Skip to main content

PASAP - Co-design Process

The co-design process is flexible, non-linear and allows for new partnerships to form at any stage.

Action Plan Development Age-friendly Cities Appendices CEO Message Co-design Process Demographic Profile Evaluation Framework: Telling the story Implementation and Monitoring Introduction Mayor’s Message Positive Ageing Strategy 2022-2025 - Action Plan References

The action planning process was designed around key principles of prioritising relationships, sharing power, using participatory means, and building capability.

Participants were invited to Have Your Say via our online engagement platform. Those involved in the initial phase had the opportunity to take part in a Design Forum. Project updates were sent via email, inviting further participation.


Phase 1: Community conversations

Figure 2: Conversation toolkit participation options

The toolkit posed four questions. Participants were given the option of answering as many questions as they chose. The questions were:

  1. What makes you feel safe? Imagine a community where, as you age, you will feel completely safe and welcome. What types of things would you like to do? What actions need to take place for you to be able to experience this (either right now, or as you age)?
  2. What actions would support and encourage you to participate more in your community through work, volunteering, leisure, socialising, or study?
  3. What do you think will impact you as you age? What support do you think you may need as you age?
  4. What are the spaces, places, and services you love the most? What actions should be taken to ensure you can continue to access these as you age?

Figure 3: Phase 1 Conversation toolkit participation


Phase 2: Design

A design forum brought together a diverse group of stakeholders including: people with lived experience; service delivery staff; and representatives of the City. The primary objective was to:

  • Review insights collected through the Conversation Toolkit findings.
  • Design a set of actions that align with key themes of the Positive Ageing Strategy, with a goal of creating an ‘age-friendly’ community within three years.

The forum provided an opportunity for community representatives to develop a deeper understanding of the issues, thus enriching the outputs, strengthening relationships, and paving the way for future collaboration.


Design process

Step 1

  • An overview of evidence collected through the Converstion Toolkit findings was presented to the group.
  • Each group reviewed and grouped the findings into the appropriate theme category.

Step 2

  • Each group reviewd a set of findings under each theme and created How Migh We (HMW) statements to develop actions in response.

Step 3

  • Groups brainstormed actions under each HMW statement. The groups repeated this step known as a World Cafe to cover each theme.
  • Each discussion was facilitated by a table host who briefed each new group on th previous discussion and then built on previous work.
  • Group members then vote on the priority they felt was the most important.

Figure 5: Co-design forum, April 2022


Phase 3: Test and Refine

Phase three ended with co-design participants voting for their top five actions for each of the three themes of the strategy.

Figure 6: The Co-design Process

Page last updated: