© Copyright Municipal Association of Victoria, 2009

The Municipal Association of Victoria is the owner of the copyright in the publication The World Health Organization Global Age Friendly Cities Guide and Checklist - A Review of their Use by Local Government.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior permission in writing from the Municipal Association of Victoria.

All requests to reproduce, store or transmit material contained in the publication should be addressed to Jan Bruce on 9667 5546.

The MAV can provide this publication in an alternative format upon request, including large print, Braille and audio.

The MAV is the statutory peak body for local government in Victoria, representing all 79 municipalities. The MAV engaged McVicar & Reynolds Pty Ltd to assist the Association undertake this work. The MAV would also like to acknowledge the contribution of those who provided their comments and advice during this project.

AcknowledgementsWe would like to express our appreciation to the older people and council officers who have generously given their time to be interviewed for this project.

The interviews have left us in no doubt that many council officers responsible for positive ageing have a strong professional commitment to building more age-friendly and inclusive communities that support older people to age positively. They are constantly striving to identify new approaches and opportunities for improving the capacity of their councils to do this. These councils officers are also strongly committed to developing approaches where older people are key players in the process of improving the age-friendliness of their communities

The older people interviewed have demonstrated a strong passion to be actively engaged in their communities and to contribute to improving the opportunities and lives of other older people. A number are drawing on highly developed professional skills from their earlier working life; others are using the wisdom they have developed across their lives as thoughtful and active community members interested in helping their fellow citizens.

We would also like to thank Jan Bruce of the Municipal Association of Victoria and Sue Hendy from the Council on the Ageing for their support and assistance throughout this project.

Astrid Reynolds and Greg McVicar

AcronymsCOTA Council on the AgeingMAV Municipal Association of VictoriaWHO World Health Organisation

McVicar & Reynolds Pty LtdPO Box 200, Williamstown, Victoria 3016 Email – mcvicar_reynolds@bigpond.comPhone – 0419 511034

Table of Contents1 Introduction...............................................................................................1

1.1 Background......................................................................................................................11.2 Victoria’s MAV/COTA Positive Ageing in Local Communities Project.......................11.3 World Health Organisation Age-friendly Cities Guide and Checklist............................21.4 Purpose of the Project......................................................................................................51.5 Project methodology........................................................................................................51.6 Structure of report............................................................................................................7

2 The use of the WHO Guide and Checklist by Victorian councils.......82.1 Overview of awareness and use of the WHO Guide and Checklist................................82.2 Specific ways in which the WHO Guide and /or Checklist have been used...................92.3 Council assessment of the value of the WHO Guide and Checklist.............................112.4 Overall conclusions about the value and use of the WHO Guide and Checklist..........13

3 Approaches to engagement of older people......................................153.1 WHO age-friendly topic areas shaping consultations...................................................153.2 Advisory and consultative committees involving older people....................................153.3 Older people driving the use of the WHO Checklist assessment process.....................183.4 Summary of insights into engagement of older people.................................................19

4 Insights about emerging practices and challenges..........................214.1 Different ways in which the WHO Age-friendly Cities resource can be used..............214.2 Tailoring the use of the WHO Age-friendly resources to local circumstances.............244.3 Engagement of older people..........................................................................................254.4 Linking planning for age-friendly communities with other council activities..............26

5 Maintaining the momentum for improving the age-friendliness of communities............................................................................................285.1 Specific initiatives.........................................................................................................28

Appendix 1 Details of the approach of eight councils..........................311 Warrnambool City Council...............................................................................................322 City of Greater Shepparton................................................................................................353 Macedon Ranges Shire Council........................................................................................384 City of Wyndham..............................................................................................................405 Shire of Yarra Ranges.......................................................................................................416 Mornington Peninsula Shire Council................................................................................437 Moreland City Council......................................................................................................448 Boroondara City Council...................................................................................................47

Appendix 2 People interviewed by the consultants.......................................49

Appendix 3 Participants in the 7 August 2009 Project Workshop..................50

Reference documents......................................................................................51

1 Introduction1.1 Background

Local Government in Victoria has a long history in provision of services to older people. With the increasing number of older people in communities, there has been recognition by all spheres of government that pro-active planning is required to ensure that older community members can remain independent, healthy, active and engaged with the community for as long as possible. To respond to this population challenge Victorian councils have had to move beyond a predominant focus on provision of support services for older people. Councils are now actively planning to support the positive ageing of all their older community members, not just those who need support services from the council.

This report, which is examining the use by Victorian councils of the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) Global Age-friendly Cities: A Guide and Checklist of Essential Features of Age-friendly Cities1, provides insights into how councils are using these resource documents as part of their positive ageing initiatives. The impetus for many council’s positive ageing initiatives has been the MAV/COTA Positive Ageing in Local Communities Project.

1.2 Victoria’s MAV/COTA Positive Ageing in Local Communities Project

In 2004 the Victorian Government released Positive Ageing: A Strategy for Current and Future Senior Victorians 2 which included a financial allocation for partnership projects with local government to develop more age -communities. The Victoria State Government committed $1.4 million for a Positive Ageing in Local Communities Project3 to run between 2005 and 2009. The project has been a joint initiative between the Municipal Association of Victoria (MAV), the Council on the Ageing (COTA) Victoria and the Office of Senior Victorians in the Victorian Department of Planning and Community Development.

The aims of the MAV and COTA Positive Ageing in Local Communities Project have been:

to build the capacity of local government in planning for an ageing population; and

to provide leadership in promoting age-friendly communities which create opportunities for senior Victorians to live active and fulfilling lives.

The Positive Ageing in Local Communities Project encouraged communities to focus on:

exploring the most effective ways for councils to plan for positive ageing in their local areas

improving safety and access to public spaces and community buildings such as shopping centres

1 Hereafter these documents are referred to as the WHO Guide and WHO Checklist.2 Positive Ageing: A Strategy for Current and Future Senior Victorians, 2004, Office of Senior Victorians, Department of Victorian Communities (now the Department of Planning and Community Development).3 $0.1 million was allocated for the initial Phase of the project and $1.3 million for Phase 2.

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exploring new models for senior citizens’ centres to keep them relevant into the future

trying new ways of providing financial advice to older people looking at how older people can continue to participate in the workforce as they

age through ideas such as ‘skillbanks’ finding more effective ways to engage socially isolated older people with their

communities developing sustainable ways to get older people involved in planning for

positive ageing in their local communities creating better ways to use the skills and experience of older people.4

Since 2005, 38 projects have been funded, involving 42 of Victoria’s 79 councils and a positive ageing adviser position was funded to work within the MAV to encourage and support councils to address positive ageing issues.

The Positive Ageing in Local Communities Project has been evaluated and found to have met the aim to build the capacity of local government to plan for population ageing5. The evaluation report indicates that by the end of 2009 almost all councils will have completed a positive ageing strategy (73 of the 79 councils); at least six of these are in the process of reviewing or developing their second strategy. 6

1.3 World Health Organisation Age-friendly Cities Guide and Checklist

The WHO Age-friendly Cities Project is a global initiative which sought to identify concrete indicators of an age-friendly city. Age-friendly cities promote active ageing and the Age-friendly Cities Project built on WHO’s earlier work of the Active Ageing: A Policy Framework (2002) in which active ageing is defined as a ‘process for optimizing opportunities for health, participation and security in order to enhance quality of life as people age’ 7.

The WHO Age-friendly Cities Project had two main objectives:

For WHO: to identify concrete indicators of an age-friendly city and produce a practical guide to stimulate and guide advocacy, community development and policy change to make urban communities age-friendly;

For participating cities: to increase awareness of local needs, gaps and good ideas for improvements in order to stimulate development of more age friendly urban settings.

The key indicators of age-friendly cities were identified through focus groups in 33 cities in 22 countries across the world. Older people were the main focus group participants in each of the 33 cities, with their views complemented by caregivers and service providers. Australia was one of the participating

4 Municipal Association of Victoria, Council on the Ageing and Department of Planning and Community Development, June 2009, Positive Ageing in Local Communities Project, Creating Local Age Friendly Communities in Victoria, Melbourne. 5 Project Partnerships and Community Planning and Projects, MAV COTA Positive Ageing in Local Communities Project Evaluation, December 2008.6 Ibid page 537Active Ageing: A Policy Framework, Geneva, World Health Organization, 2002, page 12 http://whqlibdoc.who.int/hq/2002/WHO_NMH_NPH_02.8.pdf (accessed July 8 2009)

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countries, with the City of Maribyrnong in Victoria and the City of Melville in Western Australia participating.

Each focus group was conducted in line with the Vancouver Protocol8 in order to achieve uniformity in how the information was collected across the world. The same eight topics were explored in every focus group: outdoor spaces and buildings; transportation; housing; respect and social inclusion; social participation; communication and information; civic participation and employment; and community support and health services.

Two documents were released as part of the WHO Age-friendly Cities Project.

World Health Organisation Global Age-friendly Cities: A Guide

This Guide sets out the detailed views and insights emerging from the focus groups, with the purpose of the Guide being

‘to help cities see themselves from the perspective of older people, in order to identify where and how they can become more age-friendly…

The guide is intended to be used by individuals and groups interested in making a city more age-friendly, including governments, voluntary organisations, the private sector and citizens groups.’ 9

World Health Organisation Checklist of Essential Features of Age-friendly Cities

The WHO Checklist is based on the themes and core features identified in the Guide. WHO highlights the importance of involving older people in the process of assessing a city’s age-friendliness.

‘the checklist is a tool for a city’s self-assessment and a map charting progress….

This checklist is intended to be used by individuals and groups interested in making the city more age-friendly. For the checklist to be effective, older people must be involved as full partners. In assessing a city’s strengths and deficiencies, older people will describe how the checklist of features matches their own experience of a city's positive characteristics and barriers. They should play a role in suggesting changes in implementing and monitoring improvements.’ 10

8 Vancouver protocol http://www.who.int/ageing/publications/Microsoft%20Word%20-%20AFC_Vancouver_protocol.pdf (accessed July 8 2009)9 Global Age-friendly Cities: A Guide, 2007, World Health Organisation, page 1110 Checklist of Essential Features of Age-friendly Cities, World Health Organisation, page 1

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The underpinning framework of the WHO Age-friendly Cities Guide and Checklist is that there are eight key aspects (which are highly interconnected) that need to be considered in development of more age-friendly cities. These are represented in the diagram below. 11

The MAV/COTA Positive Ageing in Local Communities Project supported the involvement of Melbourne in the international WHO Age-friendly Cities Project in 2007. The WHO Guide and Checklist have been strongly promoted to local government throughout Victoria since its launch in Melbourne on October 1 2007.

Age-Friendly Rural and Remote Communities: A Guide12

Building on the work of the WHO Age-friendly Cities project, the Canadian federal and provincial governments have developed a Guide specifically tailored for rural and remote communities. This Guide was developed because research had identified that rural and remote communities face unique social and environmental challenges that can have an impact on health and healthy ageing different from those facing urban populations.13

The Canadian Guide was developed through a consultation process with older people and service providers from rural and remote communities. It is framed around the same eight topic areas of the WHO resources, but the issues identified under each topic area vary on some aspects.

For Victorian councils with rural and remote communities this Guide is also an important resource document. However, it appears to be less well known amongst these councils compared to the WHO Guide and Checklist.

