The City of Ballarat is committed to creating an age friendly community for our residents.

In October 2022, the City of Ballarat released our Ageing Well in Ballarat Strategy 2022-2026, articulating a vision to create an age-friendly community where people feel valued, connected, included, and respected and feel confident to participate fully in life however they choose.

Our strategy aligns with the WHO age-friendly domains and outlines our roadmap for delivering on our vision for an age-friendly Ballarat. It promotes a whole-of-council approach to addressing the needs of people aged 55 years and over.
Key actions for the first two years of the strategy are focused on foundational activities to establish a solid base for future work. This includes:
• Developing an Age-Friendly Indicators Framework for Ballarat;
• Strengthening key partnerships across our region;
• Collaborating with local organisations to increase social connection opportunities and support across the community;
• Addressing community need for more reliable information sharing and communication;
• Facilitating community education sessions across age -friendly focus areas to raise awareness and empower our residents to make informed decisions;
• Implementing initiatives focused on building respect & social inclusion including a greater emphasis on intergenerational connection, a commitment to tackling ageism and celebrating our older community members and their contribution; and
• Establishing an Age Friendly Ambassadors program to provide a mechanism for greater co-design opportunities and ongoing connection with our older residents.

In July 2023, aligning with our Ageing Well in Ballarat Strategy, the City of Ballarat introduced a new Ageing Well Services model which includes delivering programs and activities focused on social connection, health and wellbeing across several City of Ballarat program areas and facilities. It also includes a Community Connector service to support our residents (55 years & over) to navigate systems, services and supports in Ballarat to help them make informed decisions to live life as they choose.