Community Indicators in Action: Using Indicators as a Tool for Planning and Evaluating the Health and Wellbeing of a Community

Abstract

Community indicators are summarized or aggregated statistics that include broad measures aimed at measuring the progress of a community but community indicator projects are often criticized for a lack of direct policy and planning actions. This chapter introduces Community Indicators Victoria, a community indicators project located within a southern state of Australia, and describes a successful collaboration with a local government authority in the development of a 4-year Municipal Public Health and Wellbeing Plan. The chapter describes a practical case study example of how community indicators can be used to develop informed, engaged and integrated community planning.

Appendices

Appendix 1: Community Indicators Victoria Indicators included in the Domain of Healthy, Safe and Inclusive Communities

Policy area	Indicators	Measures
Personal health and wellbeing	Self-reported healtha,b	People self-reporting health as excellent or very good: expressed as a percentage of adult population
	Subjective Wellbeinga	Personal Wellbeing Index: Australian Unity Wellbeing Index
	Life expectancyb	Life expectancy at birth
	Adequate physical exerciseb	People engaged in adequate physical activity: Time and sessions (regional)
	Fruit Consumptionb	People meeting recommended intake levels (regional)
	Vegetable Consumptionb	Consumption of recommended intake of fruit (regional)
	Obesityb	Overweight or obese people according to Body Mass Index (self-assessed weight and height) (regional)
	Smoking statusb	People who are current smokers (regional)
	Risky Alcohol Consumptionb	People drinking at levels for long-term risk of harm (regional)
	Illicit Drug Use	Percentage of population that use illicit drugs (regional)
	Psychological Distress	People at risk of psychological distress according to Kessler 10 (regional)
Community connectedness	Feeling part of communitya,b	Satisfaction with feeling part of the community: Australian Unity Wellbeing Index
	Social supportb	People who can get help from friends, family or neighbours when needed
	Volunteeringb	People who help out as volunteers
	Parental participation in schoolsb	Parents involved in activities at their children’s school
Early childhood	Early Childhood Development	Children who reach Australian Early Development Index targets
	Child Health Assessmentsb	Key ages and stages Maternal and Child Health Visits at Age 3.5 Years
	Immunizationb	Percentage of children fully immunized at age 12–15 months
	Breastfeedingb	Children fully breastfed at 6 months of age
Personal and community safety	Perceptions of safetya,b	People who feel safe or very safe when at home alone during the day
		People who feel safe or very safe when at home alone after dark
		People who feel safe or very safe when walking alone in their local area during the day
		People who feel safe or very safe when walking alone in their local area after dark
	Crimeb	Recorded offences for crimes against the person
		Recorded offences for crimes against property
	Family violenceb	Recorded incidences of family violence
	Road safetyb	Road traffic fatalities
		Road traffic major injuries
	Workplace safety	Measure under development
Lifelong learning	Home Internet Accessa,b	People with Internet access at home
		People with broadband Internet access at home
	Library usage	People with a library membership
	Apprenticeships and vocational training enrolmentsb	People aged 25–64 years enrolled in vocational education and training
	Destinations of school leaversb	People fully engaged in work or study
		People not engaged at all in work or study
		People employed full time
		People studying full-time at a non-school institution
		People not attending school and studying full time aged 15–19 years
	School retention ratesb	People aged 17 years still attending secondary school
		People aged 17 years not attending any educational institution
Service availability	Access to services	Measure under development

1. ^aIndicator derived from the CIV Survey.
2. ^bIndicators included by the City of Ballarat in their Municipal Health and Wellbeing Plan.

