After 11 months of work, Council has adopted our four-year Council Plan and ten-year Community vision, including the Municipal Public Health and Wellbeing Plan.

The plan and vision came out of the Hepburn Together Project, where we heard from ten percent of the Shire's community.

“We’ve held community drop-in sessions, hosted surveys, undertook our first deliberative engagement process made up of citizens reflective of our community, and reached out to the broader community, in so many different ways,” said Mayor, Cr Lesley Hewitt.

“Thank you to everyone who took the time to be involved. We could not have done it without the contribution from our community and dedicated staff.”

The ten-year Community Vision is:

Hepburn Shire – an inclusive rural community located in Dja Dja Wurrung country where all people are valued, partnerships are fostered, environment is protected, diversity supported, and innovation embraced.

“The vision is aspirational and includes the elements that we heard were important to our community - partnerships, the environment, our community, diversity and innovation,” said Cr Hewitt.

The Council Plan 2021-2025 describes how Council will strive towards the vision during the four-year term, where to focus efforts, priority actions and how to measure progress. This includes five key focus areas of:

• A resilient, sustainable and protected environment.
• A healthy, supported and empowered community.
• Embracing our past and planning for the future.
• Diverse economy and opportunities.
• A dynamic and responsive Council.

For the first time Council integrated the Municipal Public Health and Wellbeing Plan into the Council Plan, recognising the importance of the health and wellbeing of citizens, and that health and wellbeing impacts every area of Council’s operations.

Read the full Council Plan, Community Vision and Municipal Public Health and Wellbeing Plan.

Council has adopted the 10-year Financial Plan to support the Community Vision and Council Plan. Council has sought input during the various engagement phases of the Hepburn Together project including the Community Panel, online surveys, community pop up sessions and collaborative workshops. This feedback has helped to shape the ten-year Financial Plan.

Read the ten-year Financial Plan.

During 2021 Hepburn Shire Council is embarking on a major strategic planning project; the Hepburn Together project.

The project encompasses the development of the following key strategic documents:

• Our Community Engagement Policy (complete).
• Our 10-year Community Vision (in progress).
• Our 4-year Council Plan (incorporating Municipal Public Health and Wellbeing Plan) (in progress).
• Financial Plan and Asset Plan (in progress).

Through our engagement Council will build a comprehensive understanding of community aspirations, strengths, ideas, priorities and challenges. Together we will uncover the best way to engage with the community, create a shared community vision, and define strategic priorities to inform Council decision making while providing strong leadership and governance that is responsive, open, and accountable.

The Hepburn Together project is an opportunity to shape our future. It is important that we plan in partnership with our community to ensure that the direction we set is a shared one.

Municipal Public Health and Wellbeing Plan

Council has an important role to play in improving the health and wellbeing of people living in the community. As a Council we acknowledge the impact health and wellbeing factors can have on people’s quality of life and will incorporate this Plan with the Council Plan.

Council will work with the community, health, and community organisations and the Department of Health and Human Services to undertake a review of current health and wellbeing indicators. This analysis will help us set goals and identify areas for improvement across the four-year plan. We will also consider the priorities set out in the Victorian Public Health and Wellbeing Plan 2019-2023 including family violence prevention and response, tackling climate change and its impact on health, increasing healthy eating, increasing active living, and reducing tobacco related harm.

Community Vision

Our Community Vision will be a long-term aspirational statement about our community’s goals and aspirations with an outlook of at least 10 years. It will describe what our community values and how our community hopes to live, work, and play in the future. The goals and aspirations outlined in the Community Vision provide direction for Council strategic decision making and assist with the development of other plans and strategies to ensure there is an integrated approach to strategic planning.

Council Plan

A Council Plan is the strategic document that will guide the Councils focus and energy over the course of a 4 year Council term. It will consider the current strengths, weaknesses, challenges, and aspirations of the community through demographic analysis and community engagement findings to inform strategic direction and goals.

The Council Plan outline strategies and actions that will create a pathway for Council to achieve strategic objectives, major initiatives, and the goals, including those set out in the Community Vision. While the Council Plan focuses on Councils roles and responsibilities – it also recognises its role as an advocate and partner. The Council plan will also consider the resources available for the implementation of strategic objectives.

Financial Plan

The Financial Plan has a 10 year outlook and outlines how the financial sustainability of Council will be maintained over the next ten years. It provides us with view to what resources will be available over the long term and medium term to achieve strategic goals and objectives set out in the Community Vision, Council Plan and other strategic plans. The Financial Plan covers a broad range of subject matter including all aspects of the Council’s role including services/operations and capital investment/assets.

Asset Plan

The Asset Plan has a ten year + outlook and addresses how the Council proposes to manage its portfolio of assets to ensure they are developed, renewed or maintained to facilitate the delivery of Council services. It will be strongly linked to the Financial Plan and is critical to the service planning and delivery along with the efficient use of available resources. The Plan informs the development of the Community Vision. Council Plan and other strategic plans by telling us what assets are available to achieve the strategic direction and goals.

A big thank you to the Hepburn Shire community in providing your feedback for the development of our new Community Engagement Policy. Council adopted its new Community Engagement Policy on 23rd of February 2021. We listened, we heard and we acted by incorporating your feedback into the Policy on how you want Council to engage with you into the future. This Policy will form the basis for when, how and what types of engagement we will carry out for different projects and initiatives, depending on their scale, impact and complexity.

We encourage you to read the Policy, and the summary engagement report which captures your feedback. Both documents are available at the right hand side of this page in the document library.

Do you have any questions about the Hepburn Together project? We would love to hear from you! You can either:

• Send us an email at hepburntogether@hepburn.vic.gov.au.
• Call Michelle Whyte on 03 5348 2306

We will be compiling and FAQ page as we go with information that will be helpful throughout the process!