2020

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

Contents

| Dynamic Centre of the West

About this Annual Report

Brimbank City Council’s 2014–2015 Annual Report

is a thorough overview of Council’s performance

during the last fi nancial year and reports against

the objectives set out in Brimbank’s

Council Plan

2013–2017.

Within this report, we have outlined Council’s

achievements against the objectives in the

Council Plan

This report aims to fulfi l Council’s statutory

responsibilities under the

Local Government

Act 1989

and

Information Privacy Act 2000

To obtain a copy of this document, please

contact the Council’s Customer Service

Centre on

9249 4000

or view a copy

online at

www.brimbank.vic.gov.au

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Introduction

Welcome to the Report of Operations 2014–2015

Snapshot of Council

Snapshot of service delivery in 2014–2015

Highlights of the year

Challenges and Future Outlook

The Year in Review

Message from the Administrators

Chief Executive Offi cer’s Message

Financial summary

Description of Operations

Signifi cant service achievements

Strategies, policies and plans adopted

Our Council

About the Administrators

About the Council

Our People

Executive Management Team at 30 June 2015

Organisation structure at 30 June 2015

Workforce profi le

Equal Opportunity

Other staff matters

Our Performance

Planning and Accountability Framework

Council Plan

Strategic Objective 1:

Council and the community working together 36

Strategic Objective 2:

Community Wellbeing

Strategic Objective 3:

Urban Design and Infrastructure

Strategic Objective 4:

Sustainable Environments

Strategic Objective 5:

Industry and Economic

Development and Strategic Sites

Strategic Objective 6:

Organisational Eff ectiveness

Governance and Management

and other information

Governance and Management

Governance and Management Checklist in Report of Operations

Statutory Information

2015 Community Satisfaction Survey

Advocacy, consultation and community engagement

Volunteering in Brimbank

Sustainability

Awards

Performance Statement

Sustainable Capacity Indicators for the year ended 30 June 2015

Service Performance Indicators for the year ended 30 June 2015

Financial Performance Indicators for the year ended 30 June 2015

Other Information

Certifi cation of the Performance Statement

Independent Auditor’s Report

Financial Report

A Plain English Guide to the Annual Financial Report

Financial statements

Certifi cation of the Financial Statements

140

Independent Auditor’s Report

142

Acronyms

144

Index

147

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

Brimbank City Council was formed

on 15 December 1994, following

the amalgamation of the former

cities of Keilor and Sunshine.

About Brimbank

Brimbank has the third largest population

in metro Melbourne and the second largest

population in the western region.

Brimbank is the interface between the

inner areas and major urban growth areas

of Melbourne’s West – it is the heart of

Australia’s fastest growing region.

Located in the western and north–western

suburbs of Melbourne, Brimbank is between

12 and 23 kilometres West and North West

of the Melbourne CBD. It is bound by Hume City

Council in the north, Maribyrnong and Moonee

Valley City Councils in the east, Hobsons Bay

and Wyndham City Councils in the south and

Melton City Council in the west.

The area was originally occupied by the

Kurung-Jang-Balluk and Marin-Balluk clans

of the native Wurundjeri people. Much of

Brimbank was fi rst settled by Europeans

in the 1830s and 1840s as farming land.

Keilor was established in the late 1840s, whilst

St Albans was established in the late 1880s.

A rapid growth phase took place after the

Second World War, with the development of

many suburbs around the original settlements

of Keilor, Sunshine and St Albans expanding

to house many overseas migrants.

The City encompasses 25 suburbs including

Albion, Cairnlea, Deer Park, Delahey, Hillside,

Keilor, Kings Park, St Albans, Sunshine,

Sydenham and Taylors Lakes.

Brimbank prides itself on its cultural diversity

and is one of Victoria’s most culturally diverse

municipalities, having embraced more than

156 nationalities from around the globe.

Major attractions and facilities include Brimbank

Park, Calder Park Motorsport Complex, Iramoo

Wildfl ower Grassland Reserve, Keilor Public Golf

Course, Organ Pipes National Park, Overnewton

Castle, St Albans and Sunshine town centres,

St Albans and Sunshine leisure centres,

Sunshine Golf Club, Sunshine Hospital, Victoria

University (St Albans and Sunshine campuses)

and Watergardens Town Centre.

Brimbank is home to established organisations

including Aldi, ARC, Australia Post, Boral,

Bunnings, Caterpillar, FedEx, Ferguson Plarre,

Fisher and Paykel, Hunter Leisure, John Deere,

Lombards, Schweppes, Schiavello and Sims Metal.

