Strengthening Social Cohesion in the City of Hume
through
Supporting Parents - Developing Children Project
Collaboration Case Study
Project and Collaboration Summary
Through the collaboration between philanthropy and Federal, State and Local government, the
Supporting Parents – Developing Children Project, provides funding to support programs in
Southern Hume which will assist parents from Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Backgrounds
(CALD) to help their young children get ready for school. The funding is being directed to
programs that support early childhood development, literacy, community engagement, social
cohesion and the development of pathways to employment and training for parents.
The funding is being provided for four programs, including:
1.
Bilingual playgroups, building on the existing program through training of new
facilitators and extending into additional suburbs within the municipality
2.
Establishing new early years hubs, based in primary schools across the municipality
3.
English language/playgroup programs for mums and children in six new locations
and will include speech and occupational therapy to provide intensive pre-literacy and
speech/language early intervention activities for teachers and parents to support child
development.
4.
Bilingual story time sessions at libraries and through outreach at places such as
preschools and playgroups. Funding will increase the number of outreach story time
sessions and train new bilingual storytellers, many of them parents of the children in the
sessions.
1.
IDENTIFYING INFORMATION
1.1
Lead agency
Hume City Council
1.2
Key drivers
The Scanlon Foundation has been instrumental in driving the program from the beginning and
has continued to play a major role chairing the Program Governance Steering Committee, as
well as building and leveraging relationships with all levels of government.
The City of Hume has also been a strong driver as the body responsible for all aspects of the
management of the collaboration, including the appointment of a dedicated project co-ordinator
and chairing the Local Hume Governance Committee.
1
Hume case study 2012
1.3
Partners in the collaboration
Philanthropic
Trust
Scanlon
Foundation
Commonwealth
Government
Department of
Education,
Employment and
Workplace
Relations(DEEWR)
Department of Families,
Housing, Community
Services and Indigenous
Affairs (FAHCSIA)
Department of Human
Services,
Commonwealth
Rehabilitation Services
Department of
Immigration and
Citizenship
Victorian
Government
Department of
Education and
Early Childhood
development t
(DEECD)
Department of
Premier and
Cabinet
Local
Government
Hume City Council
Victoria
Multicultural
Commission
There are formally nine partners in the collaboration. In addition there is a broader early
years partnership operating across the municipality, with the involvement of many other
agencies.
1.4
Date commenced
The collaboration formally began in January 2009. The first meeting of all partners was in March
of that year.
1.5
Purpose of the Collaboration
The collaboration began with a broad focus on improving social cohesion in Hume,
through developing local area programs to engage and build the capacit y of f am ilies
from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, and in particular mothers with children 05 years.
The specific objectives of the overall Program are to:

increase participation of CALD families in innovative early years development
and engagement programs focused on literacy, language and learning;

foster social cohesion through the eng ag em ent of CALD families in early years service
programs;

build a partnership approach to strengthening social cohesion in southern Hume;
and

