From Conversations to Co-design
Following the Kitchen Table Conversations, 109 community members and service providers came together for a Community Co-design Workshop to explore practical solutions to the priorities identified by the community. The workshop was designed to move beyond identifying issues and focus on what could be done to address them.
Participants worked together to:
Using voting and participatory prioritisation activities, participants identified the initiatives they believed would make the biggest difference to health and wellbeing in the Central Coast community. The results informed the development of the Central Coast Voice for Health Action Plan.
To ensure a diverse range of voices could contribute, additional conversations were held with groups who may not have been able to attend the workshop, including participants connected through local community organisations and services. Their ideas and priorities were incorporated into the co-design process.
The workshops reflected the values of consumer and community leadership by placing local people at the centre of decision-making. Community members were not simply asked to provide feedback on predetermined solutions. Instead, they worked alongside others to design and prioritise actions based on their lived experience and local knowledge and their participation was supported to do so.
As well as generating ideas for action, the workshops created opportunities for people to connect with one another, share experiences, learn about local initiatives, and build relationships across the community. Participants frequently reported that these conversations increased their understanding of local issues and strengthened their sense of collective ownership over improving health and wellbeing outcomes.
Feedback on the workshops was overwhelmingly positive, with many participants expressing a desire for similar community-led conversations and co-design opportunities to continue into the future.
Action Plan Workshop – Why get involved?
Action Plan
Action 1
Establish a health and wellbeing hub
Action 2
Employ a Community Connector
Action 3
Improve the capacity of the community to care for their mental health and support each other
Action 4
Develop a community garden in Ulverstone and support health eating initiatives
Action 5
Increase opportunities for all community members to ‘get active’
Action 6
Increase support for parents
What would success look like?
- Improved communication between services and the community. The Central Coast community will know what services are available and how to access them.
- Increased awareness, understanding and access to community-led mental health support. People will feel they have a stronger sense of community connection and resilience.
- More opportunities to try fresh, affordable food. A community garden that is a welcoming space for all with active community involvement.
- More people participating in physical activity on the Central Coast. A range of activities cater for the diverse needs of the Central Coast community.
- Parents will feel supported by their community and be aware of where to access service support. Parents will have fit-for-purpose parenting facilities to feed and change their children.