In more recent times, companies such as Digital

Realty, IBM, Metronode, Preshafruit, Rand Group,

Sleepyhead and Vistaprint have also chosen

to make Brimbank home.

The dynamic centre

of Melbourne’s west

The ongoing revitalisation of open space,

community facilities and town centres coupled

with a richly diverse community has Brimbank on

track to reinforce it as one of the best places to

live, work and recreate in the west of Melbourne.

Over the past few years, Council has focused

strongly on improving the City’s amenity,

liveability, social connectedness and governance.

By investing signifi cantly in accelerating these

outcomes, Council has made signifi cant advances

in planning and delivering community facilities

and public infrastructure, supporting the arts

and establishing all services on the ground.

Council is now consolidating the strong growth

and investment and continuing to strengthen

key stakeholder partnerships.

Located between 12 and 23 kilometres from

Melbourne’s CBD, Brimbank off ers a central

location linking established centres and new

growth areas. It has land for development;

established town centres; easy access to rail,

road, port and aviation infrastructure; and links

to the Princes Freeway, Calder Freeway,

Western Highway and M80 Ring Road, and

the regional centres of Geelong, Ballarat

and Bendigo.

Brimbank has a signifi cant strategic role

to play in the provision of employment

and business development for Victoria.

Council’s business development initiatives

work to promote opportunities, attract

and facilitate new businesses and enable

existing businesses to grow and prosper.

Snapshot of Council

Introduction

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Introduction |

Snapshot of Council

Welcome to the

Report of Operations

2014–2015

Council is committed to

transparent reporting

and accountability to

the community and

the Report of Operations

2014–2015 is the

primary means of

advising the Brimbank

community about

Council’s operations

and performance during

the fi nancial year.

Back to contents page

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

Snapshot of Council (continued)

Snapshot of service delivery in 2014–2015

Introduction |

Snapshot of Council | Snapshot of service delivery in 2014–2015

Reconciliation and

Indigenous information

Brimbank has a rich Indigenous history,

going back to when the Wurundjeri people

fi rst inhabited the region, thriving in the

Maribyrnong Valley.

Council acknowledges the Kulin nation of

people as the traditional owners of the land,

the continuing spiritual connection to the

land and renews its commitment to respect

Indigenous beliefs, values and customs.

About 440 Registered Aboriginal Places

exist in the Brimbank Local Government Area.

The oldest artefacts found in the City are

over 30,000 years old.

On 26 February 2008, Council adopted the

full motion passed by the Federal Government

on 13 February 2008 in saying sorry to the

Stolen Generations on behalf of the Australian

Parliament and people, and extended an apology

to those Stolen Generations on behalf of the

people of Brimbank.

Since July 2011, Council has fl own both the

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander fl ags

alongside the Australian national fl ag every

day outside its Sunshine Municipal Offi ce.

Each year Brimbank City Council hosts a broad

range of activities during Reconciliation and

NAIDOC Week, such as Aboriginal cultural

heritage tours, Sorry Day events, Aboriginal

art exhibitions, library story-telling sessions

and NAIDOC fl ag raisings.

On 17 April 2012, Council endorsed a

Reconciliation Statement of Commitment and

offi cially signed the Statement on 29 May 2012,

committing it to learning from the past and

seeking new ways to build relationships

with the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander

community, and to developing a Reconciliation

Action Plan. It was committed that the

Reconciliation Action Plan would be developed

in consultation with internal and external

stakeholders including Council staff , Aboriginal

and Torres Strait Islander residents and local

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander service

providers and community groups.

In May 2013, Council adopted a Reconciliation

Action Plan that demonstrates its commitment

to reconciliation, for all Aboriginal and Torres

Strait Islander people.

Brimbank at a glance

Area

123 square kilometres

Population Count

197,701

(Estimated Resident Population June 2014)

Males

50.0%

Females

50.0%

Residents aged under 18 years 23.2%

Residents aged between

18 and 59 years

60.0%

Residents aged 60 years and over 16.8%

Indigenous population

702

Residents who speak a

non-English language at home 56.2%

Median house price for 2014 $405,000

Data provided by the Australian Bureau of Statistics

2011 Census Data, with the exception of the median

house price for 2014, which was sourced from the

Department of Environment, Land, Water & Planning

using Landata – Land Victoria.

Vision, Mission, Values and

Statement of Strategic Intent

Brimbank’s Council Plan 2013–2017 sets out

Council’s vision, statement of strategic intent,

mission and values as follows:

Vision

Brimbank will be the dynamic centre of

Melbourne’s West. We will be a proud,

diverse and connected community.

