The eTownz SMART
Community Management Framework

Each Team Undertakes the 5 x STEPS PROGRAM

Coordination Team

  • Local stakeholders are invited to create Local “Action Teams”
  • Each Action Team focuses on one Pillar of community development
  • Each Action Team follow a 12-month planning & implementation program
  • The plans from each Action Team are combined to create a Master community plan
  • All contributors & Stakeholders are invited to sign & commit to implementing the Community Plan

What does the “Coordination Team” do?

What do the “Action Teams” do?

 

  • Initiate the program, invite locals to participate
  • Support “Action Team” with administration & collaboration
  • Each year, organise a community meeting for all teams
  • Each year collate plans from each action team to create a master plan

 

  • Prepare a standardised, 5 step plan for their Pillar each year
  • Encourage people in the community to support and participate in local projects
  • Help projects coordinate and implement strategies to meet their goals
  • Support and collaborate with other local Action Teams

About this Manual / Framework

This manual is presented as a practical guide to implementing the “Smart Community Management Framework” (SCMF) into your community. 

1. Who can use it?

The development of the manual has been a joint undertaking by the Community Research Alliance,” click here. The SCMF is open source, meaning any community can use part or all of the framework as they see fit. The eTownz Community Management Dashboard is a digital platform developed to support the SCMF, but is not required to implement the framework. As part of this report, the community research alliance provides a series of resources which help to manage the implementation of the framework in your community.

2. Who can get involved?

All individuals and organisations in the community can come together to participate in the “Smart Local Team”. There are four categories of stakeholders:

  • Local Residents
  • Local Businesses
  • Local Clubs/Groups
  • Local Public Service Providers

3. Why Do Locals Get Involved?

The framework encourages local involvement. The more local people and organisations that get involved, the greater potential the framework has at bringing about positive change in the community. 

Why local people get involved: 

  1. A better place to live: Make the community a better place to live & work for all
  2. Fun: To promote the enjoyment and pleasure of being involved in things that interest you in your local community
  3. Rewarding: To ensure your participation is beneficial and rewarding
  4. Considerate: To work towards a community which is considerate to people & the environment.

Why Organisations get involved: 

  1. Co-operation & Support: To identify local organisations/people with similar goals and identify ways to cooperate and support each other  
  2. Community Integration: Ensure your organisation is considered and given the opportunity to play an active part in the local community  
  3. Volunteer Support: To assist the organisation in recruiting new members and finding volunteers to help with projects
  4. Funding: Identify & better manage group funding opportunities.

4. Common Community Management Challenges

The framework is the culmination of many years of academic research and community engagement. The framework was developed to help address common community management challenges that include:

  1. Poor standard of local development plans
  2. Long, non-specific local plans
  3. Local plans which are not read by most in the community
  4. Lack of coordination between local groups & stakeholders of various types
  5. Lack of linkages between med/long term planning & day-day community management
  6. Difficulty in matching local volunteers to local projects

5. Benefits of the framework

The framework is designed to address a number of the common challenges experienced by communities and allow community management to be more transparent, efficient and effective 

  • It creates meaningful engagement with local communities and local development organisations to ensure that the best outcome for the community is achieved
  • It promotes equality of opportunity and social inclusion by prioritising the needs of communities experiencing social or economic disadvantage, including rural isolation.
  • It is a robust local collaboration structure which will encourage transparency and participation within communities