11 Global Age-friendly Cities: A Guide, 2007, World Health Organisation, page 912 Canadian government, Federal/Provincial/Territorial Ministers Responsible for Seniors, 2007. http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/seniors-aines/pubs/age_friendly_rural/index_e.htm13 Age-Friendly Rural and Remote Communities: A Guide, page 6

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1.4 Purpose of the Project

This project was initiated to draw together emerging evidence on the value of the WHO Guide and Checklist to councils and older people as they implement positive ageing plans, engage older people in assessing the age-friendliness of their communities and developing and implementing governance models and consultation processes for engaging with older people.

Key tasks established for the project include the following:

review the extent and nature of use of the WHO Guide and Checklist by councils across Victoria;

assess the value of the WHO Guide and Checklist to councils and consider their value to older adults;

review engagement in governance models that have used the WHO Guide and Checklist and develop best practice advice for use of the tools by councils;

identify the effectiveness of the WHO Guidelines and Checklist as tools for raising issues around age friendliness of communities within council and across the broader community;

suggest any ways that the WHO Guide and Checklist could be modified to better suit the needs of councils and older people engaged at the local level; and

develop a report outlining the methodology, process, and outcomes of the project in a way that will assist councils in using the WHO Age-friendly Cities Guide and Checklist in a productive way to encourage future good practice across the State

The project has been jointly managed by the MAV and COTA as partners in the MAV/COTA Positive Ageing in Local Communities Project. The consultants have worked with the MAV and COTA to identify the councils to consult for the project.

1.5 Project methodology

Survey of councils

To provide background information for the project and assist with the selection of councils to interview about their use of the WHO Guide and/or Checklist, the MAV’s Positive Ageing Adviser, MAV/COTA Positive Ageing in Local Communities Project requested all councils to complete a short survey. Fifty eight councils responded to the survey, representing 73 percent of all Victorian councils. (The results of this survey are outlined in more detail in Section 2.1.)

The survey assisted in identifying those councils using the WHO Guide or Checklist as part of positive ageing initiatives, improving the age-friendliness of the municipality and/or for engaging with older people.

Councils selected for participation in the project

A decision was made to select councils to participate in the project from those who indicated they were using the WHO Guidelines/Checklist on multiple

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dimensions. There was also a focus on achieving some balance between metropolitan, metropolitan/rural interface, regional city and rural locations.

The following councils were selected for participation in the project:

Bendigo Boroondara Brimbank Casey Knox

Macedon Ranges Mornington Peninsula Moorabool Moreland

Shepparton Yarra Ranges Warrnambool Wyndham

Staff from these 13 councils were interviewed about:

how their council was using the WHO Guide and/or Checklist; how useful they had found these resources; and how older people were being involved.

Discussions were also held with a number of older people who had been involved in council processes using the WHO Guide and/or Checklist.

How the WHO Guide and/or Checklist have been used to support development of positive ageing strategies has been documented for eight of the participating councils. These case studies can be found in Appendix 1. They reflect the status of developments in mid July 2009.

Project workshop

Using the draft report as a resource, a workshop to which all participating councils were invited, was jointly convened by the MAV and COTA. The purpose of the workshop was to provide an opportunity for councils involved with the project to reflect on the report’s findings and to discuss the most effective ways to support Victorian councils to continue to use the WHO Age-friendly Cities resources to support positive ageing initiatives.

The discussion at the workshop demonstrated that the ways in which the WHO resources are being used by Victorian councils continues to evolve. The workshop discussion highlighted the importance of developing effective ways for councils to share information and to have opportunities to come together (in workshops or other forums) to reflect on successes and challenges in using the WHO resources.

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1.6 Structure of report

This introductory chapter of the report has provided a range of background information about the MAV/COTA Positive Ageing in Local Communities Project, the WHO Age-friendly Cities Guide and Checklist and the purpose of the project.

Section 2 outlines the use of the WHO Guide and Checklist amongst Victorian councils. It begins with an overview of the awareness of Victorian councils of the WHO resource documents and how the documents have been used. This is followed by a more detailed discussion about how the WHO Guide and Checklist have been used by the 13 councils interviewed for this project and how the these councils assess the value and contribution of the WHO resources in supporting the development of their positive ageing strategies.

Section 3 outlines the varied approaches to engagement with older people amongst the councils interviewed for the project. It begins with a discussion of how the WHO topic areas have shaped the focus of consultations with older people. The section then outlines a number of examples of advisory and consultative committee structures involving older people, including examples of structures that are already established as well as ones that are currently being planned or are in the early stages of establishment.

Section 4 outlines a number of insights about emerging practices and challenges associated with increasing the age-friendliness of communities. It covers how councils are using the WHO resources, the need to tailor approaches to local circumstances, engagement of older people and links to other council planning processes

Section 5 proposes a number of initiatives to maintain the current momentum for improving the age-friendliness of communities.

Appendix 1 is an important component of the report. It provides a more detailed picture of how eight different councils are using the WHO Age-friendly Cities resources to support the development of their positive ageing strategies.

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2 The use of the WHO Guide and Checklist by Victorian councils 2.1 Overview of awareness and use of the WHO Guide

and Checklist

The MAV survey of council awareness and use of the WHO Guide and Checklist identified that of the 58 councils responding, 70% were aware of the resources. Use of the WHO Guide and/or Checklist identified: 41% (24 councils) used the tools as a reference document for their positive

ageing strategic plan;

26% (15 councils) used the tools to guide discussion with the council’s older persons reference group;

21% (12 councils) used the tools to engage with older people in assessing the age-friendliness of their community; and

24% (14 councils) used the tools for council assessment of the age-friendliness of communities.

Eight councils reported that they used the documents for each of the four purposes listed above, while some councils only used the WHO Guide and/or Checklist for one or two of the purposes. A quarter of councils reported that they had not used the WHO Guide or Checklist at all.

An important context for the responses to the survey is that many councils had already completed their positive ageing strategy plans or were well underway when the WHO Guide and Checklist were launched in October 2007. It is evident from the interviews with councils for this project that the councils indicating the most significant use of the WHO Guide and/or Checklist were more likely to be councils in the process of updating their strategies (which had been developed some three to five years ago) or councils who were developing a positive ageing strategy for the first time.

Assuming that all councils who did not reply to the survey have no awareness of the WHO Guide and Checklist14 then at least 52% of all Victorian councils are aware of the WHO Guide and Checklist and 30% of councils have to date used the WHO Age-friendly Cities resources since their launch in Victoria in October 2007. Based on the pattern of use it could be anticipated that more councils will use the WHO Guide and Checklist as they reach a point of needing to renew their positive ageing strategies, as long as there are ongoing strategies to maintain awareness within councils of the WHO Age-friendly Cities resources.

14 It was evident from the interviews with councils that awareness of a council’s use of the WHO Age-friendly Cities resources can be temporarily reduced at times of staff turnover.

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2.2 Specific ways in which the WHO Guide and /or Checklist have been used

The use of the WHO Guide and Checklist and approaches to engagement of older people was found to be varied across councils. The approach of eight councils has been documented in more detail to indicate the breadth of ways in which councils are currently using or planning to use the WHO resource documents and how this relates to their positive ageing initiatives and approaches to engagement with older people. These eight case studies are presented in Appendix 1 of the report.

The following provides a summary of how 13 of the councils interviewed have used or are planning to use the WHO Guide and/or Checklist.

Council How the WHO Guide and/or Checklist has been used

Greater Bendigo

The WHO Guide and Checklist are resource documents that will inform Bendigo’s approach to development of a positive ageing strategy which will be updating an earlier ageing framework. The methodology for the development of the strategy is not yet finalised.

Boroondara The WHO’s eight topic areas have been the basis for consultations held as part of the development of an age-friendly strategy for the municipality. The WHO topic areas have also been used to structure the discussion and recommendations in the report - Creating an Age Friendly Boroondara.

One of the proposed actions outlined in the report is development of a model for older people to contribute towards evaluation and reporting on progress in developing an age-friendly city.

Brimbank The WHO Guide and Checklist is informing thinking about the issues relevant to development of a more age-friendly city. However, at this stage no decision had been reached on how the Checklist might be used.

Casey The council had completed their Ageing Positive in Casey Plan prior to the released of the WHO Guide and Checklist. However, the WHO resources have influenced thinking about implementation of their positive ageing initiatives such as their Ageing Positively Champions Program and the development of the Age is just a number document. It is anticipated by the council that the WHO resources will be very useful when they review their current plan.

Knox The WHO Guide and Checklist were used as resource documents for the council’s Age Friendly Shopping Centres demonstration project funded through the MAV/COTA Positive Ageing in Local Communities Project.

There is a possibility that the WHO resource documents might be used as part of implementation of initiatives outlined in the Knox Healthy Ageing Strategic Plan 2009-2013 (which was developed using an alternate planning framework)

Macedon Ranges

A multi-agency strategic planning process to create an age-friendly community is currently underway in the Shire, involving a consortium of health and welfare agencies who service the Macedon Ranges. The

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Council How the WHO Guide and/or Checklist has been used

project is building on the goals of the WHO Guide and using its topic areas as a framework for shaping the Strategy.

It was anticipated that the Council's Positive Ageing Advisory Committee would use the WHO Checklist to assess the age-friendliness of the key towns within the Shire. However, after some consideration, it was decided the checklist in the Canadian Age-Friendly Rural and Remote Communities: A Guide would be more relevant to the Shire’s circumstances.

Mornington Peninsula

The WHO Checklist is being used to support discussions with staff across the Council in reviewing the achievements and lessons from their 2002-2007 Strategy as part of early work for the development of a new positive ageing strategy. The Checklist is being used as a tool to enhance understanding across the Council about the range of areas that need to be considered in planning for the municipality’s older population and developing awareness of the need for a whole-of-council approach. It is anticipated that both the WHO Guide and Checklist will be used to support future consultation about the new Strategy and to monitor its implementation.

Moorabool The WHO Guide and Checklist has influenced understanding of the breadth of issues associated with developing age-friendly communities. This is informing the development of strategies to support positive ageing.

Moreland The WHO topic areas were used as a framework to structure the discussion in consultations with 245 people aged 55 and over undertaken as part of the Ageing Well in Moreland Consultation project. Seven of the eight topic areas outlined in the WHO Guide were used. The ‘health and social services’ topic was not used as it was considered that this required more in-depth discussion because of the council's major role as a provider of services to older people and would be the subject of a later consultation.

The Moreland Later Years Strategy 2007-2011 sets out the proposed actions under each of the WHO age-friendly cities topic areas.

Greater Shepparton

The WHO Checklist influenced awareness amongst Council staff of the multiple aspects of age-friendly communities and this in turn influenced the issues considered in development of the Council’s Positive Ageing Strategy.

The WHO Checklist was used as the framework for consultations with over a 100 people (in individual interviews and group discussions) associated with development of the Greater Shepparton Positive Ageing Strategy 2009 - 2014.

The WHO Checklist was forwarded to participants in the consultations prior to the discussions as a way of giving them a chance to think more broadly about the issues on which they may want to comment.

Warrnambool

The Active Ageing Plan Warrnambool 2008 to 2013 included a recommendation to use the WHO Checklist to assess the age-friendliness of the municipality. A working party of older people from the Council’s Active Ageing Committee have been working to modify the checklist to make it locally relevant. A scoring system will be used

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Council How the WHO Guide and/or Checklist has been used

on the Checklist items to assist monitoring of progress across time.

