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Social Justice Report 2006: Appendix 3: Shared Responsibility Agreements Survey form

Social Justice Report 2006

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  • Appendix 3: Shared Responsibility Agreements Survey
    form

    This appendix contains the survey form that my Office compiled and sent to
    all Indigenous communities and organisations that had entered into a Shared
    Responsibility Agreement (SRA) with the federal government by 31 December 2005.
    By this date 108 SRAs had been finalised, and they involved 124 communities.

    The purpose of the survey was to gather and assess first-hand information
    about individual communities’ experiences of negotiating and implementing
    SRAs. Respondents were asked to describe the content and purpose of their SRA,
    and to identify both the positive and negative aspects of their experience. The
    survey was completed on a voluntary basis. At the close of the survey, responses
    had been received in relation to 71 SRAs.

    To increase accessibility for communities and organisations, the survey was
    posted on the HREOC website. Each community representative was able to complete
    and submit the entire survey online. I sent a letter to each community before
    the survey was posted, explaining why I was interested in conducting the survey
    and encouraging communities to participate. Paper copies were also available on
    request and my staff also assisted some respondents to complete the survey over
    the phone.

    The results and analysis of the national SRA survey are contained in chapter
    3 of this report.

    Dear survey respondent:

    INSTRUCTIONS:

    This survey is for Indigenous communities and organisations that have
    entered into a Shared Responsibility Agreement (SRA) with the federal
    government. The Social Justice Commissioner wants to hear about your experiences
    in making an SRA. We want to hear your views about the process for making the
    SRA and what your agreement is about as well as what you think are the good and
    the bad things that you have encountered through the SRA.

    Some communities have more than one SRA. If this is your situation, then
    it is your decision whether you complete a separate survey form for each
    SRA.

    The answers to the questions in the survey will be compiled and analysed
    in the Social Justice Report 2006. No material will be made public which
    identifies a community or organisation or individual.

    Please complete this survey by 1 September 2006 and immediately return
    to us.



    Completing the Survey:

    • Please read the survey before you answer the questions to make sure you
      do not repeat your answers. There are 27 questions in total.
    • If you do not think a question relates to your organisation, please tick
      the box ‘Don’t Know’ rather than leaving it blank. If you need
      more space than we have given you on the form, please attach separate pages. If
      you attach separate pages, please put the question number clearly at the top of
      the page.

    PART ONE – CONTACT DETAILS

    In this section of the survey, you need to provide information that will
    allow us to verify who is filling in the survey. We need your name and the
    organisation or community that you represent. This information is for our
    records only. The Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission respects your
    privacy and all information will be kept confidential.

    1) Who is completing this form? Please provide us with details of the
    organisation you are representing.


    Your name:  
    Position:  
    Organisation:  
    Address:
     
    Phone:  
    fax number:  
    Email:  


    2) What is the name of your SRA?

     



    3) Please describe your organisation type:

    Note: If more than one of the options below relate to your organisation,
    please tick all boxes that are relevant.


    Please tick
    Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal Service
    Parents and citizens group  
    Community Development Employment Program (CDEP)  
    Community Council  
    Aboriginal/Torres Strait Islander Corporation  
    Traditional owners group/Elders Council

    Other: Describe here
     


    4) The responses in this survey are authorised by the following:

    Note: Please tick all the boxes that are relevant. More than one may
    apply.


    Please tick
    Community Elders  
    Chief Executive Officer of Organisation or Council  
    Chairperson of Organisation or Council  
    Board Member/s  
    An employee of the organisation  
    Community member  
    Other – Describe here:  

    PART TWO – CONTENT OF THE SRA

    In this section of the survey, please provide information about the actual
    Shared Responsibility Agreement that you have made with the government.

    5) What is your SRA about?


    Please tick
    Capacity building e.g. financial mentoring; training; teleconference
    facilities and general resources
     
    Municipal services e.g. petrol bowser; local store; airstrip lighting  
    Sport and recreation e.g. basketball court; pool; sporting activities  
    Health and nutrition e.g. breakfast program; healthy kids program  
    Community revitalisation e.g. community garden, cleaning up community  
    Cultural activities e.g. dreaming trails; culture camps, tour guide  
    Leadership activities e.g. mentoring programs, youth programs,
    women’s leadership groups
     
    Housing e.g. repairs and maintenance; home ownership programs  
    Economic development e.g. animal husbandry; farming; internet café;
    tourism; art projects

    Family Wellbeing e.g. family violence programs; men’s programs;
    parenting programs
     
    Law and Order e.g. night patrol; blue light disco; prevention and diversion
    programs
     
    OTHER: Describe here:  


    6) What are the obligations of the Commonwealth Government to your
    community, as set out in the SRA?


