With local government often accused of only listening to the loudest voices, Yarra City Council has adopted a new Community Engagement Policy designed to bring more people into the conversation. This includes those usually not heard in the process, such as people with disability, renters, culturally diverse residents, and children and young people.
The policy, endorsed at the April council meeting, replaces a framework first adopted in 2020 and reflects the most extensive rethink of how council engages with its community in more than a decade.
Yarra City Council Mayor, Stephen Jolly said the heart of the new policy was a recognition that participation has not been evenly distributed, and that without deliberate action, some of Yarra's most affected residents remain unheard.
"Our democracy is stronger when people engage in the process," he said. "But it only does so when the people most impacted are able to participate in a meaningful way."
Not just an aggregate
A central feature of the new policy that sets out clear standards for how officers involve the community is the introduction of the Engagement Matrix for Council activities. It also strengthens reporting requirements, introducing segmented data analysis to show who has participated, who has not, and how different cohorts view proposals. Councillors will receive more nuanced and detailed summaries of feedback, rather than aggregate numbers that can obscure minority or marginalised perspectives.
Importantly, the reforms formalise a commitment to report back not only to councillors, but also to the community itself, closing a loop residents say has too often been left open.
Engagement that changed the engagement policy
The changes were shaped by a four‑week public consultation held between mid‑November and mid‑December 2025. Drawing 225 participants, the process was heavily weighted towards face‑to‑face engagement. Eight out of every ten participants took part through targeted or in‑person sessions rather than online.
Feedback was gathered through surveys, paper responses, nine stakeholder workshops, direct email submissions and even child‑friendly activities such as drawings and dotmocracy exercises.
The demographic results starkly illustrated who was often missing from traditional engagement. Nearly half of participants were renters. Forty‑four per cent spoke a language other than English at home. More than one in five identified as living with a disability.
Four cohorts, four years
Perhaps the most significant shift is the policy's commitment to prioritise one under‑represented group each year of its four‑year life, with tailored strategies developed annually.
The first year will focus on people with disability, followed by renters, culturally and linguistically diverse residents, and finally children and young people. Rather than locking in fixed methods, the council will trial new approaches and adapt based on what works.
Advocates welcomed the staged approach, saying it acknowledged that meaningful engagement requires time, trust and experimentation, not one‑off gestures.
A tool, not a tick
Councillors emphasised that adopting the policy was only the first step. Much of its success will hinge on implementation. Particularly the promised engagement toolkit intended to guide officers on accessibility, translation, in‑person outreach and evaluation.
The policy demonstrates an organisation that understands the true purpose of community engagement – not as a box to tick, but as infrastructure for decision making.
