National Cities Performance Framework
Liveability indicators developed by RMIT’s Healthy Liveable Cities Group’s Australian Urban Observatory team are included in the 2017 National Cities Performance Framework, developed by the Australian Government Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Cities and Regional Development. This framework was developed to assist with continual improvement of the 21 largest Australian cities that are also included in the Australian Urban Observatory. The National Cities Performance Framework has been designed to assist by providing data for all levels of government, industry and the community on policy and investment decisions.
Liveability indicators developed in partnership with the Australian Government and included in the National Cities Performance Framework include:
– Dwellings with access to public open space;
– Dwellings with access to public transport.
For more information on these indicators please visit the National Cities Performance Framework smart cities dashboard.
Cardinia Shire
In 2017, Cardinia Shire launched their ‘Liveability Plan 2017–29‘, an ambitious plan to improve community healthy and well-being for all Cardinia Shire residents. In creating this plan, Cardinia worked closely with RMIT’s Healthy Liveable Cities Group, developing new frameworks based on the same policy-based research that underpins the Australian Urban Observatory. Petrina Dodd-Buckley and Pieta Bucello from Cardinia Shire were instrumental in the development of this partnership.
By adopting Healthy Liveable Cities Group’s approach, Cardinia is focusing, not merely on risk factors of illness, such as ‘healthy eating’ or ‘physical activity’, but rather on the intrinsic social determinants of health – the conditions in which people are born, learn, live, work and age – using this as their definition of a community’s ‘liveability’
In implementing Cardinia’s Liveability Plan 2017–29, the Shire is taking a whole-of-Council and whole-of-community approach, placing community healthy and well-being at the heart of all Council business.
Cardinia has developed a framework that reflects these twin agendas – to consider the social determinants of health and to take a whole-of-Council approach to these issues. This framework supports a range of strategies, services and programs that will strengthen community health and well-being for the 12 years of the Liveablity Plan.
Healthy Liveable Cities Group’s Award Winning Research
The Australian Urban Observatory is underpinned by an ongoing program of substantial federally-funded liveability research, of which a key milestone was the 2017 Creating Liveable Cities in Australia report.
This award-winning report, supported by our Foundation Funding Partners, created the methodology which supported the development of the AUO. It developed and mapped health and policy specific measures and liveability indicators for every dwelling in Australia’s eight capital cities. The report also allowed a comparison of policies that support healthy liveable cities (e.g. walkability, green space access) and identified important policy gaps.
In 2018, the report was awarded the Victorian Planning Institute of Australia Award for Planning Excellence (Cutting Edge Research) and in 2019, it won PIA’s National Award.
The report’s recommendations, and Healthy Liveable Cities ongoing research, have been adopted in the Victorian Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning’s 2019 20-Minute Neighbourhoods ‘Creating a more liveable Melbourne‘ report. This research and framework also assisted in delivering Plan Melbourne Action 76 Metropolitan-wide ‘Neighbourhood Index’.
Share Your Story
We expect many more impact stories to be added over time following the launch of the Observatory in February 2020.
Please contact us if you would like to share your story of success.