Opportunities for Carlton
OPPORTUNITIES FOR CARLTON PROJECT
COMMENTS ON EXTERNAL EVALUATION REPORT
The project continues at the forefront of place-based strategy showcasing the benefits of co-ordinated investment, whole of government thinking and community inspired action.
Steering collaborative action involving the Carlton community, four government
departments, the City of Melbourne, NFPS, academic institutions and other key
stakeholders has been an extraordinary achievement given that whole of community,
whole of government approaches are still evolving in Australia.
Notable in this report are the different measures which show concrete evidence of
outcomes, but also capture the experience and feelings of those involved about their
involvement. On the one hand OFC has have enabled over 70 new initiatives, 6,000
hours of volunteers time, $370,000 of in kind support, over $165,000 in grants and $1.1 in government funding. And there is new and upgraded physical assets across Carlton such as the Kathleen Syme Library and Community Centre, Carlton Baths, Carlton public housing redevelopment, to name a few.
But the less tangible aspects documented here are to me, the more extraordinary
achievement. A new-found sense of social inclusion, connection and pathways to learning and employment have grown from within a community identified as experiencing entrenched disadvantage. These are recognised as key drivers of place-based, community-led solutions that will achieve collective impact, local resilience and shared futures. And our linking of social and environmental sustainability leaves a stronger, more motivated community equipped to deliver an essential ingredient: local know-how
Sustainability, transparency and local governance will be priorities as the project wraps up in June, and transitions to an ongoing way of working. But the project also provides a legacy that showcases how to deliver innovation, investment partnerships and local decision-making for the benefit of the wider community and we hope our findings will be shared elsewhere.
Finally I would like to express deep appreciation for our key supporters and funders, the City of Melbourne and the Victorian State Government, and those at the Inter- Government group for their enduring commitment to collaboration.
The Carlton Local Agency Networks have nurtured and inspired the Carlton community for the longest time, assisting over 250 community participants in this project, (and indeed more), who are at the heart of what has been achieved.
Melanie Raymond
Chair - Opportunities for Carlton