Council adopts Future Ready Frankston Advocacy Priorities

Published on 09 July 2021

Frankston City Council is strengthening its commitment to advocacy and achieving the best outcomes for residents, workers, students and visitors with the recent adoption of the Future Ready Frankston advocacy priorities.

Councillors voted unanimously at their 28 June Council Meeting to adopt the advocacy priorities following extensive community consultation.

Mayor Kris Bolam said Council is launching a range of exciting and innovative initiatives as part of the Future Ready Frankston advocacy campaign, adding: “Council made a strong commitment to actively engage and listen to the needs and desires of the Frankston City community in the development of our advocacy priorities, and that’s exactly what we did.”

“As a result, we have a range of priority projects that directly reflect what our community has asked for, including a redevelopment of the Frankston Basketball Stadium catering for future growth in basketball and gymnastics, revitalising Frankston City’s precincts and advancing our recycled water capacity, among many others,” the Mayor said.

Mayor Bolam said Council consulted the community in various forms from November 2020 as part of the Community Vision 2040 and Council Plan and again throughout January with a Communications and Advocacy survey to identify a range of priority initiatives.

Following the development of 19 draft advocacy priorities based on this initial feedback, further consultation occurred throughout April and May this year to determine community satisfaction with the draft priorities.

Council received 214 responses, with Council’s 2021 - 2025 Future Ready Frankston Advocacy Campaign formally adopted, focusing on the following strategic themes:

Investing in our prosperity: Facilitating new and improved job, education, tourism and recreational opportunities connected by diverse travel options.

Enhancing our environment and liveability: Delivering a range of policies, strategies and works to preserve and enhance our natural environment.

Strengthening our community: Collaborating with government, clients and key stakeholders to deliver improved social inclusion, health, wellbeing and resilience of our community.

Council’s Coordinator Advocacy and Strategic Partnerships, Kristen Thomson, said

Council will receive a further report at the September 2021 Council Meeting identifying five key flagship advocacy priorities requiring a dedicated advocacy campaign for the upcoming federal and state elections.

Ms Thomson said: “Council-led advocacy to State and Federal Governments and other stakeholders is vital for securing essential funding towards local projects and influencing decision-making to drive change on behalf of the Frankston City community.

“By focusing on three strategic themes with overarching initiatives within each theme, we’re able to be flexible in our approach to identifying and shifting initiatives requiring advocacy based on the immediate community needs, desires and political environment,” Ms Thomson said.

Director Business Innovation and Culture, Shweta Babbar, said Council will lead and collaborate with community and key stakeholders to secure positive outcomes.

“Success in achieving advocacy outcomes is strengthened through collaborative and strategic partnerships. By partnering with a range of stakeholders on behalf of and alongside the local and regional community, we are able to secure vital funding investments benefitting Frankston City now and into the future,” Ms Babbar said.

Mayor Bolam and CEO Phil Cantillon, accompanied by Ms Thomson, recently travelled to Canberra for a number of important meetings with Ministers, Shadow Ministers and ministerial advisors to advance Council’s advocacy campaign and relationships with government and opposition.

Mayor Bolam highlighted the importance of bringing decision makers along the journey through the development of priority projects.

“We have received positive feedback from our local Members of Parliament and in meetings with Ministers and Shadow Ministers, enabling us to further progress the development of projects that we hope to secure commitments towards through the 2021 - 2022 state and federal elections,” the Mayor said.