Background: Clarence City Council set about developing a Community Health and Wellbeing Plan with the mission to make it locally relevant and ultimately applicable, taking into consideration the roles and structures of our relatively small Local Government Organisation. Over several years through research and using a variety of community participation methods the Clarence Community Health and Wellbeing Plan 2013-2018 was developed.

Methods: Council engaged in a multi-level consultation process in order for the Plan to adequately reflect community aspirations and needs, government policy and Council capacity. This included: an Internal Working Group consisting of representatives from across the broad Council areas; external networks; an External Reference Group consisting of community members and relevant professional organisations, and; a broad community consultation.

Results/Discussions: The development of the Plan was lengthy due to the numerous consultation methods that were utilised. However, as a result of the process being driven by an Internal Working Group, the Plan has ownership across Council as well as by the community.
The Plan identifies five domains for action, applying and articulating what health and wellbeing means to the community – aspects such as livability, participation, and safety. It identifies that the City is not a homogenous entity and that different needs should be met in different community hubs. It specifies the unique role of Council and examines the capacity of the organisation to deliver the activities with limited resources, and within realistic time frames. It identifies the specific sections of Council that are to take responsibility for action and sets targets.

Conclusions/implications: The Plan takes a fresh approach to Municipal Health and Wellbeing Planning as it not only identifies domains, objectives, strategies and actions, but also outlines Council’s unique role, the partnerships and resources required, realistic timeframes, and identifies cross-Council responsibility. As the Plan's implementation begins, the benefits of this are already being realised.