Best Value Report from Annual Report 2012-13 by Banyule City Council

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance planet

city place

community

corporate

consultation

best value quality & cost standards audit

corporate governance

2012â&#x20AC;&#x201C;2013 BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

development resources

place people

action

council

48 48

plan

events

Performance

standard statements

city plan strategy

quality

unity

performance diversity

ortunity Our Best Value A Summary of

reporting

equal

committees

participation

local laws manage

rates

prosperity

people rates responsiveness

city plan

structure

service

grants accessibility

continuous public participation improvement

ward funding

of information

freedom

consultation

best value

overnance

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

Introduction This part of our Annual Report provides a summary of performance against Banyule’s City Plan 2009-2013 (Year 4). This section also constitutes Council’s Best Value Victoria Annual Report 2012-2013 to our community on the application of the Best Value Principles. The summary outlines the significant achievements and progress made in relation to the objectives and key directions in our City Plan. It highlights the range of services (activities), initiatives and processes being implemented across Council to meet the needs of our community, meet the Best Value Principles, and promote a culture of continuous improvement. The Best Value legislation, introduced by the State Government in 1999, is based on consideration of the following six principles in providing services to the community: 1. A ll services provided by a council must meet quality and cost standards set by Council (having regard to community expectations, affordability, accessibility, value for money and best practice). 2. A ll services provided by a council must be responsive to the needs of its community. 3. A ll services provided by a council must be accessible to those members of the community for whom they are intended. 4. A council must achieve continuous improvement in provision of services for its community 5. A council must develop a program of regular consultation with its community in relation to the services it provides. 6. A council must report regularly to its community on its achievements in relation to the first five principles. Further information on our Best Value response is available on our website in the Best Value section (go to www.banyule.vic.gov.au and follow links to Council, Publications and Best Value Report). The following information for each of Council’s services is also available: • Key Performance Indicator (KPI) results • Key Highlights for 2012-2013 • Future Challenges for 2013-2014. The diagram on the following page gives an overview of Council’s strategic framework, showing the objectives, key directions and strategic indicators*: (Note: * Progress against Banyule’s strategic indicators is then provided in the next section of our Annual Report.)

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

Objectives (5Ps) Key Directions

People

Planet

Place

Prosperity

Participation

Community Strengthening & Support

Environmental Sustainability

Sustainable Amenity & Built Environment

Prosperous & Sustainable Local Economy

Community Involvement in Community Life

Promote and support good health

Protect and enhance our natural environment

Develop a connected and involved community

Conserve water and improve stormwater quality

Support the character of neighbourhoods and guide growth to accessible places

Support and encourage appropriate business development and local economic growth

Support strengthening of local centres of activity

Improve access to affordable housing, employment, health and community services

Provide services and support to, and advocate for, people at important life stages Promote community safety Celebrate and promote Banyule’s cultural heritage

Deliver action on climate change Avoid waste generation

Protect and develop publicly used assets

Encourage environmental stewardship

Enhance public spaces

Protect and improve public health and wellbeing CSI - Recreational facilities Attendance at Council aquatic centres % people who feel they ‘belong’ in Banyule

# of tree plantings (Council tree plantings in streets and parks)

CSI - Disadvantaged support services

Performance against State of Environment Report

Performance - People: Health & Wellbeing Action Plan # library borrowings by Banyule residents CSI - Family support services Strategic Indicators

CSI – Environmental sustainability

CSI - Elderly support services Key Ages & Stages: particip’n rate for 3.5 year visits Delivered meals: unit cost to Council; # meals; % recipients satisfied % people who feel safe in Banyule

CSI – The appearance of public areas CSI - Waste management % of waste diverted from landfill % of ‘consumer waste’ diverted from landfill (ie excludes greenwaste) Attendance at Council’s Rethink Centre waste education programs

Support sustainable transport

Community rating for local development and neighbourhood character within Banyule % of planning applications completed within statutory timeframe (60 days) CSI – Council’s general town planning policy VLG infrastructure indicator: renewal ratio CSI – The condition of local streets and footpaths in your area MAV Insurance (overall score) – compliance with road management plan % of people who feel safe in Banyule CSI – The appearance of public areas

% Safer Banyule Action Plan CSI - Art centres & libraries

CSI – Parking facilities

CSI - Community & cultural activities

CSI – Traffic management

Attendance Banyule festival

Plan and engage with our community Encourage participation in community life Advocate on behalf of the community

Encourage appropriate investment in our activity centres Build community capital CSI - Business and community development and tourism # of economic development events delivered in partnership with other organisations (eg. neighbouring Councils, State and Federal Government, Regional Development organisations, traders associations, etc) Participation level (attendance) at Council operated/ hosted economic development events CSI - Planning and building permits % of people who feel they ‘belong’ in Banyule # of Community nominations for Banyule volunteer awards

CSI - Overall performance of Council CSI - Customer service CSI - Community consultation and engagement Visits to website CSI – Informing the community % of people who feel they ‘belong’ in Banyule Amount distributed through Council’s Community Grants programs CSI – Lobbying on behalf of the community # of significant issues Council has advocated on behalf of the community (as reported in the six monthly advocacy reports to Council)

Linear metres of shared paths/ trails renewed, upgraded and new.

CSI - Emergency & disaster management Completion of emergency management exercises MAV Insurance (overall score) Food Safety

Strategic Resource Plan Key directions: Provide excellence in customer service and communications Develop our staff and organisational culture Manage our valuable corporate information and knowledge Deliver innovative information technology solutions Conduct effective and integrated forward planning Deliver quality and value for money services Apply sound risk management principles and practices Provide effective support to enable good governance and accountable leadership Plan and manage Banyule’s physical assets Manage our financial resources in a sustainable manner

Objective: Use our resources wisely Strategic indicators: CSI - Overall performance of Council; CSI - Customer service; CSI – Informing the community Visits to website Average time taken to answer telephone call enquiries % of customer requests actioned within specified timeframes Performance against Workforce Strategy and Action Plan (% actions completed on time) % Freedom of Information requests responded to within statutory timeframes (45 days) % core IT systems availability % projects in year 1 of 10 year capital works program completed on time. Maintain full certification for all services to the most recent National/International standards in Quality, Occupational Health & Safety, and Environmental Management. MAV Insurance state-wide audit ranking/ overall score WorkCover premium as a percentage of payroll CSI – Emergency and disaster management; CSI – Enforcement of local laws % official Council & Committe meetings attended by Councillors where a quorum was achieved Achievement of the budgeted result or better. NB CSI denotes Community Satisfaction Indicator

What success looks like to us… 51

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

Our activities and services The following lists the activities and services provided by Council during 2012-2013:

Activity

Description (This service area includes)

Health and Aged Services

Aged and Disability Services: -Services for Older Persons and People with a Disability: - Service Access and Assessment, Social Support, Assisted Transport, Home Care, Delivered Meals, Respite Care, Personal Care, Property Maintenance, Senior Citizens Centres Environmental Health: - Food safety, Public Health (including: nuisance, tobacco, infection control and prescribed accommodation), Immunisation, Domestic Wastewater Management, Public Health Emergency Management

Leisure, Recreation and Cultural Services

Art collection management, Community buses for hire, Culture and heritage development, The Centre Ivanhoe function centre, Festivals and cultural events, Ivanhoe Golf Course, Library services, Leisure facilities, Leisure programs for older adults, Leisure programs for people with disabilities, Swimming pools, Sports ground allocations

Youth and Family Services

Municipal Recovery Management, Child Care Centres, Early Childhood facilities management, Early Childhood facilities Capital Works program, Early Years Networks facilitation, Kindergartens and Universal Access, Kindergarten Central Enrolment, Municipal Early Years Plan, Maternal and Child Health Services, Inclusion Support Facilitators, Jets Studios, Community Support and Resource, Youth Services, Banyule After Hours Youth Outreach Service (Link-U), Community Safety (including Graffiti Management), Community Liaison, Community Building (formerly Metro Access), Community Development Grants, Employment Programs, Trust Management, Volunteer Recognition Awards

Parks and Gardens

Horticulture: - Design, construct and maintain: - Playgrounds, Sportsfields, Irrigation, Landscape, Park Assets, Weed Control, Nursery, Garden bed design and maintenance, Walking and bike paths Tree Care: - Street tree maintenance, Pest and disease control, Tree replacement and planting, Community planting days, Tree removal, Tree root control, Tree assessment for both private and council. Bushland: - Environmental education, Environmental management, Flora and fauna recording and restoration, Noxious weed control, Development of wildlife corridors, Maintenance, construction, restoration and protection of Bush Reserves and Rivers Parks Maintenance: - Passive reserve maintenance, Active reserve maintenance, Half cost fence replacement, Litter control in parks Strategic: - Parks and Gardens strategic management, Strategy development for public open space

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

Activity

Description (This service area includes)

Major Projects and Infrastructure

Infrastructure Maintenance: - Footpath maintenance, Kerb and channel maintenance, Sign repair/replacement, Street furniture repair/replacement, Guardrail maintenance, Road patching, Drainage repair, Unsealed road maintenance, Traffic Counters, Line marking, Road Management Plan implementation, Pedestrian bridge maintenance Construction Management: Civil and building construction project supervision, Road resurfacing, Pedestrian trail maintenance, Asset inspection & protection, Memorandum of consents, Bike path maintenance, Roads construction and reconstruction projects, Scheduled building maintenance, Unscheduled building maintenance, Air conditioning maintenance, Vandalism repairs, Graffiti removal from council buildings

Development Services

Statutory planning Subdivisions Planning enforcement Building permits and inspections Transport Engineering design Drainage and infrastructure approvals Sustainable Transport

Strategic and Economic Development

Infrastructure Assets: Programming for road and footpath maintenance, New Works and Services (Capital Works) program, Drainage system, Asset Management Plans Strategic Planning: Land use, Urban Design, Heritage, Planning Scheme reform, Housing, Neighbourhood Character Environmental Planning: Environmental strategies and policies, Environmental education and publications, Wildlife Corridor Program, Waterwatch Program, Cities for Climate Protection Program, State of the Environment reporting, Environmental assessment. Economic Planning: Shopping centre promotion and development, Shopping centre business planning, Shopping centre enhancement program, Business development, Business networking, Shopping centre streetscape master planning, Business growth, attraction and development Property Services: - Property portfolio management, Acquisition and disposition, Commercial and residential leases, Discontinuance & sale of unused roads Valuations: - Council rating valuations Land Information Systems: - Geographical Information System, Corporate property information maintenance

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

Activity

Description (This service area includes)

Operations

Waste Management: - Waste Management strategic management, Metropolitan Waste Management Group member, Banyule-Visy Material Recovery Facility, Rethink Centre, Outreach Program, Waste service support, Waste Recovery Centre (Transfer station), Garbage collection, Recycling collection, Green waste collection, Hard rubbish collection, Commercial waste collection, Parks and reserves waste collection Cleansing: - Mechanical footpath sweeping of shopping centres, Mechanical sweeping of sealed roads, Cleaning of public toilets and BBQâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s, Inspection and clearance of drainage pits, Maintenance of litter trap program, Litter clearance from shopping centres, Litter collection, Removal of dumped rubbish, Removal of dead animals from roads, Syringe removal Commercial Drain Cleaning: - High pressure drain cleaning (carried out for Banyule), Litter basket sales and installation Plant and Fleet Management: - Workshop repairs, services for all Council vehicles, Contract and specification of fleet, Ordering of new and replacement vehicles Emergency Management: - Co-ordination of Municipal Emergency Management

Governance, Information and Laws

Municipal Laws: - Animal management, Parking control, Fire prevention, School crossing supervision, Local Laws compliance Governance and Information Management: - Corporate Governance and compliance, Council Elections, Councillors support and training, Council Office Management, Records management, Archives management, Cemetery management, Council Meetings

Councillors and Executive

This includes Councillors Administration and Executive services

Information Technology

IT Operations: - Customer request management, Maintenance of voice and data network, Availability of systems and applications Application Services: - Secure, reliable and innovative services, Delivery of appropriate solutions, Enterprise Data Centre management, Leading edge business solutions utilising new and innovative technologies IT Infrastructure: - Stable and innovative infrastructure, Efficient life cycle management of data, hardware and voice, Web solutions, Accessibility and mobility infrastructure solutions

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

Activity

Description (This service area includes)

Human Resources

Recruitment and selection, Induction, Industrial relations, Organisational culture, Occupational Health and Safety support and advice, Workcover and Return to Work program, Learning and development, Strategic risk management, Risk assessments and hazard management, Claims processing/management, Insurances and broker relations, Workforce strategy, Workforce planning

Financial Services

Processing and collection of rates and maintenance of rating data, Accounts receivable, Maintenance of ledgers, Annual and strategic budget preparation, Procurement of goods and services, Accounts payable, Investment management, Financial and management accounting, Payroll, Financial reporting, and Debt servicing, Grants Commission, Investment, Public Street Lighting, and Rate Revenue

Organisational Performance

Customer Service to internal units and community, Cash collection and processing, City Plan development, Best Value implementation, Corporate policy development and management, Business plan development, Corporate planning and reporting support, Organisational development support, Continuous improvement, certification program management and support, Public relations, Website, Media liaison, Corporate communications plan, Corporate identity, Advertising, Publications, Community, Social and Health planning, Disability and Inclusion planning, Indigenous community partnerships

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

Objective:

1. People Community strengthening and support Support and strengthen the health and wellbeing of the Banyule community. ‘People’ is about our desire for optimal health, for better living conditions and improved quality of life. Wellbeing is fundamental to quality of life, quality of human relationships and the capacity to participate in education, work, recreation and the community. Outcomes for our key directions: 1.1 Promote and support good health The opening of WaterMarc, Banyule’s new premier aquatic facility tops the list of highlights for the year. This state of the art aquatic and recreation centre has welcomed thousands of visitors from day one. The facility commenced operation in September 2012. Visitor levels have surpassed initial expectations, overall visitor numbers have been high, and membership numbers are also meeting anticipated targets. The attendance figure for 2012-13 was 553,600. Belgravia Leisure has been appointed with a three year contract to operate and manage Council’s WaterMarc Facility. Monthly contract meetings are held with Belgravia Leisure and monthly reports submitted including profit and loss statements for the facility. The Draft Recreation Plan 2013-2017 was developed after extensive consultation with the community, key stakeholders and the internal organisation. The plan is to be finalised in late 2013, following a further opportunity for the community to comment on the draft. The Draft Recreation Plan sets the key directions and priorities for sport, leisure and recreation facilities and services for the next four years. The Ivanhoe Aquatic and Fitness Centre and Olympic Leisure Centre each achieved their highest ever enrolments in Learn to Swim programs. In addition, the Ivanhoe facility hosted the highest number of participants in Victoria for ‘Summer KIDZ’, the learn to swim program subsidised/ supported by the State Government. Glenda Barnhard, swimming teacher at the Ivanhoe Aquatic and Fitness Centre, was awarded the Teacher of the Year (for students with a disability) at the 2013 Aquatics & Recreation Victoria (ARV) Annual Awards. Glenda is now Victoria’s nomination for her category in the AUSTSWIM National Awards in October. Council continued to implement the service plan to meet the objectives of Sport and Recreation Victoria’s (SRV) Access for All Abilities program. Service Plans that were submitted to SRV for the period January-June 2013 were implemented, and final reports were provided to show achievement of the service plan and program targets. Council will continue to seek funding support. Notification was received from SRV that funding will not continue after 30 June 2013.

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

1.1 Promote and support good health (cont) Council’s leisure services continued the equity grants program to assist those with financial difficulties to participate. Local service providers such as NEAMI (a nongovernment mental health organisation), Banyule Community Health, Children’s Protection Society and Austin Hospital nominate clients that they feel could benefit from the use of the centres to assist with health and wellbeing outcomes. The program enabled approximately 100 community members to participate in learn to swim classes, exercise with friends in the gym, have a swim with neighbours or enjoy a group exercise class with others. The aim of the program is to foster equitable access to leisure services for all residents of Banyule, to build social capital, community connectedness and wellbeing through the provision of socially inclusive leisure services, to promote healthier lifestyle choices and enhance individual quality of life. Council delivered works as set out in the capital works plan to provide improvements to park activity centres, unstructured play spaces and playgrounds in line with its Playground and Playspace plan, including: • C ompletion of Stage1of the Price Park Masterplan implementation, including replacing and substantially upgrading the playground, tree removal, pruning and general risk reduction, and steps towards addressing soil erosion and excess water run-off from the site. • C ompletion of Stage 2 of the Binnak Park regional playground to provide play activities for older children and outdoor gym equipment for the general community • Provision of fencing to improve safety around the Malahang regional playground • Further works to the Possum Hollow playground in Warringal Park. • P laygrounds at Streamline Reserve, Greensborough War Memorial and Price Park have been renewed and expanded in accordance with Council’s asset management plans.

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

1.2 Develop a connected and involved community The ‘Good Access Good Business’ project was piloted in two shopping centres, East Ivanhoe and Rosanna, with 34% of businesses located in these areas participating in the pilot. The goal of the project was to develop a business access awards program that rewards businesses which are accessible for people with disabilities, older people, and people who use prams in the municipality of Banyule. The project was also designed to encourage businesses to see the benefits of being accessible, and to help them become accessible by encouraging them to adopt access principles. MetroAccess has continued to strengthen partnerships with local community and disability services resulting in increased opportunities for people with a disability, including: • Y arra Plenty Regional Library (YPRL) working to increase access for the deaf community through staff training, increased programming and capacity building • B anyule Community Health (BCH) working in partnership with local families to support an Auslan playgroup. Mini grants were distributed to two community organisations to host inclusive events that celebrated International Day of People with Disability 2012. The ‘Our Mall Our Place’ project commenced in February 2013. This community development project aims to strengthen the community’s engagement with the Bell Street Mall through cultural activities and improved business approaches. The project is funded by the State Government. Council has continued to consult with and support residents and groups from Banyule’s culturally and linguistically diverse communities. Council finalised the People: Health and Wellbeing Policy and Strategy 2013-2017 following an extensive community engagement program during 2012-2013. This is the primary policy and strategy document that supports the ‘People – Community Strengthening and Support’ objective of the Banyule City Plan 2013-2017. It provides the broad ‘Health and Wellbeing’ policy context for all Council related strategies, policies, plans and activities. An application was submitted to the Victorian Department of Health to recognise that the combination of the relevant sections of the Banyule City Plan and the Banyule People Policy & Strategy satisfies the statutory requirements for a Municipal Public Health and Wellbeing Plan, as required by the Victorian Health and Wellbeing Act 2008. The Department of Health approved and commended Banyule’s approach. The Community and Social Planning team co-ordinated and supported the organisation’s approach to inclusion, access and equity, which included: • The development of an Inclusion Access and Equity framework to guide Council’s work • P rovision of advice to Council and community stakeholders on strategies to improve community and social wellbeing • D evelopment and support of internal and external partnerships to improve community and social wellbeing • I mplementation of the Age Friendly and Accessible Housing Guidelines Project in conjunction with the Strategic and Economic Development team.

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

1.2 Develop a connected and involved community (cont) Council successfully completed its contracted Place Manager role with the State Government funded Heidelberg West Neighbourhood Renewal project. At its completion in June 2013, the initiative has been transitioned to a new community based governance group ‘3081Connect’ with many activities ongoing. The NR Hub will continue to operate as a community hub for a further two years under the auspice of ‘e-Focus’. Council continued to strengthen community partnerships in delivery of Youth and Family Services. Initiatives included: • S taff attended the November 2012 Greensborough Township Meeting which was convened to provide a proactive and positive response to emerging perceptions of youth issues. Members of the group include the Banyule Youth Service, WaterMarc staff, Victoria Police and Greensborough Plaza management and security managers • A Family Support Worker was engaged to work with families across Council-managed West Heidelberg Children’s Services. This is a pilot project in partnership with the Child Protection Society • M aternal and Child Health (MCH) services continued to deliver successful MCH programs working in partnership with Banyule Community Health (BCH) centre, ensuring continuity of care with vulnerable clients. The Continuity of Care model continues with great success between MCH and BCH, providing care to the most vulnerable families within the municipality. MCH also strengthened its partnership with the junior campus of Charles La Trobe Primary School. The Banyule Heatwave Plan has been reviewed and revised in consultation with key stakeholders. Heatwave alerts and outcomes have been monitored through summer. Important information was made available on our website and through a wide range of Council publications such as Banyule Business News, Banner, Childrens Services newsletter, Food News and the Aged Services Newsletter. Work has also being undertaken to address and support vulnerable people via a register, and HACC funding has been received for vulnerable people. This funding will be used to support the HACC assessment process and will be linked with the Emergency Management team.

1.3 Provide services and support to, and advocate for, people at important life stages A major service review was conducted for Council’s Home and Community Care Services (HACC) and the information will be used to inform future service delivery models in line with the National reforms. A final report was submitted to the Executive Management Team with key findings, outcomes and recommendations for service development. The review incorporated the delivered meals service, in response to changing community needs, and the service has restructured to maximise efficiency. The delivered meals service had a customer satisfaction rating of 95% for percentage of delivered meals recipients satisfied with the service (rating the service as excellent, very good or good).

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

1.3 Provide services and support to, and advocate for, people at important life stages (cont) Key activities undertaken by Council’s Aged and Disability Services (HACC) team included: • Continued to work with Banyule Community Health to improve service co-ordination for client care • S treamlined the provision of property maintenance services resulting in reduced waiting times and greater clarity around service provision and eligibility • I ntroduced a community access program for disability respite to provide opportunities for younger clients to participate in group activities (eg ten pin bowling) • Successfully completed the ‘Aged & Community Care Common Standards Audit’ • S eniors Month was held in October with record attendance numbers and fantastic community feedback • C ommenced the introduction of ‘Aged Friendly Cities’ across Council projects (eg accessible housing) • C ontinued to implement Banyule’s Active Service Model, including working with the City Development department on age friendly housing, addressing opportunities as they arise, and working with local senior groups via a seniors network to support the development of information and opportunities for older adults (eg website) • T he HACC Diversity Plan has been developed and submitted to the Department of Health (DoH). The ‘Our Voice Our Community’ project, funded by the Federal Government for 18 months, was completed in January 2013. The project developed a number of community engagement activities including: Summer in the Village, Makers Market, pop up art installations at the Olympic Village shops, aesthetic improvements to shopfronts at Olympic Village shops, children’s art activities at Tarakan Housing Estate, Graffiti Expo and Safety Expo. The project was highly successful in turning around negative perceptions of public space in key hot spot areas. In the Community Development Grants Program for 2012-2013, 52 applications were received requesting a total of $172,242.00. Council distributed $140,000 in grants to 36 approved applications (21 equipment based and 15 activity based) totalling $107,000 with the residual funds distributed to community groups who met the funding criteria, who applied for assistance throughout the financial year. Jets is a creative arts hub for young people. It has continued its significant growth over the past 12 months and partnerships have been sustained and strengthened. An average of 212 individuals accessed Jets each month: 63% were male and 37% were female, with 30% of the total being people with a disability and 2% from Indigenous or Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) backgrounds. This is an overall increase of 13% from 2011–2012.

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

1.3 Provide services and support to, and advocate for, people at important life stages (cont) Jets implemented a significantly expanded respite program for both 13-17 and 18-25 year old young people following Innovative Respite funding from the State Government. Jets successfully obtained quality accreditation to the DHS Standards, either meeting or exceeding recommended standards. The program met an identified service need for after school programs for 13-17 year old young people and after-hours activities for 18-25 year old young people. The ‘Time Out’ action research project was funded by Council’s Capital Works program and commenced in December 2012 for 12 months. The project aims to proactively support young people at risk of homelessness by maintaining their local support networks and education where possible. The Time Out service also incorporates a research component with host families. This research project aims at capturing data on the experiences of families who informally support young people who are living away from home. The SHYNE Showcase (Showcasing How Youth iNspire and Engage) initiative was successfully launched. Five young people were trained for public presentations that are currently being delivered in a number of schools across Banyule. These young people address issues including resilience, commitment to the community (local and global) and preserving our national history. The project is in its infancy, with presentations to 250 young people to date. The ‘Banyule 100’ project has profiled 29 outstanding community members to date. They are either young people who are outstanding in their endeavours or adults who support young people. The website has experienced over 10,000 visits and continues to gain momentum. Link U secured funding from Youth Connections (a federally funded education reengagement program) after a successful trial model of local outreach targeting ‘at risk’ young people who are disengaged from employment, education and training. The aim of these Youth Connection outreach shifts is to increase referrals into the Youth Connections service. As a result of our successful trial this is being offered to other LGA’s as a ‘best practice’ model. Banyule L2P Learner Driver Program – successfully completed Year 3 of the Vic Roads funded project delivered by the Banyule and Nillumbik Local Learning and Employment Network , in partnership with Council and other key stakeholders. The program aims to provide 120 hours supervised driving training to disadvantaged young people. In Year 3, 25 young people obtained their Probationary Drivers Licence. An average of 47 young people participated in the program ranging from 16–21 years of age, logging a total of 2,404 hours of driving. The program also supports approx 23 adult mentors. Funding for the program by VicRoads/TAC has been extended for the next 2 years to June 2015.

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

1.3 Provide services and support to, and advocate for, people at important life stages (cont) The Banyule Youth Service has continued to offer a variety of recreational and engagement opportunities in the last 12 months. Some of these have included open basketball sessions, youth fitness scholarships, bag making, journalism, illustration and pasteup workshops. The service has also had the opportunity to partner with Skateboarding Australia, which provides free skateboarding workshops for the next 12 months at Malahang Reserve every fortnight. Youth officers continued to successfully deliver short term individual support to young people to enable successful referral into appropriate agencies. Anxiety, school refusal, legal issues, drug and alcohol use and family conflict are the largest presenting issues faced by young people. A number of school based youth development programs were developed around the issues of respectful relationships, safe partying and mindfulness and these were delivered into five secondary colleges in Banyule. The Heidelberg West youth community has been a priority with strong partnerships across a number of services including the Somali Council of Victoria, e-Focus, Exodus, Victoria Police, and Transition 3081. Implementation of the Universal Access of Early Childhood Education (15 hours kindergarten per week) has been introduced across all kindergartens in the municipality including three (3) Council managed Long Day Care Centres. As part of the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development (DEECD) Quality and Assessment rating system, Morobe Street Children Centre was deemed to be meeting National Quality Standards. Assessment ratings are available on the Australian Children’s Education and Care Quality Authority’s (ACECQA) website. Council also secured $1.1 million in DEECD Capital Grants for works at Audrey Brooks Memorial Pre-school, Morobe Street Children’s Centre, Interlaken Pre-school, and Winston Hills Pre-School. This builds on Council’s efforts to increase capacity of all Pre-schools in Banyule to support the move to the federal government objective of Kindergarten Universal Access. Early Childhood Services (ECS) continued its partnership with Children’s Protection Society to support and engage vulnerable families, to increase staff networks and to support and offer training to all ECS Educators. Training for ‘Embedding Indigenous Practices’ has also been completed for early childhood professionals across Banyule and other bordering municipalities.

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

1.3 Provide services and support to, and advocate for, people at important life stages (cont) Council’s Maternal and Child Health (MCH) service has continued to work in partnership with Banyule Community Health centre. A number of initiatives have significantly improved participation rates for Key Ages and Stages visits, particularly for 18 months and 3.5 year olds, providing opportunity for assessment and referral (where necessary) to other professionals. The program was highlighted at the MaCFHN’s Conference in Canberra where the West Heidelberg Continuity of Care program was presented. Integration and collaboration models continue to develop, ensuring better outcomes for the children and families in disadvantaged areas. A Sing and Grow program was introduced for vulnerable families with parenting and attachment difficulties, helping them learn important parenting skills in a supportive environment, with positive results. Facilitators for new parents have provided programs for new mums and dads, which have been well received. Generous feedback has been received from participants. The improvements in our MCH systems and processes, including the introduction of SMS reminders for appointments, has also contributed greatly to the improved take up rates for Key Ages and Stages appointments. Council’s MCH service: • Attended to 15,055 KAS visits in 2012-2013 • A ttended to 1,895 non-key ages and stages visits, provided to parents or requested by parents • H ad 312 ‘new parent’ groups - various sessions held across the year with two key council facilitators The service co-ordinated 914 referrals for child health and wellbeing to other health professionals, and 128 referrals for maternal health, referring the mother on to health professionals for her needs. Breast feeding rates have been consistently high for the first six months of the child’s life. The vision for the Olympic Village Learning Hub (OVLH) revolves around life-long learning and pathways to education and employment, with planning for integration across the site ongoing for several years now. In May 2012, the project was successful in securing $1.34m capital infrastructure funding from the Victorian Government. This funding, together with Council contribution of $750,000, will deliver stage one of the OVLH development - the Child and Family Centre. In proceeding with the design phase of the Child and Family Centre, the opportunity was taken to review all four elements of the Hub for size and siting based on new demographic data, in particular the increasing population in the 3081 area. This review has resulted in a redesigned OVLH siting plan to allow for a larger future primary school building. The OVLH Strategic Partnership Group has continued to work toward promoting and advocating to potential funding partners the benefits of this project.

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

1.3 Provide services and support to, and advocate for, people at important life stages (cont) The vision for the proposed Watsonia Community Hub is based on the concept of co-located and integrated services providing benefits to the community through better access and awareness of services, with a focus on creating healthy communities, supporting social inclusion and enhancing the wellbeing of local residents. With these benefits in mind, Banyule City Council has progressed the planning of a community hub in the south of the municipality to service the current and future needs of the community. Detailed design for the proposed Watsonia Community Hub has commenced with the appointment of DesignInc Melbourne as lead consultant. Discovery and design workshops facilitated by DesignInc have been held with stakeholders. These workshops have informed a preliminary preferred design solution which is now being explored further though a detailed design phase. Council has continued to implement the National Quality Framework for child care centres across the municipality. Quality Improvement Plans have been developed across five Council managed services to record achievements and strength, highlight opportunities for improvement, and to document family and staff input. Support for Quality Improvement Plans and the National Quality framework has been offered to the broader early childhood services in Banyule through email, Childcare network meetings and Kindergarten Cluster meetings. The Municipal Early Years Plan (MEYP) has progressed with the development and endorsement of a project management plan, the establishment of internal and external MEYP Advisory Groups and the completion of a literature review, including sector research of existing data and frameworks. In addition, it has included the analysis of data and information collated from the 950 surveys completed by parents and guardians.

1.4 Promote community safety Council implemented Year 1 of the Community Safety Plan. It provides Banyule with clear direction and priorities for the next four years. Key goals focus on coordination, advocacy, education and primary prevention. Victoria Police and Council initiated a pilot partnership program of informal street briefings in West Heidelberg. This followed a successful London model and aimed to increase positive engagement between the police and the community, enable information sharing and reduce levels of community concerns and perceptions about crime. There has also been interest expressed by other Council Departments and external agencies to join these briefings. Council completed a State Government funded community safety project at Watsonia Train Station for improved lighting.

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

1.4 Promote community safety (cont) Council became a signatory to the Women’s Health in the North Regional Strategy on the Prevention of Violence Against Women. This is an organisational commitment to work in partnership on key initiatives. Activities were also facilitated by Council’s White Ribbon Action team for the White Ribbon Day. Northern Melbourne Institute of Tafe (NMIT) students, together with Banyule’s Youth Services, have undertaken two community safety audits in West Heidelberg. This is to ascertain young people’s responses and perceptions of community safety in their local environment, and the process of reporting concerns to Council or other Authorities. A CCTV camera has been installed at Olympic Village Shopping Centre and three mobile/covert cameras purchased for VicPol (Victoria Police) from funding under the ‘Our Voice, Our Community’ program. Utilizing a CPTED approach (Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design - an approach to better design of public space to reduce opportunity for crime) these are to be used in a crime prevention focus and to increase the community’s perceptions of safety particularly around Olympic Village. Discussions with the traders showed overwhelming positive responses to this initiative. Signs have been erected to alert the community to the camera’s presence. The StreetArt program continued to attract approximately 25 young people (predominantly male) per month as part of a graffiti diversion program. The majority of these young people would be considered at risk and often presented with multiple issues. Additional funding from Northern Melbourne Institute of Tafe (NMIT) Youth Connections program resulted in an additional worker being present at sessions to provide referral and pathway support around legal, housing and drug and alcohol issues. The group completed three legal murals as well as an exhibit ‘come and try’ session at Splashdown Youth Festival in April 2013. Council distributed 104 graffiti removal kits to residents, community groups and traders through its ‘Adopt Your Space’ program. Promotion of the kits has been through a targeted media campaign, attendance at the Banyule Festival, networking with the local branches of the Victoria Police, Neighbourhood Watch and promotion of the program through Banyule Banner, ‘on hold’ messages and at a number of local community events.

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

1.4 Promote community safety (cont) The Memorandum of Understanding for the Graffiti Removal Program (Department of Justice) was negotiated and signed to continue the very positive partnership between Council and the Community Corrections Program for a further two years expiring in June 2015. The Community Corrections Program has resulted in removal of approximately 6,000 m2 of graffiti across the municipality. Council now has 45 sites which are visited by the work team on a regular basis. Over the past 12 months, the program has increased its hours in Banyule by 24% from last year, providing a total of 1,805 hours of work. Council continued to ensure compliance with its obligations under the Electrical Safety (Electric Line Clearance) Regulations.

1.5 Celebrate and promote Banyule’s cultural heritage Banyule achieved good results in the Victorian Local Government Community Satisfaction Survey for 2013 across the selected performance measures related to Leisure and Cultural Services. The results were amongst the highest performance scores for Banyule and compare well with the average Community Satisfaction Indicator (CSI) scores for the Inner Group. Of the respondents that were able to provide a rating, over 90% of the total respondents provided a rating of average or better in the three categories of ‘recreational facilities’, ‘community and cultural activities’ and ‘arts centres and libraries’. Council worked in partnership with the Football Federation Victoria, Heidelberg Stars Soccer Club, Heidelberg United Soccer Club and the local community to host one of the days of the Australian Somali Football Association Tournament. This is now an annual Melbourne-wide tournament and is represented by teams from overseas and interstate along with our own local teams at Olympic Park in West Heidelberg. Over 1,000 people attended this day alone with over 4,000 people attending the final as a part of the overall event. The former Banyule Art Space was relaunched as Hatch Contemporary Art Space following a facelift and some interior works. The space is now a dedicated Arts facility within the Banyule Community.

Council developed the Draft Banyule Arts Plan 2013–2017, setting the direction for the Arts in Banyule for the next four years. This included extensive community consultation. The plan is to be finalised in 2013 following a further opportunity for the community to comment on the draft.

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

1.5 Celebrate and promote Banyule’s cultural heritage (cont) The 2012 Winter in Banyule Festival was themed as ‘Art Up Close’. Various elements included ’24hr Emergency Art’, projections on Main Street in Greensborough, Eid Celebrations, Antiques and Heirlooms and various workshops. The theme of this year’s Malahang festival was Sport and the Olympics celebrating the 56th anniversary since the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games. Attendance at the festival was successful with approximately 3,000 people attending over the course of the day. Banyule Festival continues to be very well attended and enjoyed by the Banyule Community. Twilight Sounds attracted over 2,000 with a great line up of Australian acts. The Kids Artyfarty Fest attracted well over 8,000 people throughout the day with the annual Grand Street Parade having a near record number of participants with over 800 people singing, dancing and marching down Burgundy Street. ‘Home - Reframing Craft & Domesticity’ was undoubtedly the most successful Council art exhibition so far. As the first exhibition since the opening of Hatch Contemporary Arts Space, ‘Home’ has set a solid grounding for the future development of the Arts in Banyule and the potential for Hatch to connect with diverse community members. ‘Home’ presented 83 works by 56 artists and artisans who worked in a wide range of craft-based mediums. Artworks were displayed in ‘rooms’ set up within the gallery, creating a narrative of a home and providing an immersive experience. This exhibition received extremely positive feedback from the local community and the art community more widely. Banyule gathered 13 leading inclusive arts agencies and peak bodies together with 70 members of the local community for its ‘Inclusive Arts Forum’ to discuss raising the profile of artists who have a disability, pathways in the creative industries for artists with a disability, and practical strategies for making creative environments inclusive. This forum was in partnership with Metro Access. Council continues to work in partnership with the Heidelberg School Art Foundation and Parks Victoria on the development of Council’s first purpose built art gallery, Impressionist Lab (Gallery), to celebrate the Heidelberg School of Artists and Impressionism. Consultation with the community will continue as Council moves forward on the proposed development.

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

1.6

Protect and improve public health and wellbeing

In the 2012 calendar year, seven new food businesses opened in the municipality (resulting in a total of 700 food premises registered under the Food Act 1984 as at end June 2013). Statutory food sampling requirements were met with a total of 198 food samples submitted for the purpose of analysis in the set period of 1 March 2012 to 28 February 2013. In addition, Council conducted 1,176 statutory inspections of food premises in the year ended 31 December 2012. The detailed design for the redevelopment of Ivanhoe Aquatic & Fitness Centre (Stage 1) was the completed in early 2013. This included several community, member and staff consultation sessions, generating a good level of excitement and expectation. Stage 1 includes: expansion of existing gym floor by 450sqm, new entry and reception for the facility improving customer flow and accessibility, improved staff administration hub, inclusion of a café facility with associated seating, addition of lift and stairwell to help movement around the centre, refurbishment of existing change areas and pool hall, with the addition of a change village and additional car parking. This centre is a key recreation facility in Banyule, attracting over 400,000 visits every year. A full refurbishment of the Olympic Leisure Centre gymnasium was completed in June 2013, including installation of new equipment. There has been a 25% increase in memberships at the centre. A total of 216 premises were registered under the Public Health and Wellbeing Act as at 30 June 2013, and Council conducted a total of 213 statutory inspections of Public Health and Wellbeing Act premises during the 2012 calendar year. During the 2012 calendar year, 10,589 vaccines were provided at public immunisation sessions, 6,261 vaccines at school sessions and 864 via commercial sessions. Council has maintained an average of 93.06% immunisation coverage for the age cohort of 12 months, higher than the Victorian average of 92.35% and the Australian average of 91.68%. It has also maintained an average of 94.06% immunisation coverage for the cohort of 24 months, higher than the Victorian average of 93.38% and the Australian average of 92.59%. The first years of the HPV vaccine for boys program at secondary schools has been implemented. Council continued to implement the Food Security Plan to ensure affordability, safety and access to nutritious food, including: • Planning and discussions regarding increasing access to food relief • F ood related partnerships across council (eg. food safety, sustainable food growing and production) • A cross-council planning framework for food is being developed • A position has been advertised for a Food Security Project Officer. This role will be responsible to the development of a strategy on food relief in the municipality.

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

1.6

Protect and improve public health and wellbeing (cont)

Council adopted its Smoke free Outdoor Areas Policy in March 2013, designating specific areas within the municipality as smoke free. Smoke free signage is being installed in Regional and Neighbourhood playgrounds and being arranged for the Greensborough walk. The Domestic Animal Management Plan 2012-2016 was adopted by Council in June 2013 and contains actions which support and facilitate the benefits of animal ownership and companionship and contribute to the health and wellbeing of residents. It also aims to educate residents about the accepted standards of animal welfare including the care, feeding and physical wellbeing of domestic pets. The key issues for Council which are addressed in the Plan include continuing to encourage responsible pet ownership; dealing with dangerous and restricted breed dogs, and addressing the overpopulation of dogs and cats. The Municipal Public Health Emergency Management Sub Plan was adopted by the Municipal Emergency Management Planning Committee (MEMPC) The Community Disaster Resilience Consultation was conducted with 2,000 hard copy surveys being distributed across the municipality. Results of the survey were analysed and Council commenced development of a new Strategic Plan for Building Disaster Resilience, to be implemented in 2013-2014. Banyule continued to develop and implement the emergency management collaboration project with other municipalities. Council officers participated at the working group levels and in regional forums. It is anticipated that this project will continue until 2014-2015 at a minimum. During 2012-2013 Banyule: • C onducted a ‘Community Emergency Preparedness Survey’ which identifies shared issues and enables Council to plan for and develop problem solving strategies that are consistent with the community’s needs. • I dentified and mapped facilities likely to have vulnerable people residing in them, vulnerable communities and individuals, as well as areas of higher risk (e.g. flood prone areas, extreme fire danger areas). • A ssisted with the Co-ordination of Council’s Vulnerable Person’s Register and maintenance of the Vulnerable Person’s in Facilities List. • I n conjunction with VicSES completed development of the Banyule Flood Emergency Management Plan.

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

Objective:

2. Planet Environmental sustainability Conduct Council activities in a sustainable manner, and practice sound stewardship of the natural environment to ensure its diversity, protection and enhancement. ‘Planet’ is about the natural and formed environment and the ecosystems that sustain the community. Our community is an integral part of the environment and together we are the custodians of our shared home. Outcomes for our key directions: 2.1 Protect and enhance our natural environment Council completed and adopted the Planet (Environmental Sustainability) Policy and Strategy 2013-2017, following an extensive community engagement program during 2012-2013. This is the primary policy and strategy document that supports the ‘Planet Environmental Sustainability’ objective of the Banyule City Plan 2013-2017. It provides the broad ‘Environmental Sustainability’ policy context for all Council related strategies, policies, plans and activities and sets the framework for achieving environmental sustainability in Banyule. Banyule’s bushland reserves have continued to receive carefully planned management to ensure the survival of rare and threatened species such as the Eltham Copper Butterfly. Night time surveys in key locations allow the caterpillar populations to be monitored and the butterfly’s habitat enhanced. Council’s Bushland crew undertook weed control programs in 35 reserves, covering approximately 280 hectares of bush and natural areas. This included St Helena Bush Reserve, Dalvida Reserve and Darebin Creek Northern Grasslands. The programs were aimed at reducing weed cover and to encourage regeneration of indigenous plants species. The Bushland crew also undertook a successful ecological burn in St Helena Bush Reserve in conjunction with the Country Fire Authority (CFA) in December 2012, resulting in a reduction of weed cover and the regeneration and an increased population of rare orchid species. A carpet of wildflowers including orchids, peas, daisies and lilies has been generated by cool burning of this bushland. The team also continued the ongoing program of spot burning and hand weeding to reduce weed cover and increase regeneration of native species throughout most remnant bushland reserves, including Andrew Yandell Reserve, Simonelli Reserve, Harry Pottage Reserve, Dalvida Reserve, Wooded Way Reserve, Darebin Creek Grasslands, and Rosanna Parklands. Council has continued to implement its works program that protects and enhances our waterways and wetlands. The Bushland Management team has a regular weed control, planting and maintenance program for various streamside plantings, including: • Yallambie Park South, Plenty River, • Mandell Crt, Ivanhoe, Darebin Creek • Banyule Swamp South drainline habitat link, Viewbank.

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

2.1 Protect and enhance our natural environment (cont) Banyule continued to liaise with Melbourne Water on a number of projects including the woody weed control program along the Yarra frontage from Bonds Road, Viewbank to Ivanhoe Boulevard, Wilson Reserve and starting woody weed removal and revegetation at Salt Creek, Rosanna Parklands from Lower Plenty Road to Von Nida Crescent, Rosanna.

(Continued)

Council’s Parks and Gardens team planted a total of 1,250 trees in streets and parks in 2012-2013. It has also co-ordinated the planting of a total 9,835 local native (indigenous) plants in parks and bushland reserves for 2012-2013. These plants were made up of tubestock trees, shrubs and ground species, and were planted throughout Banyule’s bushland reserves, creeks and river reserves. This was part of the ongoing revegetation program for 2012-2013, including community working bees (local volunteers and friends groups). The tree care team continued to investigate a wide variety of species suitable for use within its parkland and street environment. The tree care team has initiated additional programs such as integrated pest management to provide greater protection of its significant streetscapes from further pest and disease outbreaks. Banyule inspected and pruned 35,000 trees throughout the municipality under Council’s Routine Street Tree Maintenance Contract. Council has obtained State Government funding to assist with upgrading the section of the Plenty River Trail west of Willinda Park, and to provide improved linkages between the trail and the Greensborough Principal Activity Centre. Community consultation regarding permanent planning controls for substantial trees in residential neighbourhoods in Heidelberg West, Bundoora, Watsonia, Viewbank and parts of Greensborough has been completed and the amendment will now be considered by a State Planning Panel. Banyule has continued its focus on increasing the number of trees and other vegetation on private land through planning conditions. Public exhibition has begun for C80, to achieve a permanent Substantial Tree planning scheme control, known as Vegetation Protection Overlay, Schedule 5. The temporary planning scheme policy for neighbourhood character has been extended by the Minister until 30 June 2013. The Minister’s response to C68, for a permanent and new Local Policy for Neighbourhood Character, is being progressed. Further progress on C80 and for Council’s Neighbourhood Character Strategy is expected in 2013-2014. Banyule’s public spaces were mowed on a regular basis, including parks and reserves, sportsfields, traffic management areas and fire hazards. Council maintained its garden beds and Banyule’s 44 active sportsfields to agreed standards which meet community expectations. Surfaces on sportsfields responded well based on the maintenance works conducted over the summer period.

