Great Neighbourhoods
Don’t Happen by Accident

Good Neighbours Movement is an independent consultancy on a mission to shape stronger, healthier, and more sustainable communities across Australia.

New communities are being built every day – but too often, people are left out of the plan.

Our purpose is to reimagine how neighbourhoods are shaped – helping governments, developers, and organisations plan and deliver communities that are stronger, healthier, and built to last.

By putting people and evidence at the centre, we work to ensure every neighbourhood is a place where connection, access, and wellbeing are the norm, not the exception.

“We believe designing resilient and connected neighbourhoods drives positive economic, social, and environmental outcomes for all stakeholders.”

How We Help

We’re not here to pave footpaths - we’re here to pave the way for smarter, more connected communities.

Good Neighbours operates at the intersection of community experience and commercial reality – supporting more informed, inclusive, and future-fit development through:

Surfacing
What Matters

We gather lived experience and community insight early - especially from those shaping new communities day-to-day - to influence better decisions around planning, policy, and funding.

Translating Insight
Into Influence

We craft compelling narratives, tools, and strategies that turn grassroots knowledge into policy-shaping frameworks and commercially relevant planning inputs.

Aligning
Stakeholders

We work with fragmented landowners, councils, and state government to support Heads of Agreement and shared accountability around PSPs and community infrastructure plans.

Shifting the System

From reframing co-design to challenging broken development models, we advocate for a new way forward - where people aren’t an afterthought but a starting point.

Enabling Innovation,
Not Bureaucracy

We help developers and councils navigate risk-averse systems - championing practical innovation while holding all players to a higher standard of community responsibility.

Our work combines data, partnerships,
and clear communication to:

Inform better planning & development decisions

Strengthen alignment
between stakeholders

Elevate resident voice
& lived experience

Reduce long-term social
& economic costs

Create tools for smarter investment, policy
& place design

It’s vital that our community leaders understand the unique challenges faced by the pioneers living in newly established neighbourhoods. We recently had the opportunity to meet with City of Melton Mayor Cr Steve Abboushi and Cr Lara Carli to discuss the highs and lows of leadership and development in Australia’s fastest-growing municipality.

A special thank you to Claire Mouser, the 2024 City of Melton Citizen of the Year, for her support and exceptional coordination in making this conversation possible.