Community cabinets in Australia

Image source: DPMC

A new Background Note examines the background, context, approach and activities of community cabinets in Australia. Community cabinets are part of a broader sweep of community engagement initiatives that have been introduced by Australian governments since the 1990s, principally as a means of addressing declining community trust in governments and opening up the policymaking process to greater scrutiny.

Putting citizens first



Image source: APS Blueprint

In March 2010 the Australian Government released its blueprint for reform of the Australian Public Service (APS) entitled Ahead of the Game. But rather than leading with a focus on policy and values, the blueprint makes citizens the focus.

In Australia and elsewhere, concepts such ‘co-creation’ and ‘co-production’ have emerged to describe the deep collaboration needed between public servants, professionals, citizens and communities. Such approaches constitute a major shift in how the task of public administration is conceived and carried out.

A recent national conference, Putting Citizens First, was devoted to the theme of citizen engagement, and the Parliamentary Library has also published a research paper on the issue. But engaging citizens is not for the faint-hearted. It makes serious demands on public servants and on citizens. And it requires ministers and agency heads to devolve power to frontline professionals. Is it all a bridge too far ?