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

2.2 Conserve water and improve stormwater quality Significant works were conducted to establish one of the largest stormwater harvesting networks in Melbourne at Kalparrin Gardens in Greensborough, Chelsworth Park in Ivanhoe and DeWinton Park in Rosanna. The works are nearing completion, and when complete, the $6 million project will capture, filter and store stormwater underground and use it to irrigate sport fields and open spaces in these parks keeping them green all year round. This will improve amenity for all park users including residents, sports clubs and schools. Tonnes of litter, sediment, nitrogen and phosphorous will also be filtered and prevented from polluting waterways including Kalparrin Lake, Reedy Billabong and the Plenty and Yarra Rivers while saving precious drinking water. This project will provide water for about 40% of Council’s active open space. The project is supported by funding from the Australian Government, Ivanhoe Grammar School, the Victorian Government, Melbourne Water and Banyule City Council. A draft Water Plan has been developed as part of the Planet (Environmental Sustainability) Policy and Strategy 2013-2017 framework. This will be presented to Council for consideration, adoption and implementation in 2013-2014. Council continued to implement The Sustainable Homes Program, which encourages water saving through community education workshops. Water issues were also promoted through the Banyule Stormwater Harvesting Project.

2.3 Deliver action on climate change Council continued to support the installation of a cogeneration system in WaterMarc to generate electricity from waste heat and reduce energy consumption and costs. The preparation work was completed for energy efficient street lighting to save up to 67 per cent of Council’s streetlight energy on about 8,000 lights. The first half of the municipality’s lights will be installed in the 2013-2014 financial year. Council has now established recycling stations for mobile phones, batteries, x-rays, fluorescent globes, eyeglasses and other items at its three Services Centres

Federal funding of $53,000 has been secured for a $90,000 solar hot water program for key Council buildings.

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

2.3 Deliver action on climate change (cont) Council continued to provide a cost effective fleet while minimising the impact on the environment, meeting operational requirements and minimising risk to staff and community. Banyule continued to run the staff Enviro Reps program. This reinforces improved environmental practices. Enviro Reps are successfully running a worm farm at Rosanna and the recycling stations have been expanded to Council’s Greensborough and Ivanhoe offices.

2.4 Avoid waste generation Banyule achieved a result of 79 for ‘Waste Management (performance)’ in the State Government’s Annual Community Satisfaction Survey 2013. The result of 79 was the highest for the Inner Group of councils, whose average was 74. In addition, Banyule achieved a result of 67 for Environmental sustainability (performance). This was significantly higher than the average for the Inner Group (65). Work with ten municipal councils in the northern and western suburbs was finalised to enter into a contract for the long-term processing of green organic waste collected within Banyule. Council has worked with the Metropolitan Waste Management Group to ensure due diligence to the impact of the carbon price on landfill gate fees and negotiate a good result. The Rethink Centre hosted over 4,400 visitors in the past twelve months, which brings the total attendance to more than 55,000 since its opening in 2000. The Districts, Lifestyles and Avoiding Waste Project will develop tools to understand behaviours in the household with regard to food waste. The project has engaged 28 households over three areas to assist with the research by providing food use and purchasing behaviour information. Council held a School Waste Conference involving eight schools and 150 students to assist schools in developing waste programs and activities. Council continued to provide a responsive and effective cleansing service to streets, drains, shopping centres and public toilets, and maintain these assets with a high level of cleanliness. An early draft of the Waste Management Plan has been developed. Consultation with the community has been undertaken with key outcomes to be included in the plan.

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

2.5 Encourage environmental stewardship This was the final year of the three-year Sustainable Homes and Communities Education Program for residents, households and community groups. The program involved workshops and presentations to provide the community with practical information for saving money by reducing energy, water and food bills, producing less waste and creating a more sustainable home and community. This program was a joint project with Darebin Council and with the support of the State Government. Council continued to deliver its Community and Council environmental sustainability engagement programs and events, including: Sustainable Homes and Communities, Home Harvest Festival, Kids Teaching Kids Conference, Wildlife Corridor, Healthy Waterways Waterwatch, EnviroReps and Spring Outdoors. Drafts of environmental stewardship, water, biodiversity and energy plans were completed to sit under the Planet Policy and Strategy and to be considered by Council. Banyule continued to foster relationships with friends groups and school groups through participation in local park working bees such as Clean Up Australia Day, National Tree Day, and Waterwatch activities, including: • C o-ordination of 90 volunteers who collected 144 bags of litter weighing in at 915 kilograms of total rubbish across six sites as part of the Clean Up Australia Day Program. • 6 5 Working Bees were co-ordinated during the year with local friends groups, resulting in 9,835 local native (indigenous) plants in parks and bushland reserves for 2012-2013. • D uring National Tree Day the Bushland crew oversaw 65 volunteers as they planted approximately 1,900 indigenous trees. During 2012-2013, Council provided biodiversity education for 2,360 people at 30 events through the Wild Corridor Program. Council also provided water quality and water conservation education about Banyule’s stormwater harvesting projects at 15 events, for 856 people. Council continued to support and advocate on the implementation of new industry based product stewardship programs (eg. electronic waste disposal). A recycling process for televisions has been implemented at the Waste Recovery Centre as a result of product stewardship.

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

2.5 Encourage environmental stewardship (cont) Education programs that empower the Banyule community to avoid waste continued to be provided in 2012-2013. These included: • A ussi Vic Resource Smart Schools Program This program is funded by the State Government through Sustainability Victoria. Schools work towards accreditation by developing environmental policies and statements that include environmental action plans. The process involves promotion of their activities to their school community through newsletters and the school’s website. Support and facilitation were provided to two schools, Montmorency Primary and Greensborough Primary, to obtain their accreditation. Promotion of this program to other schools in Banyule has also been completed. The Waste Wise Education Program and education van have supported this program by providing teacher professional development workshops, leadership in assisting School’s Environmental Teachers in completing the school’s accreditation requirements, and also providing education sessions. • S chools Waste Conference October 2012 – The Waste Wise Outreach Education Program sponsored and supported this conference by assisting with the development of a program to be conducted at Ivanhoe East Primary School, by providing speakers and activities that inspired and encouraged students to think about avoiding waste in the home and at school. This conference was attended by eight Banyule Schools, Mother of God Primary School, Montmorency South Primary School, Ivanhoe Girls Grammar School, Greensborough Primary School, Briar Hill Primary School, Glen Katherine Primary School, Ivanhoe Buckley House Primary School and Ivanhoe Primary School, with 150 students in attendance. The outcome was to assist schools to develop waste programs and activities. • D istricts, Lifestyles and Avoiding Waste Project (funded by Metropolitan Waste Management Group) – This project has commenced and the development of an Education Kit to assist with Food Waste Avoidance in the home is almost complete. This kit is to be distributed to 28 households in Banyule over three different suburbs. The outcomes of this research will assist Council to develop tools to understand behaviour in the household with regard to food waste.

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

Objective:

3. Place Sustainable amenity and built environment Enable Banyule’s buildings, places and spaces to be more sustainable and encourage communities to live, work, shop, move and play locally. ‘Place’ is about ensuring that the buildings, infrastructure, places and spaces in which we live, shop, work and play enhance our sense of wellbeing and belonging. Outcomes for our key directions: 3.1 Support the character of neighbourhoods and guide growth to accessible places Council completed and adopted the Place Policy and Strategy 2013-2017, following an extensive community engagement program during 2012-2013. This is the primary policy and strategy document that supports the ‘Place: Sustainable amenity and built environment’ objective of the Banyule City Plan 2013-2017. It provides the broad ‘Place’ policy context for all Council related strategies, policies, plans and activities, and provides the framework for maintaining and improving Banyule as a liveable and vibrant place. Banyule’s Building Permits and Inspections (Bpi) service issued a total of 1,431 building permits for the year with a value of $194,793,090. Of this total, 401 building permits were issued for development within Banyule, with a value of $43,103,975. The group conducted a total of 6,207 building permit inspections throughout the year. BPi kept residents and clients informed about compliance with building regulation changes, including the Australian Standards: ‘AS 1926.1 2010 Swimming Pool Safety’ and ‘AS 1428.1 2009 Design for Access and Mobility’. BPi was audited on four occasions this year and achieved great results. These included audits conducted by the Building Commission, including a Building Commission Levy Financial audit and Building Commission Site Specific Audits, in addition to other internal and external audits. The Municipal Building Surveyor and Deputy have developed systems to enable a consistent approach to the report and consents process. This enables any building proposals to be assessed against the impact upon the streetscape. The BPi service is continuing to develop its procedures and systems to ensure best service delivery to its customers. A scope is being prepared to develop an application for delivery of on-site inspection results via electronic devices.

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

3.1 Support the character of neighbourhoods and guide growth to accessible places (cont) In the 2012-2013 financial year, Council’s Development Planning team received a total of 1,392 applications for development, subdivision, tree removal and formal amendments to existing permits. Further to this, 107 requests for secondary consent applications were received as well as 106 requests to extend permit timeframes, 184 certification applications and 20 development plan approvals. The team also completed the assessment of 1,439 applications for development, subdivision, tree removal and formal amendments to existing permits. This is again a productive financial year with 47 more applications being completed than received. Further to this, 104 requests for secondary consent applications were completed as well as 100 requests to extend permit timeframes, 116 certification applications and 15 development plan approvals. The Sustainable Housing and Liveable Housing Guidelines and assessment for multidwelling developments (3 or more dwellings) were implemented. 343 complaints were received in relation to alleged breaches of planning permits and the Banyule Planning Scheme with 221 complaints being closed. The planning scheme amendment for a new Residential Neighbourhood Character Policy (now in the Banyule Planning Scheme) has been completed. This aims to improve local design outcomes for housing, landscaping, setbacks and the protection of ridgelines and trees. A heritage strategy and planning scheme amendments to guide local heritage planning decisions and protect 65 additional heritage properties were completed, with the inclusion of the Maroondah Aqueduct on the Victorian Heritage Inventory and nominating Sparks Reserve for State heritage significance. Community engagement for directing development to preferred places is continuing. Public consultation for getting a framework into the planning scheme has been completed and much consultation has been done to support Council’s adoption of an Ivanhoe Structure Plan in June 2013. There will be more consultation in 2013-2014, when Council makes progress on public exhibition for permanent planning scheme changes. Work has continued to refine the 10 Year Capital Works Plan to help prioritise the city’s capital works. Funding gaps in the management of the city’s assets including roads, pathways, bridges, drainage, playgrounds, open space and buildings are still being identified.

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

3.1 Support the character of neighbourhoods and guide growth to accessible places (cont) Banyule’s Engineering team delivered a range of activities in 2012-2013, including: • P repared 29 Council Reports, to inform Council and provide recommendations on the appropriate course of action for key issues including: major projects, transport and road safety issues, parking management, drainage and road design. • C ompleted 1,270 Transport and Road Safety related customer requests, an average of approximately 102 a month, with 93% completed on time • C ompleted 1,956 Drainage and Development related customer requests and referrals, an average of approximately 163 a month. • Delivered approximately $90,000 in Transport and Road Safety related capital works. • Delivered approximately $90,000 in Drainage related capital works. • C ommenced the Strategic Stormwater Network Catchment Analysis study for the municipality delivering around $170,000 in modelling and investigations. Council has continued to ensure improvements to Banyule’s infrastructure and road network to meet community needs. Council has worked with key stakeholders to get the best outcomes in the design and planning stages of civil and construction projects. Council committed to the purchase of three former school sites in Bellfield and Heidelberg Heights to ensure the retention of community facilities, including local basketball courts.

3.2 Support strengthening of local centres of activity Council has continued to support initiatives in The Mall, including a new business incubator, ‘Our Mall Our Place’ cultural diversity events, and a visual merchandising program, in keeping with Council’s vision for The Mall. Special Rates and Charges schemes for shopping centres in Greensborough, Montmorency, Eaglemont, Watsonia, Macleod, East Ivanhoe and Lower Plenty have been completed and work has commenced on Rosanna and Ivanhoe. Key Property Projects were delivered in accordance with Budget priorities.

An updated Ivanhoe Structure Plan was adopted by Council in June 2013, after further public consultation. Civic Precinct master planning is continuing into 2013-2014. including recommendations on improved community facilities and public spaces and the future of the library, and is being coordinated through the Economic Development Unit.

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

3.3 Protect and develop publicly used assets Stage 1 of the Price Park Masterplan has been completed. This included replacing and substantially upgrading the playground, tree removal, pruning and general risk reduction, and steps towards addressing soil erosion and excess water run-off from the site. Stage 2 of the Binnak Park Regional Playground was been completed. Works were conducted to raise garden beds at the Buna Reserve Community Garden to better cater for elderly and disabled residents. Council undertook a feasibility study into the potential of creating fenced off-lead dog parks in Banyule and into the upgrade of the pavilion facilities of the Kintala Dog Club. The Darebin Trail link beneath Heidelberg Road to Sparks Reserve, Ivanhoe has been completed, to connect the existing completed section of Darebin Creek Shared Trail with The Boulevard. Banyule, together with other Northern Region councils, has successfully lobbied for State Government funding of $18 million to complete the final stage of the Darebin Creek Trail to link it to the Main Yarra Trail. Council also secured State Government funding to assist with the upgrade of part of the Plenty River Trail west of Willinda Park, and to provide improved linkages between the trail and the Greensborough Principal Activity Centre. Community consultation into the feasibility of providing a safe, improved bicycle route between Banksia Street and Burke Road North was completed. Condition inspections and associated repairs for our shared paths were completed to the required standards of assets management. In terms of linear metres of shared paths/ trails renewed, upgraded and new, Council completed 2,908 metres, including works for the Darebin Creek trail, Wilson Reserve trail, Donaldson Creek trail, Plenty River trial, and Main Yarra trail. Improvement works and facility upgrades that have been undertaken include: • Park fencing at Elder Street Reserve • C ricket net facilities at Chelsworth Park, Seddon Reserve, Olympic Park, Shelley Reserve • Path and steps on the Montmorency Park escarpment to improve safety • Heritage landscape installation at the Ivanhoe Service Centre.

