The Local Government Act (2020) is a law that tells all Victorian Councils that they must go through aprocess called deliberative community engagement to inform their Community Vision, Council Plan, Financial Plan and Asset Plan. These plans are important documents that guides Council’s decision-making over the next four years.

The Community Vision, which you will be asked to refresh as part of this panel, is a statement that outlines the community’s values, goals, and aspirations for the future. Councils need to run a deliberative community engagement to create or review this vision.

Merri-bek Council defines deliberative engagement as giving the community enough time and information to think carefully, explore options, and be part of the decision-making process.

Bringing local people together to form a community panel is a common way to do this engagement. All levels of government often use it for their projects.

The panel’s ideas or recommendations add to expert and technical information. Together, this knowledge helps governments to make decisions.

It is a similar idea to the use of juries in a legal court. Studies show that the public trusts the decisions made by randomly selected people. These people have access to all the evidence and time to debate their opinions.

Community Panel’s are brought together for different reasons. Often, they are asked to solve a problem or provide recommendations to help make decisions. To help a Community Panel focus on a shared goal, they are given a ‘remit’. This ‘remit’ sets the task for the panel and what Council would like as the outcome.

For your community panel the task is:

To engage with other members of the Merri-bek Community Panel to understand community values and aspirations, refresh the Community Vision, and establish clear priorities to guide Council's actions over the next four years.

This means you will work together with other Community Panel members to:

• Understand what’s important to the Merri-bek community both now and in the future.
• Develop a Community Vision statement that describes the future you want to see in 10 years' time.
• Identify Community Priorities that Council should focus on for the next 4 years to achieve the Community Vision.

• You are very lucky to be a part of a process that will include two community panels, a Youth Panel and a Community Panel.
• The Youth Panel will run at the same time as the Community Panel and will be made up on 24 young people aged between 12 and 16 years old.
• The Community Panel will be made up of people 17 years and older.
• Each panel will have times when they work separately and other times when they will come together to share ideas, consider different views or options, ask questions and vote on decisions.

• During the sessions you will have discussions with people of different ages, genders and backgrounds who live or work in Merri-bek.
• This diversity will help you make the best recommendations for all of the Merri-bek community.
• You may meet people with similar views and others who have different views. This is important for the group discussions to capture the mix of perspectives and experiences.
• We expect everyone to behave respectfully with each other even though they might have different ideas, beliefs or opinions.

• You do not need to bring anything with you. We will provide you with the information and materials you need at each session.
• Meals and refreshments will be provided at all sessions. Your dietary needs will be catered for. If you have not yet shared your dietary requirements, please send them to Nivek Thompson (nivek@deliberatelyengaging.com.au) as soon as possible.
• If you require medications, please bring these with you.

• The sessions will be photographed and filmed.
• The reason we photograph and film the sessions is to create summaries to share with the broader community. Not everyone who wanted to be in the Community Panel was able to be, so it is important to share the journey with everyone that’s interested.
• If you do not wish to have your image captured, you will be given the opportunity to say so when you arrive.

• Independent facilitators from Capire Consulting Group will support the Community Panel. Capire’s role is to facilitate the Community Panel and help you to work together to prepare your recommendations. They will make sure each Community Panel member has equal opportunity to participate and your feedback is captured. If you feel concerned about behaviour on the day, or you feel that you are not being included or listened to, please talk to your Capire facilitator.
• Council staff will also be present to share information and answer questions.
• Councillors may attend the sessions to observe only. They will attend the final presentation of your recommendations to Council.

• The Panel process is exciting and challenging and brings together different ideas and viewpoints.
• We will use multiple tools to collect your input during the sessions. We will use a mix of whole-group, small-group, paired and individual activities.
• Sometimes, the discussion may seem scattered or frustrating, and reaching an agreement can be challenging. This is part of the collaborative nature of a community panel.
• Group work can be inspiring, with many ideas exchanged, but it can also be frustrating when discussions stray or lack focus. Experiencing a range of emotions is normal during collaborative efforts.
• Deliberative engagement is an immersive process that provides participants with time and access to information to consider, weigh up, and formulate recommendations.

It is important that Panel members are available and committed to attending all three sessions, but we understand life events happen. If you are unable to attend a session, please contact:

Nivek Thompson, Deliberatively Engaging, on 0412 544 672 or nivek@deliberatelyengaging.com.au.

During the sessions, we ask that you:

• Arrive on time and stay till the end.
• Pay attention to information and learn abot the community vision, community priorities, concerns and key council documents and strategic plans.
• Treat all other panel members, council staff and facilitators, respectfully and courteously.
• Participate constructively in all discussions and allow others to express their views.
• Think about the views of the broader community, rather than your personal views.

Starting on time

Please, arrive 10 minutes early to sign in, enjoy some food, and meet other participants.

We will start each session on time.

Compensation

To thank you for your time and effort, you will receive a total of up to $300 payment. You will receive a digital voucher valued at $100 after each attended session.

If you have any questions about the compensation, please email Anna Romanova at aromanova@merri-bek.vic.gov.au.

Council staff will attend each session to share information and answer any questions.

They won't influence the result of the Panel’s work.

Capire has been hired by Merri-bek Council to facilitate the Community Panel process. Capire will be present at all sessions and support the Community Panel to have productive and respectful conversations, and complete the task that Council has set them.

Capire has been engaged by Council as experts in deliberative engagement and facilitation. Capire will be present at all sessions to facilitate constructive, productive and respectful discussion.

Capire has partnered with Nivek from Deliberatively Engaging to manage the recruitment and selection of the Community Panel’s to make sure that it was done independently and with no bias. You will have already spoken with Nivek on the phone and she will still be your best contact for information or questions about:

Her contact details are:

Key contact: Nivek Thompson

Phone: 0412 544 672

Email: nivek@deliberatelyengaging.com.au

If you have a question specifically about Council’s work, programs or services, please contact Anna Romanova, Community Engagement Partner

Key Contact: Anna Romanova

Phone: 0424653320

Email: aromanova@merri-bek.vic.gov.au