Annual Report 2014-15

The Year in Review
This section of the annual report looks at Council’s progress in achieving its Corporate Plan.
Noosa Council adopted its first Corporate Plan on 26 June 2014. That Corporate Plan was
obviously the first Corporate Plan for the Council following de-amalgamation and was designed to
give focus to the first few years of our operations.
With so many competing issues that the new Council faced at the time, it made sense for the
Council to set out its priorities. It identified 7 key priorities in the Corporate Plan. Those 7 key
priorities and the progress towards achieving each of those priorities, is set out below.
Council’s Operational Plan 2014/15 detailed the major priorities and initiatives that Council
undertook for the period to work towards the implementation of the Corporate Plan. Throughout the
year, the CEO provided the Council with quarterly reports looking at progress with the Operational
Plan and details of Key Performance Indicators.


Corporate Plan Priority 1 - A financially sustainable Council
We will make sure that our Council is financially sustainable in both the short and long term. This
will entail a focus on strong budget control and good long term planning.
Key achievements include:
   Developing the 2014/15 budget based on a zero based budget methodology which examined every cost
    on its merits. The use of the zero based budget methodology allowed Council to apply a 0% general
    rate increase in 2014/15.
   The 2014/15 financial statements showed that we exceeded our budget projections. Revenue above
    budget and expenditure was below budget resulting in a positive financial result for Council. Details of
    the financial year result can be found in the audited financial statements which form part of this annual
    report.
   Council adopted a Financial Sustainability Policy on 29 June 2015. This sets the scene for Council to
    continue to apply good financial discipline and long term financial strategies to ensure that our early
    success in meeting prescribed financial ratios is maintained in the longer term.
   Council received a credit assessment from the Queensland Treasury Corporation (QTC) in April 2015
    which assessed Noosa Council as “sound” with a positive outlook. “Sound” is a 5 on a 7 point scale. At
    the time of assessment of the de-amalgamation proposal in 2012, QTC had assessed a new Noosa
    Council as having a “moderate” outlook (4 on a 7 point scale). This 2015 QTC assessment was a
    significant achievement. QTC identified a number of key reasons why Noosa Council achieved a sound
    assessment including:
    o Forecast of surpluses in all future years;
    o Council on track to achieve its 2014/15 budget;
    o Low level of borrowings with adequate debt servicing capacity;
    o High levels of forecast liquidity;
    o High level of Council controlled revenue and fiscal flexibility;
    o Capacity to increase net rates and charges;
    o Council forecasts adequate investment in its asset base; and
    o Zero based budgeting process.
    QTC also noted that Asset Management Plans had not been adopted by Noosa Council and that this
    was an issue that needed to be managed.
   Adoption of a range of financial policies to improve financial management practices including an
    Investment of Council Funds Policy and a Restricted Cash Policy.




Noosa Council Annual Report 2014/15                                                                  Page 5