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

3.3 Protect and develop publicly used assets (cont) Banyule’s Major Projects and Infrastructure team completed a range of activities in 20122013, including: • C onstruction and upgrade of footpaths and installation of a pedestrian signal in Main Street, Greensborough • Reconstruction of the carpark at Flintoff Street, Greensborough • F ootbridge works at Banyule Rd/Graham Rd deck replaced, Binnak Park repaired due to vandalism, Elder St drainage works to approach, Willinda Park handrails replaced and 10 bridges repaired due to storm damage • Bike path construction and maintenance • Drainage works – 5 projects completed • 38,422 m2 of local roads have been resheeted with 13 roads being completed • 35.1 km of road crack sealing completed with 54 local streets crack sealed • Oriel Road, Malahang to Tobruk section reconstruction has been completed • 14,950 sqm or 6,680 bays of footpath replaced • 367 lineal metres of kerb and channel replaced • 18 pram crossings replaced • Street signs and other street furniture worth $116,190 repaired and replaced • 65 streets line marked with long life paint • M ajor road patching works were performed on 10 streets with 1,000 sqm of patching completed. Street Sweeping and Cleansing services have continued to be delivered to the agreed standards. This included identified new requirements for Greensborough, WaterMarc and Town Square. Data is currently being collated to determine the frequency currently being acheived by each sweeper. The data is being analysed and combined with GIS maps and driver reporting to modify sweeper rounds. Adjustments were made to some rounds and have been monitored for effectiveness. Drainage guidelines for developments were updated. Development guidelines are monitored for improvements and frequently asked questions from developers, ongoing improvements and amendments and are programmed for quarterly updates. A Draft 10 Year Capital Works Plan and an assessment of the renewal gap across key asset groups was completed in 2012. This is now being reviewed in keeping with the revised Strategic Resource Budget to ensure that the renewal gap is minimised.

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

3.3 Protect and develop publicly used assets (cont) The revised Road Management Plan was adopted by Council in June 2013. Banyule completed the public exhibition of a local Environmentally Efficient Design (ESD) amendment for the Banyule Planning Scheme to improve Councilâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s assessment of development requiring a permit. The ongoing Essential Service inspections and repairs were undertaken as per the program for implementation of the Essential Safety Measures (Buildiing Code). These reports were completed in June 2013. Exit lights, paths of travel and fire extinguisher maintenance and servicing have been completed for the financial year.

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

3.3 Protect and develop publicly used assets (cont) Banyule’s Functions team delivered a range of activities in 2012-2013, including: • T he Centre Ivanhoe celebrated 75 years since its official opening in 1937, which was acknowledged by the hosting of its first ticketed event, ‘Back to the Berg’. This gala event was a great success with over 330 guests attending for a fabulous night of entertainment and dancing. Not surprisingly, the event organisers received fantastic feedback from guests acknowledging the high quality of the food, presentation of the venue and the Art Deco furnishings on display. • S uccessful achievement of all sales targets by the Functions Team, with an increase of approximately 16% in income. This was due in part to The Centre playing host to a record breaking 50 weddings in a single calendar year. This was a fantastic result and reflects the significant promotion and marketing efforts of The Centre Ivanhoe Functions Team. • Installation of several major Capital Improvements to the facility, which included: - New furniture for the Great Hall foyer - New furniture in the Streeton Bridal Suite - Wireless Internet Access - established throughout the venue - New roller door for the Streeton kitchen - New Rationale oven in the Great Hall kitchen These improvements will continue to allow The Centre Ivanhoe to meet the function and event requirements of both new and existing clients. • A doption and commencement of a New Catering Contract Model in early 2013. This resulted in the redeployment or voluntary redundancy of all members of The Centre’s Functions team. One staff member was redeployed to the Function Contract Coordinator position. • P rovision of sponsorship by way of Banyule City Council’s Facility Access Grants was well used by many community groups, enabling them to hold numerous fundraising events at several of Council’s community venues and halls. • C ontinuous improvement to our halls, particularly the provision of new tables, chairs and blinds, has resulted in receipt of ongoing, positive feedback from many clients. Cooperation with Council’s Building Maintenance team has facilitated the successful upgrade of the Lower Plenty Senior Citizens Community Hall. • I ntroduction of bookings of the revamped Lower Plenty Senior Citizens Hall will now by administered by the Leisure & Cultural Bookings Officer at Banyule. Council continued to deliver its Parks Maintenance services, including maintaining our passive and active reserves to standard, and managing our peak season which includes fire hazards, guard rails, right of ways, cuttings, and traffic management areas.

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

3.4 Enhance public spaces Every year, thousands of Australians help clean up their environment on Clean Up Australia Day in March. Council encourages volunteers to join together in a clean-up around the municipality. This year Council coordinated 90 volunteers who collected 144 bags of litter weighing in at 915 kilograms of total rubbish across six local sites. Council commenced the process of preparing an Urban Tree Policy and Strategic Plan for Banyule. Public and open spaces are a key element of the Ivanhoe Structure Plan, which recommends the investigation of seven key public places in the Ivanhoe Activity Area. The Plan has been adopted by Council. Routine maintenance work continues to occur on gateways. Council continues to advocate for improved service outcomes for non-council assets. Banyule’s Municipal Laws team delivered a range of activities in 2012-2013, including: • A chieved a significant improvement in responding to customer requests - 90% of customer requests were responded to within time, compared with 77% last year. Customer requests have increased by an average of 2% from the previous year and this has been handled within existing resources. • P rovided an increased focus on enforcement of traffic issues around schools, in the morning and afternoon, for the protection of children. • I n collaboration with the Salvation Army and Victoria Police, Council has successfully implemented a project to tackle illegal dumping of rubbish at the Watsonia Salvation Army Store. The project, which involved Council installing CCTV technology, has resulted in a 98% reduction in rubbish dumping, the prosecution of offenders and a huge cost saving to the Salvation Army in having to get rid of the rubbish. • A new Municipal Fire Management Planning Committee has been established as a Sub Committee of the Municipal Emergency Management Planning Committee, and the Municipal Fire Prevention Committee disbanded. • A new Fire Management Plan has been prepared and adopted by Council in May 2013 as per the recommendations of the Victorian Bushfire Royal Commission. • C ontinued auditing of building sites with site inspections while providing education to building contractors. This proactive approach helps to keep building sites clean, tidy and safe for the surrounding community. Council continued to deliver its Horticultural Services to maintain and enhance the quality of garden beds in open spaces, public spaces and reserves. This included completion of a heritage landscape installation at the Ivanhoe Service Centre.

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

3.5 Support sustainable transport Council continues to work with, and advocate to, the Department of Transport and the Minister for Transport to improve: • Service frequencies and accessibility to our activity centres • Access and facilities at railway stations. Banyule’s Engineering team: • I nvestigated and recommended the installation of bicycle lanes throughout the Council’s municipality to improve links to the existing bicycle network in line with Council’s Bicycle strategy. • Implemented the WaterMarc Parking Management Plan. • Revised engineering information to be available on Banyule’s new website. Council has continued to advocate to other levels of government to strengthen accessible transport links to our activity centres, to ensure increased opportunities for employment growth. This included developing the Ivanhoe Structure Plan transport priorities to improve access and parking to identified activity centres, and advocating for improved accessibility in connectivity. Investigations are underway for parking control measures in Greensborough and Heidelberg and bus parking options for Greensborough in relation to the new WaterMarc facility. This is an ongoing advocacy role. As issues arise we bring these to the attention of the relevant stakeholders to address. The Ivanhoe Structure Plan (Transport Plan) was completed and adopted by Council. A localised ‘way finding’ proposal was completed and installed around the WaterMarc facility. Council provided training and support to schools for the ‘Walking and Riding to School’ program. The St Martins school has been assisted in this program. Council has supported the annual ride to school day. Recent awards have been passed onto the three top schools by the local Councillors and officers. Concepts were prepared for four sites for Pedestrian Improvements. A Parking Management study was completed and implemented in Greensborough. Implementation of parking controls in Greensborough and Heidelberg is underway in identified locations. Flexicar locations are currently being negotiated for Heidelberg and Ivanhoe. Paid parking locations have been installed in Heidelberg and Greensborough to improve turn-over and availability. Further locations are being assessed for paid parking consideration around activity centres and major attractors.

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

3.5 Support sustainable transport (cont) A presentation was made to a Councillor briefing regarding Alternate Truck Routes. Ongoing advocacy to VicRoads is continuing regarding traffic and freight volumes on Rosanna Road. Council has continued advocacy in relation to the Greensborough Highway/Rosanna Road corridor safety and amenity. A North-east link report was presented to Council in September 2012, and letters sent to VicRoads requesting development of short term and medium term solutions for Rosanna Road, and to organise a meeting to plan implementation of these solutions. A preferred alternate truck route report has been received from VicRoads and meetings with senior VicRoads officers have continued to discuss and raise this item. Ongoing discussions and advocacy to VicRoads is continuing, and included: • L etters to all local State and Federal members of parliament seeking support and to meet on this issue • L etters to the Minister for Transport seeking to meet with Council to discuss this issue, and consideration for sound barriers on Greensborough Highway. • L etter to the Regional Director of VicRoads to request a meeting with Council to discuss this issue • R aising of several issues regarding the safety and amenity on Rosanna Road and Greensborough Highway as part of ongoing VicRoads liaison meetings.

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

Objective:

4. Prosperity Prosperous and sustainable local economy Support economic and social development opportunities in a sustainable manner for a thriving Banyule economy. ‘Prosperity’ is about fostering economic conditions so that people in the community achieve financial independence and a sustainable quality of life. Outcomes for our key directions: 4.1 Support and encourage appropriate business development and local economic growth Council has continued to determine potential growth for retail, commercial and residential development, and improve marketing and promotional material to encourage investment in the city. Growth for Retail, Commercial and Residential development is being accommodated through the development of structure plans and the finalisation of Council’s Neighbourhood Character Strategy. Greensborough, Heidelberg and Ivanhoe have adopted structure plans, a planning scheme amendment is being developed for the Ivanhoe Structure Plan and a proposed permanent Neighbourhood Character Strategy Amendment is being considered by the Minister for Planning. Banyule finalised the Prosperity Policy and Strategy 2012-2013 (Interim) in August 2012. During 2012-2013 the key policy and strategy documents informing the City Plan were renewed as part of the major review of Council’s key strategic direction, involving comprehensive community engagement during the development of Banyule’s new City Plan for 2013-2017 and Budget for 2013-2014. As part of this process, the ‘Prosperity’ Policy and Strategy has been integrated within the strategic framework. Council continued to develop and deliver the business training and network program to better address the needs of local businesses. A total of 25 economic development events were delivered in partnership with other organisations (eg. neighbouring Councils, State and Federal Government, Regional Development organisations, traders associations, etc). This demonstrates Council’s commitment and focus on supporting economic development. The events included: 10 Banyule Business Events, 4 Northern Business Achievement Awards Breakfasts, 9 Business Mentoring Days (Banyule advisory service), and 2 Victorian Government Mentoring Bus Visits (mobile business centre/ mini bus). In addition, 486 people attended Council operated/ hosted economic development events. The result for this indicates a high level of participation in Council operated/ hosted local economic development events. This represents 51 mentoring bookings (Banyule advisory service) and 435 event registrations (Banyule Business events).

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

4.1 Support and encourage appropriate business development and local economic growth (cont) Council has continued to regularly update Banyule businesses through e-bulletins and quarterly newsletters about new initiatives, opportunities and key changes to legislation that may impact their business. Work with the Banyule Nillumbik Local Learning Employment Network included: • Referral of young achievers for Northern Business Achievement Awards • Development of schools and industry breakfast project. Banyule achieved good results in the State Government’s Community Satisfaction Survey 2013 for the following categories: • C SI - Business and community development and tourism (performance) - Banyule’s score (61) in the CSS 2013 was equal to the ‘Inner Group’ (Inner Group of Councils) average and lower than the State-wide average (62) • C SI - Planning and building permits (performance) - Banyule’s score (55) in the CSS 2013 was higher than the Inner Group average (53) and equal to the State-wide average. Structure plans were completed for Greensborough, Heidelberg and Ivanhoe and a planning scheme amendment is being developed to start the implementation of the Ivanhoe Structure Plan. Banyule has continued to encourage businesses to employ sustainable practices and minimise environmental impacts. This included support to access energy efficiency advice and resources.

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

4.2 Improve access to affordable housing, employment, health and community services A range of interventions has been completed, or significant progress made in relation to Shopping Strips, including: • I mplementation of the Street life project for The Mall around visual merchandising and communications • S upport Bell Street Mall Traders Association (BSMTA) and Council officers to deliver OMAC (office of multicultural affairs and citizenship) ‘Unity through partnerships’ project to develop a series of new opportunities for communities to share their cultures with the broader population utilising the public spaces at The Mall • R ate renewal completed for East Ivanhoe and Lower Plenty, with renewals for Rosanna and Ivanhoe progressing as planned • S upport provided for smaller shopping centres, including Diamond Village, Greville Road and Balaka Place • S essions held with Councillors and Centre Managers to discuss support for shopping centres, including City Plan, rates and charges, capital works and cleaning and maintenance • C apital works improvements completed in Macleod, including upgrade of lighting in Rotunda, new seating in parkland, new pathways in parkland, installation of pedestrian safety barrier, installation of water refill station near playground, repositioning and repainting of Rotunda (including garden beds) and new commemorative plaque • O ngoing support provided to 11 traders associations and committees regarding governance, special rates expenditure, marketing and promotional activities, cleansing and maintenance, etc • E aglemont Village revitalisation fund enacted to see the appointment of a part time marketing co-ordinator to deliver festivals and communications in the centre • G reensborough maintenance fund expanded to deliver amenity improvements for the centre (e.g. mulching of garden beds, painting of street furniture, removal of graffiti, etc) • D elivery of Australian Retailers Association session in Greensborough focused on customer service and experience, as part of the Victorian Government Streetlife Program.

4.3 Encourage appropriate investment in our activity centres The Ivanhoe Structure Plan has been finalised, ready for Council adoption. The planning scheme amendment for interim and potentially permanent controls in the Banyule Planning Scheme has commenced. This included extended public consultation taking place, involving about 1,200 stakeholders, including expanded resident membership on the Ivanhoe Community Consultative Committee. The draft Ivanhoe Civic Precinct Masterplan has commenced, including recommendations on improved community facilities and public spaces and the future of the library.

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

4.3 Encourage appropriate investment in our activity centres (cont) Banyule has continued to work with Trader Associations to maximise the marketing of key activity centres. Council has continued delivery of a range of support to traders to develop sustainable economic development programs through the Special Rates and Charges schemes, including; governance arrangements, best practice guidance, rules of association, rate renewals, marketing and promotional activity, and annual business planning. Commercialisation opportunities for maximising return on Council’s landholdings continue to be pursued.

4.4 Build community capital Council negotiated the purchase of three former school sites, Banksia Secondary College, Bellfield Primary and Haig Street Primary, from the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development in April 2013, with contracts expected to be finalised in August 2013. Council’s decision to purchase the school sites has provided a unique opportunity to regain ownership of important community facilities including the basketball/netball stadium located on the former Banksia Secondary College site in Bellfield. The purchase of the school sites has also provided Council with the opportunity to lead local planning outcomes that will assist in offsetting some of the costs associated with buying and refurbishing these community facilities. The first step for Council will be to undertake preliminary design and master planning for each of the school sites. Master planning for the Haig Street site will commence in September 2013. Banyule continues to work closely with its community to deliver successful events, including Banyule Festival, Malahang Festival, Winter in Banyule, Carols by Candlelight and the Boulevard Lights. Informal leisure programs such as Exercise in the Parks in partnership with Banyule Leisure Facility Management (BLFM), a Family Bike Ride in partnership with Banyule Bug User Group, Games Night at the Watsonia library in partnership with the YPR Library Service, Antiques and Heirlooms Workshops, and Street parties, have been very successful and also provide a tool for community engagement. Council continues work with agencies to support community activities such as emergency management. Further information is provided in Objective 1 ‘People – Community Strengthening and Support’ in the key direction: 1.6 Protect and improve public health and wellbeing.

