health and wellbeing - what do you think?

report from the roundtable - 23 jul

At this week's council meeting councillors unanimously voted to release the draft Health and Wellbeing Plan for public comment. The development of a municipal Health and Wellbeing Plan is a legislative requirement under the Victorian Public Health and Wellbeing Act 2008.

The Health and Wellbeing Plan is an over-arching strategic document, which sets the goals and priorities for improving public health and wellbeing in Yarra Ranges.  

The Health and Wellbeing Plan draft contains the following priority areas:

- Healthy places, healthy people;
- Positive mental health and wellbeing;
- Service access for a healthier Yarra Ranges; and
- A healthy start to life as the foundation for lifelong wellbeing.

One of the goals under Healthy Places, Healthy People is to increase understanding, access and consumption of healthy food, the aims to achieve this goal include:
- Increase skills and confidence to buy and prepare fresh foods as part of a daily diet.

- Increase awareness of the value of healthy eating by working with our partner organisations.

- Address food insecurity for our most vulnerable residents through innovation.
- Increase understanding of healthy food and fruit and vegetable intake by supporting community-led projects such as community gardens.
- Secure water for food production by working with agribusinesses.
- Ensure continued protection of food production areas of the municipality by advocating to the State Government.
- Inform solutions and resource allocation by understanding the barriers to healthy eating in our diverse communities.
- Seek greater local planning control over decisions affecting health through advocacy to the State Government

Yarra Ranges is seeking comments and feedback from the community about the draft Plan now. Submissions close on Friday, September 6th, at 5pm. Please address submissions by post to Social Planning and Development unit, PO Box 105, Lilydale, VIC 3140, or by email to mail@yarraranges.vic.gov.au.

You can find out more about the draft Health and Wellbeing Plan here.