Make sure your instructions to council are clear - and funded

The deadline for your submission is 28th May 2025.

All NSW Local Councils use this ‘Integrated Planning and Reporting (IP&R) framework’. The Community Strategic Plan (coloured peach) sits on top of ALL the other policies and it’s driven by the community.

I asked you in November to write your submission and have clear goals and targets about what YOU want.
The results are back.

NSW Integrated Planning and Reporting (IP&R) framework

Win!

You can see this in orange above

We got Council to agree to update their ‘aspirational target of Net Zero by 2030’ that was unachievable, to solid milestones that line up with State and Federal legislation (43% reduction by 2030 and 70% by 2035)!

But there’s more to be done on environment, finances & affordable housing

The Delivery Program & Operational Program map out how we will deliver on our Community’s Strategic Plan but we’ve noticed some gaps.

You can see this in the blue colour
in the IP&R framework above.

You can see this in the green box
in the IP&R framework above.

Resourcing includes:

People (Workforce Management Strategy),
Assets (Asset Management Strategy & Plan) and
Finances (Long-Term Financial Plan - LTFP).

Problems We Identified & Want Your Input On

Emissions reduction target is not matched by action
Environmental action plans do not roll up in the CSP or into the Delivery Program and Operational Plan nor have they been sufficiently budgeted for. Where we have previously fallen short on our Environmental KPI’s, there is no performance correction plan with budgetary priority.
Capital works appear to lack lifecycle costing and climate resilience analysis. Need to invest more in capital renewals to bring asset maintenance ratio to 100%.
Housing affordability crisis is recognised in the community strategic plan (and with a score of 3/10 in recent feedback) but there is no commensurate operational action or budget assigned in the draft plans.
Council’s Local Housing Strategy provides a policy foundation, but that foundation is not operationalised. A clear disconnect exists between strategic intent, delivery planning to meet demand, and budgetary priority.
To support CSP Goal 10, Council should develop and implement a funded Affordable Housing Action Plan within the Delivery Program.
Failure to Address Performance Gaps in Delivery Program
Council should include a CSP alignment tracker and missed KPI response section in future Annual Reports for transparency. This would align with best practice governance and improve accountability.
Was there anything you wrote in your CSP submission in November 2024 that you wanted to repeat to ensure is included?
Yes, this relates to re-prioritising our expenditure and ultimately, rates. Please read on below.