Agenda of Workshop Meeting

Hornsby Shire Council Agenda and Summary of Recommendations

Page 1

AGENDA AND SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDATIONS

PRESENT

OPENING PRAYER

Acknowledgement of RELIGIOUS DIVERSITY

Statement by the Chairperson

"We recognise our Shire's rich cultural and religious diversity and we acknowledge and pay respect to the beliefs of all members of our community, regardless of creed or faith."

ABORIGINAL RECOGNITION

Statement by the Chairperson:

"We acknowledge we are on the traditional lands of the Darug and Guringai Peoples. We pay our respects to elders past and present."

AUDIO RECORDING OF COUNCIL MEETING

Statement by the Chairperson:

"I advise all present that tonight's meeting is being audio recorded for the purposes of providing a record of public comment at the meeting, supporting the democratic process, broadening knowledge and participation in community affairs, and demonstrating Council’s commitment to openness and accountability. The recordings will be made available on Council’s website once the Minutes have been finalised. All speakers are requested to ensure their comments are relevant to the issue at hand and to refrain from making personal comments or criticisms."

APOLOGIES / leave of absence

declarations of interest

Clause 52 of Council’s Code of Meeting Practice (Section 451 of the Local Government Act, 1993) requires that a councillor or a member of a Council committee who has a pecuniary interest in a matter which is before the Council or committee and who is present at a meeting of the Council or committee at which the matter is being considered must disclose the nature of the interest to the meeting as soon as practicable. The disclosure is also to be submitted in writing (on the form titled “Declaration of Interest”).

The Councillor or member of a Council committee must not be present at, or in sight of, the meeting of the Council or committee:

(a) at any time during which the matter is being considered or discussed by the Council or committee.

(b) at any time during which the Council or committee is voting on any question in relation to the matter.

Clause 51A of Council’s Code of Meeting Practice provides that a Councillor, Council officer, or a member of a Council committee who has a non pecuniary interest in any matter with which the Council is concerned and who is present at a meeting of the Council or committee at which the matter is being considered must disclose the nature of the interest to the meeting as soon as practicable. The disclosure is also to be submitted in writing (on the form titled “Declaration of Interest”).

If the non-pecuniary interest is significant, the Councillor must:

a) remove the source of conflict, by relinquishing or divesting the interest that creates the conflict, or reallocating the conflicting duties to another Council official.

b) have no involvement in the matter by absenting themself from and not taking part in any debate or voting on the issue as if the provisions of Section 451(2) of the Act apply.

If the non-pecuniary interest is less than significant, the Councillor must provide an explanation of why they consider that the interest does not require further action in the circumstances.

petitions

Rescission Motions

ITEMS PASSED BY EXCEPTION / CALL FOR SPEAKERS ON AGENDA ITEMS

Note:

Persons wishing to address Council on matters which are on the Agenda are permitted to speak, prior to the item being discussed, and their names will be recorded in the Minutes in respect of that particular item.

Persons wishing to address Council on non agenda matters, are permitted to speak after all items on the agenda in respect of which there is a speaker from the public have been finalised by Council. Their names will be recorded in the Minutes under the heading "Public Forum for Non Agenda Items".

GENERAL BUSINESS

· Items for which there is a Public Forum Speaker

· Public Forum for non agenda items

· Balance of General Business items

General Manager's Division

Page Number

Item 1 GM9/12 Review of External Services and Organisation Structure

THAT:

1. The contents of General Manager’s Report No. GM9/12 be received and noted.

2. Council determine its position for each of ExCo’s proposed actions in respect of the External Services Review, with special consideration being given to those proposals which are shaded in the confidential spreadsheet attached to General Manager’s Report No. GM9/12.

3. The budgetary impacts of Council’s decisions in 2. above be reflected in the 2012/13 draft Budget and/or subsequent Quarterly Budget Reviews.

4. Council approve the new organisation structure and the senior staff positions shown in the confidential attachment to General Manager’s Report No. GM9/12, and note that the new structure is proposed to commence on 4 June 2012.

Corporate and Community Division

Nil

Environment Division

Nil

Planning Division

Nil

Works Division

Nil

CONFIDENTIAL ITEMS

PUBLIC FORUM – NON AGENDA ITEMS

Questions of Which Notice Has Been Given

Mayoral Minutes

Notices of Motion

SUPPLEMENTARY AGENDA

MATTERS OF URGENCY

QUESTIONS WITHOUT NOTICE

General Manager's Report No. GM9/12

General Manager Division

Date of Meeting: 14/03/2012

1 REVIEW OF EXTERNAL SERVICES AND ORGANISATION STRUCTURE

CONFIDENTIALITY

The attachments to this Report are confidential in line with Section 10A(2)(a) of the Local Government 1993 as they contain details of personnel matters concerning particular individuals (other than Councillors). The confidentiality of the documents will be reassessed once Council’s decision has been made in respect of the issues raised in this Report and all affected staff have been consulted in an appropriate manner.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Soon after my appointment to the role of General Manager in October 2011, I signalled to Councillors an intention to undertake a review of Council’s organisation structure. In this regard, the results of the Internal and External Services Reviews, along with Council’s overall strategic direction, have provided me with a foundation for proposing a new structure.

