Community Engagement Strategy
How we listen, engage and act - together. A quick look at how this Strategy came about, when it was adopted, and what it's meant to do.
The Community Engagement Strategy 2026 sets out how Lane Cove Council listens to, involves and responds to its community - across everyday decisions about parks and services right through to major planning proposals and long-term strategic direction. It was formally adopted in August 2026 and applies to all Council engagement activities.
It sits alongside Council's Draft Digital Engagement Strategy (June 2026), which covers the channels, platforms and content standards used to deliver on these commitments.
The Strategy is a direct response to Council's own evidence about where engagement was falling short. A comprehensive review of Council's engagement approach, run through 2025–2026, surfaced four honest findings:
- Awareness gap - 42% of residents surveyed were unaware or barely aware of Council engagement opportunities.
- Trust deficit - 31% of residents did not believe Council genuinely considers their feedback.
- Missing voices - Zero respondents under 30, and zero non-English-speaking residents, among active contributors.
- Broken feedback loop - 62% of residents who engaged had never seen how their input influenced a decision.
These findings were paired with the 2025 Customer Satisfaction Survey (Micromex), which found consultation and engagement is the single biggest driver of overall community satisfaction - accounting for 14.2% of the variance.
How it was built
- Grounded in Council's own review evidence and satisfaction survey data, rather than aspirational statements - every commitment is framed as something Council will deliver, measure and report on.
- Built around the internationally recognised IAP2 spectrum (Inform, Consult, Involve, Collaborate, Empower), adapted to Lane Cove's community and legislative context.
- Designed to meet Council's statutory obligations under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 and the Local Government Act 1993, and to align with the NSW Government's Draft Statewide Community Participation Plan (April 2026).
- Includes a dedicated section mapping how Council will reach groups who are typically under-represented in traditional consultation - young people, renters, CALD communities, people with disability, older residents and the business community.
What it's meant to do
- Set 8 guiding principles - Transparency, proportionality, early engagement, representative participation, accessibility, closing the loop, genuine consideration, and continuous improvement.
- Close the loop, every time - A "You Said, We Did" standard — every engagement activity gets a published outcomes report within a defined timeframe, even when feedback wasn't reflected in the final decision.
- Match effort to the decision - Every matter is assessed against scale, complexity, financial impact, safety, legislation and risk, to determine the right level of engagement.
- Build lasting infrastructure - A proposed Community Engagement Coordinator role, standard tools and templates, staff training, and a three-year implementation plan.
How progress is tracked
| Measure |
Target |
| Community satisfaction with engagement |
Up from 76% baseline (2025); reach metro benchmark within 3 years |
| "You Said, We Did" compliance |
100% of Consult-level+ activities reported on time by end Year 2 |
| Under-30 participation |
Measurable representation in 50%+ of Involve-level+ activities by end Year 2 |
| Statutory CPP compliance |
Zero non-compliant exhibitions |
Review cycle
- Annually— performance reviewed against the metrics above, reported to Councillors.
- Every 4 years— full strategy review aligned to Council's Delivery Program cycle, including 6 weeks' public exhibition of the revised draft.
- As required— triggered by changes to NSW planning legislation or the Statewide Community Participation Plan.