create training and learning pathways for parents/carers involved in programs
These objectives are being implemented through four funded early years projects across the
City of Hume.
2
Hume case study 2012
2.
BACKGROUND AND IMPETUS FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE
COLLABORATION
2.1
History and background
The collaboration was initiated by the Scanlon Foundation which had commissioned an earlier
National Benchmark Survey of five local government areas on social cohesion. The aim of
that study had been to identify areas where the Foundation’s input might assist in
building social cohesion.
As a result of this work, Hume City, particularly the southern part, was identified as a
municipality that could benefit from a major initiative and in 2008 the Scanlon
Foundation approached the Council to look at approaches to building social cohesion
in the municipality.
Once the nature of the collaboration had been agreed on, The Scanlon Foundation
contributed funds of $1 million over three years to Hume City. It then approached the
F e d e r a l a n d St a t e G overnments and a series of meetings were held with all three levels
of government to obtain ideas and a further commitment of funds. From the outset it
was recognised that the funding commitment from the Scanlon Foundation would act as an
effective lever to attract additional government funding.
2.2
Nature of participation of collaboration partners
All the partners have contributed funds and/or in kind support. They have also committed
to participating in a Program Governance Steering Committee over the three years of the
Program.
From the beginning all partners clearly understood that this was a formal collaboration, based
on shared values and a commitment to remain involved over the life of the Program. This
commitment goes beyond funding to ongoing participation in the collaboration process and
involves staff at senior, manager and operational levels.
This sense of ownership of the Program by partner organisations has proved particularly
important, as many of the issues that have arisen have only emerged once the Program was
underway. There needed to be, and has been, a collective commitment to address these.
Establishing clear communication protocols early in the collaboration to guide the
involvement of potential partners and the engagement of local agencies and service providers
was essential to the development of trusting relationships between the partners. Maintaining
regular communication with program partners has been a key role of the program coordinator.
3
Hume case study 2012
The State Government has played a key role and has been champions for the collaboration.
The Federal Government has been involved, particularly in the initial stages and has had an
interest in the region through other employment creation projects. They are very interested in
the outcomes of the four funded projects, as the collaboration fits in with their policy and
program directions, including a greater focus on place based funding and alternative service
delivery models.
From the outset it was recognised that no one agency could do this work by themselves as it is
too complicated and the issues being addressed are too complex.
2.3
Process for the development and work of the collaboration
The Scanlon Foundation funded an extensive scoping exercise, in addition to the $1million they
committed over three years. The scoping process was very inclusive, with participants feeling
that they were listened to and able to make a genuine contribution to the outcomes. While it
took considerable time and resources, everyone felt they were very much part of what
eventuated.
Part of this process involved an Ideas Symposium to discuss which projects could most
effectively strengthen social cohesion in the Hume City. The Ideas Symposium attracted
approximately 200 people from over 40 agencies and service providers. Attendees agreed that
while the community was already on the right track, there was a need to broaden out its reach to
incorporate people who had slipped through the net of existing services and to engage new
families. The four specific Program objectives and the four projects which were funded by the
partners evolved from this process.
A critical factor in establishing the formal collaboration was that a number of organisations had
been working together over a period of years and that a partnership already existed between
many of the schools and the community. This had connected early childhood development and
schooling. It meant that there was already a process for people to work out how to get on with
each other and be productive; so in some ways the collaboration already existed. There was a
level of trust in the community prior to the formal collaboration commencing. It has always been
seen as a whole of community approach to tackle a significant issue.
The importance of getting in at the right level of each partner organisation and harnessing the
relevant expertise was seen as critical to the collaboration.
4
Hume case study 2012
2.4

Major milestones and relevant timelines
In 2008, initial meetings were held between Hume City Council and the Scanlon
Foundation.

These were followed in March 2009 by a meeting with executive managers from all levels
of government and community organisations to explore opportunities for improving social
cohesion in Hume City

In May 2009 consultants, who were already known and trusted in the region, were
contracted to undertake an initial project scoping exercise and to develop a
Strategy and Action Plan

In September 2009 the Strengthening Social Cohesion in Hume City Ideas
Symposium was held. It involved consultation with early years networks and
agencies, Council staff, multicultural workers and other community services in
Hume City. The aim of the Symposium was to shape the social inclusion
programs.

A reference group was established to oversee the project and a proposal was developed
for five projects to be funded. This was later reduced to four projects.

In November 2009 a proposed funding plan for additional resourcing of “The
Proposal” was developed and presented to participating State and Federal
Government departments for further funding support.

As a result, in the second half of 2010and the first half of 2011 both State and
Federal Government funding was received.

In September 2010 the first official meeting of the Program Governance Steering
Committee took place.

In February 2011 a full time Project Coordinator commenced, based at the City of
Hume. This position is responsible for managing all aspects of the work of the
collaboration and relevant processes, including funding and accountability, co-ordination of
the 4 projects and human resource management and co-ordination of three staff.