    Please tick
    To provide money e.g. $50,000 to build a sporting arena; $20,000 for salary
    for health worker

    To provide resources such as infrastructure, equipment, staff or
    consultants

    To increase CDEP places in the community e.g. to start a new CDEP program;
    to extend a CDEP program

    To provide training for community members e.g. to train community members
    to be facilitators at group meetings; to train community members to work in a
    mechanics shop

    To monitor and evaluate the program e.g. through regular visits to the
    community; through written reports based collection of information from the
    community

    To participate in steering or other committee  
    To meet travel and accommodation costs of visiting professionals  
    OTHER: Describe here:  


    7) What are the obligations of the State Government to your community, as
    set out in the SRA?

    Note: Many SRAs do not involve the state government. If this is the
    case, tick ‘No involvement of state government’

    OBLIGATION Please tick
    To provide money e.g. $20,000 to re-open the local store; $20,000
    for the wages of a pool attendant/life saver; to meet the ongoing costs of the
    project

    To provide resources such as infrastructure, equipment, staff or
    consultants

    To provide training for community members e.g. to train community
    members to facilitate community meetings; to train community members at the
    local TAFE in Horticulture

    To monitor and evaluate the program e.g. through regular visits to
    the community; through written reports provided by the local school
     
    To participate in steering or other committee  
    To meet travel and accommodation costs of visiting professionals  
    No involvement of State Government  
    Other: Describe here:  


    8) What are the obligations of your community or organisation, as set out
    in the SRA?


    Please tick
    To provide labour e.g. to provide CDEP workers; to do voluntary work
    To provide resources e.g. to provide funds to the project; to
    provide a vehicle to the project; getting quotes for building activities;
    finding suitable premises

    To be active participants in the community e.g. attend board
    meetings; join the P & C; form part of a working group; scout program;
    mentor Indigenous youth

    To provide maintenance and security e.g. to maintain equipment or
    grounds; to ensure the security of the new building or sporting facility
     
    To provide financial or project management e.g. to develop community
    guidelines for access to activities and programs; have input into cultural
    activities; to manage funds; to develop and maintain records of the program

    To organise sporting or recreational activities e.g. to run regional
    sporting activities/competitions

    To undertake training e.g. TAFE training; training in violence issues;
    training in mentoring



    Other: Describe here


    9) Is your local CDEP Scheme involved in activities for the SRA?


    Please tick
    YES  
    NO  
    DON’T KNOW  


    10) Please describe the processes in place to monitor the SRA?

     




    PART THREE – THE NEGOTIATION PROCESS

    In this section of the survey, please provide information about how you came
    to be negotiating an SRA and describe the key features of the negotiation
    process

    11) What are the three main reasons you decided to negotiate with
    government for a SRA? Please rank the reasons below and provide your answers in
    order of importance. 1 is the most important.

    1.

    2.

    3.


    12) Who suggested negotiating the SRA?


    Please tick
    The community saw a need for the project and approached the
    government

    The community observed an SRA working in another community and thought it
    was a good idea

    The government suggested the SRA process e.g. the local Indigenous
    Coordination Centre
     
    A corporate organisation suggested the SRA  
    The local school or other community organisation saw a need for an
    SRA

    Other: Please describe:


    13) How did the community prepare to make the SRA?


    Please tick
    Community consultations were held: E.G: Community workshops were
    held to prepare the community negotiators for the SRA negotiation; Community
    members held meetings to talk about the content of the SRA and the obligations
    that would be placed on the community; Elders initiated community
    consultations
     
    Community planning was undertaken: E.G: The community conducted an
    audit of their strengths and the weaknesses, and what areas they might need
    assistance with to be able to participate in the SRA; The SRA is part of a
    larger community plan.

