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The role of Public Record Office Victoria ......................................................... 3
Principles of multiculturalism ............................................................................ 4
Cultural Diversity Plans Network ...................................................................... 4
Linguistic Diversity ........................................................................................... 5
Religious Diversity ........................................................................................... 5
Public Record Office Victoria and cultural diversity .......................................... 6
Our organisational outcomes ....................................................................... 6
Our Strategic Initiatives ................................................................................ 6
Implementation ................................................................................................ 8
Implementation Timeframe ............................................................................ 10
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Public Record Office Victoria holds a vast array of records created by Victorian
Government departments and auth orities including the State’s courts, local councils, schools, public hospitals and other public offices.
The records date from the establishment of the Port Phillip District in the mid 1830s right through to today and include information relating to areas of activity managed or regulated by government such as the administration of justice, immigration, health and welfare, land, education, Indigenous communities, planning, transport, and resource management.
This unique collection is important to CALD communities in its portrayal of both government policy towards, and day-to-day interaction with, culturally and linguistically diverse communities and individuals over many years. The records hold fragments that can be assembled into stories to bring to life the culturally rich and diverse history of Victoria.
PROV also has a responsibility as an organisation to ensure that there is no undue impediment to all Victorians to access our services; to identify any barriers, and to address those barriers with an appropriate blend of people, policy, process and technology.
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Section 4 of the Multicultural Victoria Act 2011 1 articulates the Victorian
Government’s commitment to multiculturalism in the form of a number of key principles, being that:
1. all individuals in Victoria are entitled to mutual respect and understanding regardless of their diverse backgrounds;
2. all individuals and institutions in Victoria should promote and preserve diversity within the context of shared laws, values, aspirations and responsibilities;
3. all individuals in Victoria (regardless of background) have shown that they can work together to build a positive and progressive future and this co-operation is to be encouraged so as to enhance Victoria as a great place in which to live;
4. all individuals in Victoria are equally entitled to access opportunities and participate in and contribute to the social, cultural, economic and political life of the State;
5. all individuals in Victoria have a responsibility to abide by the State's laws and respect the democratic processes under which those laws are made;
6. all individuals in Victoria should be united in a shared commitment to Australia and to community service; and
7. all individuals and institutions should recognise Victoria's diversity as an asset and a valuable resource benefiting Australia.
The Victorian Multicultural Commission 2 oversees the Cultural Diversity Plans
Network, with representatives from all Victorian Government departments res ponsible for developing each department’s Cultural Diversity Plan. The preparation of Cultural Diversity Plans for all Victorian Government departments is a new requirement under the Multicultural Victoria Act 2011.
1 http://www.multicultural.vic.gov.au/about-us/legislation
2
http://www.multicultural.vic.gov.au/about-us/whole-of-government-approach
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In 2006, 20.4% (1,007,435) of Victorians spoke a language other than English
(LOTE) at home 3 , with over 200 languages and dialects spoken; 18.5% (186,768) of
LOTE speakers spoke English not well or not at all. New and emerging languages with significant increases in numbers were Dari, Tamil, Korean and Dinka.
Victoria’s top ten LOTE at the 2006 Census were as follows:
Rank (2006) Persons LOTE(Rank in
2001)
Italian (1) 1
2
3
4
Greek (2)
Vietnamese (3)
Cantonese (4)
133,327
117,874
72,161
66,853
5
6
7
8
9
10
Mandarin (6)
Arabic (5)
Macedonian (7)
Turkish (8)
Spanish (10)
Croatian (9)
64,374
55,931
30,771
29,748
24,501
22,961
In 2006, 68.7% (3,390,804) of Victorians followed over 130 religions. The Anglican,
Uniting and Presbyterian Churches experienced a decline in numbers from 2001, although maintaining their ranks, while Buddhism, Islam and Christian faiths (others) experienced large increases and the fastest growth rates.
Victoria’s top ten Religions by declared affiliation at the 2006 Census were as follows:
Rank (2006) Persons
3
4
5
1
2
6
7
8
9
10
Religion(Rank in
2001)
Western Catholic (1)
Anglican Church (2)
Uniting Church (3)
Greek Orthodox (4)
Presbyterian (5)
Buddhism (6)
Islam (7)
Baptist (9)
Christian, other (8)
Lutheran (10)
1,349,658
671,610
274,054
163,171
140,284
132,632
109,368
69,118
67,493
42,415
3
Source: 2006 Census, Australian Bureau of Statistics, http://www.abs.gov.au
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The Public Record Office Victoria Corporate Plan 2010-11 – 2012-13 4 outlines our organisational outcomes:
Preservation : The records of government are preserved so that they are available and accessible for as long as they are required.
Management : The records of government are managed to enable accountability, efficiency and innovation.
Utilisation : The records of government are used by communities to connect to their history and culture.
The following PROV strategic initiatives support these outcomes and underpin our commitment to providing services that embrace cultural and linguistic diversity:
We will build awareness of cultural collections in the community and develop the capacity for communities to care for them in the most appropriate way. We will identify new partnerships, strengthen existing relationships and undertake collaborative activities to support the better care and management of collections in the community. We will focus on extending the Archival Support Program, undertaking projects to increase awareness, usage and care of records, and the implementation of a community archives strategy to enhance our support for regional groups and organisations.
