Collaboration Committed to Healthier Planning

Australia’s planning profession remains committed to healthier communities with the continued roll
out of training to guide urban environment practitioners.

The Planning Institute of Australia (PIA) is expanding industry training for the Healthy Spaces and
Places (HSP) program to ensure better planned and healthier communities for the future.

HSP was designed in collaboration with the Australian Local Government Association (ALGA), the
National Heart Foundation and PIA, and is backed by the Australian Government Department of
Health and Ageing (DOHA).

PIA CEO Kirsty Kelly said HSP is working with people in local government, urban design and
other practitioners engaged is planning, designing or developing urban environments.

“The HSP training module was first introduced to local councils but now it has been expanded to
cover stakeholders in other areas including the private sector, Ms Kelly said.

“More and more there is empirical evidence that the planning, layout and design of our towns,
cities, neighbourhoods and community spaces have a direct bearing on human health.

“This is why the HSP program is so important. It brings another important consideration to modern
planning.”

The creation of Healthy Spaces and Places involved focus groups Australia-wide, stakeholder
consultation workshops and a team of expert reviewers. The HSP training module is now being
successfully delivered by a PIA accredited trainer qualified in urban and regional planning.
“The sort of things that are included in good planning now may not have been considered decades
ago. Indeed we still have spaces that were designed in the past that could well do with some
renewal and revitalisation,” Ms Kelly said.

“Major considerations in planning today include both the health of the community and the
environment and in many cases these things go hand in hand.

“Facilities for cyclists, more open and green space and ‘walkability’ in an area or precinct are right
up there as standard criteria.

“Professional planners are better equipped than ever before to know what constitutes healthy
sustainable communities.

“Creating Healthy Spaces and Places can help reduce the increase of preventable diseases in
Australia such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, obesity and cancer.

“Apart from the many studies already done in this field, research is now being undertaken by
multiple sectors including medical, health promotion, recreation and open space, urban planning
and transport planning.

“Good planning today is not just about what is allowed to go where, it’s about thinking outside the
square to come up with new ideas about how to create places people want to be a part of.

“Places that are aesthetically pleasing and safe with adequate lighting at night and shops,

restaurants and offices accessed easily by pedestrians.

“People are more inclined to walk to their destination if the proper layout is provided. Good street
connectivity, mixed density and land use are all associated with activity such as walking or cycling.

“Today’s planning not only creates and promotes healthier communities it also looks at how crime
and other socials issues can be addressed through good design. PIA is proud to be able to
increase the training for the important HSP program.”
Planning Institute Australia