Statement of Strategic Intent

Develop Brimbank through enhancing and

celebrating the many diverse identities,

communities and cultures within Brimbank;

creating high quality spaces and places; and

providing learning and employment opportunities.

Mission

Brimbank City Council will strive to achieve

the community’s vision by:

• Meeting the needs of our community and

those of future generations in a collaborative

and fi nancially responsible manner

• Enhancing community wellbeing within

a strong foundation of social justice

• Creating an urban environment that

is safe, attractive, vibrant and liveable

• Demonstrating commitment to

environmental protection, sustainable

development and reducing our

ecological footprint

• Promoting Brimbank as the fi rst choice for

new industry, business and development

• Delivering best practice services that meet

the needs of the diverse and growing

Brimbank community.

Values

For Brimbank City Council employees and

the Council, to be the best at what they do

and achieve the community vision and Council

strategic intent and mission, their actions

and decisions are guided by a set of fi ve

fundamental and unifying values:

we show

RESPECT

we act with

INTEGRITY

we work

TOGETHER

COMMUNICATE

openly

we strive for

EXCELLENCE

12km

BALLARAT

GEELONG

BENDIGO

BRIMBANK

MELTON

GROWTH AREA

WYNDHAM

GROWTH AREA

Melbourne Airport

Port of Melbourne

INNER

MELBOURNE

SUNSHINE

Children, youth

and family services

Council provides a range of services

for families and young children

and opportunities for young people

to develop skills and contribute

to community life.

What we delivered

• Coordinated home-based childcare with

213 equivalent full-time childcare places

and 1,265 monitoring visits to 51 active

Family Day Care educators

• Supported provision of childcare

at nine centres

• Maintained 30 preschool premises

• Processed 2,320 four-year-old

preschool applications

• Supported 102 community based

playgroups including 17 facilitated

and 17 supported playgroups

• Provided 24,034 Key Age Stage

consultations through the

Maternal and Child Health service

• Conducted 2,975 Maternal and

Child Health fi rst home visits

• Saw 8,674 children at a Brimbank

Maternal and Child Health clinic

• Provided youth support and counselling

services to 130 young people

• Supported a range of youth programs

attended by 1,219 young people

• Coordinated six youth events attended

by 356 young people.

Waste and recycling

Council has a commitment to

sustainable waste management

and provides a comprehensive

waste service to the community.

What we delivered

• Weekly domestic waste and fortnightly

recycling collection for 67,688 households

and fortnightly green waste collection

for 33,162 households

• Lifted 5,239,650 bins

• Collected 41,904 tonnes of waste

• Recycled 16,086 tonnes of waste

• Collected 9,578 tonnes of green waste

• Collected and recycled 3,330 tonnes of hard

waste, 34 tonnes of steel, 7,439 mattresses

and 2,952 tyres in the annual kerbside hard

waste collection service

• Collected 29,672 kilos of paint, 32,947

litres of motor oil and 850 kilograms of

household batteries

• Accepted 723 kilograms of fl uorescent

tubes, 481 car batteries, 37,475 kilograms

of e-waste and 2,717 gas cylinders at

the permanent Detox Your Home centre

at Stadium Drive, Keilor Park.

Leisure, culture and

community strengthening

Council off ers a range of services to the

community including arts and culture,

sport and recreation, festivals, events,

community centres and leisure centres.

