Burnie City Council has established a LGBTIQA+ Community Advisory Group to guide the development of Burnie’s inaugural LGBTIQA+ Action Plan, with a new survey to gauge local views and needs.
The Advisory Group includes community members with lived experience and local expertise. Its role is to help identify priorities, gather community feedback and recommend practical actions that support inclusion across the Burnie municipality.
The Council says it is supporting this work to ensure the Action Plan reflects the experiences and needs of LGBTIQA+ people and helps make Burnie a safe, welcoming and inclusive community for everyone.
The development of the Action Plan also supports Goal 4 of the Council’s Making a Better Burnie Strategic Plan 2044: ‘Making culturally rich and vibrant communities’.
It has launched a survey for LGBTIQA+ people, family members, allies and people who work with LGBTIQA+ communities who live, work, study in, visit, or have previously lived in Burnie.
The survey asks questions about:
- who you are and your connection to the LGBTIQA+ community;
- your experiences living, working, or visiting Burnie;
- issues affecting LGBTIQA+ people in Burnie;
- your experiences with Burnie City Council;
- ideas for improving LGBTIQA+ inclusion in the community.
Council says the results of the survey will help guide its work to make Burnie a more welcoming and inclusive place for LGBTIQA+ people.
The questions in the survey have been informed by the work of other Australian councils and guided by the Burnie City Council LGBTIQA+ Action Plan Community Advisory Group, which includes representation from local organisations and LGBTIQA+ community members.
“We acknowledge that the language LGBTIQA+ people use to describe identities and experiences is always evolving. We also recognise that there is no single LGBTIQA+ community, but rather a diversity of people, identities and experiences,” Council says.
