Actpla Community Engagement Guide

Introduction One of ACTPLA’s functions is to provide opportunities for community consultation about planning decisions. Another ACTPLA function under the Planning and Development Act 2007 is to educate people and promote understanding of the planning process. One of the ways we do this is by providing information and documents on planning and land use that the public can easily access. Effective community engagement benefits both the community and government.

What is community engagement? Community engagement refers to the many ways the government and the community work together and is usually a two-way flow of information on issues that affect you. It provides valuable input to government decision-making. Community engagement allows us to: • let you know about proposed policies and actions • give you the opportunity to voice your opinion on proposed policies and proposals • invite you to submit proposals for the government to consider • work more closely with you on policy and priorities • respond to issues you raise.

Ways you can provide feedback You usually can let us know your views or concerns by: • writing to us by post, fax or email • attending a meeting and speaking to us

• using an online feedback form.

A guide to community engagement and consultation

• calling us



Consultation Consultation is a key part of ACTPLA’s engagement with community. Consultation can be statutory which means we are required by law to consult with the community. ACTPLA is regularly consulting and engaging with the community on a range of policies and planning issues including publically notifying some development applications. We try to minimise consultation over the summer holiday period as many people are away. This includes managing when applicants lodge development applications over this period. When consultation needs to occur during December and January, the minimum timeframes are usually extended.

Who do we consult? Anyone can comment on activities, documents and projects ACTPLA is seeking views on. As well as the general public, ACTPLA regularly consults: • Community Councils • industry groups such as the Master Builders Association, Housing Industry Association and Property Council of Australia • professional groups such as the Royal Australian Institute of Architects and the Planning Institute of Australia • ACT Government and Commonwealth agencies • interest groups, such as those with environmental or social interests, for example the Conservation Council ACT Region and Canberra; and the ACT Council of Social Service.

How we tell you about consultation We use a range of communication methods to tell you about opportunities to consult with us.

Advertisements Usually in The Canberra Times Saturday public notices section and the front section of The Chronicle. Advertisements summarise the consultation dates, where to get more information and any meetings planned.

Media release/media story Issued by the Minister for Planning or ACTPLA. These are available electronically. You can find the latest media releases at http://www.chiefminister.act.gov.au/media.php or on our website www.actpla.act.gov.au.

ACTPLA website Information about projects, programs and documents that you can provide feedback on are posted on our website www.actpla.act.gov.au.

Publications A large document that is being consulted on may be supported by a short pamphlet or brochure summarising key parts of the main publication. These shorter documents are typically used as handouts at meetings or for letterbox drops.

Written correspondence We usually write to key stakeholders, such as community and industry groups advising them of a project, issue or action. If a mailing list is organised for a specific project, the people on the list are written to as well. This may be by post or email.

Letterbox drops Sometimes we do suburb-wide letterbox drops of a brochure or pamphlet. This is typically for major projects that have wide community interest in particular areas of Canberra, for example, interest in a future suburb from residents in a neighbouring suburb.

Libraries and shopfronts Documents available for consultation are usually distributed to all ACT public libraries and/or ACT Government shopfronts. ACTPLA’s Dickson Customer Service Centre at 16 Challis Street, Dickson, also has hard copies available.

Displays Information displays on projects, particularly those involving maps, are often set up at selected ACT public libraries (e.g. if the project concerns a Belconnen suburb, a board may be set up in the Belconnen library).

Meetings Meetings can be public meetings, forums, workshops, summits and focus groups. They may be held for the general public or for a specific group. Meetings can be held at a venue organised by ACTPLA for anyone to attend, or held for a specific group at a regular meeting, for example, a Community Council monthly meeting. The location is typically chosen to be convenient to a particular sector of the community, for example, a meeting about a project in the inner south may be held in Woden.

Articles in newsletters Articles are occasionally prepared for industry newsletters or other groups’ newsletters. These draw attention to a project or issue and can expand on a particular area of interest for readers. However, it is up to the group whether the article is used and how it is presented.

Telephone You can call us on (02) 6207 1923 if you have any questions about consultation activities related to planning and development.

A guide to community engagement and consultation

The style of meetings may differ. Some are formal presentations or more of a drop-by and informal one-onone talk. Meetings are usually held with identified interested groups before the formal stage of consultation as well as during the formal consultation.