The localised Checklist to assess the age-friendliness of the city is in early stages of piloting with working party members each trialling the checklist with 4 older people.

Wyndham The WHO Checklist has informed the development of the Council’s Ageing Well Strategy and has been used to shape the strategic framework of the Strategy and act as a framework of future aspirations for Wyndham. The Strategy identifies what Council has done/or is doing to support each item in the WHO Checklist.

Yarra Ranges The WHO Checklist is being used as a basis for developing the principles and actions for the Council’s 2010-2015 Positive Ageing Strategy. It was handed out to all participants in a recent consultation forum on access and mobility in order to widen participants’ awareness of the issues that need to be addressed in the Positive Ageing Strategy and to seek targeted feedback on what is currently being done well and also to also identify areas considered to be priorities for future action.

The Council plans to continue utilizing the WHO Checklist widely as part of its further consultations to inform development of a new Positive Ageing Strategy. Consideration is being given to placing a modified version of the WHO Checklist on the Council's website as a survey form for input to the Strategy development. Hard copies will also be distributed through a number of outlets within the Shire.

2.3 Council assessment of the value of the WHO Guide and Checklist

The council staff interviewed for this project all viewed the WHO Guide and Checklist as important and helpful resource documents for progressing positive ageing issues and development of more age-friendly communities. Some considered both the WHO Guide and Checklist as equally helpful. However, in terms of practical use and application overwhelmingly the Checklist was seen as the most practical to use. This is clearly demonstrated in the way councils have described their use of the WHO Age-friendly Cities resources.

The following summary presents the views of council staff interviewed for this project about the value to council of the WHO Guide and Checklist and the particular features that were most helpful.

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Two key overarching positive features highlighted were the following:

Provision of a sound and comprehensive framework A consistent comment was the helpfulness of having a document that brought together in one place the range of issues influencing the age-friendliness of communities. This framework provides a very important resource for understanding the range and dimension of issues that need to be addressed.

For some, the range of topics covered in the WHO Guide and Checklist align well with what they have identified as important issues for the age-friendliness of their community; however they may not have yet pulled this together in a succinct and integrated way. For others the breadth of topics and the detail of the issues covered under the topics expanded their thinking about and understanding of what is involved in creating local age-friendly environments. This is highlighted in the following comments from Aged and Disability Services staff responsible for development of positive ageing strategies.

‘ it educated me on areas that aren't my expertise and so opened my eyes to other issues beyond health and community services… I never thought that public toilets would be such an issue.’

‘It widened the issues we were thinking about for our positive ageing strategy and consultations. The biggest thing is it helped us think about the issues that we need to embrace and get others to embrace in order to develop age-friendly communities.’

‘It gave me questions to ask that I would not have thought of’.

A framework from a credible and respected source – the World Health Organisation

For many, the WHO Guide and Checklist have been important because they are from a credible and respected source with international status. This status added legitimacy to the case being made about the need to address a breadth of issues at the local level when developing more age-friendly communities.

In some councils, when aged and disability services staff use the WHO Checklist as a focus for discussion and consultation with officers in other areas of council, it has provided a sense of legitimacy for them to be raising issues that others might consider outside their scope of responsibility (for example toilets, curb design, housing and planning approvals).

Most positive ageing strategies are still being driven by the aged and disability services areas of council. In some councils there is strong corporate and councillor support and understanding of the importance of positive ageing and the creation of more age-friendly communities. However, it is also evident from the interviews that in a number of councils, ongoing work is required to secure and maintain momentum to achieve a greater whole-of-council approach to development of age-friendly communities. It is particularly in these circumstances that the legitimacy and credibility of the WHO framework is most valued.

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The value of the WHO Checklist

As indicated earlier, the WHO Checklist is seen as providing the most practical tool to support development of strategies to improve the age-friendliness of communities and enhance positive ageing initiatives. Particular features highlighted for comment were:

the language used is ‘accessible’ - it is easily understood; the way it is written makes sense to council officers who may not have

particular knowledge of issues affecting older people; it is written in the positive and this was seen to be helpful when using

the document to increase awareness and understanding across different council departments;

a number of the Checklist headings are familiar to council staff responsible for planning who work outside the Aged and Disability Services area, which assisted in capturing their interest; and

the breadth of issues covered by the Checklist assists older people to expand their thinking about issues to raise in consultations.

‘Having a resource that is so succinct and organised is very helpful; plus it has credibility because of the WHO stamp and its international’

A number of council staff commented that the WHO Guide was too big to distribute widely, but the WHO Checklist, being succinct and with straightforward language, made it ideal to distribute more widely.

The value of the WHO Guide

The WHO Guide had a lower profile than the Checklist. However, those who knew the document well appreciated the range of information it presents. Material in the WHO Guide was used to ‘support the case’ for arguing the importance of creating more age-friendly communities.

2.4 Overall conclusions about the value and use of the WHO Guide and Checklist

The WHO Guide and Checklist have had a significant influence on the approaches of a number of councils in the development of positive ageing strategies. The documents have increased understanding of the breadth of issues that influence the age-friendliness of cities and communities. They have also been a resource to support aged and disability staff to advocate for a greater whole-of-council approach to responding to the needs of older people.

As evident from the varied uses of the WHO Guide and Checklist outlined in Section 2.2, councils are using different parts of what the WHO resources have to offer.

As seen from the description of council use of the WHO Guide and Checklist these resources provide a framework to support and structure thinking and actions, assisting in two key ways:

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together, the eight topics describe and articulate the diverse aspects that contribute to making a community age-friendly; and

the topics provide a structure for consultation, assessment, reporting and planning (i.e. identifying actions required) around issues associated with age-friendliness of communities and positive ageing.

The WHO Checklist, the most used of the documents, details the broad scope of issues that older people from across the world have identified as important to consider in each of the eight topic areas. It is a tool that is being used in multiple ways including: to expand the thinking amongst older people, the community and

professionals about the many topics and issues relevant to age-friendly communities and positive ageing;

to support increased understanding of the need for a whole-of-council approach;

to assess the age-friendliness of a particular community, on one or more of the topic areas; and

to monitor progress on the age-friendliness of communities over time.

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3 Approaches to engagement with older people The WHO Guide and Checklist identify the importance of older people being active partners in assessing the age-friendliness of their communities, in suggesting changes, and implementing and monitoring improvements. This section of the report summarises the insights gained about how older people are being involved in positive ageing initiatives in councils using the WHO Guide or Checklist or proposing to use these resources.

3.1 WHO age-friendly topic areas shaping consultations

All councils involved in this project recognise the need to better understand the issues that are important to older people. Therefore consultation with older people is a central part of many positive ageing projects. The councils involved in this project are undertaking consultations in a number of different ways with a range of approaches evident including the following: focus groups workshops individual interviews with older people telephone survey completion of a survey form.

In five of the councils15 who have completed or are in the process of developing their positive ageing strategies, the WHO topic areas have or are being used as the framework for consultation with older people (and also often with other service providers and council staff).

In at least two councils (Shepparton and Yarra Ranges) the WHO Checklist has been provided to older people in advance of, or as part of, the consultations to stimulate their thinking. This has been considered a helpful approach to demonstrate the breadth of issues relevant to the consultations; there was a concern that some older people may focus only on the more traditional issues such as HACC services, parking and condition of roads and footpaths.

3.2 Advisory and consultative committees involving older people

A number of the councils interviewed have a committee or advisory structure involving older people associated with their positive ageing initiatives. In some instances the roles and terms of references of these groups are being reviewed. In other councils the establishment of advisory committees/ consultative structures to support increased engagement of older people have been recommended in recently completed positive ageing strategies.

The current and proposed approaches to involving older people are highly varied and the following examples of approaches in different councils provide some insights into the diversity.

Examples of the operation of consultative structures already in place

15 The five Councils are Boroondara, Macedon Ranges, Moreland, Shepparton and Yarra Ranges

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Mornington Peninsula Shire CouncilAn outcome of the Shire’s Elder Citizen’s Strategy 2002 - 2007 was establishment of an older person's consultative group in 2006. This group is now known as the Peninsula Advisory Committee for Elders (PACE). PACE is a group of older people from across the Shire with an interest in helping the Council respond to issues facing older people.

PACE has its own chairperson and meets monthly with Councillors and Council officers to provide advice on recommendations to Council on issues facing older people and to provide community input into programs and policies. The Committee is proactive in seeking opportunities to influence council. One recent example of this is that PACE made a submission about the council’s Draft Strategic Plan highlighting the need for the Plan to more effectively address issues affecting the municipality’s older residents.

It is evident that the input from PACE members is well respected by councillors and council officers and the Committee has influence. PACE will have a key role in influencing and supporting the development of a new positive ageing strategy for the Shire and has recently started to use the WHO resource documents to inform and support its thinking.

Shire of Yarra RangesIn response to the recommendations of its 2006-2009 Positive Ageing Strategy the Council has supported the establishment of a widely based consultative Forum on issues affecting older people. This Forum is led by a Positive Ageing Forum Executive (PAFE). In line with its terms of reference PAFE can have up to 10 community representatives (predominantly older people); PAFE also has Councillor and Council officer members.

The role of PAFE is to provide a mechanism for community input and feedback on the implementation of the 2006 - 2009 Strategy as well as the development of a new strategy. It does this by PAFE members providing feedback as well as through seeking input more widely from other older people, community members and service providers.

At present PAFE is playing a key role in supporting consultation with older people as part of development of the new positive ageing strategy.

PAFE has examined the WHO Checklist and found its structure particularly useful. The WHO Checklist is now being used in a number of ways to support consultations on the development of the council’s new positive ageing strategy.

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Examples of approaches being developed to enhance the capacity for effective engagement of older people

The following outlines the approaches four councils are taking to more effectively engaging older people in the governance of positive ageing initiatives. The exact use of the WHO Age-friendly Cities resources is still under consideration in a number of these councils.

Brimbank City CouncilThe Council had a long-standing Older Persons Action Committee (established in 2001) which was a formal committee of the Council. As a result of limitations in the effectiveness of this structure, Council is now working to establish a model directed by older people that more actively engages older people from across the community. A long-term objective of this initiative is development of a high functioning, autonomous older persons’ group with the capacity to undertake local and systemic advocacy for older people.

Knox City Council To support implementation of the Knox Healthy Ageing Strategic Plan 2009 – 2013 the Council has endorsed the establishment of a Healthy Ageing Advisory Committee with membership including two councillors, a number of Council officers and three older community representatives. To broaden community engagement two complementary groups are being established. One of these is an Older Persons Advisory Group made up of older people and community group representatives; the other is an expert Think Tank comprising industry/professional specialists in the field.

The proposed terms of reference for the Older Persons Advisory Group are as follows:

‘To consider and advise on the following matters to inform the implementation strategy for the Healthy Ageing Plan from the perspective of older persons: priority activities …. [for implementation of the Plan]; approaches to achieving effective partnership, consultation and

information dissemination; and emerging issues and opportunities for older people within the

community relevant to the implementation and review of the Healthy Ageing Strategic Plan.’

