New draft place-naming policy unveiled for Bass Coast Shire
A new draft policy for naming places in Bass Coast Shire seeks to correct the imbalance in favour of historic male figures by encouraging commemorative names that honour under-represented groups such as local women.
THE RELEASE of a new draft place naming policy for Bass Coast Shire Council has marked the first significant step toward modernising how local landmarks are identified.
A comprehensive place naming framework has been released for community feedback and is designed to provide clear and consistent guidance for local naming practices.
According to Bass Coast Shire Council the policy establishes a structured, transparent process for council officers, developers, emergency services, and community members involved in naming proposals.
By formalising these guidelines, the council aims to ensure that future names assigned to streets, geographic features, and localities reflect the rich cultural heritage and unique environmental identity of the Bass Coast.
The primary purpose of the draft policy is to create a legally compliant and structured system for evaluating naming proposals. Historically, naming processes varied across regional councils leading to bureaucratic delays or inconsistent outcomes.
This new policy is designed to address those challenges by aligning local decisions with the statutory requirements set out in the Naming Rules for Places in Victoria.
Crucially, the framework prioritises public safety. Clear and unambiguous names for roads and localities are vital for emergency services, ensuring that ambulances, police, and fire crews can locate properties without confusion or delay.
Under the new policy, any naming or renaming proposal initiated by the council, private developers, or community groups must pass rigorous criteria to prevent duplication and ensure operational clarity.
Beyond safety and administration, the policy introduces modern social benchmarks to the naming process. It explicitly integrates commitments to gender equity, cultural diversity, and the recognition of Traditional Owner languages.
For many years, place names across Australia have heavily favoured historical male figures, often leaving the contributions of prominent women unrecognised.
This draft policy seeks to correct that imbalance by encouraging commemorative names that honour under-represented groups, particularly local women who have helped shape the community.
Furthermore, the policy embeds a formal process for integrating Indigenous languages into the local landscape. The council will actively collaborate with the Bunurong Land Council, the Registered Aboriginal Party, to seek advice, language preservation, and formal consent for proposed First Nations names.
The guidelines outlined in the draft document govern all public spaces where the council acts as the responsible naming authority. This includes new residential subdivisions and commercial developments, public roads, laneways, and walkways, geographic features, including local reserves, wetlands, and parks, and township localities and official boundary changes.
The policy supports a collaborative approach, enabling naming ideas to originate from grassroots community groups just as easily as they do from commercial developers.
The council is now calling on residents to review the draft document and share their perspectives to ensure the final policy truly reflects community expectations.
The full draft document, along with a list of frequently asked questions, is available on the Engage Bass Coast Platform. Residents, historians, and business owners are encouraged to submit their feedback online.
For specific questions regarding a commemorative naming proposal, community members can contact the council's property team directly on 1300 BCOAST (226 278).