What we delivered

• A range of low cost or free community

strengthening activities at fi ve community

centres/Neighbourhood Houses

• Provided 14,517 program and event

hours through community centres

for 20,042 participants

• Neighbourhood Houses that were

attended by 235,602 people who

dropped-in or participated in a regular

and casual program or class

• Community Leadership Programs

for 37 people

• Governance training for 287 participants

• Held four Brimbank Leadership

Alumni Networking Events

• The Brimbank Leadership Alumni Mentoring

Program for 17 Alumni members

• Held the Brimbank Sustainable Living

Expo attended by more than 1,400 people

• Coordinated the Brimbank Men’s Health

Day and Pop Up Shed events for more than

260 people

• Provided more than 60 grants to

community groups valued at $329,000

• Conducted three Places of Worship tours

visiting nine places of worship that were

attended by 120 people

• Held two Interfaith forums – Faith Acceptance

and Living Together and Caring for The Soul

– for more than 150 attendees within the

Brimbank Maribyrnong Interfaith Network

• Partnered in the delivery of the Fit to Drive

road safety workshops to over 1,000

Brimbank senior secondary school students

• Exhibited work from 30 artists, arts groups

and community groups at the Hunt Club

Community Arts Centre and the Sunshine

Art Spaces Gallery which attracted around

1,000 attendees

• Supported 17 artists or arts organisations by

providing fi ve dedicated art spaces (studios

or shopfronts) for career development

• Launched one public art project and

commenced another major public artwork

• Held four INfuse artists’ network

professional development events,

attended by around 55 artists

• Awarded three Activation Partnership Funds

to artists through the Art Spaces program

• Facilitated fi ve community art participation

projects (two ongoing) involving around

1,200 community members attending

130 workshops, rehearsals and performances

• Supported four community-led arts events,

and a key community festival with 100

community performers and artists and

attended by 15,000 people

• Advised and guided more than 40 groups

and community projects to produce

community events

• A community engagement program of events

that included 22 public performances and

movies in public places engaging more than

50 community performers/groups

• Off ered 162 arts and culture short courses

delivered by 18 artists to 635 participants

• Facilitated 557,930 visits to the leisure

centres (that is three visits per head of

population) and 88 group fi tness classes

each week

• Maintenance of the Keilor Public Golf Course

where 35,004 rounds of golf were played

• Facilitated 185,355 visits to the Keilor

Basketball and Netball Stadium where

4,998 basketball and 914 netball games

were played.

Back to contents page

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

Snapshot of service delivery in 2014–2015 (continued)

Introduction |

Snapshot of service delivery in 2014–2015

Planning and building

Council is responsible for planning

permit approvals, provides building

permit services, and conducts

inspections of building works and

fire safety audits.

What we delivered

• 1,227 planning applications received

• 516 planning related property

information requests

• 289 subdivision applications received

• $365.72 million total value of new building

projects requiring building permits

• 430 investigations resulting from

building related complaints

• 236 report and consent requests

received and processed for buildings

• 49 illegal rooming house inspections

• 267 swimming pool barrier inspections

• 34 after hours emergency call out

inspections (fires, vehicle impact

and dangerous buildings, etc.)

• 104 essential services maintenance

inspections

• 658 mandatory building inspections

• 498 inspections resulting from complaints

relating to planning compliance

• 241 illegal building works identified

• 1,747 building related property information

requests

• 307 requests for copies of plans

• 44 planning infringement notices

• 20 Magistrate Court prosecutions

for both planning compliance and

building infringements

• 284 Building Notices and Orders served.

Library services

Brimbank’s five libraries offer programs

and services for the whole community

and cater for all ages.

Programs include story times and social groups

and services include study facilities, WiFi,

Internet and computer access. Of the 217,000

items available to borrow, 33 per cent are on

loan at any given time. The library’s online

services include e-reference, downloadable

e-books and audio books, access to hundreds

of online magazines, and newspapers in over

60 languages.

What we delivered

• 19,876 new physical items were added

to the collection in English and 15

community languages

• 9,984 electronic resources were

added to the collection

• 1,936,911 total library visits. Of these

visits, 1,098,897 were made to the five

libraries and 838,014 to the online library

• 1,434,977 collection loans. Of these,

1,004,276 physical items were borrowed and

430,701 electronic resources were utilised

• 216,888 catalogue searches completed

• 10,931 new library members registered

bringing the total library membership

to 81,194

• 270,586 Internet bookings made

• 9,191 video game bookings made

• 130,420 reference questions answered

• 3,333 library programs provided

to 66,951 people

• 800 people attended the Brimbank

Writers & Readers Festival

• 1,252 home library service visits made

to deliver books and other resources.

City compliance

Council is responsible for the

management of animal control

in Brimbank.

What we delivered

• 13,368 compliance service enquiries

attended to, comprising 1,977 for parking,

951 local law, 328 litter, 979 abandoned/

derelict vehicles, 2,460 condition of land,

2,152 cat enquiries, 2,541 dog enquiries

and 1,980 other enquiries. Of these,

84 per cent were completed on time

• 974 dogs, 1,789 cats and 94 other

animals picked up by Council officers

• 12,324 dogs and 3,223 cats registered

• Six dog attack prosecutions, 537

infringements issued for animal

related matters

• 14,395 parking infringements and

645 local law infringements issued

• 1,800 vacant properties inspected and

779 fire hazard reduction notices issued.

Of these, 187 land owners were issued

with infringements and 103 properties

had to be cut by Council’s contractor

• 73 event permits issued

• 117 school crossings supervised

every school day.