Wyndham City CouncilThe Council’s recently completed Ageing Well Strategy (June 2009) includes a recommendation to establish an Ageing Positively Reference Group to assist with the implementation of the Strategy. In addition, the Council is to appoint a Community Development Officer dedicated to supporting the implementation of the Ageing Well Strategy and supporting increased engagement of older people.

Macedon Ranges Shire CouncilIn 2007 the Council established an Advisory Committee of older people to provide advice about positive ageing issues. The Council is currently working with the Advisory Committee on redrafting its terms of reference in order to enhance its effectiveness. In particular there is a focus on strengthening the capacity of the Committee to engage in a wider positive ageing agenda and for

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its membership to be more reflective of the diversity in age and life experience of the community.

One of the initiatives proposed for the community representatives on this Committee has been for them to work with older people in each of the Shire’s main towns to assess the town’s age-friendliness using the WHO Checklist. However, as indicated earlier, after some consideration, it was decided the checklist in the Canadian Age-Friendly Rural and Remote Communities: A Guide would be more relevant to the Shire’s rural character.

3.3 Older people driving the use of the WHO Checklist assessment process

The only current example identified through this project of very active engagement by older people in planning and implementing a detailed assessment of the age-friendliness of their community through the use of the WHO checklist is in Warrnambool.

The Council’s Active Ageing Plan released in 2008 contained a number of very specific actions related to the WHO Checklist (outlined in the section on Warrnambool Council in Appendix 1). The Council's Active Ageing Committee, established as a result of the Active Ageing Plan, has been charged with responsibility to examine each area of the WHO Checklist and identify the criteria relevant to Warrnambool. The Plan also makes a commitment to conduct an annual appraisal for the next five years of progress in improving the age-friendliness of the municipality using the details in the WHO Checklist. It is anticipated that the Active Ageing Committee will report the outcome of the annual appraisal to Council and the public and make recommendations on any required improvements.

A working party of older members of the Council's Active Ageing Committee has taken on responsibility for assessing all the elements of the WHO checklist and ensuring that the Checklist is amended to be more useful for Warrnambool. This working party has made a number of adjustments to the WHO Checklist.

The working party has decided on using a four point rating scale to support assessment of each item, with an additional option for ‘don’t know’. They have also separated out some of the items into more detailed components to solicit more refined assessment information. The table following indicates how they have broken down one of the areas. People will be asked to rate each of the sub areas on the four point scale.

Each working party member has recently trialled the checklist with four older people.

WHO issue Warrnambool version

Public areas are clean and pleasant

Public areas are clean and pleasant Foreshore areas (Whale watching to Thunder

Point)

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Sporting ground surrounds Playgrounds Parks and gardens Walking tracks Railways around including station

The initial assessment using the Checklist will provide baseline data on the age-friendliness of the community. It is the view of the working party that in order to effectively monitor changes in the age-friendliness of Warrnambool on an annual basis across the next five years, each issue area has to be able to be scored in a meaningful way so progress from one year to the next can be effectively measured.

Early feedback from piloting of the revised checklist with its scoring of individual items has identified a number of challenges in using the document.

3.4 Summary of insights into engagement with older people

Among the councils interviewed for this project, many different approaches to engagement of older people in development, monitoring and review of positive ageing strategies are evident. The approaches range from surveys, to focus group discussions and individual interviews to varied consultative and advisory committee structures. All these approaches enable the views of older people to inform approaches to improving the age-friendliness of their local communities.

A small number of the advisory committee structures provide opportunities for older people (rather than councillors or council officers) to chair the advisory committees and drive the agenda. This can facilitate a more concerted focus on issues of greatest importance to older people, provided that the committee members have developed effective ways of continuing to consult and seek input on issues from a broad cross section of older community members.

One of the issues for councils with engagement of older people has been determining the age at which a person is considered older. Most councils have chosen the starting age to be 55 or 60.

A number of councils have had strong links with frail older people who use council’s aged care services and more limited connections with the group of older people who are fully independent, may still be in the work force or more recently retired. As part of their positive ageing consultation process, many councils have sought to engage a wider cross section of older people, including people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds as well as people who are not members of established groups within the community. A number of councils are working to ensure that the members of advisory/consultative structures are more reflective of the diversity of older people in their municipality.

Some councils have found that older council employees who have participated in consultations have provided important insights from their perspectives as both council employees and older community members. In some instances the issues emerging from the involvement of older council employees has resulted

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in increased awareness of the valuable contribution of these older workers and greater attention to supporting and retaining older workers.

Many older people involved in advisory/consultative structures associated with positive ageing initiatives view the WHO resources as very useful. They understand and appreciate the importance of their international status and consider the WHO resources effectively communicate the complex issues central to creating an age-friendly community. They also consider the resources easy to understand.

However, not all older people reacted positively when asked their views on specific Checklist items. There are potentially many issues influencing this response and further reflection on these issues will provide important insights for all Victorian councils. (This is further discussed in Section 4.1)

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4 Insights about emerging practices and challenges

The WHO Guide and Checklist have been a welcome addition to the resources available to councils to support development of positive ageing plans and initiatives. These documents have had a significant influence on how a number of councils have approached development of their positive ageing strategies. In addition, these documents are also being used by a number of councils currently reviewing existing positive ageing strategies.

It is evident that councils using the WHO resources are continuing to develop views and opinions on the value of the resources. In the short time of this project, two ‘case study’ councils have refined their approach in using the WHO resources, resulting in the need to revise the case study details. In another instance an older person involved in a consultative committee indicated that her initial response about the influence of the WHO resources at the time of interview was quite different from what she would have said if the interview had been a few weeks earlier.

This section of the report draws together the insights into the ways in which Victorian councils are using the WHO resources and identifies the emerging opportunities, issues and challenges. It also discusses issues about engagement with older people and the potential benefits of linking planning for age-friendly communities with other council planning processes.

4.1 Different ways in which the WHO Age-friendly Cities resource can be used

In the relatively short time since the WHO Age-friendly Cities Guide and Checklist have been available, the resources have been used in a variety of ways by councils.

The WHO resources have provided a very useful framework to support and structure the thinking of a number of councils about positive ageing and creating more age-friendly communities. The eight topic areas describe and articulate the diverse and interrelated aspects contributing to an age-friendly community. These topic areas are: outdoor spaces and buildings; transportation; housing; social participation; respect and social inclusion; civic participation and employment; communication and information; and community and health services. The breadth of these issues demonstrates the need for a whole-of-council approach to positive ageing and the need to work in partnership with other organisations and groups.

The eight topic areas have also provided a structure for consultations, assessment, reporting and planning. There are now examples of positive ageing strategies being structured according to the WHO topic areas (for example Moreland and Boroondara City Councils).

The WHO Checklist is a flexible tool that is being used in multiple ways as indicated in Table 4.1. There is consensus amongst councils that the WHO Checklist is highly effective as an educative tool for increasing the

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understanding of council officers, councillors and other professionals about the diverse aspects contributing to an age-friendly community. It is also a very effective tool for increasing the understanding of older people and the general community about the various issues associated with making a community more age-friendly, (points 1 and 2 in the above table).

The WHO Checklist has been used by a number of councils as an interview guide and audit tool for seeking feedback from individual older people on the age-friendliness of a municipality or town. In some instances this approach has worked well. However, in a few councils the feedback from older people involved in these processes has been less than positive.

It is still too early to fully understand the factors contributing to the variation in responses from older people; however, some of the potential factors contributing to the negative feedback may be influenced by the following:

the length of the interview, if using all items on the WHO Checklist; the lack of relevance of some aspects, particularly in some rural

communities; some of the questions may be confronting to more active older people who

are reluctant to discuss issues about ageing; the interview technique; and people feeling ‘over consulted’ and possibly feeling that there has been

little response to the feedback they have provided through earlier consultation processes.

Given the mixed feedback on use of the WHO Checklist as an interview guide and audit tool it is important for councils to continue to seek feedback from older people about their views on its use, reflect on their experiences and share their insights.

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Table 4.1 Different ways in which the WHO Checklist is being used

Ways in which the WHO Checklist is being used

Specific approaches

1. To expand the thinking amongst older people, the community and a range of professionals about the topics and issues relevant to age-friendly cities and communities and positive ageing.

Distributing the document prior to interviews or focus group consultations allows people time: to reflect on the scope of issues considered to

contribute to the age-friendliness of the community;

to identify the issues that are of most significance to them under each of the topic areas.

2. To support increased understanding of the need for a whole-of-council approach.

Using the WHO Checklist as a focus for discussions with staff across the council assists to communicate the breadth of issues that contribute to creation of an age-friendly community and assists to develop awareness that a whole-of-council approach is required.

Specific aspects of each topic can be used to demonstrate the role particular departments within the council can have in supporting the creation of a more age-friendly community.

3. To assess the age-friendliness of a particular municipality, suburb, neighbourhood or town.

Individual older people, professionals, the general community or focus groups can be asked to indicate how they assess the age-friendliness of a particular geographic area on each of the items in one or more of the topic areas. Different approaches are possible including the following: asking people to indicate whether they agree

or disagree with the statements in the Checklist; 16

asking people to rate statements in the checklist on a prescribed scale (the approach currently being trialled in Warrnambool);

asking people to identify their top priorities for improvement from amongst all the issues listed in the Checklist; people could also be asked to indicate the areas that they consider are of an acceptable standard or working well.

4. To monitor changes to the age- friendliness of a particular municipality, suburb, neighbourhood or town over time.

To achieve this requires some way of identifying changes at different points of time - the use of the same rating scale each time would be one way of achieving this. (This is the approach being explored considered by Warrnambool Council).

16 This approach is being used in Manitoba through the Age Friendly Communities Project being undertaken by the Centre on Aging, University of Manitoba.

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4.2 Tailoring the use of the WHO Age-friendly resources to local circumstances

The WHO Age-friendly Guide and Checklist are generic resource documents. They provide ideas and information, but as with all tools and resources, they may need to be tailored to unique local circumstances or for particular uses.

At present Warrnambool council is at the forefront of tailoring the Checklist to reflect their particular local circumstances and proposed use of the Checklist as an audit tool to measure change across time. They are modifying the Checklist, mainly by adding additional issues (as outlined in Section 3.3). They have also developed a rating scale for each item to enable the Checklist to monitor changes over time in the age-friendliness of their community.

It will be important for the insights on the effectiveness of the approach used by Warrnambool to be available to other councils. In addition, because a working party of older people is driving the approach, insights into their reflections on the process will also be an important source of information for others.

A number of councils interviewed for this project had dispersed towns, often with different physical characteristics, various transport options and different services available locally. In these municipalities, assessment of age-friendliness is likely to be far more useful if undertaken for each town, rather than for the municipality as a whole. It can be anticipated that a number of different issues and priorities are likely to emerge across towns and solutions to issues identified may also vary.

For example, in some areas of a municipality the topography and dispersed nature of the population may mean that very localised transport solutions need to be found or provision of footpaths may not be feasible. In some areas there would be strong opposition to footpaths because of the desire to maintain the local rural character. These local issues need to inform the assessment of a community’s age-friendliness (possibly requiring adjustments to the issues being assessed) as well as the solutions proposed for making a particular community more age-friendly.

The Canadian document - Age Friendly Rural and Remote Communities: A Guide, which builds on the work of the WHO Age-friendly Cities project, is also an important resource document for councils with rural and remote communities. There is value in increasing the awareness of this document and reporting on how Councils are using it. (This project has only identified one council that is using this document).

