2015-09-15 Infrastructure and Services Committee Agenda

INFRASTRUCTURE & SERVICES COMMITTEE MEETING AGENDA   15 SEPTEMBER 2015




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INFRASTRUCTURE & SERVICES COMMITTEE MEETING AGENDA                                               _ 15 SEPTEMBER 2015

      1       Introduction
            People's lives are shaped by their particular circumstances, their personal choices, their families and support
            networks, the availability of services, the local economy and the surrounding environment. Separately and
            collectively these can either have a positive or negative affect on individual and community wellbeing.
            Council’s goal is to facilitate Noosa’s development so that our social, built, and natural environments
            positively influence the wellbeing of residents, workers and visitors. This requires Council to plan for, create,
            maintain and deliver a variety of public places, facilities and services which improve people’s quality-of-life.
            It also entails advocacy on behalf of those in greatest need; the targeted delivery of programs and services;
            and harnessing the power of key individuals and stakeholders within the Shire.

      2       Context

      2.1     The Federal and State Context
            The Federal and State Governments have broad-ranging responsibilities to deal with social issues.
            At the Federal and State level there are major policy changes currently being discussed and implemented in
            the areas of health, aged and child care, affordable housing, homelessness, education and social welfare.
            Some of these include:
             e   The National Disability Insurance Scheme and Consumer Directed Care which will change the way in
                 which social services are delivered across the country
             e   Changes to the Aged Pension, Family Support Benefits and Youth Unemployment Benefits
             e   Reduction in Federal payments to the States to deliver primary health care
             e   A focus on disease prevention and how to meet the challenges that come with increasing rates of often
                 preventable disease such as diabetes, skin cancer and chronic heart disease
             e   Taskforces into domestic violence, child sexual abuse and indigenous health
             e   Debates on how best to help individuals struggling with mental health issues, substance abuse and
                 gambling addictions
             e   Anexpanded role for not-for-profit organisations in delivering social services
             e   New funding models for tertiary education institutions
             e = Ashift from locally delivered services to online service delivery.
            To be effective, responses to social issues require significant resourcing. The Federal budget allocates 35% of
            its total budget to community services. However, increasingly, the community is asking for more funding to
            meet growing social needs, particularly in regional areas.
            As a result, State and Federal Governments are increasingly focusing on both measurable outcomes and
            demonstrable value for money regarding funding to the social services sector. Furthermore, with a change in
            government come changes in policy direction. So throughout the life of this Strategy there will undoubtedly
            be major changes in the funding and provision of social programs and services.
            The Federal and State Government’s implementation of their social policy agendas affect all of our lives. Here
            in Noosa we face similar challenges to other people around Australia.
            The Noosa Shire Social Strategy attempts to put these major policy debates and issues into a local context. It
            highlights our strengths and the simple fact that, regardless of what the Federal or State Government does,
            we as a community have a responsibility for the wellbeing of our fellow citizens.

            2.2       The Noosa Community
            The Noosa Shire is located in South East Queensland, approximately 120 kilometres north of Brisbane. The
            region is bounded by the Gympie Regional Council in the north and west, and the Sunshine Coast Regional
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