Environmental health

Council has a responsibility to provide

services and information to the

community in order to protect the

public from disease, provide safety

and ensure wellbeing.

What we delivered

• 2,068 food premise inspections

• 4,516 vaccinations administered to infants

• 11,264 vaccinations administered

to school aged children.

Roads, footpaths, drains

and building maintenance

Council is responsible for managing

the City’s local roads, footpaths

and other assets.

What we delivered

• 1,241 kilometres of underground drain

pipes managed and maintained along

with 60 kilometres of table drains

• 44,736 storm water pits, 423 litter

traps and 38 gross pollutant traps

maintained and cleaned

• 4,924 drain pits inspected and cleaned

• 3,205 litter traps inspected and cleaned

• 950 kilometres of sealed roads inspected

and maintained, including 14 kilometres

of unsealed roads and 1,565 kilometres

of footpaths

• 80,000 street/road signs proactively

inspected and maintained and 5,264

signs physically maintained

• 31,000 (approx.) kilometres of residential

and commercial kerb and channel swept

• 1,683 tonnes collected through street

sweeping program

• 120,328 street litter bins emptied

• 2,028 tonnes of litter collected through

the street litter bin and manual litter

collection service

• 122,428 square metres of local

roads resealed

• 266 buildings maintained on 165 sites

• 208 playgrounds maintained, of which

152 are in open space and 56 in preschools,

child care and community centres.

Ageing and inclusion

Council’s Ageing and Inclusion services

for the community include Home

and Community Care (HACC) and

Community Aged Care Packages (CACP)

and a range of Community Programs

including Community Transport,

HACC Planned Activity Groups (PAG),

volunteers and seniors.

These services support, maintain and enhance

the physical, social and emotional wellbeing of

older people and people with a disability living

in Brimbank.

What we delivered

• 65,741 Meals on Wheels

• 44,431 hours of domestic assistance

• 12,165 hours of personal care

• 4,015 people received a Home

and Community Care service

• 12,907 hours of respite care

• 3,750 hours of property maintenance

• 52,805 hours of planned activity

support services

• 9,090 hours of assessment

and care management

• 33,274 passenger trips on Brimbank’s

community transport buses.

Parks, open spaces and

environment

Council is responsible for maintaining local

parks, creek corridors, sports grounds,

municipal reserves and street trees.

What we delivered

• Upgraded four neighbourhood playgrounds

• Planted 13,900 new trees. This included

planting of 10,000 trees at reserves,

700 trees along arterial roads, approximately

1,700 new street trees, 1,500 trees as part of

park upgrade projects, and 18,161 indigenous

species (trees, shrubs and grasses) planted

within conservation assets

• Completed suburban park upgrade at

Verona Drive, Taylors Lake which was

officially opened on 6 June 2015

• Completed a new on-road cycling route

along Duke Street from Surrey Street to

St Andrews Drive, Sunshine North

• Completed a new 4.8 kilometre off-road

cycling route with lighting and 90,000

plants from Fitzgerald Road, Sunshine

West to Ashleigh Street, Tottenham via

Forest Street and Sunshine Station

• Commenced installation of new wayfinding

signs in Sunshine Activity Centre

• Completed footpath upgrade along Dickson

Street, Sunshine

• Maintained approximately 1,180 hectares

of public open space, streetscapes, grassed

areas and soft landscaped areas

• Inspected and maintained approximately

200,000 trees in parks and streets including

powerline clearing works in line with Council’s

Electric Line Clearance Management Plan

• Carried out emergency tree works and

clean-up following two significant storm

events in July and October 2014 and

March and April 2015

• Maintained 29 sports reserves comprising

63 playing fields

• Maintained 143 irrigation systems including

the installation of a new irrigation system

at Keilor Park fields 3 and 4

• Maintained Keilor Public Golf Course.

Back to contents page

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

Strategic Objective:

Council and the Community

Working Together

Brimbank City Council is committed

to working in close collaboration

with the community, facilitating a

wide cross-section of community

participation, including ‘hard to reach’

groups, through a variety of forums

and partnerships to better engage,

develop, represent, and communicate

with our diverse community.

Brimbank City Council will fulfil its statutory and

legal obligations to the community and manage

the municipality in a financially sustainable

manner to meet the current needs of our

community and those of future generations.

Achievements:

The 2014–2015 Grants program was completed,

resulting in:

• 144 applications received across

five categories

• 60 applications approved for the amount

of $329,374

• Six information sessions held including

two external partnership sessions

• Translation of Brimbank Community Grant

Tip Sheets into 10 different languages

• More than 200 enquiries and 30 meetings

held between community groups and

council officers

• Council undertook a range of improvements

to the website including adding a translation

function and a YouTube link to the front page.

