Place-based approaches

Place-based approaches provide community members and stakeholders (citizens, industry, diverse non-government organisations and all levels of government) with a framework to identify and respond to local needs and improve social, economic and physical wellbeing in a particular location.

What is a place-based approach?

Place-based approaches are collaborative and long-term—seeking to build thriving communities in a defined geographic location by empowering and supporting communities to take action on the things that matter to them.

Place-based approaches require governments, communities and other stakeholders to partner across organisational boundaries, grow new capability and capacity, build relationships and trust, and share power and accountability for outcomes and impacts. Examples of place-based initiatives include Logan Together (collective impact), Gladstone Region engaging in action Together, Cairns South.

The decision to apply a place-based approach should be based on sound evidence and engagement with the community.

Common elements of place-based approaches

Place-based approaches are designed to meet the unique requirements of the local community and generally include a focus on:

• meaningful engagement with community stakeholders and a focus on building on a community’s strengths
• linking program responses across social service systems for better access and outcomes for local people
• reviewing, shifting, strengthening and designing systems within a local context
• local decision-making and flexibility
• use of local quality data and information to guide decisions
• appropriate governance arrangements to support local action
• monitoring and measuring impacts
• long-term focus
• responding to complex, interrelated or challenging issues, including social issues impacting those experiencing, or at risk of, disadvantage, or natural disasters
• identifying and working on community priorities, valuing local knowledge, and building on and from social and cultural relationships
• having a commitment to strategic learning
• ongoing capacity and capability building amongst all stakeholders involved in the work
• focusing on collective and collaborative action, active engagement and partnership with communities so that all stakeholders see themselves as active participants
• having an underpinning value of creating greater equity
• a strong focus on people and place.

Collective impact

Under the Stronger Places Stronger People initiative, we’ve partnered with the Australian Government to deliver a long-term and community led collective impact movement in Queensland.

Collective impact is a more complex place-based methodology, used to support and empower communities facing multiple complex challenges. It is a progressive, staged approach to problem solving that requires multiple organisations from different sectors to align with a shared community agenda,  share power and undertake mutually reinforcing activities to achieve significant and lasting social change.

A backbone organisation (also known as a facilitating partner) with dedicated staff help participating organisations shift from acting alone to working together and with community (source: Australian Institute of Family Studies).

Collective impact is not business as usual, and it can take many years to secure long-term, sustainable change. There is no agreed or consistent timeframe that defines collective impact progress.

Other approaches that focus on place

Many other approaches include a focus on place—displaying some of the common characteristics of place-based approaches.

Place-specific approaches

Place-specific approaches generally involve more than one Queensland Government agency collaborating to consider the circumstances of people in place. These approaches  demonstrate many of the elements of a place-based approach. Example of place-specific approaches include Community Hubs, Cairns Safer Streets (PDF), Disaster Management and Recovery and Philip Street Communities and Families Precinct in Gladstone.

Place-sensitive approaches

Place-sensitive approaches generally involve one Queensland Government agency planning and delivering initiatives and services in a way that responds to the unique circumstances of a place. These approaches can demonstrate some of the elements of a place-based approach.

More information

• Place-based resources
• Logan Together
• Gladstone Region engaging in action Together