Preliminary Findings of the OCHRE Local Decision Making Stage 2

Local Decision Making (LDM) is a NSW Government initiative that
aims to transform the way that NSW Government agencies engage
with Aboriginal communities regarding service delivery. The aims
and approach of the LDM initiative are characteristic of the
contemporary emphasis on partnerships, agreements, and
accountability structures in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
public policy in Australia.

This report presents the overarching preliminary findings of the
OCHRE Local Decision Making Stage 2 Evaluation. It considers
those findings in the context of the evaluation’s primary goal of
understanding the operation of the OCHRE LDM initiative in order
to improve its processes and outcomes.

The report presents case studies that illustrate how communities
are strengthening their leadership and governance around service
delivery through regional governance bodies. It discusses how
regional governance bodies are providing NSW government
agencies with a key point of access for community engagement
and advice, and examples where regional governance bodies are
instrumental in securing improvements around community control
over service delivery. It describes occasions where regional
governance bodies have worked with NSW Government agencies
to secure new innovative approaches to the way that government
does business with them.

While highlighting these examples of success, the report finds that
progress under LDM has been ad hoc. LDM is not implemented
well across the board. There have not been systematic
transformations of relationships between Aboriginal communities
and the NSW Government under LDM. The report discusses areas
where the design and implementation of LDM are falling short. It
provides evidence and recommendations that may be used to
improve outcomes under LDM in future.