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

4.4 Build community capital (cont) Council’s activity to build connection and resilience of our community has continued. This is a part of how many of the Community Programs are implemented, in particular, with the Arts and Recreation Plans, participation of volunteers and youth programs (these include for example festivals, events, and disability programs). Council has conducted evidence based planning for community development, including: • ID data training sessions were provided for staff in November 2012 and February 2013 • A ‘data buddies’ group has been established with a nominated person from community programs service units • A mapping process has been completed identifying sources of data used across Council and data gaps. This is guiding our future work • P opulation data intranet pages have been developed that link through to internal and external demographic resources • Youth Profile and Early Years profiles are currently in development • HACC profile has been produced • A short demographic profile of Banyule following the 2011 census has been developed. Training for ID Data was introduced and support provided to assist service areas to use the information for development of various profiles and service unit plans. This work will continue across the organisation to develop skills of staff to interpret and utilise data sources to inform their business. Partnership and Licence Agreements have been completed or reviewed, including: • T oy Library partnership agreement responsibilities have been transferred from Council’s Maternal and Child Health (MCH) service to its Early Childhood Service (ECS) • Y outh services - current partnering agreements such as Banyule Support and Information Centre (BANSIC), Volunteers of Banyule (VOB), Diamond Valley Community Support (DVCS), Banyule Housing • C ouncil meeting in April approved a one year extension to the current lease at 101 Burgundy Street, Heidelberg for BANSIC (to August 2014) • A service review of BANSIC, VOB and DVCS will be undertaken over coming months to inform Council’s future direction. Council officers have taken a different approach this year in an effort to negotiate and complete partnering agreements in a timely manner. Council has continued to partner with agencies to support community activities such as emergency management recovery and coordination. Relationship building has been initiated with Banyule Community Health service. The Community Development (Emergency Management) Project Officer is currently scoping other opportunities.

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

Objective:

5. Participation Community involvement in community life Govern effectively by appropriately engaging the community in issues that affect them, and advocating for the broader interest of the community. ‘Participation’ is central to good governance. Outcomes for our key directions: 5.1 Plan and engage with our community Council finalised the Participation Policy and Strategy 2013-2017, following an extensive community engagement program during 2012-2013. This is the primary policy and strategy document that supports the ‘Participation: Community involvement in community life’ objective of the Banyule City Plan 2013-2017. It provides the broad ‘Participation’ policy context for all Council related strategies, policies, plans and activities, and provides the framework for Council to support community involvement, by appropriately engaging with our community on issues that affect them, encouraging participation and advocating on behalf of our community. Council conducted a major review and developed a new four year Banyule City Plan for 2013–2017 (Council Plan). The process included Councillor planning days in November– December 2012, sessions with the Senior Management Team and Banyule Leadership Network, an extensive community engagement program (November 2012-May 2013), and public exhibition in May 2013–June 2013. City Plan 2013-2017 key directions have specific ‘focus areas’ to ensure strong alignment with key corporate plans, and the plan includes key initiatives (in response to VAGO’s guidelines and requirements). These give the community more of a practical sense of what we are aiming to achieve. The new City Plan was sent to the Minister, Councillors and staff, and is available on the website, intranet, at Council Service Centres, local libraries and neighbourhood houses. Council’s City Plan and Community Plan consultation process involved extensive partnership and collaboration across Council. Numerous service units have been involved and engaged with their respective customer groups in the consultation. In addition to the City Plan and Community Plan, the consultation gathered information for the Arts, Recreation, Open Space, and Early Years Plans. The initial 2010–2012 Action Plan for the Community Plan has been completed. We are now developing an implementation process for the next Action Plan. The 2013–2017 Community Plan Action Plan will have the same timeframe as the City Plan (2013–2017).

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

5.1 Plan and engage with our community (cont) Council used a variety of methods for involving our community in the decisions we make. These include public forums such as workshops, advisory committees, online and paper surveys, use of giant blackboards at community events, attendance of community group meetings, and short surveys at community and sports activities. We delivered an improved community engagement program. Consultation was co-ordinated and undertaken in partnership with service units across Council to continue to engage with various target groups, eg. Youth team engage young people, Early Years with children, etc., to enable a more coordinated and shared approach to consultation across Council. This approach was used to engage the community for the purpose of developing the City Plan 2013–2017 and Community Plan, together with other support plans, across Council. We have asked the local community about how to make Banyule an even better place to live, work and play. More than 1,200 people have told us their ideas through surveys, forums, face to face meetings, and at various festivals and events. The Statement of Indigenous Commitment (first year of the action plan), which was adopted last year by Council, has been implemented. This included: • T he development of a calendar of events and activities to commemorate significant dates • A n Indigenous flag raising ceremony and morning tea to celebrate 2013 National Reconciliation Week, May 2013 • P articipation in the Austin and Mercy Hospitals Aboriginal Advisory Committee, Reconciliation Victoria activities and LG Pro Special Indigenous Australians Group • N AIDOC Week – Council funds National NAIDOC Week activities for children and young people attending local schools to celebrate Aboriginal culture • C ouncil and Banyule Community Health Centre (Aboriginal Health Service) have set up a “yarning circle” to engage regularly with Indigenous residents • P articipation in development of Council’s Human Rights Charter responsibilities to include the needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander residents. The Youth and Family Services (YFS) Citizenship Framework was officially launched to all staff in August 2012. It has been embedded in everyday YFS business and engagement activities across the broader organisation. Planning commenced to incorporate this framework into the Municipal Early Years Plan. Our childcare and kinder services actively invited children to contribute and plan for their day and environments. Council continued integrated planning to ensure streamlined, targeted and appropriate outcomes for the community that adhere to the directions of the City Plan. As a part of designing the community consultation process, and in preparing the new City Plan, there has been ongoing communication between service units across the organisation.

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

5.1 Plan and engage with our community (cont) Banyule has continued to support a high quality, locally delivered Valuations service that underpins the effective funding of Council services through valuations and rates. Banyule’s Governance team delivered a range of activities in 2012-2013, including: • R ecorded 79 Assemblies of Councillors, indicating Councillors are being provided with a greater understanding of issues to assist them to make informed decisions • P reparation and Planning for the General Election in October 2012. The media was utilised to advertise the Stand for Council Campaign and a General Advertising Plan was utilised for the elections. Regular updates on Council’s website information on the elections included how to enrol to vote, where to vote and becoming a Councillor. An information session for Prospective Candidates was held with the Municipal Association of Victoria and attracted a good number of people • R eviewed The Election Caretaker Guidelines to ensure best practice after a review undertaken by the Local Government Inspectorate of the entire sector. This included making the guidelines applicable to social media • C onducted and supervised the election contract. The Victorian Electoral Commission conducted the Election, information sessions for candidates were held for candidates, organised the count of ballots and votes and undertook the non-voting process • D eveloped an Induction Program for Councillors to ensure they are kept abreast of the key requirements of office and the key challenges facing the organisation • E xpanded Governance Practice notes were developed to assist staff with key legislative requirements including Election Caretaker Guidelines • R ollout of hand-held technology for Councillors has reduced the requirement for hardcopies of Agendas, Minutes and briefing notes and ensure Councillors have the most up to date information. On Ordinary Agendas and Minutes alone we have saved 29,886 pages of paper • D evelopment of new ward fund applications forms, information for applicants and guidelines for staff, after Council adopted a new Ward Fund Policy • D evelopment and presentation of a new Report to Council on the status of Councillors Motions presented to Council, this helps track progress on items that often relate to advocacy and are referred to Members of Parliament or Government departments • R eported Councillor expenses to Council for the first time continuing providing open and honest communication with our community. The report included Councillor expenses on Broadband/Computer, Conferences/Training Telephone/Mobiles and Stationery for the previous four years. This will be reported to Council annually • H eld four Cemetery Trust meetings to discuss operating matters, future use of the cemetery and adopt the budget for the Cemeteries • S uccessful Grant Applications submitted to the Department of Health. Full grants received to allow for maintenance works at the Warringal Cemetery and Greensborough Cemetery • Successful completion an audit of the Banyule Cemeteries Trust Abstract of Accounts

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

5.1 Plan and engage with our community (cont) • I ntroduced a Code Red Policy (emergency management) for the Warringal Cemetery and Greensborough Cemetery • P articipation by Banyule Cemeteries Trust in the development of the Cemeteries and Crematoria Association of Victoria (CCAV) Metropolitan Planning Strategy submission, and consequently contributing to the submission from Banyule City Council • C ontinued advocacy to both levels of government on the future of cemeteries and grave tenure issues. Banyule’s Leisure and Cultural services team delivered a range of activities in 2012-2013, including: • E -Newsletters and Social Media - introduced two new monthly e-newsletters to keep the community informed and engaged with what is happening in sports and leisure and arts and culture across Banyule. An Arts & Culture and Sports & Leisure E-Newsletter is distributed to approximately 600 individual and groups each month • A rts and Cultural Committees - continued to consult and engage with the community through four Arts Committees: Arts & Cultural Advisory Committee, Public Art Advisory Committee, Cultural Vault Reference Group and the Art Collection Advisory Committee. Over 40 committee members meet with Council Officers on a regular basis to provide advice on projects and contribute to the development of Council’s strategic direction for arts and cultural development across Banyule • I nternship and Volunteer Opportunities - Leisure and Culture continued to provide opportunities for the community to assist in the development and delivery of some of Council’s programs and services such as the Older Adults Program, the Free Leisure Programs, the Festivals and Events and the Arts Exhibitions • S ports Forums - A range of sports forums for all sporting clubs, including liquor licence education on recent law changes and first aid training. Strategic planning workshops were conducted for soccer, cricket, baseball and football clubs specifically looking to improve club direction and understanding of Council processes.

5.2 Encourage participation in community life Over 340 Banyule residents became Australia residents over the last 12 months. Council held four ceremonies including an Australia Day citizenship ceremony. A survey of citizenship attendees achieved a satisfaction rating of 98%. The Banyule Community Volunteers Awards and Celebration Dinner was held on 16 May 2013 during National Volunteers Week, with over 500 guests in attendance. A total of 45 nominations were received, of which nine were recognised, including two Lifetime Achievements, three individuals, one young person, two groups and one Good Neighbour.

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

(Continued)

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

5.2 Encourage participation in community life (cont) Council conducted the 2013 Sports Achievement Awards and Club Recognition Night, with 43 nominations received. Over 200 people attended the night held at The Centre Ivanhoe, hosted by Cameron Ling. Through its Sports Development Grants, Council once again provided valuable funding to the sporting community for sports people and teams to cover travel costs, equipment costs and uniform costs. Council led the development and implementation of a North–East Primary Care Partnership (NEPCP) elder abuse awareness toolkit, for use within the Banyule service system. The Toolkit was launched and is now in use by Aged & Disability Services, and has been made available for use by the broader community. Banyule’s Health and Aged services worked with the Community and Social Planning team to develop an overall plan for consultation. HACC clients are regularly encouraged to provide feedback about our service and their needs. Further work will be conducted in 2013-2014 for a consultation and participation plan and implementing regular avenues for engagement of Health and Aged community stakeholders. Council’s Youth and Community Partnerships team has continued to implement the Banyule Youth Charter through delivery of the actions in the Youth Strategic Plan. Banyule’s Governance team co-ordinated the following: • Held 21 Ordinary Meetings and 2 Special Meetings of Council • H eld 4 Citizenship Ceremonies this year, with over 340 Banyule residents becoming Australian Citizens from a variety of nationalities/countries. This included an Australia Day citizenship ceremony with a local Banyule resident as Banyule’s Australia Day guest Speaker • S urveyed Citizenship Ceremony attendees to measure satisfaction with the ceremony, achieving a 98% satisfaction rating • P rocessed 15 Freedom of Information requests. All requests have been processed within the statutory timeframe of 45 days.

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

5.3 Advocate on behalf of the community Banyule worked in partnership with the community to advocate on key issues by encouraging active citizenship and leveraging community power. Council appointed an Inclusion Access and Equity social planner in October 2012. This resource assisted in developing the community consultation to try to capture under represented voices by targeting local activities, events and community facilities such as schools, libraries, shopping centres. Work has been in progress for the development of an Inclusion Access and Equity framework to guide Council’s work. Being more proactive in Council’s approach to advocacy is a key element of the Participation Policy and Strategy adopted on 17 June 2013. Whilst Council has been active in advocating for community needs, we recognise that engaging community partnerships will be an essential part of measuring success. A strong implementation process is also being developed for the Community Plan, which will also focus on encouraging participation and advocacy by the Banyule community. Council participated in user group meetings and contributed to industry forums to improve Banyule’s efficiency and effectiveness (eg. software vendors, industry representative groups such as Local Government Financial Professionals (FinPro), Victorian Employers’ Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VECCI), Civica, and the Municipal Association of Victoria (MAV). During October 2012, we requested information regarding new fire services levy from parliamentarians. Staff also attended FinPro meetings as well as Civica and local government Revenue Management Association (RMA) meetings. We provided a representative to an industry working party on changes to the Long Service Leave regulations. The December Finpro AGM/discussion group and Civica finance group were also attended. Regional procurement meetings attended. Staff are continually working towards addressing changes in industry standard requirements. Council continued to work with other levels of Government and the Local Government Industry to positively and proactively influence changes to legislation that will impact on Banyule. Due to changes in legislation, funding shortfalls and changes in community demand, Council services continue to face financial pressures. Areas affected include home and community care, health service, maternal and child health and library services. Council continued to advocate to both State and Federal Governments in the areas of cost shifting and failures of grants to keep up with increasing operating costs to reduce the burden on ratepayers. Council continues to lobby both Governments for specific grants relating to sporting facilities, new infrastructure and service initiatives. Issues that fall outside Council’s direct area of responsibility will be fed into the development of the next stage of our Community Plan. For example, transport and traffic congestion is an issue where Council will continue to work in partnership with local community groups, agencies and residents.