Council also launched Brimbank Buzz, an online

blog to promote Council news and events.

Highlights of the year

Strategic Objective:

Community Wellbeing

Brimbank City Council is committed

to creating an enhanced quality of

healthy and active community life

where our rich cultures are celebrated,

embraced and connected to the

broader community.

Within a strong foundation of social justice,

Council is committed to the provision

of affordable services and community

infrastructure that builds healthy people

and communities through education,

recreation, arts and culture and sport.

Achievements:

• In2Sport Brimbank was very successful,

funding 456 children to join a sports club,

of which 200 had never registered with

a sports club before. Demand once again

exceeded the availability of funding.

This takes the total number of approved

applications to 1,009 since its development

in 2013. External funding towards the

program was provided from Cricket Victoria

and Sports Without Borders

• A Community Soccer Hub was established

at Selwyn Park as a direct outcome of the

Brimbank Cup, which provides newly arrived

and disadvantaged communities with the

opportunity to train twice a week and play

informal games on weekends

• The 2015 Brimbank Cup was successfully

held with seven female and 24 male teams

competing in the event hosted by the

Balmoral Soccer Club

• Council’s Volunteer program continued

to be developed. Volunteering initiatives

included the Home Library Service actively

distributing library material to residents

unable to access the library; Home Visiting

Program linked to the Community Register

where volunteers actively telephone clients

on a regular basis; and the Recycled Book

Program redistribution of library materials

that have been withdrawn from the

St Albans/Sunshine branch libraries.

Strategic Objective:

Urban Design and Infrastructure

Brimbank City Council is committed

to fostering strong pride for residents

and visitors by creating an urban

environment that is attractive, clean

and green and which improves living

and housing, business and recreational

opportunities, demonstrates

environmental leadership and fosters

a sustainable economy.

Achievements:

• Proactively cleaned the activity centres,

including footpaths, using high-pressure

washers as per the approved program

• A number of partnerships with schools were

established with Council signing a Joint User

Agreement for the use of the soccer pitch at

Copperfield College and a Joint User Agreement

for use of the playground at Albanvale

Primary School

• A synthetic cricket wicket was installed

at Glengala Primary School, with Sunshine

Heights Cricket Club benefiting from the

partnership developed with the school

• Both Primary and Secondary schools now

have agreements in place including for use

of Building Education Revolution buildings

and for sports grounds.

Strategic Objective:

Sustainable Environments

Brimbank City Council is committed to

promoting the long-term sustainable

development of the municipality.

Council will do this by facilitating a dynamic

and accessible environment that is supported

by a healthy and informed community that

enjoys rich environmental characteristics

within the municipality. Council is committed

to environmental protection, planning for

sustainable developments, improving the

sustainability of our building stock, and

reducing our ecological footprint.

Achievements:

• Council was named Victorian Sustainable

City of the Year in August 2014 at the

Keep Australia Beautiful Victoria Awards

• On 24 February 2015, Council approved

the preparation of Amendment C163 to

the Brimbank Planning Scheme to introduce

a Neighbourhood Character Overlay over

part of Albion

• The first six months of the 2015

Environmental Event Calendar was delivered

and included a World Environment Day

event — planting at Buckingham Reserve and

National Tree Day event at Sydenham Park

• Ongoing support provided to conservation

volunteers and ‘Friends of’ groups including

attending meetings, planning works, assisting

with applying for grants, promotion of events

and activities.

Strategic Objective:

Industry and Economic

Development and Strategic Sites

Brimbank City Council is committed

to providing local employment and

business development opportunities

whilst also ensuring that such

activities do not have a detrimental

impact on local communities.

The municipality contains a range of strategic

sites (outside of Town Centres or Urban villages)

that, due to their location, size, environment

or current or past use, can greatly assist

Council achieve its economic, social or

environmental objectives.

Achievements:

• Council hosted an Investment Forum in

Sunshine with guest speakers including

Peter Seamer, Chief Executive Officer of

the Melbourne Planning Authority

• At least 461 businesses attended business

development and networking sessions,

including business breakfasts, business

development sessions, group program

and business counselling

• Council conducted a promotional campaign

for Keilor Village through a Discover Your

Own Backyard campaign and Postcards

TV promotion in conjunction with the

Keilor Village Traders

• Positive tourism messages reached over

200,000 people

• In January 2015, Council supported the

St Albans Lunar Festival, which attracted

approximately 70,000 to St Albans, and in

March 2015 Destination Melbourne featured

posts about the Keilor Hotel reaching over

6,000 people

• In March 2015, Council supported Pho

Fever in Sunshine as part of the Melbourne

Food and Wine Festival. Prime time media

coverage including Channel 9’s Today

program and ABC Radio and Melbourne

Food and Wine social media promoted the

event to 1.5 million people across Australia

• Council continues to be a member of the

Western Melbourne Tourism Board.

