Recommendation 15 of the Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System recognised that communities are best placed to understand and drive local social inclusion and connection efforts to support mental health and wellbeing. It recommended the Victorian Government establish and recurrently resource ‘community collectives' (now known as Social Inclusion Action Groups) in each of Victoria’s 79 local government areas.
What we are doing
The Wellbeing Promotion Office is establishing Social Inclusion Action Groups in 10 local government areas. Social Inclusion Action Groups have been established in the local government areas of Frankston, Benalla, Mansfield, Wangaratta and Latrobe.
The next five groups are being established in the following area:
- Brimbank City Council
- City of Ballarat
- City of Greater Geelong
- City of Whittlesea
- Mildura Rural City Council
Social Inclusion Action Groups are community led groups that make decisions and develop solutions at a local level to support social connection and inclusion.
Each group will:
- identify local needs, existing initiatives and gaps related to social connection and social inclusion
- test, develop and support a range of funded initiatives that prevent social exclusion and support community participation, inclusion and connection
- promote mental health and wellbeing through place-based coordination and activities/initiatives addressing social inclusion and connection.
Each Social Inclusion Action Group is supported by a local government coordinator and a Local Social Inclusion Investment Fund. The coordinator works with community members and leaders to deliver community-led initiatives that foster local participation, inclusion and connection.
The Local Social Inclusion Investment Fund will support social inclusion and connection initiatives across two funding streams:
- General – 80 per cent of the Local Social Inclusion Investment Fund
- First Nations – 20 per cent of the Local Social Inclusion Investment Fund (decisions about the Aboriginal initiative funding will be made by the Aboriginal community).
Guidance to support councils to deliver Social Inclusion Action Groups can be found in the below guidelines.
SIAGs will complement Local Connections – a social prescribing initiative (social prescribing trials that aim to reduce loneliness and social isolation), which operate in the first six Mental Health and Wellbeing Locals.
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Membership
Social Inclusion Action Groups will reflect the communities in which they operate, including:
- people from a broad and diverse range of community members and local leaders of all ages and backgrounds, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and those from LGBTIQA+, disability and culturally diverse communities.
- people with a variety of lived and living experiences including experience of mental illness, psychological distress, addiction and/or social exclusion, isolation and discrimination.
It is expected that membership will evolve over time. An Expression of Interest process will be held to recruit SIAG members in each local government area. For further information please contact your local council or wellbeingpromotion@health.vic.gov.au.
Find out more
Have questions or want to learn more about a project? Please contact wellbeingpromotion@health.vic.gov.au.
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