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

Objective:

6. Strategic Resource Plan: Use our resources wisely Manage the non-financial and financial resources required for the next four years to achieve Council’s strategic objectives. Outcomes for our key directions: 6.1 Provide excellence in customer service and communications Council has implemented year two of its corporate communications plan, focusing on branding and promotion, digital media and community engagement. A major element of the plan has been the redevelopment of Banyule’s website and the introduction of social media. A number of event marketing campaigns have been undertaken across Council, including events marketing for Banyule Festival, Malahang Festival, Carols by Candlelight, The Boulevard Lights, Children’s Week, Senior’s Festival and Volunteer Awards. Marketing and branding campaigns have been implemented for: • Stormwater Harvesting project • Community consultation for the City Plan and Community Plan • Positive Charge (environmental/energy initiatives) • Grand Opening Celebration of WaterMarc Banyule’s Communications team delivered a range of activities in 2012–2013, including: • R edevelopment of Council’s website and launch including re-write of over 500 content pages, implementation of electronic newsletter and development of Council’s social media policy and introduction of Facebook. • P rovision of marketing services (eg. advertising and marketing plan development, brochures, etc) for projects including: - Twilight Sounds and Kids ArtyFarty Fest - Volunteer awards (including sponsorship development) - Water Harvesting Project - ‘I love 3081’ Report to Government - Community Emergency Management Preparedness Survey - Early Years Promotion - Smoke Free Playgrounds - Seniors Festival - Liveable Housing Guidelines assessment - Ivanhoe Aquatic Centre redevelopment - Malahang Festival - Carols by Candlelight and Boulevard Lights (including sponsorship development) • P roduction of Community Engagement Communication strategy focused around the City Plan, Community Plan, Recreation Plan and Arts Plan.

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

6.1 Provide excellence in customer service and communications • D evelopment of a media and communication strategy to generate public awareness and help reduce the volume of dumped rubbish (by 75%) at the Salvation Army Op Shop in Watsonia. It is estimated that the campaign reached an audience of five million people • D eveloped a media strategy to promote the Sustainable Community Awards in partnership with Darebin and Moreland City Councils • P roduction of Bus Shelter campaigns for Twilight Sounds, Kids ArtyFarty Fest (10 sites) and the opening of the Artspace exhibition (10 sites) • Provision of a signage audit: replacement/refurbishment of 25 signs • Provision of media coverage for WaterMarc including: - 2 cover stories and 7 articles in Government sector publications - 3 stories in leisure and aquatic industry publications - Broadcast coverage on Coxy’s Big Break and 3AW and Plenty Valley FM - Media release published in Local Today - Ongoing interest with Diamond Valley Leader • E xecution of Grand Opening Celebration event for WaterMarc, attended by 5,000 people • Developed award submissions for the LGPro awards: - WaterMarc: Greensborough Walk and Main Street - Young Achievers - Salvation Army/CCT Initiative • Developed submissions for Banksia Awards: - Built in Environments Award- Harmonious Manmade Landscapes - Banyule Flats Reserve Sports Field Lighting Project • D eveloped award submissions for WaterMarc for: National Local Government Awards, Planning Institute of Australia, 2013 Australian Property Institute - Excellence in Property Awards, 2013 Australia Award for Urban Design and the Australian Institute of Project Management • Developed 2 submissions for SACS Leadership Awards • P roduction of new profiles written for all councillors for use on website/ Banner and Leader Newspaper ads • A chievement of 10,000 ‘views’ on YouTube channel from 1 January 2013 to 30 June 2013 • Development and launch of Banyule’s Facebook page • P rovision of consistent media coverage and promotion of Water Harvesting project including published articles and groundwork for management of official opening

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

(Continued)

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

6.1 Provide excellence in customer service and communications (cont) • P roduction of digital signage on TVs in three service centres, Olympic Leisure Centre and Nets Stadium

(Continued)

• Production of Banyule City Council’s Budget 2012–2013 • P rovided marketing and communication support for Volunteer Awards and Banyule Sport Awards. In the State Government’s Annual Community Satisfaction Survey 2013, Banyule’s result of 78 for ‘Customer service (performance)’ was significantly higher than the Inner Group of Councils average (73) and significantly higher than the State-wide average (71). The results included 91% of respondents providing a rating of average or better for Customer Service. Survey respondents were also asked: ‘How has Council performed on ‘Informing the Community’ over the last 12 months?’ In addition to the strong results for the core measures, the result for ‘Informing the community (performance)’ was 84% for percentage of respondents providing a rating of average or better. Banyule’s CSI score for this category was 62, equal to the average for the Inner Group and higher than the State-wide average rating (61). Banyule’s Customer Service team delivered a range of activities in 2012-2013, including: • D ealt with challenges associated with the introduction of the Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP) phone system and call centre system • B uilt on our Customer Request Management (CRM) system with a further work undertaken in the area of Parks and Gardens • C onducted four training sessions for Development Services staff reinforcing customer service standards • C ontinued to make Customer Service staff available to work in a variety of different service areas including Planning, Strategic and Economic Development, Construction and City Services Executive • C ontinued to participate in industry forums including LGPro Customer Service Special Interest Group • V isited East Gippsland Shire Council and made several changes to workstations and practices based on observations made on the day • P articipated in Banyule’s Municipal Emergency Management Plan exercises and events • C onducted Best Value Plus audits as part of Council’s BV+ internal audit program • C onducted 12 ‘Out and About’ sessions with the community • B uilding up our knowledge base through the Customer Service intranet page and CRM help notes.

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

6.2 Develop our staff and organisational culture A cross-organisational learning and development advisory group has been formed to provide advice and assistance to Human Resources, with the aim of providing a more centralised approach to learning and development across the organisation, and to simplify and facilitate training processes. The leadership development program has been implemented for the Executive Management Team and the Senior Management Team, with flow on effects to other parts of the organisation. The Banyule Learning Network (BLN) program continued to evolve and included a number of topics which were followed up in separate programs, including the Voice of Banyule, Fraud Awareness and Control, the Human Rights Charter, and Leading Teams. Council has expanded the Consultative Committee model to include quarterly local area committees in Parks & Gardens, Operations, Home and Community Care (HACC), and Banyule Leisure Facilities Management (BLFM) to discuss and address area specific employee relation matters. Council also introduced a Recruitment Panel register of trained staff available to assist with recruitment in order to meet the principles of merit and equity. Council has moved from utilising a recruitment agency to undertake senior officer recruitment to conducting the recruitment and selection process internally. Preliminary discussions with Managers from Community Programs and City Services commenced on relevant Enterprise Agreement (EA) Schedules as part of preparation for negotiating EA No. 6 in 2013–2014.

6.3 Manage our valuable corporate information and knowledge The Information Management Working Group, consisting of Records Management, Business Services, and Information Technology key staff, has undertaken the following tasks in readiness for the implementation of Stage One of the new Electronic Document and Records Management System (EDRMS): • T ender evaluation and selection of vendor to implement TRIM as Banyule’s new Electronic Document and Records Management System (EDRMS) • M anaging communication and staff engagement, with a focus on timely and consistent information • C o-ordinating key business improvement activities, including the Business Classification Scheme, ‘AS IS’ process mapping, business requirements for EDRMS integrations, cleanup and classification of network drives in preparation of data migration and workflow development • C onsultation with staff across the organisation to develop ‘as is’ process maps of how records are currently managed across the organisation to identify process improvements with the implementation of the EDRMS • V arious change management activities undertaken with staff to assist with cultural change pre and post implementation • T rial data migration of InfoVision data into the EDRMS to enable staff have access to legacy data at go-live, supporting the ‘one-stop-shop’ philosophy

100

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

6.3 Manage our valuable corporate information and knowledge (cont) • Project Management to ensure the project is implemented in-time and on budget

(Continued)

• F acilitation of the Information Management (IM) Steering Committee to capture IM decisions. Banyule’s Records Management team delivered a range of activities in 2012-2013, including: • R egistered over 65,510 records in Council’s Records Management System (InfoVision). The types of documents registered included inwards and outwards correspondence, internal files, notes, memos and emails • A ssessed, sentenced and transferred 142.8 shelf metres of files to the secondary storage facility • S uccessfully retrieved 90% of files requested by staff from the secondary storage area, demonstrating the effectiveness of the management of our paper records • Registered, bar-coded and sent 3,320 building files to off-site storage provider • R egistered, bar-coded and sent 160 shelf metres of inactive property files to the offsite storage provider to make space for active files • Sentenced and destroyed 48.7 gigabytes of images • C onducted cleansing of InfoVision data (Council’s outdated records management system), in readiness for the migration of data to a new Electronic Document and Records Management System (EDMRS) • R eviewed and introduced an improved ‘Mail Protocol’ for Councillors to increase record capture and to align the management of Councillor correspondence with Council’s records management policy • C ompleted a range of activities as recommended by the Municipal Association of Victoria, to inform staff about the Royal Commission’s enquiry into institutional child abuse and Council’s “disposal freeze” on all documents or data relating to children/ adults aged 0-25yrs.

101

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

6.4 Deliver innovative information technology solutions Over the last financial year, the IT team has delivered a range of foundation technologies as identified in the ‘Technology Vision 2020 and Delivery Plan’ with the aim to best position Council meeting the future technological challenges. Some of the key achievements in this area are as follows: • W orked with Human Resources team to deliver the HR Module and working with several other Service Units to utilise additional functionalities to improve operational efficiency to maximise the utilisation of Corporate Applications (i.e. Authority Systems and others) • R esolved all critical and challenging operational issues related to the VoIP/Unified Communication Solution - Microsoft Lync and Geomant Contact Expert System which has replaced the unsupported and out-dated PABX/Telephony systems • P resented a business case to the Executive Management team regarding IT Disaster Recovery Solution options meeting Banyule’s Business Continuity Plan, highlighting respective options benefits, and shortcomings. The decision was made to establish a dedicated connectivity between Ivanhoe and WaterMarc to establish a secondary Datacentre • D ecommissioned several legacy servers, upgraded ESX Environments and Firewall and others to improve operational reliability and efficiency in line with the ‘Technology Vision 2020 and Delivery Plan’ • C ompleted Phase 1 of Windows 7 rollout and PC replacement for more than 200 staff members and provided relevant trainings. In order to commence the Phase 2 of Windows 7 rollout for next of the Council staff we have undertaken in excess of 50 business applications testing and modifications to be compliant with Windows 7 operating environments. The introduction of iPad and a Cloud services application (The Hub) to manage Council Meetings and relevant activities has proved effective and efficient. This process allows storing and distributing meeting minutes and agendas securely in the Cloud Services. iPads have been rolled out to all the councillors, senior management team and relevant officers. The IT team also provided a responsive and quality service to Council, with more than 6,000 IT requests logged and resolved. In addition: • I n excess of 3 million emails were received and distributed – an increase of approximately 500,000 from last year • I n excess of 1.8M spam email quarantined – an increase of 1.4M from last year, which demonstrates that active blocking is occurring at the gateway (firewall) rather than in the internal network • I n excess of 31,000 viruses were prevented from accessing our network – an increase of 11,500 from last year • M ore than 2,500 system patches were applied for Microsoft Applications, systems and servers to make the IT Network Infrastructure stable and reliable, and the IT Infrastructure uptime was more than 99%.

102

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

6.5 Conduct effective and integrated forward planning During 2012–2013, we have continued with our significant work to strengthen the corporate planning process. The planning process commenced early (in October 2012) to enable timely and better integration with the budget process. In the development of Banyule’s new City Plan 2013-2017 there was a particular focus on further clarifying the intent of the City Plan key directions, identifying clear focus areas, and incorporating key initiatives. The set of strategic indicators used to monitor progress against our City Plan objectives has also been strengthened. These aspects of corporate planning contribute greatly to Council delivering services in a more strategic, co-ordinated and responsive way to meet the needs of the community. Our strategic indicators were reviewed to ensure best representation of our performance, to provide good quality information, and to respond to Community engagement work conducted in 2012-2013, data review, and relevant industry developments. The indicators chosen represent measures of success in areas that are within our control or are of significant interest to Council. These indicators help us to assess our efficiency, indicate effectiveness and assess the quality of the services we provide. They aim to monitor progress against Council’s priority areas within each objective. In addition, Banyule has participated in the Department of Planning and Community Development initiative to establish a Performance Reporting Framework across the local government sector. Banyule has been involved, with representation on the technical working group, and has provided significant sector advice and input. Service units conducted an annual review process to report on their performance in the previous year and plan their service for the following year. This process aligns with the Corporate Planning Program (City Plan and Organisational Annual Business Plan). The service unit annual review process includes: • Reviewing Service Objectives and Quality & Cost Standards • C ompleting an end of year report (action plan, summary of performance/ key highlights and KPIs) • Conducting service unit/directorate planning for the next year • R eviewing performance against last year’s action plan and relevant KPis, and taking into account community feedback from ongoing consultation • Determining priorities and key challenges • Developing an updated action plan. Council prepared its Annual Report for 2011–2012 in line with relevant legislation and responding to new guidelines and recommendations. This included the Performance Statement, Financial Statements, Standard Statements, and Banyule’s Best Value Victoria Report on the ongoing implementation and achievement of Banyule’s Best Value Program, reporting progress to the community and Minister for Local Government. Council also commenced work for the Annual Report 2012–2013.

103

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

6.5 Conduct effective and integrated forward planning (cont) Council continued to ensure alignment of all strategic planning to the City Plan objectives and the organisation’s values. Significant progress was made in setting our strategic direction and priorities over the next four years. The City Plan 2013-2017 framework is based on the ‘5P’ objectives of People, Planet, Place, Participation and Performance. The plan includes a clear set of key directions and focus areas, supported with key initiatives. With the adoption of the People, Planet and Participation policies and strategies in June we now have all of the ‘P’ frameworks adopted and in place. The Place policies and strategy was adopted in April 2013 and our Performance objective is underpinned by policy context and strategic intent that is informed by a strong legislative framework, industry best practice guides and our Banyule Management System. Together, these give us a strong framework for decisions moving forward. Ongoing internal support is also provided for key plans as they are reviewed (linkages of these with City Plan, Annual Business Plan, policy and strategy documents and other plans. Recent examples include the Recreation Plan and Arts Plan. This support is also provided for reporting on key corporate plans.

6.6 Deliver quality and value for money services Council continued its commitment to the Best Value process in its service delivery and service support. The annual planning process for each service unit incorporated the development of a comprehensive action plan for continuous improvement and ongoing service provision. The Best Value action plans developed through the service review process address the key issues and opportunities for improvement resulting from community consultation and benchmarking programs, and the review of the Quality and Cost Standards and current work practices. These have been integrated with the organisational Annual Business Plan and key supporting plans. Quality and Cost Standards are reviewed and updated annually. The documents also incorporate links to the City Plan and other key Council plans, and a brief service profile. Council continued its service review program to review, measure and benchmark our services to ensure we are effectively meeting the quality and cost standards set. An in-depth service development review program has been further developed and implemented to strengthen continuous improvement activity across Council service provision and address service challenges. Reviews were undertaken for the Municipal Laws Service and Home and Community Care Services during 2012-2013 and final reports were submitted to the Executive Management Team with key findings, outcomes and recommendations for service development. Banyule has continued to support the planning, development and continuous improvement of Council’s systems. We have undertaken key activities as part of service reviews, including GIS mapping, consultation mapping, staff consultation design, benchmarking design, project mapping, and development of reporting structures.