Ideas that have emerged through this project to better support rural councils and councils with a mix of rural and urban populations to increase the age-friendliness of their communities include the following:

adopting the term age-friendly communities rather than age friendly cities;

developing an Australian or Victorian rural and remote Guide/ Checklist, building on the Canadian example; and

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adding comments to the existing WHO resource documents that acknowledge that in some contexts there may be a need to adapt/modify the WHO Checklist so that it is more locally relevant and useful. (In some councils there is a reluctance to change a checklist that has been developed by an organisation as prestigious as the World Health Organisation.)

4.3 Engagement with older people

The WHO Guide and Checklist emphasis the importance of older people being involved as full partners in assessing a community’s age-friendliness. As evident from the discussion in Section 3 of this report, almost all councils have consulted with older people in development of their positive ageing strategies and view the consultation with older people as very important. Many have made considerable effort to ensure that the issues identified by older people and the views they express are very well documented.

All the case study councils, and a number of the other councils interviewed, either have an advisory committee/consultative structure focused on issues associated with older people or their recently completed positive ageing plans have recommended the establishment of an advisory committee. Many of these advisory committee/consultative structures assist in informing the council about issues important to older people.

Discussions with older people and council officers provided some insights into the variance in the structure and operation of advisory/consultative structures, with key differences found in the following areas:

the committee’s terms of reference and mandate; the membership of the advisory/consultative committee; how older representatives on committees are selected; the proportion of committee members who are older people; who chairs the committee (whether a councillor, council officer or an

older person); how agendas for committee meetings are developed; and whether committee members are provided with written reports in

advance or whether reports are verbal.

Ongoing growth in the number of older persons’ advisory/consultative structures can be anticipated. New roles are also emerging for advisory groups as illustrated by the Warrnambool Active Ageing Committee example. The increasing numbers of advisory/consultative structures and the variety of approaches indicates the need for an opportunity for councils and older people to jointly reflect on the effectiveness of current approaches and the factors contributing to effective engagement with older people.

4.4 Linking planning for age-friendly communities with other council activities

Across the past decade there have been increasing expectations of Victorian local governments to develop plans that clearly articulate the vision they have for their community in relation to physical development and infrastructure and

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enhancement of the community’s health and wellbeing. Councils engage a range of consultation processes in the development of these plans. They are also required to publically report progress on implementation of these plans.

Examples of key plans councils are required to develop include the following:

Each year a council needs to provide the Minister for Local Government with a Council Plan which outlines the strategic objectives of the Council and how it is proposing to resource the implementation of this Plan.17

Councils are required under the Health Act (1958) to develop a Municipal Public Health Plan which must be annually reviewed and updated at least every three years to ensure it remains appropriate. The Plan must indicate how the Council proposes to address prevention of risk and disease as well as promotion of public health and community wellbeing. Each Plan must be developed and implemented in partnership with the community and other local organisations.

As a result of the Disability Act 2006 all councils must now have a Disability Action Plan or ensure that required actions are included in their Council Plan. (This requirement has resulted in a significant increase in Councils’ attention to the accessibility of buildings and physical infrastructure as well as issues of rights and discrimination. Any responses arising from the Disability Act requirements have significant benefits for older people.)

Planning for positive ageing and age-friendly communities has very strong links with these council planning processes. The eight topic areas that shape the WHO Age-friendly Cities Guide and Checklist span the responsibilities of many different areas of council operation. It appears logical that a whole-of-council approach will achieve the most substantive and sustained improvements in the age-friendliness of any local municipality.

Incorporating key initiatives that support development of age-friendly communities into the Council Plan and/or Municipal Public Health Plan has the potential to achieve more sustained commitment and ongoing improvements to the age-friendliness of the community. A whole-of-council commitment may be further strengthened when the benefits for the whole community from a more age-friendly environment are recognised.

A number of councils identified that any project with a specific focus on older people faces challenges because of outdated views about older people amongst council staff, councillors, older people themselves and the community. Councils report that where a plan focuses only on older people it can be viewed as the responsibility of the aged services area of council rather than a cross departmental team. An additional difficulty can be encountered when an ageist response (such as ‘what do we need to do to look after older people’ ) is evident within council rather than one that recognises older people as major contributors to their community with a desire to remain independent and self reliant.

Integrating age-friendly initiatives into broader council plans has the potential to address the challenges with plans that focus solely on older people. 17 Victorian Government Local Government Act 1989 Part 6

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5 Maintaining the momentum for improving the age-friendliness of communities

The ageing of our community and the clear preference of many older people to remain living in their community will continue to present challenges for all councils, State and Commonwealth governments and the wider community over the coming decades. The action plans of many positive ageing strategies indicate councils have the capacity to significantly impact on the age-friendliness of their municipality. Councils can directly influence the age-friendliness of their municipality by their approach to undertaking their core responsibilities. The effectiveness of a council’s approach to improving the age-friendliness of their municipality is strengthened by a whole-of-council response.

In a number of areas (such as housing, transport, employment, and community and health services) improvements to the age-friendliness of the community will be enhanced by councils working in partnership with other organisations. On some issues councils need to be strong advocates for their older residents to other spheres of government.

A number of councils in the early stages of using the WHO resources have indicated how helpful it would be to gain a better understanding of how other councils are using these resources. This indicates the importance of providing opportunities for councils to share information on evolving practices and reflect on successes and challenges in using the WHO resources.

Across the next few years increasing numbers of councils will need to review and update their positive ageing plans. Therefore it is important to continue to maintain awareness amongst these councils of the WHO Guide and Checklist and the Canadian Guide for rural and remote communities as it is likely that many councils will find these to be useful resources when reviewing and updating their positive ageing plans.

5.1 Specific initiatives

The following initiatives support the ongoing development of good practice in the use of the WHO Age-friendly resources and associated documents such as the Canadian Guide for rural and remote communities.

Creating opportunities for sharing knowledge and providing easy access to information

‘The value of today has been learning from others – there is a great deal we can learn from each other’.

‘Things are changing so quickly we can’t keep up to date with what is happening!’

(Comment from participants at the Project Workshop)

There would be considerable benefit in arranging workshops to share insights into the successes and challenges of using the Age-friendly cities

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resources. Given the importance of a whole-of-council approach to increasing the age-friendliness of communities, considerable benefit would be gained from involving staff from different departments within councils to participate in these workshops.

Development and maintenance of a website providing age-friendly cities and related resources would provide a readily accessible information source for councils. This website could include links to emerging overseas examples. (This could be achieved by building onto the positive ageing website developed by the MAV as well as the Australian Local Government Association website.)18

There would be benefit in exploring the potential for mentoring between councils to share experiences in development of age-friendly communities.

Comprehensive communication strategy

Increased commitment to development of age-friendly communities can be achieved through development of a multi-layered communication strategy about the WHO Guide and Checklist that targets the following groups:

Council staff responsible for developing positive ageing and age-friendly community strategies to highlight where to find more information about how the resources can be used;

Councillors and other council staff to introduce them to the key information and messages contained in the WHO Guide and Checklist;

Older people to inform them about the breadth of issues that contribute to age-friendly cities and communities and what other older people have identified as important aspects;

Service providers and community groups to make them aware of the WHO Guide and Checklist and related resources and to encourage ways in which they can contribute to increasing the age-friendliness of their services/activities; and

The wider community – it is important to assist the wider community better understand older people’s perspective on what contributes to the age-friendliness of communities.

The MAV/COTA Positive Ageing in Local Communities Project has recently released a document highlighting many local government achievements in positive ageing and a copy the WHO checklist is included in the publication. This document can be anticipated to raise awareness of the WHO Checklist once it is widely distributed to councils and the community.

The MAV taking a leadership role

18 It should be noted that the International Federation on Ageing has recently established a website to share information on age-friendly communities initiatives internationally. This site is still in the early stages of development and it is at present unclear how long it will take for the site to feature the resources that councils are indicating they need to support their development of age friendly communities.

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The MAV could actively advocate with councillors and senior council staff on the value to the whole community of an age-friendly approach.

Collation of issues of significance to older people to strengthen advocacy

An observation from this project is that individual councils are collating considerable information on issues of significance to older people that are of importance far beyond informing a local positive ageing strategy. These insights, if collated across councils in Victoria, could provide a strong basis for advocating to the State and Commonwealth governments about the need for an expanded and more integrated government strategy for supporting positive ageing and age-friendly communities across Australia. The last national ageing strategy developed in 200119 is now in urgent need of updating.

19 Kevin Andrews (Minister for Ageing) 2001, National Strategy for an Ageing Australia, Commonwealth of Australia

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Appendix 1 Details of the approach of eight councils

Appendix 1 has been developed to provide a more detailed picture of how eight different councils are using the WHO age-friendly cities resources to support the development of their positive ageing strategies. The information in this appendix reflects developments up to early to mid July 2009; a number of councils are continuing to progress their positive ageing initiatives and thus some of the information will quickly be outdated.

The eight councils are diverse in their characteristics and how they have used the WHO age-friendly cities resources. They are at different stages in the development of positive ageing approaches and confront different challenges in pro-actively planning for their older community members.

The eight councils are presented in the order outlined in the table below. The information in the table illustrates the diversity in the context of the eight councils in terms of population size, number of older people and the geographic area they cover.

It is evident from the discussion with councils that the number of older people in the municipality, whether older people are dispersed across multiple towns and isolated rural areas or concentrated in urban areas, and the physical terrain of the municipality (e.g. whether it has major hills or geographically isolated rural areas) all present particular challenges for achieving age-friendly communities.

Table A1.1 Characteristics of the eight councils

Total Population

2006

Residents 55 years and older

Area of municipality

No. %Rural Councils

Warrnambool 31,501 7,876 25.0% 121 sq kms

Shepparton 59,202 14,268 24.1% 2,422 sq kms

Macedon Ranges 39,989 9,358 23.4% 1,747 sq kms

Rural/Metropolitan Interface Councils

Wyndham 116,001 17,284 14.9% 542 sq kms

Yarra Ranges 144,993 31,754 21.9% 2,470 sq kms

Mornington Peninsula

140,849 45,353 32.2% 723 sq kms

MetropolitanCouncils

Moreland 142,325 34,586 24.3% 51 sq kms

Boroondara 162,000 40,409 24.9% 60 sq kms

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1 Warrnambool City Council

Municipal profile The City of Warrnambool is about 260 km south west of Melbourne and services the needs of neighbouring rural municipalities. It covers an area of 121 sq kms. The city is primarily residential and commercial and in 2006 had a population of 31,501. A quarter of the population is aged 55 and over and 6% of residents were born overseas.

Of the population aged 55 and over, 41% are aged between 55 and 64, 30% between 65 and 74 and 29% are aged 75 and over.

Active Ageing Plan and proposed use of the WHO ChecklistIn November 2008 the Warrnambool Council launched its Active Ageing Plan Warrnambool 2008 to 2013, updating its previous 2004-2007 Aged and Disability Strategic Plan. The new Active Ageing Plan comments:

‘The council approach to active ageing is based on recognition of the need to continue to consult with older residents, to promote their continuing contribution of participation in the community and to respond to any concerns and needs that they identify.’ 20

The Active Ageing Plan has built on the success of a number of positive ageing initiatives commenced in 2007/2008, with funding support through the MAV/ COTA Positive Ageing in Local Communities Project.21

The development of the Plan was overseen by a Project Team, comprising a number of active older community representatives and council staff from three council departments - Community Development, Infrastructure Services and City Growth. The report highlights that a key component in the preparation of the Plan was the consultation phase, with over 200 people being consulted in the development of the Plan. The areas of focus for consultations and submissions from the community were the physical, built and natural environment, the social environment and the economic environment.

