Executive summary

Increasingly, governments in Australia have recognised place-based approaches as a means to tackle disadvantage and address the complex problems faced by children and families in today’s society. While many place-based initiatives have generated rich learning experiences and positive results, too often lessons have not been broadly shared and mistakes have been repeated. Anecdotal evidence suggests that a better coordinated practice, policy and research agenda could substantially increase the impact of place-based approaches across Australia. With this in mind, leaders in place-based practice, research, policy and philanthropy were engaged in in-depth consultations to explore and identify issues and opportunities for advancing Australian place-based reform.

What follows is a summary of the contemporary needs of policy makers, funding bodies, academics and practitioners in designing, delivering and researching approaches to support children and families in ‘place’.

Issues and opportunities for practice, research and policy

• a more rigorous and coordinated research agenda
• exchanging knowledge on what does and does not ‘work’
• advocacy and leadership on place-based initiatives.

A common theme expressed through the consultations to address the above issues was collaboration. A network or mechanism to bring together people was advocated, for two main reasons. These were to:

• advance strategic leadership and coordination on place-based issues, with specific attention given to the co-production of policy and a coordinated research agenda
• exchange and/or build knowledge, particularly in relation to identified practice skill gaps.

Conclusions

The consultation findings reveal a need for stronger leadership and advocacy on child-focused, place-based initiatives in order to effectively respond to specific and universal issues in policy, practice and research and to advance place-based thinking and action.

A national place-based network, involving policy, practice, research and philanthropy, would be an appropriate mechanism to support leadership and advance activity. A convenor is required to facilitate such a network. Network activity should be guided by an action plan, developed in collaboration with network members, to address priorities identified in this report.

Participants identified many issues across practice, research and policy that were perceived to lessen the effectiveness of child-focused, place-based initiatives in Australia. These included the need for:

• new skill sets to deliver place-based initiatives
• advancing expertise in collaborative practice and co-production with families
• evaluation for learning and impact

This publication has been developed by the Centre for Community Child Health at the Murdoch Childrens Research Institute and The Royal Children’s Hospital as part of the Collaborate for children: scoping project funded by the Australian Government Department of Education. It summarises the evidence on what we know and are still yet to learn about place-based approaches to improve children’s outcomes.

Over 12 months, the project investigated the Australian place-based landscape to understand how we can better promote children’s wellbeing through place-based initiatives. This publication is one of four key reports produced through the project. The reports are:

• The evidence: what we know about place-based approaches to support children’s wellbeing
• A snapshot of place-based activity promoting children’s wellbeing – who is driving, doing and supporting place-based initiatives
• Big thinking on place: getting place-based approaches moving
• The state of play in Australian place-based activity for children – a summary of project findings with recommendations for accelerating place-based efforts.