At an Informal Briefing held on 8 February 2012, Councillors were presented with a summary of the External Services Review undertaken by Blackadder and Associates. ExCo’s thoughts on the Review and the recommendations from Blackadder’s were also discussed along with my ideas for a variation to the existing organisation structure. Councillors indicated that while some of the recommendations were straightforward, others would require more detailed consideration by Council.

It is recommended that Council determine its position in respect of each of ExCo’s proposed actions from the External Services Review and then consider my proposal for a new organisation structure. Based on my understanding of the timing of processes that need to occur following Council’s resolution in respect of this Report, it is proposed that the new organisation structure, if adopted, commence on Monday 4 June 2012.

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this Report is to present the results of the recent review of Council’s External Services and to recommend a new Organisation Structure which includes the nomination of Senior Staff positions.

DISCUSSION

Soon after my appointment to the role of General Manager in October 2011, I signalled to Councillors an intention to undertake a review of Council’s organisation structure. I indicated that such review would occur in conjunction with the External Services Review which was in train, and would take into account the outcomes of the 2011 Internal Services Review. Both the Internal and External Services Reviews, along with Council’s overall strategic direction, have provided me with a foundation for proposing a new organisation structure.

At an Informal Briefing held on 8 February 2012, Councillors were presented with a summary of the External Services Review undertaken by Blackadder and Associates. ExCo’s thoughts on the Review and the recommendations from Blackadder’s were also discussed along with my ideas for a variation to the existing organisation structure. Councillors indicated that while some of the matters were straightforward, others would require more detailed consideration by Council.

As a consequence of the discussions at the Informal Briefing, a confidential spreadsheet has been prepared and is submitted for Council’s formal consideration. It is attached to this Report along with the confidential Executive Summary of the Blackadder report. The spreadsheet provides a summary of Blackadder’s recommendations and ExCo’s proposed actions in respect of those recommendations. Whilst confidentiality of Blackadder’s Executive Summary and the spreadsheet need to be maintained because they contain details of personnel matters concerning particular Council staff, this will be reassessed once Council’s decision has been made and all affected staff have been consulted in an appropriate manner.

My recommendation is that Council determine its position in respect of each of ExCo’s proposed short term actions emanating from the External Services Review, with special consideration being given to those actions which are shaded. It is noted that budgetary impacts of Council’s decisions will ultimately be reflected in the 2012/13 draft Budget or in subsequent Quarterly Budget Reviews

Also attached for Council’s consideration is a further confidential document which details my proposal for a new organisation structure based on the results of the Internal Services Review, the recommendations from the External Services Review and my assessment of Council’s needs against its strategic direction. Again, the confidentiality of the document needs to be maintained until Council makes a decision on the matter and affected staff have the benefit of being consulted in an appropriate manner.

Based on my understanding of the timing of processes that need to occur following Council’s resolution in respect of this Report, it is proposed that the new organisation structure, if adopted, commence on Monday 4 June 2012.

BUDGET

Budgetary implications arising from the External Services Review and the proposed variation to the organisation structure will be dealt with in the preparation of Council’s 2012/13 draft Budget and in subsequent Quarterly Reviews.

POLICY

Whilst there are no policy implications associated with this Report, there are certain processes that need to be followed in respect of those staff who are affected by either or both of the External Services Review and the proposed new organisation structure review.

CONSULTATION

There has been some consultation in the preparation of this Report with my management team, as well as reporting the matter in a general manner to Council’s Consultative Committee.

RESPONSIBLE OFFICER

The officer responsible for the preparation of this report is the General Manager, Mr Scott Phillips. He can be contacted on 9847-6604.

RECOMMENDATION

THAT:

1. The contents of General Manager’s Report No. GM9/12 be received and noted.

3. The budgetary impacts of Council’s decisions in 2. above be reflected in the 2012/13 draft Budget and/or subsequent Quarterly Budget Reviews.

Scott Phillips

General Manager

General Manager Division

Attachments:

1.	Blackadder Report - Executive Summary - This attachment should be dealt with in confidential session, under Section 10A (2) (a) of the Local Government Act, 1993. This report contains personnel matters concerning particular individuals (other than councillors).
2.	External Review Proposed Actions - This attachment should be dealt with in confidential session, under Section 10A (2) (a) of the Local Government Act, 1993. This report contains personnel matters concerning particular individuals (other than councillors).
3.	Proposed Organisation Structure and Senior Staff Positions - This attachment should be dealt with in confidential session, under Section 10A (2) (a) of the Local Government Act, 1993. This report contains personnel matters concerning particular individuals (other than councillors).

File Reference: F2004/09289

Document Number: D01866861