Levels of participation

The degree of public participation in government decision-making depends on what you're trying to achieve. The diagram below illustrates different levels of community participation in decision-making.

Active relationships provide the foundation for effective participation by the community. In any particular relationship, you may want to:

• use one or a combination of processes
• use different processes at different stages of the relationship. For instance, a relationship that begins with information provision may evolve into a partnership.

Active relationships with key individuals and organisations can help you establish trust among the communities you are seeking to involve in your work.

Sometimes your public participation goal is simply to inform. At a simple level, you need to be communicating the who, what, when, where and how of an issue.

Formal consultation allows a government agency to learn the views of individuals and community groups on specific issues before making a decision.

In partnerships, the responsibility, authority and decision-making are shared more evenly than in other forms of participation. There is often an agreement between the parties to share the risks and benefits.

Community development empowers communities to identify their needs, plan action, manage projects and evaluate the results of their activities.