2011 CENSUS PROMOTIONS


ACT OFFICE GOES ALL OUT TO PROMOTE 2011 CENSUS

Over the last two months, the ACT Regional Office, in conjunction with the ACT-NSW Census Management Team, has been heavily promoting the upcoming 2011 Census. The main aim of the promotion has been to increase awareness of the 2011 Census, increase application numbers for Area Supervisor positions and encourage people to be Census Collectors for the August count both in the nation’s capital and in the surrounding regions.

The National Multicultural Festival

The ACT office kicked off its 2011 Census promotion at the National Multicultural Festival in Canberra in mid-February this year.

Festival goers had the opportunity to visit the ABS marquee and enquire about 2011 Census job opportunities as either Area Supervisors or Collectors. Staff answered many questions ranging from the date of the 2011 Census through to the importance of the need to fill out the 2011 Census form.

ACT Regional Director, Stephen Collett, and Ilona Cipe Fraser, from NSW Census PR, were both a hit as they whipped the crowd into a frenzy with questions about Census and threw footballs, soccer balls and frisbees from all four stages.

Armed with promotional materials such as balloons, lollipops, pens and drink bottles, ABS staff did their best to ensure everyone who attended were well aware of the upcoming Census on 9 August 2011. If sore feet and husky voices were a measure then all staff agreed that the day was a huge success, with an increase in awareness of the 2011 Census, a big boost in application numbers for Area Supervisor positions and a large number of people registering their interest to be Collectors for the August count in the nation’s capital!

Prior to the event, Stephen Collett gave a presentation to the volunteers of the National Multicultural Festival with the aim of getting future Area Supervisors and Census Collectors to register their interest for the 2011 Census.

Bega Show

The 2011 Census promotion continued on to the Bega Show where the relaxed environment allowed locals to have a more in-depth chat on how the 2011 Census could individually help them and their community.

Through visiting the ABS marquee and staff promoting the Census around the show, a number of locals were able to register their interest in being a Census Collector. This made the trip down the coast worthwhile and the showbags and balloons were once again a hit with the crowds.


Cooma Show

The 2011 Census promotion roadshow moved on to Cooma Show. With the applications for Area Supervisor positions in the final stages, the emphasis was placed on registering locals to be Collectors. The response, once again, was fantastic with locals registering in droves!

One of the highlights of the day was when long time Cooma local, Ruth McFadden, expressed her joy on working on a number of past Census'. She stressed what a great way it was to meet people in the community and that she had loved every minute of it. This was more than enough praise to earn her a showbag and once again proved that, given the right attitude, being a Census Collector can be a very fulfilling and rewarding vocation.

To show our appreciation to the residents of Cooma, the NSW-ACT Census Management Unit presented the Cooma Show Society with a cattle halter to use as a prize for one of the show events.

Youth Week

ACT Regional Director, Stephen Collett, "surfed the couch" in Garema Place, Canberra city, for Youth Week. Along with Tim Power, Jeremy Walker and Jessica Wanganeen, they mingled and mixed with the youth of Canberra and answered all the queries thrown their way about the upcoming 2011 Census.

Most students were unaware there was a census occurring this year but our staff did a great job to get the message out to the youth of Canberra. One young person did manage to stun our Regional Director when she reeled off the complete history of the Census to her friends!

Other promotional opportunities

• Census Management Unit District Manager for Snowy Region, Barbara Hill, and Stephen Collett were in Cooma to speak to community leaders and Cooma-Monaro and Snowy River Shire councillors about local employment opportunities. The emphasis was placed on the need for Area Supervisors who were passionate about their community, who lived in the area and understood the lay of the land.
• Tim Power and Jessica Wanganeen from the ACT-NSW Census Management Team have been meeting with various local community groups and organisations in the ACT and surrounding regions to ensure that the ABS accurately measure the number and key characteristics of people in the territory during the Census. They addressed issues in areas such as Homelessness, Youth Affairs, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders, people from non-english speaking backgrounds and people living in secure apartments.

Upcoming events

• The ABS will be at the Lake Light Sculpture Festival at Jindabyne over Easter to continue more exposure of the 2011 Census to the Snowy region.
• The ABS will continue the 2011 Census push during NAIDOC Week in early July.