community planners and policy makers as well as to promote understanding of how the framework can usefully support future community planning.

At the same time, it was stressed that the report, rather than signalling the end of the work on community indicators, actually marks the real beginning of implementing a sustainable system of indicator measurement for Victorian Local Government Planning. This work will be undertaken by the newly established Community Indicators Victoria that will operate within the McCaughey Centre: VicHealth Centre for the Promotion of Mental Health and Community Wellbeing.

A major role of the launch was also to thank the many people who have been involved in the success of the VCIP. The VCIP has been a highly collaborative undertaking and many people have contributed time, ideas, comments and expertise to the development of an initial framework of local community wellbeing indicators for Victoria.

One of the key challenges for the project has been to strike the right balance between bottom-up and top-down approaches to the identification of indicators, with the key driver being the aim of strengthening local government planning and local democracy. The participation of so many people has been vital to the success of the project.