Appendix 2: Community Indicators Victoria Indicators included in the Domain of Dynamic, Resilient Local Economies

Policy Area	Indicators	Measures
Economic activity	Retained retail spending	Measure under development
	Highly skilled workforceb	People employed in high skilled occupations (ANZSCO levels 1–3)
	Business growth	Measure under development
Employment	Employment rateb	People who are employed and aged 15 years and over
	Unemployment rateb	People who are unemployed
	Local employmentb	People living and working in the same Local Government Area
Income and wealth	Incomeb	Median Equivalised Gross Weekly Household Income
	Distribution of income	Ratio of 80th percentile to 20th percentile gross weekly household income
	Per capita wealth	Measure under development
	Financial stressb	People who could raise 2,000 dollars in 2 days in an emergency
	Distribution of wealth	Measure under development
	Food securitya, b	People who ran out of food in the last 12 months and could not afford to buy more
Skills	Educational qualificationsb	People aged 25 years and over who have a non-school qualification
		People aged 25 years and over who have a bachelor degree or higher qualification
		People aged 25 years and over with highest qualification level between certificate III and diploma
Work-life balance	Adequate work-life balancea, b	Employed people who disagree that their work and family life often interfere with each other

1. ^aIndicator derived from the CIV Survey.
2. ^bIndicators included by the City of Ballarat in their Municipal Health and Wellbeing Plan.

Appendix 3: Community Indicators Victoria Indicators Included in the Domain of Sustainable Built and Natural Environments

Policy Area	Indicators	Measures
Open Space	Access to areas of open space	Measure under development
	Appearance of public spaceb	Measure under development
Housing affordability	Housing affordabilityb	Houses with housing costs 30% or more of gross income
		Median house price
		Median unit/flat/apartment price
		Occupied private dwellings that are government-owned rental dwellings
Transport accessibility	Transport limitationsa, b	People who experienced transport limitations in the last 12 months
	Public transport patronage	Measure under development
	Dedicated walking and cycling trails	Measure under development
	Practical non-car opportunities	Measure under development
	Roads and footpaths	Satisfaction with local roads and footpaths
Sustainable energy use	Greenhouse gas emissions	Measure under development
	Household energy use	Measure under development
	Renewable energy use	Measure under development
Air quality	Air quality	Days exceeding NEPM guideline
Water	Condition of natural streams and waterways	Index of stream condition
	Water consumption	Measure under development
	Waste water recyclinga, b	Percentage of households who collect waste water
Biodiversity	Native vegetation cover	Measure under development
	Carbon sequestration	Measure under development
	Weeds and pests	Measure under development
Waste management	Household waste generationb	Non-recyclable garbage generated by households
	Household waste recyclingb	Recyclables and green organics recycled households
		Non-organic recyclable waste generated by households

1. ^aIndicator derived from the CIV Survey
2. ^bIndicators included by the City of Ballarat in their Municipal Health and Wellbeing Plan.

Appendix 4: Community Indicators Victoria Indicators Included in the Domain of Culturally Rich and Vibrant Communities

Policy Area	Indicators	Measures
Arts and cultural activities	Opportunities to participate in arts and cultural activitiesa, b	Opportunities to participate in arts and cultural activities
	Participation in arts and cultural activitiesa, b	People who participated in arts and related activities in the last month
Sporting and recreational activities	Opportunities to participate in local sporting and recreational activities	Measure under development
	Participation in sporting and recreational activities	Measure under development
Cultural diversity	Community is an accepting place for people from diverse cultures and backgroundsa, b	Percentage of people who agree that it is a good thing for a society to be made up of people from different cultures

1. ^aIndicator derived from the CIV Survey.
2. ^bIndicators included by the City of Ballarat in their Municipal Health and Wellbeing Plan.

Appendix 5: Community Indicators Victoria Indicators Included in the Domain of Democratic and Engaged Communities

Policy Area	Indicators	Measures
Citizen engagement	Opportunity to have a say on important issuesa, b	People who feel they have a say on important issues
	Participation in citizen engagementa, b	People who participated in citizen engagement activities in the last 12 months
	Women local councillorsb	Percentage of female local councillors
	Opportunity to vote for a trustworthy political candidatea	People who agree that they are able to vote for a trustworthy political candidate
	Membership of local community organizations and decision-making bodiesb	People who are members of a decision-making board or committee

1. ^aIndicator derived from the CIV Survey.
2. ^bIndicators included by the City of Ballarat in their Municipal Health and Wellbeing Plan.