What do we do with your feedback? ACTPLA values all feedback and considers it carefully in making planning decisions. Genuine consultation with the community, however, does not mean that everyone’s views will be adopted. People can have very different views on the same project. Likewise, public notification of some planning processes, as required by legislation, is not the same as public consultation. For more information about specific legislation please visit the ACTPLA website at www.actpla.act.gov.au.

Engagement and consultation processes Consultation can happen several times during one project. The processes for different types of activities are described below. Often this will involve notifying (telling people) about a proposal. The following have statutory consultation requirements: • some development applications (see our website for more information about the different types of development applications) • Environmental Impact Statements • Territory Plan variations including Structure and Concept Plans for future urban areas • road openings and closings. Planning reports and other planning studies have non-statutory consultation arrangements.

Public notification for development applications Notification is a statutory form of consultation prescribed in the Planning and Development Act 2007. Public notification allows adjoining or nearby property owners, and others, the opportunity to look at a proposed development, consider the likely impacts the proposal may have on them and provide comment (either positive or negative) about the proposal prior to a decision being made. The ACTPLA Development Assessment Officer then considers any comments received during the notification period in accordance with the requirements of the Act. Notification is carried out by ACTPLA after a development application has been lodged in the Merit track or Impact track. There is no requirement to publicly notify a Code track development application. Notification can be done as a minor notification or major notification. Minor notification applies to applications that meet certain criteria according to Schedule 2 of the Planning and Development Regulations 2008. See http://www.legislation.act.gov.au/sl/2008-2/default.asp Major public notification applies to all other development applications lodged in the Merit or Impact track. When a development application is made, ACTPLA must give written notice of the application to each person, other than the applicant, with a registered interest in the land comprised in the lease if the application is or includes a Lease Variation.



Type of notification

Notification begins

Methods of notice

Submissions due within

Minor notification

Within 3–5 days of application lodgment

Written notice to adjacent property owners

10 business days starting the day after the day the application is notified

Major notification

Within 3–5 days of application lodgment

Written notice to adjacent property 15 business days owners, display a sign on site the starting the day after the application relates to. This sign application is notified states the proposed development. Publish notice of the application in a daily newspaper, and on ACTPLA’s website

Adjacent property owners are those who are immediately or directly opposite the property for which the application has been lodged. This means that not everyone in the street will receive a personal letter of notice. ACTPLA also informs the relevant Community Councils of development applications received that are: • residential developments higher than three storeys and more than 50 units • a building with a total floor space of more than 7000 square metres • a building or structure intended to be higher than 25 metres • applications to change concessional leases into leases that are not concessional leases. A list of all development proposals notified for that week are sent to Community Councils with information on how and when copies of the proposal can be viewed. Once ACTPLA has told the relevant council about the availability of a development application, the council can ask to be briefed on the application by either ACTPLA or the proponent. Copies of notified development applications can be inspected at the ACTPLA Customer Service Centre in Dickson or on our website.

Some submissions may be confidential if a case can be made that it is in the public interest for the information to be excluded from public inspection. Only limited types of information such as the identity of the submitter may be excluded. The ACTPLA Customer Service Centre can provide additional information on this. When assessing a development application, a number of things are considered by ACTPLA (for a list, refer to the Code, Merit or Impact pages on the ACTPLA web site). ACTPLA takes into account any submissions received and any response from the applicant before making a decision. The applicant and anyone who has made a submission will be notified in writing of the decision as well as any rights of appeal.

A guide to community engagement and consultation

After notification, copies of all submissions received are sent to the applicant. This gives the applicant an opportunity to respond to submissions before a decision is made. Copies of submissions are available, along with the application, for public inspection at the Customer Service Centre in Dickson.