Strategic Objective:

Organisational Effectiveness

Brimbank City Council is committed to

the ongoing delivery of a broad range

of services that meet the needs and

aspirations of the diverse and growing

Brimbank community.

Guided by the Australian Business Excellence

Framework, the ongoing development of our

staff is a critical element to our continuous

improvement of service delivery. We will

continue to benchmark services to ensure best

practice, lead by example, and implement

best practice services to the community.

Achievements:

• Planning for the Business Transformation

project was completed with implementation to

commence in 2015–2016. The project focuses

on enhancing the customer experience

• Council’s Risk Management Strategy and

Plan continued to be implemented, including

investigating the feasibility of a shared risk

module (strategic, operational, OHS). The first

six months of a risk awareness program was

implemented, and involved the development

of risk culture strategy, risk training for staff

(Managers’ session held in May 2015) and

the start of a comprehensive review of risk

registers, policies and procedures.

Introduction |

Highlights of the Year

Back to contents page

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

As Administrators, we are appointed by Council.

Both Council functions and powers are set out

in the

Local Government Act 1989

. The role of

Council includes:

• Setting the strategic direction for

Council and monitoring and improving

ongoing performance

• Managing Council’s assets

and resources responsibly

• Considering the current and future needs of

the local community when making decisions

• Providing accessible, accountable

and transparent government

• Advocating the needs of the Brimbank

community to promote investment by

other spheres of government and the

private sector

• Promoting civic participation and delivering

programs, which enhance community

health and wellbeing.

Highlights

In 2014–2015 Council delivered a robust

capital works program that included the

commencement of construction on the

Brimbank Community and Civic Centre. This

once-in-a-generation project is a $52 million

investment in the Sunshine Town Centre.

This project will have many benefits including

significantly enhancing the efficiency of Council

operations while also saving the community

money in the long term. This will be achieved

through the consolidation of currently dispersed

offices and creation of a revenue stream from

partner tenants in the new building.

Focusing on infrastructure creation and

renewal, Council also started works on the

$6.5 million Keilor Basketball Netball Stadium

extension and awarded the contract for works

on the $8.9 million Errington Community Centre

redevelopment at St Albans.

Roads renewal remained a key priority with

$16.9 million dedicated to maintaining and

improving our road network. Council welcomed

funding support from the Victorian Government

towards the cost of sealing and improving

Jones and Bunting Roads in the Brooklyn

industrial precinct.

Walking and cycling paths were also a focus with

construction starting on a 3 metre wide, 4.8

kilometre, shared path with lighting between

the Western Ring Road and Tottenham Station.

This path was made possible through funding

from the Regional Rail Authority. It connects

Sunshine to the Melbourne CBD and is a

fantastic initiative boosting the liveability

of the area.

Council continued the implementation of the

Creating Better Parks Policy and Plan

, including

a significant park upgrade at Verona Drive

Reserve in Taylors Lakes. For the financial year,

$1.3 million was allocated to upgrading parks

and playgrounds, bringing the total spend on

park improvements to $20 million since

Creating

Better Parks

was adopted in 2008. Since then,

83 parks have been upgraded across Brimbank.

This Annual Report outlines Brimbank City Council’s performance

in accomplishing the actions outlined in the Brimbank

Council Plan

2013–2017

(Year 2 – updated 2014).

L–R: Jane Nathan Administrator, John Watson Chair of Administrators, John Tanner Administrator.

Message from the Administrators

The Year in Review

Council committed to purchase more than

half of the former Sunvale Primary School in

Sunshine to develop into additional parkland,

and released the Ardeer Green Hub Draft Master

Plan for consultation. The draft Master Plan

includes provision for criterium racing, mountain

bike and BMX facilities. Council maintained its

strong focus on improving the public realm and

providing community infrastructure that can be

enjoyed well into the future.

In our Town Centres, Council started Stage 1

works on the implementation of the Hampshire

Road Master Plan in Sunshine and continued

work towards introducing a Design and

Development overlay in the Keilor Town Centre.