The strategies and actions identified in the Active Ageing Plan in response to the findings from the consultations cover the following areas:

Public access Roads and footpath Housing Provision of services Information

Isolation Intergenerational contact Skills and experience Financial education Age-friendly city

As indicated above, one of the action areas in the plan specifically relates to the use of the WHO Checklist, with the Active Ageing Plan commenting as follows.

‘While the [WHO] checklists are intended for large cities, much of the content is applicable to Warrnambool. It is proposed that there is

20 Active Ageing Plan Warrnambool 2008 to 2013. Warrnambool City Council, page 721 These initiatives included the Mature Age Workers Strategy, Business Mentoring Program, a Financial Literacy Program and a series of intergenerational information sessions to demystify technology.

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potential for increasing the awareness of the community and promoting potential future ‘Age-friendly’ improvements in the City through the adoption and implementation of these checklists.’22

The specific strategies and actions relating to the WHO Checklist outlined in the Active Ageing Plan are set out in Table A1.2

Since the launch of the Active Ageing Plan in late 2008, an Active Ageing Committee has been established, with 10 positions for older residents on the Committee. The older committee members were recruited through an expression of interest process and on the whole reflect younger older people who are still working or more recently retired, rather than frailer older residents. The Committee is chaired by the Mayor. Staff from different areas of the Council participate on a regular or as needed basis.

The Active Ageing Committee is a sub Committee of the Council’s Community Services Committee. Responsibility for monitoring implementation of the Active Ageing Plan Warrnambool 2008 to 2013 rests with the Active Ageing Committee.

A working party of community representatives on the Active Ageing Committee has been established to assess and recommend how the WHO Checklist can be used to best effect within the municipality. Members of this working party have been engaged in deliberation on issues such as:

how to ensure the Checklist is localised to reflect local factors; the need to have better understanding of some issues such as housing

where members have limited knowledge of what is available and what is relevant to consider;

whether it is appropriate to prioritise issues covered in the checklist; how to score the assessment of individual items in the Checklist so that it

can be used to assess progress on an annual basis. At the time of interview the rating scale being considered was as follows - ‘strongly disagree’, ‘moderately disagree’, ‘moderately agree’ and ‘strongly agree’ and ‘don’t know’; and

how to use the checklist to seek the views of a cross section of older people across the municipality.

Working party members have been trialling their version of the checklist with older people. There was also an awareness amongst working party members of the need to indicate tangible progress on addressing issues if older community members were requested to complete the checklist – ‘we will have to see progress or else people won’t fill it in’.

22Active Ageing Plan Warrnambool 2008 to 2013. Warrnambool City Council, page 39

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Table A1.2

Active Ageing Plan Warrnambool 2008 to 2013Strategies and actions specifically relating to WHO Age-friendly Checklist

Strategy ActionsCouncil to appoint a Committee, chaired by the Mayor and comprising of: Mayor Chief Executive Officer Older residents of Warrnambool City Growth Directorate Community Development Directorate

Preparation of draft terms of reference to be submitted to CEO, Management Executive Group and Council.

Recommendations on the proposed composition of the Committee to be presented to Council.

Council to adopt terms of reference and the composition of the committee for the ‘Age- friendly City’.

Seek a high-profile for the Committee and its work with a media release to be released re the establishment, objectives, role, membership and program of the new Committee.

The role of the Committee is to include: Examine content of the WHO Age-

friendly Checklist in the following areas and identify the criteria relevant to Warrnambool

o Outdoor spaces and buildingso Transportationo Housingo Social participationo Respect and social inclusiono Civic participation and

employmento Communication and informationo Community support and health

services

First meeting of the Committee for an ‘Age- friendly City’ to consider each of the checklists and determine the assessment areas relevant to Warrnambool.

A media release to be issued re the content of the adopted checklists.

Conduct an annual appraisal of the modified checklists

Committee to consider each of the adopted checklists and determine the method of assessment and rating system for each one.

The methods are likely to vary and could involve: An assessment based on the current

knowledge of the Committee An audit, followed by an assessment Consultations with people with

qualifications/experience in the area under assessment.

The appraisal/assessment, which could involve a period of 3 months, would be conducted annually over a period of five years.

Provide a report on the results of the appraisal to Council and to the public along with recommendations for improvements, where appropriate

Committee to report on ratings given to each area assessed along with long and short-term recommendations for improvements.

Maintain a high profile project with media reports on the findings of the Committee and recommendations made, along with Council's response.

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2 City of Greater Shepparton

Municipal profileThe City of Greater Shepparton is a major regional centre servicing the towns and rural areas of the surrounding region. It is located about 190 kms north of Melbourne and covers an area of 2,422 sq kms. The municipality is a mix of residential, rural and commercial and has a number of large towns.

In 2006 Greater Shepparton had a population of around 59,200, with almost a quarter of the population aged 55 and over and 12% of residents were born overseas. Of the population aged 55 and over, 44% are aged between 55 and 64, 29% between 65 and 74 and 27% are aged 75 and over.

Overview of Use of the WHO Guide and/or ChecklistThe WHO Checklist was used as the framework for consultations with well over 100 people (in individual interviews and group discussions) associated with development of the Greater Shepparton Positive Ageing Strategy 2009 – 2014.

In initial consultation interviews, every item in the WHO Checklist was discussed, but this was found to be too cumbersome and time consuming. In subsequent interviews only the broad headings in the WHO Checklist were used as a framework for discussion.

The WHO Checklist was forwarded to participants in the consultations prior to the discussions as a way of encouraging them to think more broadly about the issues upon which they may want to comment.

Positive Ageing StrategyThe City of Greater Shepparton has recently completed development of a draft five-year positive ageing strategy23 which will be finalised and formally adopted by the Council following a period of consultation with the community. As outlined in the Greater Shepparton Positive Ageing Strategy 2009 – 2014.

‘The goal of the plan is to provide opportunities for those over the age of 55 to age positively within the City of Greater Shepparton …

The Greater Shepparton Positive Ageing Strategy 2009-2014 has been developed as a ‘whole of council’ approach to ageing and encompasses a broad community approach to ageing well. Driving the strategy development has been the recognition that older people have the right to age well as citizens within their communities rather than being seen as a burden on society.’ (page 5)

The consultations undertaken as part of the development of the positive ageing strategy involved a wide range of older people including: members of community groups; groups of people attending focus groups, council staff (a number of whom were over 50); individuals who sought to express an independent view; professionals from a range of community, aged and welfare services; and people for the business sector.

23 Greater Shepparton Positive Ageing Strategy 2009-2014, Version 6 – 27 January 2009, Draft for Community Consultation

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Particular effort was made to inform as many older people and community members as possible about the consultations and encourage their participation in the project. Information about the consultations was disseminated through local radio, written media, speaking about the project at various Seniors’ groups across the municipality and meetings of professionals. Consultation forums were held in the three major towns in the municipality and with key ethnic groups to ensure wide representation reflecting the diversity of the municipality’s residents.

Recognising the importance of developing a whole-of-council understanding and commitment to the strategy, staff in each council department were interviewed and thus made aware of the breadth of issues relevant to positive ageing covered in the WHO Checklist.

The draft Strategy is organised into four themes as outlined below in Table A1.3. These themes reflect the themes identified in the broader Greater Shepparton 2030 Strategy and all the topic areas of the WHO Age-friendly Cities Checklist have been accounted for within these four themes.

Through implementation of the Greater Shepparton Positive Ageing Strategy 2009 - 2014 it is intended that two broad outcomes will be achieved:

older people feeling valued by their community; and the availability of more choices and options for older people to enable their

access to and use of available services and facilities and an increased range of activities.

It is anticipated that the outcomes of the implementation of the Strategy will be reviewed, evaluated and reported on to Council and the community. A range of approaches are proposed to ensure accountability for implementation of the Strategy including: developing a Positive Ageing Steering Committee to oversee

implementation of Council responsibilities identified in the plan and to provide feedback on other developments;

reviewing the Strategy on an annual basis to ensure its ongoing relevance to the community and connection with the annual Council Plan; and

engaging a Positive Ageing Co-coordinator to facilitate implementation of the Strategy.

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Table A1.3Greater Shepparton Positive Ageing Strategy 2009 – 2014

Themes, Visions and Strategic Objectives

Theme 1 – Settlement, housing and infrastructure Vision

Strategic objectives

Vision

Strategic objectives

Older people have access to housing which facilitates ‘ageing in place’

Increase older people’s access to a range of housing options Increase older people’s sense of safety in their homes and community Increased access to support services that allow older people to remain

living in the community and/or connected to community living in a residential care facility

A more connected community through improved access to affordable, safe and effective transport and mobility options. Increase the information available to the community about the transport

and mobility options available in Greater Shepparton Increased local walk-ability in all urban areas Increase the provision of facilities which encourage mobility Improve access to and safety on paths Support older people in their use of private modes of transport Increase access to safe and effective public and community transport

Theme 2: Participation in community lifeVision

Strategic objectives

Older people actively participate in the community and feel valued for their experience, expertise and contribution. Increased access to initiatives that promote community connectedness and

inclusion Acknowledge and celebrate the contributions of older people to the

community Provide access to facilities were older people can come together for social,

recreation and leisure activities that promote connection and inclusion Enhance the diversity of recreational and physical activity opportunities Increase older people's access to health and information Strength opportunities for older people to participate in community

decision-making

Theme 3: Workforce participation, transition to retirement and financial well-beingVision

Strategic objectives

Older people have access to employment and lifelong learning opportunities which supports their financial, social, emotional and physical well-being Increase access to opportunities for lifelong learning Promote the value of mature workers in the workplace Increase awareness of current volunteering opportunities and continue to

increase and promote volunteer opportunities Encourage businesses in Greater Shepparton to realise the economic

opportunities created by an ageing population through the promotion of age friendly practices

Theme 4: Community planning and leadershipVision

Strategic objectives

An environment where ‘positive ageing’ is a key platform that informs the planning and delivery of services, facilities and activities delivered by council and other organisations in the community Promote the principles of ‘healthy ageing’ across the relevant areas of

Council’s service and program planning and delivery Promote the plan as an integrated whole of community initiative Increase awareness across the community that ‘healthy ageing’ ideally

begins in early childhood and that people's experiences, opportunities and choices in their early years will influence their quality of life in old age

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3 Macedon Ranges Shire Council

Municipal profileMacedon Ranges Shire is a semi-rural municipality, about 60 kms north-west of Melbourne and covers an area of 1,747sq kms. The Shire is a mix of dispersed towns and rural properties and its most important industry is tourism.

In 2006 the Shire had a population of around 40,000, with just under a quarter of the population aged 55 and over (close to the state average). 13% of residents were born overseas. Of the population aged 55 and over, 55% are aged between 55 and 64, 26% between 65 and 74 and 19% are aged 75 and over.