    A negotiator or advisor was engaged by the community: E.G: The
    community used a professional negotiation advisor to help negotiate the SRA:
    this might be a community member with previous experience in negotiating another
    SRA; The community employed an “agent” or a broker to act on their
    behalf in the negotiations

    Members of staff of your organisation negotiated on behalf of the
    community

    There was an existing project that needed funding, so community meetings
    were held to discuss the future of the project
     
    OTHER – Please describe any other process entered into here:


    14) What assistance was provided to negotiate the SRA?


    Please tick Please comment
    A Solution Broker from your local Indigenous Coordination Centre
    (ICC)


    A Specialist Consultant was provided by your local Indigenous Coordination
    Centre (ICC)


    A staff member from your local Indigenous Coordination Centre (ICC)
    assisted in writing a community plan


    Resources were provided to the community to develop the plan

    No assistance was provided to the community

    Other: Please describe



    15) How long did the negotiations for the SRA take?


    Please tick
    Less than one month
    1 month – 3 months
    3 months – 6 months
    6 months – 12 months
    Other. Please describe:


    16) Was the time line appropriate for negotiating the SRA?


    Please tick
    The process went at the right pace  
    The process was too fast: the government pressured the community to
    finalise and sign the agreement too quickly

    The process was too fast: The government set timeframes that did not allow
    enough time for the community to consider the implications of the proposed
    obligations in the agreement
     
    The process was too slow: The community was ready to finalise the agreement
    but had to wait for the government to approve the agreement

    The process was too slow: there were delays during the negotiation process
    which meant that the agreement took longer than it should have
     
    Other. Please describe:


    17) How much information did the community have about SRAs during the
    negotiating process?


    Please tick
    Not enough information was provided by the government  
    Too much information was provided
    The right amount of information was provided  
    Other. Please describe:


    18) When the SRA was finalised, how was it approved by the community or
    organisation?


    Please tick Other comments
    Community meeting

    Approved by Board/Council

    Approved by CEO

    Approved by Chairperson

    No approval sought from the community

    Other. Please describe



    19) What has been done to inform community members of their obligations in
    the SRA?


    Please tick
    A community meeting has been held  
    A copy of the SRA has been given to members of the community  
    A copy of the SRA is displayed in the community centre  
    The progress of the SRA is discussed monthly at community meetings
    Information provided at a board / council meeting
    OTHER: Please describe:

    PART FOUR – YOUR COMMUNITY’S VIEWS ON THE SRA PROCESS

    In this section of the survey, please indicate the views of the community
    about the SRA process. We want to understand whether the community viewed the
    SRA process as a positive experience and how it might be improved.

    20) Are you satisfied with how the government has met it’s
    obligations under the SRA?

      Please Tick
    Yes – the government has met its obligations and the community is
    satisfied with how they have done so

    No – the government has not met its obligations  
    No – While the government has met its obligations, the community is
    not satisfied with how they have done so
     
    Other – Please explain:  


    Please explain your answer:






    21) Please list the 3 main positive impacts on your relationship with the
    federal government that have resulted from making an SRA, in order of
    importance. 1 is the most important.

    1.

    2.

    3.


    22) Please list the 3 main negative impacts on your relationship with the
    federal government that have resulted from making an SRA, in order of
    importance. 1 is the most important

    1.

    2.

    3.


    23) Please list the 3 main positive impacts on the community that have
    resulted from making an SRA, in order of importance. 1 is the most
    important.

    1.

    2.

    3.


    24) Please list the 3 main negative impacts on the community that have
    resulted from making an SRA, in order of importance. 1 is the most
    important.

    1.

    2.

    3.


    25) Please list the 3 main things that an Indigenous community, or
    organisation, would need to successfully negotiate an SRA? Please list these
    below in order of importance. 1 is the most important.

    1.

    2.

    3.


    26) Based on your experience of negotiating an SRA with the government,
    would your community enter into other Shared Responsibility Agreements?


    Please tick
    YES  
    NO  
    NOT SURE  


    27) Finally, do you have any other comments? If so, please write them
    here:








    Thank you very much for your time. Your information will
    help to ensure that Indigenous people can gain the maximum benefits from the SRA
    process.

    Please see the front of this survey for mailing options

    Tom Calma

    Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
    Commissioner