Debra Walz - Fluoride

Thank you, Frank. Congratulations first on your successful election and re-election. On behalf of the community, I wish you all the best as you work to serve the Noosa community and make positive changes for the future. All worked exceptionally hard to impress us enough to put that number one next to your name. There is a community assumption now that you will be responsible and respectful to those of us who have elected you. Know, local councils are very relevant, so it is vital that Councillors take their work very seriously and their roles with the community and towards each other. I know councils enter local councils with the best intent. Well, at least the majority do. There are 77 councils in Queensland who are elected to offer their time, energy, dedication, passion and belief in local Council to their local communities. Being a publicly elected person brings a host of complexity to a Councillor's life. Whilst there are many benefits, it is often a thankless job and you cannot make everyone happy. As a Councillor there will always be someone who doesn't agree with you. Someone who will be willing to tell you that you're wrong and sometimes people who will express their displeasure with you. This is part and parcel of public life and if you're a Councillor you signed up for it. So in the past we have seen a rise in frustrated members of the public feeling unheard, stifled, ignored or dismissed when they have engaged with Council and Councillors. Usually it is a the bureaucracy of Council that the public struggles with angst comes from being managed and not heard we've seen much of the community have engaged consultations as a tick box exercise that proved Council never intended to listen in the first place I'd like to speak on community engagement primarily because it has been emphasised by all of you as being a necessary element of being a member of the Council and this Council every one of the elected Councillors identified community consultation and engagement as being an essential component of a Councillor's position by definition community engagement is a process it involves people working together to address issues and make positive changes in their shared environment it involves building relationships fostering dialogue and collaborating to create sustainable solutions that benefit the community as a whole I'm probably preaching to the converted here because I'm sure we are all on the same page or at least I hope so the question in the community is will our new Council find the desire to implement what they promised in their campaign policies have on record your promises and policies now is the time to put desire into action and make change from what has been the status quo pushing through past comfort patterns toward increased open public exchange and accountability in relation to community engagement this is what residents will be watching for is it time to review Council's current community engagement policy while there are numerous ways to enter into community engagement including volunteerism advocacy public participation and decision making and community organising Noosa Council advertise the four main ways of engaging and these apply particularly to Council meetings. Petitioning Council number one. So this relates to ten or more people who primarily lobby the Council regarding a particular issue. We've had a few of these over the years and they've created some change in policy albeit they do take a big commitment by many people in the community to organise and coordinate so it's not an easy process. Number two: deputations. I've presented a few of these and in relation to timeframe follow-up and acknowledgement by Council I find fault. Once again, not an easy process considering the amount of research that goes into a deputation and the often lack of follow-through by Council. Presentation is basically and acceptance over of a gift or an award by Council. This could not really be considered an engagement process. Number four, public question time. A way to raise genuine questions about a matter within the jurisdiction of Council. Residents are limited to two questions which are responded to by Council staff with no immediate opportunity for any type of dialogue. This format of engagement provides an opportunity to connect with Council staff after Council meetings which has been my experience although sometimes with unsatisfactory outcomes. None of these engagement processes allows community members to speak directly to elected Council members with the opportunity for ongoing communication and issue discussion. Standing Orders for Council meetings 19th November 2020 version which I have observed over the past years it's not always been adhered to and wondering if the time has come for a review of this document. While considering review perhaps the 2018 Noosa Council social justice charter could be included. This document was originally developed in collaboration with members of the community round it would be useful to know if this community round table group still exists. Amongst other things this Charters purpose is to guide councils direction in forming partnerships with community. Would be credit to the community connect e-newsletter and Your Say Noosa for providing electronic online access to Council for community members to comment and have a say the Noosa's 2015 service Council's social strategy is another guiding document although an ageing strategy but still maintains relevancy by outlining Council's role which is to work in partnership with residents and local organisations in the best interests of the community and explains how the community can assist Council by keeping Council informed about the needs and aspirations of residents. I'm sure the new Councillors have researched these documents particularly prior to and into leading into the elections which may have contributed to community engagement being a recurring theme discussed by all candidates during this period. This takes me to the Council's overriding community engagement document Council community engagement policy August 2014 updated version 2023. I won't recite the whole or the entire document here but I would like to focus on what Council has identified as benefits of effective engagement. Council and the community working together to address local issues and collectively achieving better outcomes. A higher level of community input into decisions made by Council. An improved level of community understanding about councils, processes and services. Increased awareness across Council of community views and concerns. Opportunities for Council to draw upon community expertise. The potential for time and cost savings due to better alignment between community needs and Council decisions. Increased social capital due to a greater trust and knowledge acquired while working collaboratively with the community. And lastly, stronger relationships between Councillors, Council officers. Residents, including stakeholder groups. You can see Council has many documents that support community engagement and there's more. However, this area got little mention in the 2022-23 annual report. In fact, it was very light on in relation to community engagement. In the report, there is a commitment by Council to keep the community informed of its projects, plans, initiatives and activities across the Shire. That's not exactly engagement. Council also recognises community engagement as a vital part of effective democracy and good governance. The community engagement policy Council adopted in March 2023 outlines the principles of engagement inclusive, as being transparent, appropriate, accountable, timely, well-resourced, informative and understanding our changing community. The Your Say portal seems to have greatest success in identifying 22,000 visitors to that site but resulting in only 1,800 people participating and providing input into 86 Council projects. The Local Government Act 2009, current as at 1st of February 2024, outlines in chapter 2 local government principles that underpin this act. The local government principles are transparent and effective processes and decision making in the public interest and sustainable development and management of assets and infrastructure and delivery of effective services. Democratic representation, social inclusion and meaningful. Community engagement and good governance of and by local government and ethical and legal behaviour of Councillors, local government, employees and Councillor advisers. You'll recall I was involved in organising a couple of pre-election community meetings which some of you attended. These were well attended and feedback was that they were equally successful in terms of engagement and community issue identification. You'll agree I'm sure that community meetings to discuss local issues can be a valuable way to engage residents and ensure their concerns are heard and addressed. There is a substantial amount of work involved in facilitating such a meeting including consideration of planning, preparation, ensuring accountability, measurable outcomes. Cultural awareness. And protocols but it's well worth the effort because to acknowledge, address and Resolve community issues to create a more inclusive, responsive and sustainable community where residents concerns are heard and acted upon is something we would all agree is what we want to achieve. Council's policies obviously support this goal. Along with many issues and concerns community members expressed leading up to the election and during the campaigning and polling days, it was identified our community has a clear goal to be acknowledged and have their sense of ownership. And well-being respected. It is therefore up to all of us to facilitate this to happen being an open and transparent Council I ask you should we have community forums? It's obvious Council meetings do not provide the opportunity to community to ask questions or comment generally and residents in general are reluctant for whatever reason to pursue Councillors with specific issues regular community forums may provide a conduit for ratepayers to raise concerns. Let me reassure you have a willing hopeful and engaging community out there with expectations that you can deliver what they need do you find out what it is they need? Thank you for taking the time to listen to me and I have every faith in you and trust that the next four years will be productive and enjoyable for you all.

Thank you, thank you Richard.