Stanley Community Resilience Plan

Engagement for the community resilience planning project for Stanley has now closed. The draft plan will be available to review on the website during the month of August 2024 for final contributions.

Thank you to everyone who has been involved so far - your thoughts and ideas were crucial in shaping this important process.

We had a high level of engagement from the Stanley community, with people contributing online here, attending the Resilience Conversation sessions with Paul Ryan from the Australian Resilience Centre in October 2023, coming along to the pop-up sessions, and an amazing turnout at the Stanley Community Celebration on Sunday 14 April. 61 people cast their votes on the draft actions at the celebration which told us where the strongest levels of community support are. The action plan is organised into the three strategic themes as identified by the community:

1. SUSTAINABLE GROWTH AND GOOD PLANNING

• Residents want to preserve the rural character of Stanley.
• They want economic growth in the town centre that enables a variety of commercial, business and community activities to take place.
• Planning for improved pedestrian and cycle paths is a high priority.

2. INVESTMENT IN COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS AND ASSETS

• Invest in the existing community spaces to ensure they are fit for future purpose.
• Stanley is a connected community who are seeking more opportunities and spaces to connect, and to support the more vulnerable residents.
• Stanley’s natural resources need to be preserved, protected, and promoted.

3. INNOVATION AND COLLABORATION ON CLIMATE ACTION AND RESILIENCE

• The community want to be better informed and prepared for a changing climate and more extreme weather events, as well as bushfire.
• The community are knowledgeable and have the skills to establish energy resilience in Stanley, however they need support to make it happen.
• Managing risks requires collaboration and for everyone to do their part.

The actions aim to proactively address current and future challenges in Stanley. Many of these actions can be initiated immediately at the community level, while others will require collaborations between Council, community and relevant services, agencies, and businesses. Many projects will require additional funding streams to be sourced.

You can read the full and summary draft plans, along with the draft actions, here.

You can read the Community Resilience Discussions Report - December 2023 here.

Background

At Council’s April 2023 meeting, a proposal was supported to undertake small township community planning in Barnawartha and Stanley.

This work is funded through Emergency Recovery Victoria with a focus on emergency preparedness and community resilience in these locations.

The purpose of this Community Plan is to provide a framework for achievable and place-based action that will enable Stanley to meet the needs of the existing and future community.

It provides a roadmap for what needs to be preserved, protected, and improved to retain the unique rural, historic, agricultural, and natural environments that defines Stanley. This plan has been developed entirely through consultation with those who live and work in Stanley and it builds on previous community and Council planning processes.

This Community Plan provides a well-coordinated approach to make the village even better and address the changes driven by and for the community. This plan tackles the core challenges that Stanley may face in the future by being proactive and suggesting ways to leverage the village’s unique strengths.

Project Promotion

The following methods were used to communicate to Stanley residents about the plan, the process, and ways to get involved:

• Engaged Indigo Website
• The Your Indigo Newsletter
• The Nine Mile News
• Stanley Community Email
• Stanley Community Facebook Page
• Council Facebook Page
• Posters on notice boards, local businesses, and Post Office
• Letterbox Drop

Project Stages

• August 2023 - Internal and External Stakeholder review - meeting with clubs, individuals and relevant Council officers for direct input
• September 2023 - Engaged Indigo site launched for online feedback
• October 2023 - Resilience Conversations sessions with Paul Ryan
• December 2023 - Report from the Resilience Conversations is published on the website
• February 2024 - Pop-up sessions
• April 2024 - Stanley Community Celebration
• May 2024 - Draft report is submitted to Council for review
• August 2024 - Draft plan is put on public exhibition for a final round of feedback
• September 2024 - Final plan is presented to Council for adoption

What's Next?

The plan belongs to the community. They have identified actions which will preserve what they love about Stanley and in what ways they want to see growth and change. Some of these are easily achieved at a community or individual level, without the need for Council involvement or additional funding. Others are more complex and will require collaboration between community and Council, and sometimes businesses or other key stakeholders. Many actions will require external funding sources to make them a reality.

The Community Plan will be embedded into the Council Plan with reportable actions. Progress towards the achievement of the Community Plan priorities will be tracked, monitored, and evaluated for success measures.

It's important to remember that while the plan will be ready in 2024, many of the actions may be subject to grant or other funding conditions. There may also be significant disruptors that we can't yet foresee that could change the plan.