Overview of Use of the WHO Guide and/or ChecklistA multiagency strategic planning process to create an age-friendly community is currently underway in the Shire, involving a consortium of health and welfare agencies who service the Macedon Ranges Shire. The project is building on the goals of the WHO Guide and using its topic areas as a framework for shaping the Strategy.24

It was anticipated that the Council's Positive Ageing Advisory Committee would use the WHO Checklist to assess the age-friendliness of the key towns within the Shire. However, after some consideration, it was decided the checklist in the Canadian Age-Friendly Rural and Remote Communities: A Guide would be more relevant to the Shire’s circumstances.

The Council’s activities supporting positive ageing strategies

Positive Ageing Advisory Committee In 2007 the Council established a positive ageing policy position and at the same time established an Advisory Committee of older people to provide advice to Council about positive ageing issues. Drawing on the experience of the past two years, the Council has been working with Advisory Committee members on redrafting its terms of reference to increase its capacity to respond to the municipality’s positive ageing agenda.

It is proposed that the future Advisory Committee have up to eight community representatives. The Advisory Committee has a strong connection with Council, with the Council appointing two Councillors to the Committee. These Councillors will be responsible for advising the Council on the views of the Committee.

There is a desire to widen the age range and life experience of Advisory Committee community representatives and have representation from people who are retired, people who are still working, those who are frailer and in receipt of support services, as well as younger people who can contribute issues from the vantage point of anticipation of growing older.

The Advisory Committee meets six times a year to consider formal operational issues, with meetings rotated across the Shire's three major towns. The 24 Tender Brief, Developing a multi-agency strategic plan to create an age friendly community in the Macedon Ranges, November 2008

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Committee also has five scheduled Working Group meetings and it is anticipated that these will be held in five different locations across the Shire. A key focus of these meetings is proposed to be undertaking an analysis of the age-friendliness of local townships.

New multiagency strategic plan

The Council has an Aged and Disability Services Strategy which is set to expire in 2009. Instead of replacing this strategy with another council-only strategy, a decision has been made, in partnership with other local organisations, to replace it with a multi-agency strategic plan. As indicated in the Tender Brief for the project this plan:

‘focuses upon the health and well-being of older people across the Shire and builds upon the goals of the World Health Organisation's Age Friendly Cities Guide with its key topic areas: Transportation; Housing; Social Participation; Respect and Social Inclusion; Civic Participation and Employment; Communication and Information; Community Support and Health Services; and Outdoor Spaces And Buildings. This new strategy is expected to serve as the guiding strategic plan for all services including health and welfare agencies which seek to build the social capital, community connectedness and social cohesion of older people across the Shire.’25

The development of the Strategy is being informed by consultations with a diverse range of older people in the various communities across the Shire as well as with businesses, agencies, organisations and their staff who serve older people. The WHO Checklist topic areas are being used as a framework for consultations

The Council Plan 2009-2013 indicates the Council anticipates implementing the elements of the Positive Ageing Strategy relevant to the Council across the 2010/2012 Council years with a review of the Strategy identified for 2012/2013.

25 Ibid

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4 City of Wyndham

Municipal profileThe City of Wyndham is located in the south west of Melbourne, 20 km from the Melbourne central business district and covers an area of 542 sq kms. The city is a mix of residential, industrial and rural areas. It is one of Melbourne’s key growth areas and has been experiencing rapid population growth for many years, including increases in the number of older residents.

In 2006 the municipality had a population of 116,000, with 15% of the population aged 55 and over (well below the Victorian average of 25%). 27% of residents are overseas born. Of the population aged 55 and over, 55% are aged between 55 and 64, 26% between 65 and 74 and 19% are aged 75 and over.

Overview of Use of the WHO Guide and/or ChecklistThe WHO Checklist has informed the development of the Council’s positive ageing strategy and ‘has been used to shape the strategic framework of the Ageing Well Strategy and act as a framework of future aspiration for Wyndham’.26

The Strategy identifies what Council has already done, or is currently doing to support each item in the WHO Checklist. This documentation demonstrates the important role of many areas of the Council’s activities in responding to issues affecting older people.

Ageing Well StrategyThe City of Wyndham’s recently completed an Ageing Well Strategy (June 2009). The development of the Strategy was driven collaboratively by the Aged and Disability division as well as the Strategic Planning and Town Planning areas. Through their day-to-day work these divisions of Council were very aware of issues associated with increasing numbers of older residents and the need for a proactive response. For example the Planning area was facing a number of issues relating to development applications for retirement villages.

Responsibility for implementing the Strategy will involve a whole-of- council approach and will particularly involve the Council directorates of Infrastructure, Sustainable Development and Community Development.

The development of the Strategy has drawn on a range of community and stakeholder consultations undertaken for other Council reviews and strategies, particularly the Disability Strategy and Action Plan and the review of Home and Community Care services.

Amongst many other initiatives, the Strategy will lead to the establishment of a position dedicated to supporting implementation of the Positive Ageing Plan and growing the engagement of older people. In addition an ’Ageing Positively’ Reference Group is to be established to assist with the Plan’s implementation.

26 Ageing Well Strategy, Wyndham City Council, June 2009 page 18

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5 Shire of Yarra Ranges

Municipal profileYarra Ranges Shire is a semi-rural municipality, about 30 kms east of Melbourne and covers an area of 2,470sq kms. The Shire is a mix of Melbourne suburbia, dispersed towns and rural properties.

In 2006 the Shire’s population was 144,993 with over a fifth of the population aged 55 and over. 17% of residents were born overseas. Of the population aged 55 and over, 53% are aged between 55 and 64, 26% between 65 and 74 and 21% are aged 75 and over.

Overview of Use of the WHO Guide and/or ChecklistThe Yarra Ranges Shire Council and Council’s older persons’ consultative committee are using the WHO Checklist as a basis for developing the principles and actions for the Council’s 2010-2015 Positive Ageing Strategy. Work on development of this Strategy has recently commenced and the WHO Checklist was handed out to all participants in a recent consultation forum on access and mobility. At this forum (attended by 60 people aged between 40 and 90 years) the WHO Checklist was used to widen people's awareness of the issues that need to be addressed in the Positive Ageing Strategy and to seek targeted feedback on what was currently being done well and also to also identify areas considered to be priorities for future action.

Council plans to continue utilizing the WHO Checklist widely as part of its further consultation to inform development of a new Positive Ageing Strategy. Consideration is being given to placing a modified version of the WHO Checklist in survey format on the Council's website to allow residents to have input to the Strategy development. Hard copies will also be distributed to older people through a number of outlets within the Shire. At present people who have taken copies of the WHO Checklist have been asked to mark the three things that they think are working well within the Shire and the three things which they think need attention, with the option of also indicating their views on additional areas.

Positive Ageing Strategy and consultative approaches with older people The Council has a positive ageing strategy27 which is due for updating by 2010. Work on updating the strategy has commenced. A significant focus of the 2006-2009 Strategy was on issues related to and arising from the Council's service provision role. The Positive Ageing Strategy currently under development will have a wider focus on developing an age-friendly environment within the Shire.

One of the recommendations of the 2006-2009 Strategy was the establishment of an Older Persons’ Reference Group. This group is now known as the Positive Ageing Forum Executive (PAFE) and its role is to provide a mechanism for community input and feedback on the implementation of the 2006-2009 Strategy as well as development of the next strategy. PAFE can have between seven to ten older community members and they are selected to reflect the diversity amongst older people across the municipality. PAFE also has Councillor and Council officer members.

27 A Positive Future, Positive Ageing in the Shire of Yarra Ranges 2006-2009

40

People can register to have general membership of the Forum. Membership is open to all interested parties and thus covers a broad range of community agencies and residents. General members can attend quarterly forums and may also be asked to participate from time to time on working groups.

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6 Mornington Peninsula Shire Council

Municipal profileMornington Peninsula Shire is a mix of urban and semi-rural areas, between 40 and 80 kms south east of Melbourne and covers an area of 723 sq kms and is a promontory almost surrounded by sea. The Shire is a mix of urban areas, dispersed towns and rural properties and its most important industry is tourism.

In 2006 the Shire had a population of 140,849. The Shire has a number of significant retirement communities and has a large older population, with just under a third of the population aged 55 and over and 19% of residents were born overseas. Of the population aged 55 and over, 40% are aged between 55 and 64, 31% between 65 and 74 and 29% are aged 75 and over.

Overview of Use of the WHO Guide and/or ChecklistThe WHO Checklist is being used to support discussion with staff across the Council in reviewing the outcomes and lessons from their 2002-2007 Elder Citizen’s in the Community strategy as part of early work for the development of a new positive ageing strategy. The WHO Checklist is considered to be a significant tool for assisting to expand thinking about the issues to be considered when looking at planning for the municipality’s older population, particularly in developing awareness of the need for a whole-of-council approach. It is anticipated that both the WHO Guide and Checklist will also be used to support future consultation about the new Strategy and to monitor its implementation.

The Positive Ageing Strategy and older persons’ consultative structureThe 2009-2013 Shire Strategic Plan identifies development of a positive ageing strategy amongst its strategic priorities. In 2002 the Council developed a five-year strategy plan for services for older people in the Mornington Peninsula Shire28. As part of preparing for the development of the positive ageing strategy, a thorough review is being undertaken of the achievements and lessons arising from the previous Strategy.

One of the recommendations of the 2002-2007 Elder Citizen’s in the Community strategy was establishment of a formal Elder Citizens Advisory Committee to represent issues and views of older citizens. This group was formed in 2006 and meets monthly with Councillors and Council Officers from the Aged and Disability Services Unit to provide advice on recommendations to Council on issues facing older adults and to provide community input into programs and policies. One of the specific tasks of this group is to help the Council implement its Elder Citizens in the Community strategy; it will have a key role in supporting the development of the new Strategy. The Group actively works to consult and engage with older people across the Shire in order to represent their views.

28 Elder Citizens in the Community; A Five-Year Strategy Plans for Developing Services for the Elder Citizens of the Mornington Peninsula Shire, December 2002

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7 Moreland City Council

Municipal profileThe City of Moreland is located in the inner north of Melbourne, around 5 km from the Melbourne central business district, and covers an area of 51 sq kms. The city is a mix of residential and industrial areas and has a significant retail shopping strip.

In 2006 the City had a population of 142,325, with almost a quarter of the population aged 55 and over. 35% of residents were born overseas. Of the population aged 55 and over, 34% are aged between 55 and 64, 32% are aged between 65 and 74 and 34% are aged 75 and over.

Overview of use of the WHO Guide and/or ChecklistThe WHO Checklist was used as a framework for the consultations with older people undertaken as part of the Ageing Well in Moreland Consultation project29. This project examined the main issues people 55 and over in Moreland were confronting as well as the opportunities available to them. Seven of the eight topic areas outlined in the WHO Guide and Checklist were used. The ‘health and social services’ topic was not used because it was considered to require more in-depth discussion due to the Council's major role as a provider of services to older people; it would be the subject of a later consultation.

The Moreland Later Years Strategy 2007-2012 sets out the proposed actions under each of the WHO Age-friendly Cities topic areas.

Ageing Well in Moreland Consultation and Later Years StrategyThe consultations undertaken as part of the Ageing Well in Moreland project asked people what makes Moreland a good place in which to grow old. A total of 245 people participated in consultations. A deliberate effort was made to ensure that older people from all suburbs, cultural background, socio-economic status, age cohorts and genders were included in the consultations.