2.5
In February 2011 the collaboration was officially launched.
Governance arrangements
Two governance bodies have been formed to oversee the collaboration.
Chaired by the Scanlon Foundation, the Program Governance Steering Committee consists of
senior representatives from all the funding bodies. Its responsibilities are to oversee the
Program, monitor and review outcomes and report back to funding bodies. It meets bi-annually,
and is responsible for the stewardship of the funding, but has little day to day involvement with
the operations of the collaboration. A recent tour of the project sites by this group has ensured
that they see at first hand the outcomes of the program and feel engaged in the collaboration.
5
Hume case study 2012
The Local Hume Governance Committee oversees the day to day operational aspects of the
collaboration. It is made up of eight local service delivery agencies with considerable early
childhood experience. The Committee was formed once the collaboration was formally
established and meets every 2-3 months. It is responsible for implementation and operational
issues, funding accountability and provides advice to the City of Hume. This Committee also
focuses and sharpens the understanding of the roles each community organisation plays in the
City and helps each party to the collaboration better understand these interconnections. The
funding partners are not represented on this Committee.
The collaboration partners agree that this model of governance is a good one and involves the
right number of people with the appropriate expertise.
2.6
Current status of the collaboration
The Program has been operational for 12 months and funding continues at this stage until the
end of 2013.
2.7
Success factors
One of the major success factors identified was gaining support, from the outset, of senior
government officials and/or ministers, as well as senior local government personnel who believed
in the goals of the collaboration and were willing to make a commitment to ensure it happened.
Also ensuring that the relevant Federal and State Government program managers were
engaged in helping to shape the project proposals and had the opportunity to play a prominent
role in developing and shaping the collaboration was critical to gaining their active
involvement.
As important, was the fact that there was a shared vision for the collaboration. "It was critical
and fundamental that all the partners shared a common understanding that the relationship
between mothers and their children is critical to early childhood development. It was mind
blowing that the collaboration partners got this simple fact from the beginning and hence
embraced the vision".
Ton\y Fry, Scanlon Foundation
The fact that from the outset the partners developed a funding plan and that there has been a
dedicated Program Co-ordinator to manage the process and co-ordinate the implementation of
the four projects, have both been seen as critical to the success of the collaboration.
Clear protocols for communication, taking the time to undertake the scoping exercise and the
building of trust and respect through community consultation and involvement are also
considered clear success factors.
6
Hume case study 2012
An added bonus has been the fact that the collaboration also complements the work of the
Hume Global Learning Centre and the Life Long Learning Initiative. This has meant that
learning has come to be seen across the community as a driver for change. It was stated that
the importance of this connection cannot be under estimated.
2.8
Major challenges
Changing government department representatives throughout the initial project planning
phase was a major challenge. With the change of personnel, new participants were not
made fully aware of the project’s history and context, resulting in confusion and
misunderstanding about project expectations.
Issues associated with turnover became most evident as the project flowed down through the
participant organisation’s senior management to an operational level. One participant stated that
“communication was sketchy. I was not clear what my department’s expectations were”. In some
instances, due to lack of clarity at the time of handover, confusion and misunderstanding led to
some assumptions being made by collaboration partners about the types of resources and the
amount of time they would provide to support the program initiatives.
It took about 2 ½ years for the Scanlon Foundation to establish the collaboration. The time it
took pulling the collaboration together was an additional challenge. There was an incredible
amount of work and frustration securing agreement from Prime Minister and Cabinet and other
government departments, as funding was being sought outside the normal budgetary
processes. It was however agreed that in the end the time it took became a strength as it
enabled an inclusive process and was certainly worth the effort.
A further major challenge has been the number of accountability requirements generated by the
collaboration. Contract management and governance has required considerable resourcing.
The manager of the collaboration has needed to constantly communicate with funders and write
reports to various government departments.
One of the learnings to date has been the importance of involving the operational people in the
relevant organisations in the collaboration. It was felt that this could have been handled better,