104

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

6.6 Deliver quality and value for money services (cont) Council holds externally audited certification in the areas of quality, the environment and safety. This certification program and associated integrated business management system form the foundation of our continuous improvement and best value system. Council successfully maintained certification following an annual surveillance audit held in JulyAugust 2012 with Council’s current certification body, Global-Mark Pty Ltd.

(Continued)

The organisational systems related to Best Value Plus (Banyule Management System) were reviewed and maintained to ensure ongoing certification. This included providing support to the Steering Committee and Working Group, facilitating the Internal Audit Program, maintaining system documentation and communication, facilitating training to relevant staff members, liaising with external auditors and assisting with the close-out of audit findings. The BMS was reviewed and actions loaded into Council’s Interplan system (planning and reporting system) to track progress. Council participated in the Victorian Local Government Community Satisfaction Survey for 2013 (CSS 2013), co-ordinated by the Department of Planning and Community Development (DPCD). This was the second year of the re-vamped survey, which builds further on the 14 previous years in which Banyule City Council has participated in the all-Council State-wide survey. Banyule City Council continued to deliver strong results, with relatively high performance in most of the measured service areas, against a background of generally stable (and some decreased) result levels across the sector. Banyule’s 2012-2013 targets for the CSI measures were based on: Of the respondents that were able to provide a rating, 60% provided a rating of average or better (ie. average, good or very good), in accordance with the scale provided by the DPCD. The results for the core measures were as follows: • Overall performance of Council (performance): 93% • Customer service (performance): 91% • Community consultation and engagement (performance): 81% • Advocacy/Lobbying on behalf of the community (performance): 78% • Overall Council Direction: 91% The targets and actual results for CSI measures are also provided (in the Performance Statement) in terms of the CSI scores and are shown in ( ) brackets. These are listed for comparison with the average results for the ‘Inner Group’ (Inner Melbourne Metropolitan Group of Councils), and with the State-wide average. Banyule’s CSI score for ‘Overall performance’ (68) in the CSS 2013 was higher than the Inner Group average (66) and significantly higher than the State-wide average (60). Banyule also scored strongly in the following core performance measures: • ‘ Customer service’ (78) – this was significantly higher than the Inner Group average (73) and significantly higher than the State-wide average (71) • ‘ Overall Council direction’ (57) – this is significantly higher than the State-wide average (53) and higher than the average for the Inner Group (55). In comparison to the Inner Group average, Council scored higher for three of the five core performance measures: significantly higher for ‘Customer service’ and higher for ‘Overall performance’ and ‘Overall Council direction’. Banyule has scored significantly higher than the State-wide average for the same three core measures, and scored equal to the State-wide average for ‘Community consultation and engagement.’

105

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

6.6 Deliver quality and value for money services (cont) Residents were asked to rate a range of Council services for importance (as a responsibility for Council) and also Council’s performance on those same services over the last 12 months. Residents rated ‘Waste management’ (82), ‘Elderly support services’ (78) and ‘The condition of local streets and footpaths’ (78), as the highest in importance. Council’s performance was rated highest on ‘Waste management’ (79) and ‘Recreational facilities’ (75). The results showed that ‘Waste management’ is considered the most important service area and is also Council’s highest performing area. Importance ratings often exceed perceived performance ratings in most areas. Banyule’s results across the selected range of service performance measures (18 service categories) were solid. When compared with the target of 60% of respondents providing a rating of average or better (ie. average, good or very good), Banyule’s results included: • f or 11 out of the 18 categories measured, the percentage of respondents providing a rating of average or better was between 90% and 96% • f or 5 of the 18 categories the percentage of respondents providing a rating of average or better was between 80% and 89% • for 2 of the 18 categories the percentage was 78% and 79%. Council’s results also compared favourably with the Inner Group and State-wide results for the selected range of service performance measures. A summary of the results is as follows: • B anyule’s results were higher than or equal to the Inner Group average in 14 of the 18 service categories measured, and only one point lower than the average in a further three categories. • I n comparison with the State-wide average, Banyule’s results were higher than or equal in 15 of the 18 categories measured, and only one point lower than the average in a further two categories. • B anyule’s results were significantly higher than the Inner Group average for: ‘Waste Management’, ‘General Town Planning Policy’ and ‘Traffic Management’. Strong comparative results were also obtained for: ‘Recreational Facilities’, ‘Environmental Sustainability’, ‘Planning and Building Permits’, and ‘Enforcement of local laws.’ • I n comparison with the State-wide average, Banyule’s results were significantly higher for: ‘Environmental sustainability’, ‘Waste management’, ‘Recreational Facilities’, and ‘Local Streets and Footpaths.’ Strong comparative results were also obtained for: ‘General Town Planning Policy’, ‘Enforcement of Local Laws’, and ‘Disadvantaged Support Services’. • B anyule’s service performance scores were highest for: ‘Waste management,’ ‘Recreational facilities,’ ‘The appearance of public areas,’ and ‘Art centres and libraries.’ Banyule incorporated two further questions in the survey (CSS 2013). This enables Banyule to continue to monitor Council’s performance and to gain additional information about the important measures of: how safe people feel in Banyule, and how connected to the community they feel. These tailored questions were based on a rating scale. For ‘Percentage of people who feel safe in Banyule’ there was strong satisfaction with local safety, with a result of 97%. For ‘Percentage of people who feel they ‘belong’ in Banyule’, a strong result of 83% was maintained in 2012-2013.

106

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

(Continued)

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

6.6 Deliver quality and value for money services (cont) Council partially Implemented the MAV Step Program for Planning process improvement. The planning department continues to participate in this program. The principles and process approach to workflows of the program are taken into consideration when exploring and developing individual business planning actions. Banyule developed a system to allow on-line applications for building permits and an interactive website. This system is 95% complete with implementation likely by the end of June 2013. Council has focussed on organisational performance with the maintenance and development of appropriate reporting systems. The new City Plan 2013–2017 and Budget 2013–2014 are based on the extensive community engagement program undertaken in 2012–2013 and Councillor and staff input. These documents include a key performance indicator (KPI) set based on a continuation of the new and reviewed set developed last year. This offers improved alignment between planning and reporting, and responds to changes in the DPCD Community Satisfaction Survey for 2012 and 2013, and findings in the Victorian Auditor General’s Office (VAGO) report. The documentation for the Budget 2013–2014 has been further progressed and presented in the new model format in line with industry best practice. Council co-ordinated the transition to ‘Interplan’ and further developed the system to improve action planning and reporting processes (with a focus on risk management, project management and prioritisation). The Interplan Core module has been implemented and is now self-hosted which has improved the speed and login requirements. Work commenced during 2012-2013 to develop an Integrated Project Management module (IPM) as part of the system. When finalised, IPM will be used in future to assist the organisation to prioritise and manage Capital Works projects (and replace the new works and services reporting system). A Risk Management module has also been further developed as part of the Interplan system during 2012-2013, to assist in managing organisational risks (corporate and service unit level).

107

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

6.7 Apply sound risk management principles and practices A collaborative work plan has been established to improve safety and promote safety culture within Banyule Leisure Facility Management (BLFM). This included assisting with training, participating in weekly Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) meetings, and implementing an OHS Bulletin. The Risk Management team has worked with the Leisure and Culture team to deliver effective management and public, contractor, volunteer and staff safety for successful festivals and events. In addition, the Risk Management team has worked with Early Years Services to look into the design and development of nappy change benches in order to minimise ergonomic and manual handling hazards to staff, and reduce the risk of children suffering an injury from a fall. Council has continued to work with its injury management consultant to assist with workplace injuries, training and education, and hazard minimisation for ergonomic/taskrelated activities resulting in consistent processes and reduced injuries. Council partnered with Deakin University to undertake a study into identifying and measuring musculoskeletal stresses placed on the body resulting from the tasks performed by HACC (Home and Community Care) workers. This information will be used to inform reviews and changes of procedures, task scheduling, and assist with recruitment, retaining current employees, and returning injured staff to work. The study promises to lead change across the HACC sector, and has possible applications for all manual tasks across Council. Banyule successfully applied for a WorkSafe health grant to supplement and enhance proposed health and wellbeing activities in 2013–2014, as well as forming an effective partnership with Corporate Bodies International to develop and deliver a staff health and wellbeing program. Proactive health initiatives continue to be delivered to staff, including workplace health checks, mental health awareness sessions, drug and alcohol awareness sessions, expanding fruit box deliveries across more staff sites to encourage healthy eating, and continuing to provide an Employee Assistance Program in collaboration with D’Accord. Council developed and implemented a Corporate Risk Register on ‘Interplan’ to capture, monitor and address our key strategic risks. Further work will be undertaken in 20132014 to refine the system, register and reporting.

108

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

6.8 Provide effective support to enable good governance and accountable leadership Council continued to prepare monthly reports for Senior Management providing information on the status of a Council resolution and the actions undertaken in relation to the resolution. This helps Senior Management monitor the actions undertaken and the actions that still require follow-up. A new report was developed and is reported to Council quarterly on Councillor motions. The report includes the status of the Council resolution and the progress of the actions undertaken in relation to the resolution. This keeps Councillors and members of the public informed on progress of key items. A new process has been introduced at Council meetings to capture questions arising from the Council Meeting Public forum (the informal question time before the meeting). This enables questions and queries that cannot be answered at the meeting to be documented. Once a month Councillors are updated on the progress of such questions that were taken on notice from the Council meeting. Rollout of hand-held technology for Councillors has reduced the requirement for hardcopies of Agendas, Minutes and briefing notes. This ensures Councillors have access to the most up to date information. On Ordinary Agendas and Minutes alone we have saved 29,886 pages of paper. Council successfully managed the 2012 Council Election to ensure open and transparent processes and encourage a broad range of candidates and increased level of community participation in the deciding of the elected Council. Further information related to the Council Election and governance aspects related to the Council is outlined in the highlights listed for Objective 5 ‘Participation, Community involvement in community life’, in key direction 5.1: - Plan and engage with our community. This includes details related to the following highlights: • I mplementation of post-election activities, including statutory requirements and induction of Councillors • Reviewed and improved governance systems, processes, training and education • Reviewed The Election Caretaker Guidelines • Preparation and Planning for the General Election in October 2012 • Conducted and supervised the election contract • Developed an Induction Program for Councillors • Developed Expanded Governance Practice notes. Council commenced the review of the General Local Law to improve the amenity and liveability at Banyule. Initial planning was conducted, and Internal Steering Committee is being established and internal consultation has commenced. The project will continue in 2013-2014.

109

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

6.9 Plan and manage Banyule’s physical assets Asset management plans for the city’s roads, pathways, bridges, drainage, playgrounds, open space and buildings have been updated or completed. Council’s commitments to direct development towards appropriate locations, encourage good design, and maximise the value of Council’s existing assets, continue to be implemented. Fleet Management Services continued to provide a cost effective fleet through the purchase of suitable vehicles and plant, and by ensuring appropriate maintenance and programmed replacement. The timely and responsive maintenance service ensures maximum utilisation and minimal downtime, for Council’s fleet, small equipment, and the Waste Recovery Centre. Council continued to review its Fleet Policy and the organisation vehicle list, expanding the availability of smaller, more environmentally efficient vehicles. It continued to evaluate new vehicle technologies and fuel options to help improve Council’s transport carbon footprint and operating cost. In addition, Banyule’s Fleet Management team: • U ndertook workshop environment assessment (air quality, lighting) and implemented improvement measures to increase safety of staff. • Continued to transition trucks to Euro 5 diesel technology. • Purchased a filter crusher to improve workshop waste recycling. The team also reviewed light fleet management actions and recommend options for improving financial sustainability. Currently fleet is being retained longer to reduce depreciation losses. Smaller cars have replaced large cars in many instances thus reducing capital investment. As fleet is replaced, more fuel efficient vehicles are introduced into the fleet, reducing running costs. LPGas is considered (in consultation with customers) with each purchase, instead of petrol or diesel. Better utilisation is investigated with every replacement vehicle and plant item. Council commenced work on developing a strategic stormwater network capacity assessment for one catchment. A tender was awarded and the contract progressing well. Contract extended to include stormwater modelling of the entire municipality with priority areas included. The project is to be completed in 2013–2014.

110

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

6.9 Plan and manage Banyule’s physical assets (cont) Banyule’s Street Sweeping and Cleansing Services team delivered a range of activities in 2012-2013, including: • U ndertook clean-up of dumped rubbish and implemented preventative measures for further dumping where possible. • Implemented technology to improve investigation of drainage assets. • Continued to deliver a quality service to Banyule residents, with a focus on: - Maintaining roads, drains and other installations to a standard which ensures public safety and protects the natural environment. - Providing a responsive and effective street sweeping and cleansing service to the streets, drains, shopping areas and public conveniences, and maintaining these assets with the required high level of cleanliness. • Provided a comprehensive service, including the following: - Twice-weekly mechanical sweeping of roads and gutters, car parks and laneways associated with major shopping centres. Other shopping centres and residential streets were swept on a five-weekly cycle, and sweeping in industrial areas was conducted on a three-weekly cycle. - Additional resources to assist the mechanical street sweeper for the 8-12 week autumn program, for leaf collection in designated streets. - Inspection and maintenance of stormwater pits and drains - with trouble spots serviced four times a year, and pits and drains (including those located in easements) cleaned in response to customer requests. - Conducted clearance of litter from shopping centres, Council litter bins and specified main roads. - Conducted cleaning of Council’s public toilet blocks and barbeques - Undertook cleaning and waste collection at Festivals (eg. Banyule Festival events, Boulevard Christmas Lights). • R esponded to emergency callouts – continued to respond to out of hours requests requiring urgent attention. Banyule achieved a result of 71 for ‘The Appearance of Public Areas (performance)’ in the State Government’s Annual Community Satisfaction Survey 2013. The result of 71 was similar to the Inner Group (72) and equal to the State-wide average.

111

Banyule City Council A Summary of Our Best Value Performance

6.10 Manage our financial resources in a sustainable manner The Financial Services team has prepared relevant financial information for the new City Plan 2013-2017 and for Banyuleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Annual Report for year ended 30 June 2013. The team worked with Councillors and management to review and prepare Councilâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 2013-2014 Budget. They also worked closely with Communications and Business Services service units, to enhance and improve the new format of Councilâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Budget for 2013-2014 using the model budget guidelines. The Financial Services team continued to support service units with a focus on increasing specific expert advice on budget information that may be utilised for whole of life asset costing and service specific planning. It also provided organisational advice on rating strategies and financial implications around infrastructure funding. Long term budget modelling was undertaken through the year and included options on superannuation debt funding, an updated rating strategy and strategic advice on closing the renewal gap. Finance in partnership with other areas of Council, has established finance for the purchase of the school sites in Heidelberg West. The Procurement team has continued to provide education and support for procurement activities and contract management for service units. Monitoring of adherence to the Procurement Policy and the Procurement and Contract Guidelines (based on legislative requirements under S186 of the Local Government Act 1989) has continued and been reported to management as required. The team has also continued to provide management reporting on services and contracts on a regular basis and as required. A draft leasing policy was presented to Council and further consultation will occur with stakeholders in 2013-2014 to finalise the policy framework.

112

BANYULE CITY COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013