Noarlunga a better place to live

Mission Statement

Healthy Cities Noarlunga aims to stimulate community action in regard to any health issue that impacts on the health and well being of the local community.

Objectives:

Promote a social view of health within the public, private and non-government sector and the general community.
Encourage cooperative processes between government and private sectors at a local level which coordinate health promoting activities and foster the community's discussion of better health.
Encourage commitment to improving the health of the local community.

Strategies:

Work with a variety of local community groups and individuals on locally relevant issues eg Multi-Cultural Task Group, Surviving Unemployment.
Encourage community participation in identifying and addressing health issues and fostering membership in a range of management committees.
Support existing community initiatives which promote health eg basic living skills, cultural diversity.
Encourage health services and other services to allocate a high priority to health promoting activities eg Noarlunga Towards a Safe Community, Noarlunga Crime Prevention Program.
Contribute to an participate in the development of networks between Healthy Cities communities nationally and internationally by sharing experiences and hosting visits. The development and promotion of a Healthy Cities web site to facilitate links and encourage information sharing.
Give priority to issues and activities which are based on values of social justice and equity.

Healthy Cities Noarlunga is sponsored and supported by Noarlunga Health Services. It was established in 1987 and is a coalition of agencies and community members which address city-based health issues using the World Health Organisation's Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion and the World Health Organisation European Healthy Cities Project as its reference.

Healthy Cities has brought to the City of Onkaparinga a process which has provided community members with the opportunity to raise and address health issues which affects the city and its community with representatives of the public and private sector.

The Healthy Cities Management Committee includes eight community members and seven representatives from organisations and agencies committed to promoting the health of the City of Onkaparinga. Included are Onkaparinga City Council, South Australian Housing Trust, Department for Education, Training and Employment, Noarlunga Health Services, South Australian Community Health Research Unit and the Family and Youth Services.

Health Cities Noarlunga has made a significant contribution to the health of the city and has been a leader in the establishment of the network of Australian participating cities. That involvement has developed strong links internationally with participating cities in other countries including South East Asia.

The City of Onkaparinga is located in the outer southern coastal area of metropolitan Adelaide, thirty-five kilometres from the central business district. It is the fastest growing council area in South Australia with a population of approximately 146 000 persons.

The western boundary of the City of Onkaparinga is marked by some thirty kilometres of unique and varied coastline, with open beaches, reefs, dunes and cliff formations. The coastline stretches from Lonsdale in the north to Sellicks Beach in the south. Extending inland from the coast are undulating plains which rise up to the foothills of the southern Mount Lofty Ranges. The Onkaparinga River meanders through the central plains and meets the coast at Port Noarlunga.

The Mount Lofty Ranges define the southern boundary of the city and form an impressive and distinct escarpment where they meet the coast at Sellicks Beach.

Land uses are many and varied, from residential estates to smaller coastal communities and country townships. Commercial activity ranges from the smallest local retail centres to the Colonnades Shopping Centre, along with significant industrial areas including Lonsdale and Hackham. Major economic activity in the area is associated with the automotive manufacturing industry, petroleum refining, optical lens manufacturing, mining, transportation, the production of wine, tourism and the service sector. The large rural sector is utilised for primary production associated with viticulture, horticulture, forestry, cropping and grazing.

For more information visit the City of Onkaparinga's library web site at
http://www.cool-lib.sa.gov.au.