Environmental Impact Statements Before lodging a development application in the Impact track, an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) must be prepared by the proponent. To do this, the proponent requests a scoping document from ACTPLA. ACTPLA consults with prescribed entities (this may be a government department, statutory body or utility that provides advice to assist with assessing development applications) and then provides the proponent with written notice of things that need to be addressed by the EIS. The proponent then prepares a draft EIS and submits it to ACTPLA, which publicly notifies the EIS for 20 working days. If required, the proponent revises the draft EIS. ACTPLA considers the EIS against the scoping document and advises of any outstanding matters. ACTPLA then refers an accepted EIS to the Minister. The Minister decides whether to call an inquiry, and if so, receives an inquiry report within 60 days. The Minister may present the EIS to the Legislative Assembly and refers the EIS and assessment to the Commonwealth Minister if a decision is required under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Act (Commonwealth) 1991. Once an EIS is completed, a development application can be lodged in the impact track. When the development is publicly notified, representations about the application may relate to how the development meets, or does not meet, any finding or recommendation of the EIS.

Variations to the Territory Plan The Territory Plan is a statutory document against which development proposals are assessed. It ensures development in the ACT is consistent with strategic directions set by the ACT Government and reflected in the Canberra Spatial Plan and the Sustainable Transport Plan. The Territory Plan can be changed in accordance with a process that is set out in the Planning and Development Act 2007. Any changes must also be consistent with the National Capital Plan, which aims to ensure Canberra and the Territory are planned in accordance with their national significance. Changes to the Territory Plan (called variations) enable the updating of policies to manage changes brought about by economic, social and environmental conditions. For example, a variation can be part of a major planning exercise such as the development of a whole new urban district or it can result from major planning studies. The process starts with the preparation of a draft variation. If the draft variation is endorsed by the Minister, it is released for public comment and placed on the ACTPLA website at www.actpla.act.gov.au under the Territory Plan tab. The draft variation is also advertised in The Canberra Times and The Chronicle, placed on the ACTPLA website and copies are made available at the ACTPLA Customer Service Centre in Dickson. Draft Territory Plan variations must be publicly notified for a minimum of three weeks but are generally notified for longer. ACTPLA also informs potentially interested or affected parties, including the relevant Community Council by mail and undertakes other consultation, which may include mail outs, letterbox drops, emails and signs. 

Comments received during the consultation process are made available for public viewing at the ACTPLA Customer Service Centre in Dickson for 15 working days. A consultation report is prepared and submitted to the Minister with the proposed draft variation and these documents can also be viewed at the Customer Service Centre. The consultation report carefully considers the representation of all public and agency comments which may result in a change to the draft variation. ACTPLA then recommends a final Territory Plan variation to the Minister and this is also made available on the ACTPLA website. The Minister may refer the documentation to the relevant Legislative Assembly Standing Committee, which may decide to hold its own inquiry. As a part of this inquiry the Committee may invite public comments or hold public hearings. The Committee can prepare a report detailing its recommendations on the draft Variation. These Committee reports are available on the Legislative Assembly website at www.parliament.act.gov.au under the committees tab. Depending on the outcomes of the Standing Committee’s Report, the Minister may approve the variation, withdraw it or return it to ACTPLA for further consideration or revision. The Government responds to the Committee’s report and this response and the approved plan variation (if approved by the Minister) is tabled in the Legislative Assembly. If not disallowed by the Assembly, within five full sitting days plus the day of tabling, a date must be set for the variation to take effect, formally amending the Territory Plan. ACTPLA will publish a brief description of the variation and the date it comes into effect in The Canberra Times and The Chronicle. The commencement of the variation is also notified on the Legislation Register as a commencement notice and the variation will be available on the ACTPLA website. The variation will be incorporated into the Territory Plan which can be accessed via the ACTPLA website under the Territory Plan Tab and is available on the Legislation Register at www.legislation.act.gov.au. The register is an authorised electronic statute book that provides the community with free and quick access to ACT legislation and related information.

Technical amendments A technical amendment is a minor variation to the Territory Plan which can be an error variation or a code variation.

Consultation requires a minimum consultation period of 15 working days. The draft Variation will be advertised in The Canberra Times and The Chronicle and be made available on the ACTPLA website and at the Customer Service Centre. Once submissions have been considered the technical amendment comes into effect on the date specified in the commencement notice.

A guide to community engagement and consultation

Limited consultation is required for code variations and variations relating to the rezoning of future urban areas but it is not required for error variations. If the technical amendment has limited consultation ACTPLA must consider any representations made during the consultation period as well as any views of the National Capital Authority.