PROV’s CALD commitment under this initiative: To identify and understand the information needs of culturally diverse groups within the community.
We will increase access to and usage of PROV's unique collection. We will nurture a greater knowledge of the collection both internally and externally and promoting
PROV as an organisation actively pursuing innovative solutions to collection utilisation. We will increase the accessibility and use of PROV’s unique collection via education and other outreach activities supported by a foray into new channels of engagement and a review and refresh of our existing channels. We will focus on our collection, its description and accuracy; our interpretation of the collection via exhibitions, publications and education; our delivery of client-facing services; and a refresh of our volunteer program to support PROV in the future.
PROV’s CALD commitment under this initiative: To provide accessible information, services and programs for culturally diverse groups within the community.
We will establish PROV as an employer of choice to attract and retain people who are passionate about and committed to the effective utilisation, management and preservation of Victoria's archives.
4 http://prov.vic.gov.au/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/PROV-Corporate-Plan-2010-to-2013-V.1-FINAL-20100803.pdf
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PROV’s CALD commitment under this initiative: To ensure that workforce practices, systems and processes support and reflect cultural diversity within the community.
The following PROV Guiding Principle supports this plan by ensuring that we gather the information necessary to understand our CALD stakeholders and their needs.
We will identify and consult with CALD stakeholder and client groups on matters of relevance to them, using the resulting feedback to shape and improve our strategies, products and services. We will incorporate CALD representatives in a meaningful way into our key stakeholder consultation programs.
PROV’s CALD commitment under this initiative: To establish a process to assess the effectiveness of services provided for and about culturally diverse groups within the community.
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Goal 1: To identify and understand the information needs of culturally diverse groups within the community.
Initiative Owner Measure
Cultural partnerships: We will establish and nurture relationships with groups representing other
CALD communities.
Community
Archives
1. Communicate the existence of relevant
PROV services to CALD communities.
2. Explore translations of key PROV documents where this would enhance delivery of services to CALD groups.
3. Explore partnership initiatives such as joint exhibitions.
4. Consult with CALD representative bodies as to their specific needs with regard to
PROV’s services.
5. Ensure CALD representation is a consideration when reviewing or establishing any form of independent advisory group or judging panel.
Goal 2: To provide accessible information, services and programs for and about culturally diverse groups within the community.
Initiative Owner
Preservation of multicultural collections: In collaboration with
Museums Australia (Victoria), conduct a project to aid community based ethno-specific groups to preserve the material evidence of their immigration and settlement histories by providing professional help to document and preserve their collections and stories.
Communications: We will develop our communications and marketing plan to better engage with CALD communities.
Multicultural collections seminar series: We will deliver a program of seminars for staff and researchers that will provide insights into collections owned and/or managed by multicultural organisations. These seminars will highlight the particular relevance and significance of these communities and the collections they hold, to Victoria’s cultural diversity.
Community
Archives
Communications and Marketing
&
Online
Engagement
Community
Archives
&
Communications and Marketing
Measure
1. Deliver joint training and information sessions on conservation and preservation, complementing the
MA(VIC) focus on museum objects with an archival focus on records.
2. Represent the multicultural collections community to archival suppliers to negotiate discounts for archival supplies on their behalf.
1. Promote CALD projects that were funded by PROV-administered programs.
2. Provide a platform for the history of
CALD communities in Victoria to be shared.
1. A seminar program is delivered that increases awareness of the contribution of CALD communities to Victorian history.
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Goal 3: To ensure that workforce practices, systems and processes support and reflect cultural diversity within the community.
Initiative Owner Measure
CALD Collections Support: We will embed support for CALD collections in our strategic planning.
Community
Archives &
Online
Engagement
1. The forthcoming review of the PROV
Places of Deposit Program will consider the needs of the custodians of CALD collections.
2. The refreshed Community Archives
Strategy will incorporate recommendations from the Places of
Deposit Program review which relate to
CALD collections.
3. Opportunities for CALD educational initiatives will be considered as part of the
PROV Education Strategy implementation.
1. Undertake structured internal CALD awareness and engagement training to assist colleagues in service delivery to
CALD communities.
CALD community awareness:
We will equip our workforce with an understanding of the particular needs of our CALD stakeholders.
People and
Culture
Goal 4: To establish a process to assess the effectiveness of services provided for culturally diverse groups within the community.
Initiative
Establish a baseline of CALD data for PROV : We will gather information to better understand the CALD demographic in Victoria, and CALD community needs.
Owner
Community
Archives
Measure
1. We will undertake or access up-to-date demographic studies of CALD in Victoria.
2. CALD-specific questions will be incorporated into PROV’s external surveys.
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Initiative
Cultural partnerships
Preservation of multicultural collections
Communications
Multicultural collections seminar series
CALD Collections
Support
CALD community awareness
Establish a baseline of CALD data for PROV
Year 1
Initiate
Initiate
Initiate
Plan
Initiate
Plan
Initiate
Year 2
Maintain
Complete
Maintain
Initiate
Complete
Initiate
Maintain
Year 3
Maintain
Maintain
Maintain
Maintain
Maintain
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