as at times some program managers had felt a bit disconnected.
7
Hume case study 2012
2.9
Evaluation
A commitment of funds towards the evaluation of the Program has been made by government
departments and the Scanlon Foundation. Evaluation guidelines have been developed and
approved by the Steering Committee. The evaluation will include an action research approach.
In addition, the Scanlon Foundation has funded a separate evaluation of the collaboration’s
governance arrangements. It is being undertaken in two separate parts over the life of the
program and involves an appraisal of the approach taken to develop the collaboration and an
assessment of its implementation governance arrangements. Insights drawn from this
evaluation project will be applied by the Scanlon Foundation to their practice in building
community partnership projects with the government sector, business and other philanthropic
organisations. It is anticipated that the learnings derived from the project may be of value to
other organisations engaged in community building projects where a multi agency approach is
required.
3.
ASSESSMENT OF THE COLLABORATION AGAINST EACH
DRAFT GUIDING PRINCIPLE
3.1
Understand each other’s roles, policies, priorities and limitations
From the start of the collaboration there has been a clear understanding of each partner’s role,
policies and priorities, but less certainty about what limitations might apply in particular
circumstances.
The partners had a shared vision, set of values and goals around the importance of social
cohesion and capacity building, and a common understanding of what could be achieved from
the collaboration.
3.2
Engage each other early when the potential idea/interest/need for a
collaborative approach is being considered
The collaboration was initiated by the Scanlon Foundation, which approached the other key
partners to ascertain their interest in working together on the issue. All partners were involved
over a long period as the concept was developed into a formal Program.
3.3
Clarify expectations
Changing representatives from the interested government departments in the early stages of
the project planning process made it difficult to clarify expectations and agreed goals. New
personnel felt that they were not made fully aware of the project’s historical context. This led to
some confusion and misunderstanding regarding project expectations, particularly relating to the
level of resources to be provided to support project initiatives. This points to the need to
establish processes to effectively manage personnel changes within partner organisations.
8
Hume case study 2012
3.4
Ensure sufficient time to develop trust and agreed approaches
Clear communication protocols were established early on to guide the involvement of potential
partners and the engagement of local agencies and service providers. This was essential to
building trusting relationships.
3.5
Agree to processes for selecting organisations to be funded and the nature
of projects to be jointly supported
The processes put in place were genuinely inclusive and consultative, involving the
collaboration partners and the broader Hume community sector.
3.6
Ensure the right people are at the table
One of the key lessons learnt by the collaboration has been the value of the early involvement
and support of both the most senior people within the partner organisations, as well as the
participation of those from each organisation who will be responsible for program direction and
implementation. Senior organisational representatives meet formally at the Program
Governance Steering Committee level every 6 months, and the operational staff meet every 2-3
months at the local Hume Governance Steering Committee.
3.7
Ensure there is an evaluation framework
A commitment of funds towards the evaluation was made from the outset by government
departments and the Scanlon Foundation to evaluate the effectiveness of the four funded
projects and measure the impact on strengthening social cohesion. A separate evaluation of the
governance arrangements has been funded by the Scanlon Foundation.
3.8
Develop an exit strategy for both or either party
An exit strategy has not been put in place, but this is partly because there is an assumption that
all parties are there for the long term and that what needs to be developed is a sustainability
strategy. It is recognised that the issue of sustainability needs to be addressed early and that
learnings from the evaluation should be incorporated into planning for the future.
3.9
Communicate frankly throughout the collaboration time frame
While there has been open communication over the collaboration, the evaluation of the
governance arrangements identified the value of holding more regular meetings with the key
partners during the early stages of the project, to improve communication and clarify
expectations. Communication would also have been improved if there was a formal induction
process in place to inform new personnel becoming involved with the collaboration.
9
Hume case study 2012
3.10
Develop a memorandum of understanding (MOU)
An MOU was not developed amongst the partners. However the evaluation of the governance
arrangements identified the need for a formalised agreement to guide the partnership. This
should include the documentation of clear and realistic aims and objectives, agreed to by all
partners, so that project expectations are fully understood.
10
Hume case study 2012