Walking Lake Wendouree c.1905 (Source: State Library of Victoria)

HUL Toolkit

I am a Resident, Worker or Student

Ballarat has a rich history, from pre-contact times through to the gold rush, and into the present. Our collective past has shaped out unique identity today. Local people always have and will continue to have a very important role to play in the evolution of our city.

• To contribute your voice to the city's future see How you can get involved
• To find out how we're responding to your values about Ballarat see What you've told us matters most and How we've responded
• To find out more about your city's story and history see Our Shared Story
• To find out what you need to know when developing a property in Ballarat see the City of Ballarat website 

These tools allow you to explore the different elements that make up our city and community, our shared vision for the future, and opportunities for contributing to the cultural fabric of Ballarat.

Our Shared Story

• Get the overview of Ballarat’s history, with a timeline spanning pre-contact times to the present day 
• Explore our city with the self-guided, historic walking tours outlined on Ballarat Revealed
• Uncover local Indigenous perspectives of the gold rush through Hidden Histories: The Wadawurrung People 
• Compare historic and present-day Ballarat through the Cityscapes and Artscapes through time tools
• Survey Ballarat’s musical heritage with the interactive Songways Music Map  
• Hear stories of unique characters and events that shaped Ballarat in the Tales from Rat City podcast series
• TimeCapsule Ballarat provides a continuously evolving and interactive map of places valued and remembered in Ballarat
• The Ballarat Photo Map offers a window into the past and present of the city
• Read the stories and memories of people in the Ballarat community and see their link to places in Ballarat and around the world on The Memory Atlas  
• Learn how to research your home’s history with our research guide and find out what our heritage studies tell you about Ballarat’s historic areas in the Ballarat Heritage Database (searchable by property)

You can find out more about Ballarat and research your own history with our city’s local history groups and organisations 

What you've told us matters most

• The Ballarat Imagine community consultation uncovered what the community loves, values and imagines for the future of Ballarat. Read what you said
• Uncover community values for specific areas around our city through consultation summaries [link to MySay archive – FORTHCOMING] and community engagement reports [link to collection online – FORTHCOMING]

How we've responded

• The Today, Tomorrow, Together: The Ballarat Strategy outlines the community’s vision for the future and guides Council’s approaches to delivering it
• The other key driver for developing Ballarat’s future is the Creative City Strategy, which provides key priorities and areas of focus for fostering the creative life of the city and its economy
• A series of community-led local area plans [link to MySay archive – FORTHCOMING] guide the future of Ballarat’s local areas and townships
• You told us that our city’s unique character and heritage was of critical importance to the future of your city so with your help we developed a heritage plan to guide how we best leverage, safeguard and celebrate our city’s heritage.

How you can get involved

There are a number of ways to participate in the life of our city:

• Have your say on current projects via the MySay website
• Take part in the Engaging Communities program
• Contribute to the TimeCapsule Ballarat project by uploading images, audio or stories of what you value about our city
• Capture your stories and memories of people in the Ballarat community and link them to places in our world on The Memory Atlas
• Consider applying for one of Council’s grants to support your idea or apply for a Ballarat Heritage Restoration Fund grant to restore your historic property

If you would like guidance on a project or help with an idea, the Community Development team on Contact them on info@ballarat.vic.gov.au or call 5320 5500. They can guide you through all the processes involved, from funding sources or permit applications for community projects.