Banyule City Council has won the Gold Medal in the MAV National Local Government Innovation Awards for an inclusive festival designed to support people on the autism spectrum.
The award was voted on by attendees at the national local government conference ‘Hacktivation: Transforming Local Government in the Innovation Era’ held in March.
Banyule’s Sensory Friendly Festival initiative was inspired by work happening globally to support attendance of children on the autism spectrum at major sporting and culture events.
The Sensory Friendly Festivals were developed in consultation with the autism spectrum disorder community and an internal working group.
Festival attendees could hire noise-cancelling headphones and visit designated “chill out” areas.
All festival volunteers, vendors, stallholders and performers undertook autism awareness training, and there were a number of resources at the festival to ensure the fun and safety of all attendees.
Councillor Mary Lalios, MAV President, said it was critical for councils to explore new-age thinking and innovative business models for the betterment of the local government sector.
“It is estimated that one in 100 Australians are on the autism spectrum. Banyule City Council should be applauded for identifying a sector in their community that required greater services and using innovation to supply this demand.”
Cr Lalios said the MAV’s Hacktivation conference was designed to challenge the conventional way of thinking, especially around customer engagement, organisational structure, strategy and business models.
The Silver Medal for innovation was awarded to Mount Alexander Shire Council for a new Fire Inspection App, which automatically generates an on-the-spot fire prevention notice for a selected property.
It has reduced the time taken for the council to generate fire prevention notices from an hour to less than a minute per property.
The Bronze Medal went to the City of Melbourne for a 10-week Local Food Launchpad Program, which was delivered in collaboration with Doing Something Good to better support social enterprises in the city’s food sector.
It included mentoring and group sessions where participants could refine their ideas, hone their business models and learn the skills needed to launch and manage successful social enterprises.