Forty five people aged 55 and over participated in focus groups and in-depth individual face–to face interviews undertaken by Council staff. People were given a choice of attending a focus group or individual interview, with many choosing an individual interview. In addition, a phone survey of 200 people aged 55 and over was used to extend the number of people involved in consultations and add quantitative data to the qualitative data collected through the focus groups and more in-depth personal interviews.

The Moreland Later Years Strategy 2007-2012 (adopted by the Council in August 2008) was developed to provide a framework for the Council to consider the actions it can take to support positive ageing opportunities for all its older residents. The Ageing Well in Moreland consultations informed the development of the Strategy. The views of older people participating in the consultation have been documented in detail and are included as appendices to the Strategy.

29 The Ageing Well in Moreland project was supported with funding through the MAV/COTA Positive Ageing in Local Communities Project.

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All participants involved in the consultation will receive a copy of the Later Years Strategy and a summary of the consultation report. All participants in the consultations have also been invited to be on positive ageing mailing list to keep them informed about progress on implementation of the strategy and other initiatives. Many will be invited to participate in a Seniors Panel to provide feedback to Council on specific issues. The actions proposed in the Strategy are set out in Table A1.4. They indicate that many areas of the council have a role to play in implementation of the Strategy. Progress on implementation of the actions outlined in the Strategy will be reported through the Municipal Public Health Plan reporting process.

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Table A1.5Moreland - Later Years Strategy 2007-2012

Suggested actions in response to issues raised during consultations

Topic Suggested actions for the CouncilOutdoor spaces and buildings

Remove barriers to physical access in existing infrastructure Plan and create safe and secure public spaces Ensure universal design is implemented in all building initiatives

Transport Include the mobility of older people as an element in the Moreland Integrated Transport Strategy

Promote road and pedestrian safety Trials of innovative ways of assisting older people to use public transport

more than they do now

Housing Provide advice on development applications to ensure elements of affordable accessible and adaptable housing are included

Investigate the issues faced by older people in the rental market and formulate strategies to support them

Advocate for social housing in public housing for seniors Continue to advocate for regulation on accessible and adaptable housing Provide educational opportunities for older people on selling, reverse

mortgages, buying joint property as an investment and developing a residential site

Social participation

Promote awareness of the benefits of physical and mental activity and social participation

Enhance the opportunities available for older citizens to engage in a wide range of leisure, recreational and educational and cultural activities

Integrated approach to health promotion for older people, with a focus on self-management and prevention

Engaged with adult learning organisations and promotion wide range of lifelong learning opportunities

Identified trial ways to encourage informal connections between people

Respect and social inclusion

Create opportunities for intergenerational contact with children and youth Communicate ageing issues in positive ageing notions through ‘Inside

Moreland’ and other council publications Promote awareness of the needs and preferences of older citizens to the

local business community Community development and strengthening initiatives need to include

seniors Identify projects and form partnerships

Communi-cation and information

Council style guide should result in age friendly printed information Hard copies of information should be made available as website addresses Facilitate access to relevant information and advisory services on any

matter including consumer rights Build a mailing list of older people for newsletters and promotions

Civic participation and employment (includes volunteering)

Council to examine its own ageing workforce and examine options re retention and recruitment of mature age staff

Create opportunities for older citizens to contribute to and advise on decisions that affect their well-being

Recognise and reward older citizens contributions and achievements Work with organisations to promote opportunities for productive

contribution through paid and unpaid work, and lifelong learning Promote mentoring roles for older citizens Promote awareness in the business sector and community of the skills and

contributions of older people

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8 Boroondara City Council

Municipal profileThe City of Boroondara is in Melbourne's inner and middle-eastern suburbs, 5 km east of the central business district and covers an area of 60 sq kms. The city is primarily residential and in 2006 had a population of 162,000. A quarter of the population is aged 55 and over and 27% of residents were born overseas.

Of the population aged 55 and over, 43% are aged between 55 and 64, 25% between 65 and 74 and 32% are aged 75 and over.

Overview of Use of the WHO Guide and/or ChecklistThe Council has used the framework provided by the eight topic areas outlined in the WHO Guide and Checklist to structure the consultations associated with development of their Age Friendly City Strategy. The WHO topic areas are also used as headings in the Strategy’s Action Plan. Two topic areas have been combined, namely ‘social participation’ and ‘respect and social inclusion’.

The Age Friendly City Strategy report comments:

‘The Age Friendly City model developed by the World Health Organisation provides a framework within which Council can view the social, physical, cultural and economic environment experienced by older adults living in Boroondara. This provides an important framework for assessing and planning current and future developments for older adults. Ageing well involves a shift in thinking, a new approach based on knowledge and research about this stage of life.’ 30

The Council’s Age Friendly City Strategy The Boroondara Council Plan 2008- 2013 included a commitment to develop an Age Friendly City Strategy that sought to promote the health, well-being and independence of Boroondara's older residents.31 Key outcomes being sought from development of the Strategy are as follows.

‘Strengthening the community by actively engaging residents and service providers in the planning for an Age Friendly City.

Integrating social, cultural, environmental, physical and economic approaches to older people.

Strengthening relationships and increased collaboration between council and community-based agencies.

Linking overarching council policies to service and facility planning and development.’ 32

Work on development of the Strategy began in 2008, with 10 focus groups to support the development of the Age-friendly City Strategy held in late 2008, with a total of 87 people attending. The size of the focus groups varied from between 5 and 15 people per group. Focus group participants came from five key groups: people retiring soon; older retired people; frail older people;

30 Creating An Age Friendly Boroondara, Draft Strategic Directions, page 131 Boroondara Council Planned 2008- 2013, page 1932 Creating an Age Friendly Boroondara. A Review Of Issues And Opportunities, page 5

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Council staff across a wide range of functions; and local community agency aged services staff.

Following the focus groups, a report was prepared - Creating an Age Friendly Boroondara, A Review of Issues and Opportunities. This report includes a range of contextual analysis and outlines the issues raised in the focus groups under the key themes of the WHO Guide and Checklist. The Report outlines proposed actions to address issues raised during the consultations.

In June 2009, the Council resolved to seek community feedback on the proposed directions and actions outlined in the Report. Following this feedback, the council proposes to further develop its action plan.

Following is an example of some of the proposed objectives and actions outlined in the Age Friendly City Strategy particularly relevant to the ongoing role of older people in monitoring the implementation of actions and the Council’s proposed reporting on progress.

Creating an Age Friendly Boroondara, A Review of Issues and OpportunitiesExtract of some objectives and action

Objective Actions

Ongoing involvement of older peopleEngage with older Boroondara residents and visitors in the planning, development and implementation of an Age Friendly City.33

Explore and develop models for older people to contribute towards evaluation and reporting on progress in developing an Age Friendly City

Establish an ongoing community engagement and consultation plan with Boroondara’s older adults to seek the opinions and input:o promoting partnerships with older people in

the design, development and implementation of an Age Friendly Boroondara.

o facilitate older people to come together to address key issues

o encourage diversity in group membership and support specialist groups across CALD groups, people with a disability, gender and sexual orientation.

Reporting on progress in developing an Age Friendly CityReport to Council and Community on progress in developing an Age Friendly City34

Explore opportunities to develop an Age Friendly City Scorecard for the City of Boroondara as part of the reporting process.

Report periodically to Council and the community about the progress in developing an Age Friendly Boroondara

Appendix 2 People interviewed by the consultantsCouncil People Interviewed

33 Ibid page 20-2134 Ibid page 23

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Bendigo Rod Flavell, Manager Aged and Disability ServicesDi Parker, Ethnic Services CoordinatorHeidi Teague, older residentJeanette Westhead, older residentKen Westhead, older resident

Boroondara Lisa Loughnan, Positive Ageing Coordinator

Brimbank John MacDonagh, Manager Community Care

Casey Janette Green, Manager Community DevelopmentJoan Pepi, Acting Manager Community Development

Knox Debbie Beal, Manager Healthy Ageing

Macedon Ranges Brent Allan, Manager Community Services

Mornington Peninsula

Jenny Van Riel, Manager Aged and Disability ServicesHelen Ridgeway, Positive Ageing ProjectPeter Cracknell, Coordinator Community Support ServicesMarilyn Godley, Chair Peninsula Advisory Committee for Elders

Moorabool Robyn Salt, Aged and Disability Services Coordinator

Moreland Liz Harvey, Aged Services Policy and Planning Officer

Shepparton Teri Bennet-Meyer, Coordinator Aged ServicesMargaret Wayman, resident involved in consultationsJim Douglas, resident involved in consultations

Yarra Ranges Cheryl McInnes, Acting Manager Home & Community SupportMargo Holness, Executive Officer Operations and Social Support

Warrnambool Jill Warne, Service Manager - Community ProgramsNeil Ballard, Rural Access ProgramDr Jan Stewart, member Active Ageing CommitteeElaine Hill, member Active Ageing CommitteeRichard Ridgwell, member Active Ageing CommitteeJim Gray, member Active Ageing CommitteeBore Hoekstra, member Active Ageing CommitteeBrenda Hampson – member Active Ageing Committee

Wyndham Priscilla Mayne – Manager Aged, Disability and Recovery

Others

Kathleen Brasher Formerly of the McCaughey Centre and Co-ordinator of Melbourne’s involvement in the original WHO Age-friendly Cities project

Roland Naufal 4C - consultant to a number of councils using the WHO Age-friendly Cities Guide and Checklist

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Appendix 3 Participants in the 7 August 2009 Project Workshop

MAV Jan Bruce

COTA Victoria Sue Hendy

Councils

Bendigo Rod Flavell

Boroondara Lisa Loughnan

Casey Emma Wilkinson

Macedon Ranges Brent Allan

Mornington Peninsula Jenny Van Riel

Moreland Liz Harvey

Yarra Ranges Cheryl McInnes and Margo Holness

Warrnambool Jill Warne (by telephone)

Wyndham Priscilla Mayne

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Reference documentsCanadian governments, Federal/Provincial/Territorial Ministers Responsible for Seniors, Age-Friendly Rural and Remote Communities: A Guide, 2007 http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/seniors-aines/pubs/age_friendly_rural/index_e.htm

Centre on Aging University of Manitoba, May 2009, Age-Friendly Communities in Manitoba, Summary of Survey Findings - Arborg

Municipal Association of Victoria, Council on the Ageing and Department of Planning and Community Development, June 2009 Positive Ageing in Local Communities Project, Creating Local Age Friendly Communities in Victoria, Melbourne

Project Partnerships and Community Planning and Projects, December 2008, MAV COTA Positive Ageing in Local Communities Project Evaluation, prepared for the Municipal Association of Victoria, Council on the Ageing and the Victorian Department of Planning and Community Development

Vancouver protocol http://www.who.int/ageing/publications/Microsoft%20Word%20-%20AFC_Vancouver_protocol.pdf (accessed July 8 2009)

World Health Organisation, 2007, Global Age-friendly Cities: A Guide, http://www.who.int/ageing/publications/Global_age_friendly_cities_Guide_English.pdf

World Health Organisation, 2007, Checklist of Essential Features of Age-friendly Cities http://www.who.int/ageing/publications/Age_friendly_cities_checklist.pdf

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