Our Partnership has a range of priorities it is championing. Some of these have led to new initiatives in our region.
Read about some of these projects below.
Small Towns Big Difference Symposium
In June 2023 the Mallee Regional Partnership will be hosting a Small Towns Big Difference Symposium in Charlton.
Joined by guest presenters Derek Guille (ABC) and Brad McEwen (Brad McEwen Media), the Small Town Big Difference Symposium will showcase small towns that are making a big difference for their residents through community-owned models, diverse funding sources, improved facilities and fabulous events.
More details on the Forum will be available on the Mallee Regional Partnership Facebook Page as they are finalised.
Sustainable Childcare for Rural Kids
In partnership with the Wimmera Southern Mallee Regional Partnership, the Mallee Regional Partnership have commissioned By5, a Horsham based consultancy focussing on early childhood development, to develop bespoke service models for delivery of childcare services in five sites across the Loddon-Mallee region.
The project will investigate early years integration and co-location, infrastructure needs and sustainable service delivery models for child care in Birchip, Charlton, Boort, Inglewood and Red Cliffs.
This project builds upon the work undertaken by the Loddon-Mallee RDA Committee in 2022 which focussed on enabling early childhood education and childcare access in rural areas. More information on and a copy of that report can be found on the Invest Loddon Mallee website.
Improving health outcomes
Community feedback to the Mallee Regional Partnership (MRP) continues to identify inadequate primary health care, including access to General Practitioners (GPs), as a critical and enduring concern for Mallee residents. Statistics support feedback that the consequence is poorer health, social and economic outcomes for Mallee communities than those of other Victorian regions.
To further the business case for change, the MRP undertook an investigation in 2019 into the barriers and opportunities for improved access to primary health care in the Mallee. The “Delivering a Healthy Mallee: Investigation of Models to deliver primary health services in the Mallee” report includes alternative models of primary health care that could be introduced and/or reconfigured from current models, such as:
- Evolving the traditional GP business model and funding stream for integrated, team-led, patient-centred care;
- Health Professionals Working to their full Scope of Practice / and to an Increased Scope of Practice;
- Increasing use of Third Tier Staff (most notably Allied Health Assistants)
- Increased Self-Determination
- Increased Networking and Partnership
- Many safe eyes models (small rural communities)
- Health Literacy
- E-Health (or Telehealth)
To further this work, the Mallee Regional Partnership is partnering with health stakeholders in the region such as the Murray Primary Health Network to support and advance innovative models of health care delivery.