Planning policies, strategies and administration ACTPLA consults publicly on policies and strategies, such as those for community facilities and economic prosperity. The length of the consultation period and how many stages are involved depends on the size of the proposal and what it seeks to change. Major proposals can have several stages of consultation over many months, whereas minor policies may have a one-off engagement timeframe. Consultation might include a discussion paper that is available for comments for around six weeks. Copies are usually sent to people identified as being affected by the proposal and interested groups. Discussion papers are also available on ACTPLA’s website and at the Customer Service Centre in Dickson. Public meetings, workshops, focus groups or displays may occur, generally for larger proposals. If proposals involve changing legislation, further consultation will occur as the resulting Bill is tabled and debated in the ACT Legislative Assembly. The community can also be involved if there is an inquiry into legislation by an Assembly committee.

Future urban areas Structure plans A Structure Plan sets broad planning principles and policies for the development of the area. It is usually done at the district level. A Structure Plan is the first visual representation showing where a development will take place. It broadly outlines where things like major roads, open spaces and possible commercial centres will be. This plan will be formally implemented through a Variation to the Territory Plan which introduces a future urban areas overlay prior to a concept plan/precinct code being developed. Before the Variation process begins, significant background studies and investigations are undertaken. As part of this, ACTPLA usually consults with the public through an informal information session, which provides the opportunity for the community to drop in over several hours and speak on a one-on-one basis with ACTPLA’s representatives or consultants and ask questions about the draft planning for the area. The information session is typically promoted through letterbox drops (with nearby residents when applicable), notices in newspapers and a media release. The draft plans are available for public comment on ACTPLA’s website for three weeks. Community comments are encouraged and are used to inform the final draft plans.

Concept plans The development of a Concept Plan is the next step in planning for a new area. Concept planning studies are typically done for new suburbs or estates in areas identified by the Territory Plan as future urban areas. The Concept Plan is informed by the Structure Plan. The Concept Plan and its precinct code set the suburb’s specific planning controls. It will guide the preparation and assessment of development in a future urban area. (A precinct code is a way of defining the rules for development in a specific area). As part of preparing a Concept Plan, one or more public information sessions are held, similar to those for the Structure Plan. The information session is typically promoted through letterbox drops (with nearby residents when applicable), notices in newspapers and a media release. 

The draft plans are available for public comment on ACTPLA’s website for three weeks. Community comments are encouraged and are used to inform the final draft plans. When the final draft Concept Plan is complete, it and its accompanying precinct code need to be approved through a Variation to the Territory Plan process. The Variation process is statutory and includes formal public consultation (see Variation to the Territory Plan section for the consultation process).

Directional plans Directional plans like the Canberra Spatial Plan outline a strategic direction for the development of Canberra over the next 30 years. The Canberra Spatial Plan and The Sustainable Transport Plan help form the current Planning Strategy which may be used to develop the statement of strategic directions in the Territory Plan. Several opportunities for consultation over many months are offered as work is progressed on these plans. This will often take the form of public meetings, workshops, focus groups, advertising and mail-outs and use of the ACTPLA’s website.

Declaration of land as public road Land that is declared to be a public road is notified on the ACT Legislation Register.

Closure of a public road A notice of intended closure of a road is advertised in The Canberra Times Saturday public notices section and the ACT Legislation Register. Owners or holders of land fronting the road are notified by mail. Submissions may be made within one month of the notifications. Once submissions have been considered, a notice of road closure is notified in the ACT Legislation Register.

Place names With the assistance of the ACT Place Names Committee, the Minister for Planning can determine the name of a suburb of Territory land, a public place that is Territory land, or a road name in the ACT.

These determinations are published on the ACT Legislation Register. Research for new place names is undertaken by ACTPLA with the help of peak bodies, community groups and individuals through the Place Names Committee.

MORE INFORMATION If you have any questions about consultation activities related to planning and development. • Phone: (02) 6207 1923 • Email:

[email protected]

• Visit:

Customer Service Centre, 16 Challis Street, Dickson.

A guide to community engagement and consultation

Approved names are gazetted and then tabled in the Legislative Assembly for six sitting days to enable the Legislative Assembly to disallow any unacceptable names. In the case of disallowance, the offending name or names are de-gazetted and the process is repeated.



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