2014-03-25 Planning & Organisation Committee Agenda Pages 168-231

PLANNING & ORGANISATION COMMITTEE MEETING AGENDA                                      25 MARCH 2014


As a result of the de-amalgamation transition provisions, the four de-amalgamating councils were
exempt from the requirement to adopt a Corporate Plan at the time that they adopted their first
Budget and Operational Plan in January. However, this means that our Council will need to have
a new Corporate Plan in place at the same time as or prior to the adoption of the 2014/15 Budget
and Operational Plan.

The relevant requirements of the Local Government Regulation 2012 are as follows:-

     Section 165 Preparation of 5-year corporate plan

     (1)        A local government must prepare a 5-year corporate plan for each period of 5 financial
                years.

     (2)        A local government must adopt its 5-year corporate plan in sufficient time to allow a
                budget and annual operational plan, consistent with the corporate plan, to be adopted
                for the first financial year that is covered by the plan.

     (3)        A local government may, by resolution, amend its 5-year corporate plan at any time.

     (4)        A local government must discharge its responsibilities in a way that is consistent with
                its 5-year corporate plan.

     Section166 5-year corporate plan contents

     A local government’s 5-year corporate plan must—

     (a)        outline the strategic direction of the local government; and

     (b)        state the performance indicators for measuring the local government’s progress in
                achieving its vision for the future of the local government area;
     (c).....


2.     About Council Corporate Plans

As Council would be aware, prior to being appointed as CEO, I undertook local government
consulting work across Queensland with a significant amount of that work focused on community
and corporate planning. I make the following observations based on my recent experience:

    The bigger and more complex the Corporate Plan, the less effective it is. Those types of
     plans are normally put on the shelf and not referred to again.

    Councillors can spend a lot of time arguing about the wording of a vision when in reality, they
     often all have the same vision but just express it in different ways.

    Vision statements or mission statements which use corporate type language do not resonate
     with people. Statements such as “We aim to be the most sustainable community……” do not
     differentiate the particular place. The best way to explain a vision is to tell a story.

    Corporate Plans are seldom read outside of the Council except by other governments or
     agencies. Thinking about who will read the Corporate Plan can be a useful starting point
     when commencing a process.




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