THE BLANK SHEET COUNCIL CHANGE, CHANCE AND CHOICE 4 FEBRUARY 2016 Change is the law of life and those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future John F. Kennedy The right place at the wrong time x 3 The United Kingdom Small Government / Big Community National Audit Office Report into Financial Sustainability of Local Government (October 2014) 37% reduction in central government funding to Councils from 2011 to % reduction in staffing levels from 2011 to 2015 Electoral push back USA experience Local Government Structural Reform The Golden Rule Revenue ShareExpenditureValue of Asset base Commonwealth 82%35%13% State 15%54%51% Local Government 3%11%36% All States are in a Budget Squeeze Why did this budget squeeze occur? The Noosa De-amalgamation Story 2008 81% voted Yes 2013 Why did people vote for de- amalgamation? Sense of local identity / belonging Local people want a local say on local issues The concept of one back Its not about the money (why do people leave their jobs?) De-amalgamation process Mid 2012 State Government changed. LNP promised to establish Boundary Review Commissioner Call for interested communities (19) Short listed for referral (5) Assessment process by QTC and LG Boundary Commissioner December 2012 State Government announced 4 communities will get a vote. Affected communities to pay all costs De-amalgamation process March 2013 Four affected communities vote. All successful May 2013 Transfer Managers appointed 9 November 2013 Local elections 1 January 2014 go live Setting up a Council from scratch Lessons from Structural Change Lesson 1 You have a blank piece of paper Imagine building your Council from scratch What would you differently from what you have? Why not do it now? Imagine not being bound by the past What is possible? Cloud Computing Zero Based Budgeting Lessons from Structural Change Lesson 1 You have a blank piece of paper Imagine building your Council from scratch What would you differently from what you have? Why not do it now. Imagine not being bound by the past What is possible? YOUR TURN!! Lessons from Structural Change Lesson 2 One size does not fit all Amalgamation is sometimes a solution looking for a problem There have been good amalgamations Concept of centre of gravity to create a region What is the problem you are trying to solve? Lessons from Structural Change Lesson 3 Get the principles right Things will get hard through the change process Start with agreed principles Keep them simple Dont deviate from them Our desired culture Our HR strategy Lessons from Structural Change Lesson 4 Learn from the private sector Cut hard, cut deep, cut early Dont over consult Top down for 18 months be clear why Goal become a normal local government asap Dont fall into the structure trap Our current Noosa Context De-amalgamation decision Local Government business 4,200 less staff in local government Back to 2004 FTE level in real terms Lean - FTE x 100 head population Comparisons have been made with other like category 4 Councils (without an internal water & sewerage function). Comparative data has been sourced from 2012/13 Qld Local Government Comparative Data Lean Operations Structure is not the be all and end all of Local Government Effectiveness Efficiency Criticality Lessons from Structural Change Lesson 5 Clear priorities Whats first, whats second? Cant do everything at once Manage expectations both internal and external Road map is essential to prioritise First 6 months Scope - community input into the review process, vision, biosphere governance model, implementation Biosphere Review Scope - improve our online digital presence, explore options to devolve decision making to our community, build community engagement practices into our day- to-day business Community Engagement Scope /15 budget is tightly managed, develop a new 10 year financial forecast, undertake a series of service reviews looking at key areas, meets short and long term financial sustainability ratios, financial management Financial Sustainability Scope - build a new Council culture focused on no bureaucracy, customer service, every dollar counts etc Council Culture Post July Issues Transport Strategy review progress / network / modal shift / Public Transport Asset management plans review asset conditions and link to financial models Beckmans Road Demaining Agreement and needs assessment Infrastructure Tourism review regional model / Tourism Noosa Economic strategy - develop a new approach Rural futures Economy Noosa Planning Scheme amendments Coastal Erosion Management Plan - significant implications SEQ Regional Plan Review - implications for Noosa Planning Noosa North Shore netting Noosa River Plan - review or renew? Waste Management Strategy - including implementation Environment Community Grants Community Partnering eg Noosa Waters Association Community Set-up issues Audit Committee Internal Audit function Case Management Working Group Local Law Review Council Policies Review Standing Orders Review Staff Delegations Review Performance Planning Governance Internal communication (newsletter) Workplace Health and Safety Committee industrial Relations Reforms New EBA Organisation Structure and implementation (new position outlines etc) Union/ Employee Consultative Committee Establish a staff Performance Review process Management Contract reviews Human Resource Issues Planning online Phone system upgrade ECM - improve speed and use GIS - roll out mapping layers Finance 1 - reporting roll out System Issues Lessons from Structural Change Lesson 6 Dont become introspective Establishing a new organisation v those pesky customers Do some symbolic community issues / events (kerbside pickup) Amalgamation experience for politicians Lessons from Structural Change Lesson 7 Understanding the importance of voice in a community Why did people vote for de-amalgamation? From local government to regional government = potential loss of voice Experiment with community juries Education is the great engine of personal development. It is through education that the daughter of a peasant can become a doctor, that a son of a mineworker can become the head of the mine, that a child of farm workers can become the president Once in a Career Opportunity of a great nation. It is what we make out of what we have, not what we are given, that separates one person from another. Questions?