A City for Everyone: Inclusive Brisbane Plan 2019-2029 - Draft plan consultation
Key points
- Community consultation period: 8 November 2018 to 15 February 2019.
- Seven formats of the draft plan online, in print (braille, written English, large print), audio and Auslan.
- A summary plan was available in Traditional and Simplified Chinese, Arabic, Korean, Vietnamese and English.
- 60+ public engagement events (including pop-up events in local parks, libraries and community spaces).
- 1200+ responses received.
Residents of diverse age, cultural background, ability, gender, sexual orientation, various socio-economic backgrounds and those with different levels of wellbeing all provided feedback on the plan.
Summary of public feedback that has informed actions
Widen the scope of those included in the plan
Residents asked Council to broaden the plan’s scope to ensure that services and programs were inclusive of everyone and not limited to specific groups. While the draft plan focused on people with physical disabilities, older residents and people from diverse cultural backgrounds, this plan’s strategies and actions have been broadened to cater for everyone. This includes Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders, people of diverse genders and sexual orientation, young people, people with intellectual impairments and those experiencing mental illness, dementia and other conditions.
Involve people in the design stage of projects
Public feedback suggested that while this plan should be inclusive of everyone, people’s individual needs should be considered once Council starts to implement the plan. Residents asked to be involved in the design stage of projects that directly impact them.
In response, Council has committed to facilitating a reference group including people with lived experience, to co-design future project requirements that meet their needs.
Partner with community
The community also identified that Council can play a key role in facilitating the connection between residents with lived experience, the private sector, community organisations and local government to improve activities and spaces. In response, a number of actions suggest how partnerships will deliver more inclusive festivals, activities and facilities.
Continue with the fundamentals
Members of the public noted that while inclusion is improving across the city, Council should continue to improve accessibility across all services and programs, highlighting that small steps can make a big difference.
Residents shared their personal stories to demonstrate the importance of accessibility in ensuring they can attend community events, access employment and use public transport. These fundamentals are an ongoing focus of this plan.
Champion inclusion
Community members asked Council to champion Brisbane as an inclusive city. Council has taken residents’ advice and committed to actions that offer training for businesses and lead campaigns that highlight the importance of social inclusion.
Alignment with other Council plans
Some feedback aligned with other Council community engagement projects, including Brisbane’s Future Blueprint, where people saidthey wanted more markets in the suburbs. As part of community engagement for the Transport Planfor Brisbane, community feedback focused onimproved footpaths and on-bus navigation.
Council incorporated additional feedback into the scoping of other plans that were in development at the time, including those aimed at improving employment outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders and those aimed at encouraging more housing choices for all residents.
Immediate actions
Residents over 60 years of age told Council that the cost of public transport was having an impact on their participation in social and recreational activities that could improve their wellbeing.
On 1 October 2019, Council introduced free off-peak travel for senior go card users on Council buses, CityCats and ferries from 8.30am-3.30pm and 7pm-6am weekdays, and on buses all weekend.
People of all backgrounds requested more be done to improve housing accessibility, so that more people can remain in their homes when their mobility needs change. In 2019, Council introduced universal housing incentives for some new properties built to Livable Housing Australia standards, thereby encouraging more accessible housing in Brisbane.
Ongoing actions
In addition to the new actions presented in this plan, existing actions that will continue are also listed throughout this plan.
Implementing, monitoring and evaluating the plan
This plan is guided by five pillars: travel, work, live, enjoy and connect. Each pillar features actions that Council will deliver between 2019 and 2029. Some actions are written in a way that enables additional deliverables to be developed over time, to ensure the actions meet changing community needs and opportunities.
Council will monitor implementation through both internal and external governance mechanisms (including the Inclusive Brisbane Board), and report progress in Council’s Annual Report.
Council will track the delivery and impact of the plan’s actions through an ongoing evaluation process and community consultation, and while doing so, will assess further opportunities for actions that can be delivered as part of each pillar.