tackling a tough issue
Child Care Futures COMMUNITY PANEL
Project snapshot
In 2013, the Bayside City Council established a community panel to provide advice to Council on whether it should continue to operate (or withdraw from) two childcare centres. Keith Greaves and Kimbra White facilitated a five meeting, deliberative process with 30 representative members of the Bayside Community.
The challenge
The challenge was to bring together a range of different viewpoints and opinions and ensure that participants had the opportunity to consider new ideas that they may not necessarily be 100% comfortable with.
The process
MosaicLab used a range of methods to ensure people to get the information they needed. This was done through expert presentations and panels but also through an exhibition process, where information was displayed around the venue so that people could read it and then hold small group conversations about that information.
“I have been involved in community activities before and sometimes you can get some quite aggressive characters who really just want to talk on their own topic and don’t want to listen to other people’s ideas but there was not a skerrick of that ...overall respect was just abundant which was really lovely.””
VIDEO: Childcare Future Options Community Panel - Bayside City Council
““We brought them to a fourth session where they felt they were able to express a view, a clear view on how they felt about a range of differences in opinions and what it might take to get them across into ideas that maybe they weren’t particularly comfortable with but they would consider.””
Learn more about this deliberative process on Participedia, where a case study has been prepared exploring some insights, learnings and outcomes associated with this project.