Council also welcomed funding for grade

separations and new rail stations in St Albans

at Furlong and Main Roads, which it has

long advocated.

Council’s commitment to sustainability

was recognised with Brimbank City Council

announced Sustainable City of the Year 2014

at the Keep Australia Beautiful Awards Victoria

awards, which encourage, motivate and

celebrate local sustainability achievements.

This award was a huge acknowledgement not

only for Council but also for all the great work

Brimbank residents doing to make their local

are ‘inclusively’ sustainable.

Council’s focus on a range of community-based

sustainability and conservation initiatives

including waste management, whole-of-water

cycle management, conservation of natural

assets, and energy and greenhouse gas

reduction contributed to this recognition.

During the year Council also endorsed

Low

Carbon West

– a strategy to reduce greenhouse

gas emissions that was developed by the

Western Alliance for Greenhouse Action,

of which Brimbank is a member Council.

Throughout the year Council was involved

in a range of activities to enhance community

health and wellbeing.

Council adopted the

Brimbank Community

Strengthening Policy

aimed at increasing civic

participation and the

Brimbank Community

Grants Policy

(Major Policy) which sets the

parameters for the delivery of Council’s

Community Grants Program. Over $300,000

was provided in community grants over the

financial year.

Other polices and plans introduced during the

year included Council’s

Plan to Prevent Men’s

Violence Against Women, Brimbank Youth

Strategy 2014–2019

and

Brimbank Electronic

Gambling Policy 2015–2019

Council’s In2Sport Program approved its

1,000th application supporting young people in

Brimbank to get involved in sport. Council also

delivered the Brimbank Cup in partnership with

Victoria Police and the Balmoral Football Club,

which was supported by Football Federation

Victoria and Melbourne Victory. The fourth

annual award-winning tournament was a

huge success once again with over 32 teams

participating in the event.

Council also provided support to local

organisations to deliver a range of community

festivals and events that enhance and contribute

to community pride. These events included

the hugely popular St Albans Lunar New Year,

Sunshine Pho Fever as part of the Melbourne

International Food and Wine Festivals,

the Sunshine Lantern Festival and ANZAC

Centenary Celebrations in Keilor and Brimbank.

Advocacy and Engagement

Council worked towards its vision of Brimbank

becoming the dynamic centre of the West. In the

Victorian Government’s planning blueprint for

Melbourne, Plan Melbourne, Sunshine was named

as one of nine Metropolitan Activity Centres, and

one of six National Employment Clusters. This

recognition follows significant work undertaken

by Council to promote Sunshine as the heart of

Melbourne’s booming West.

In October, Council facilitated an investment

forum in Sunshine to promote the untapped

potential for investment and development in

the town centre. The forum included a

presentation from the Chief Executive Officer

of the Melbourne Planning Authority Peter

Seamer outlining how Sunshine would thrive

over the next 30 years.

Council is also working in partnership with other

stakeholders to promote the Sunshine Health

and Wellbeing precinct on Furlong Road. State

Government has announced it will construct a

$200 million Women’s and Children’s Hospital

to help meet the increasing demand for services

in the region.

Throughout the year, Council continued its

participation in a number of region wide

programs to advocate for better services,

facilities, infrastructure and sustainability

initiatives in the West.

Council also continued to help facilitate and

participate in the Brimbank Social Justice

Coalition, events to promote White Ribbon Day,

NAIDOC Week, Refugee Week and IDAHO Day.

Good Governance and Transparency

Council has three (3) Local Laws for the City

of Brimbank. Local Law No. 1 and No. 3 are

Governance related, and Local Law No. 2 relates

to the safe and fair use of the municipality by

the community.

Council’s Governance Local Laws set a new

standard in Local Government for promoting

good governance and transparency, going

beyond what is required of Councils through

the

Local Government Act 1989

. Brimbank City

Council’s Local Laws establish an open and

accountable framework for the administration

and governance of the city.

Local Law No. 1 specifically relates to meeting

procedures. Following a review, Local Law No.1

was gazetted in June 2015. Local Law No.1

reflects good governance practice and aims to

enhance Council’s decision making processes.

Local Law No. 2 is Council’s General Local Law

and it outlines Council powers and functions

including how public areas are protected and

used, how the amenity of the city is maintained

and the management of animals .

Local Law No. 3 refers to consultation

requirements for major policy. Council formally

adopted the Local Law No.3 – Governance

(Major Policy Consultation) which promotes

transparency in decision making in June 2014.

The policy prescribes a public consultation

process that must be followed when Council

considers, or wishes to change, a major policy.

Thank you

Overall, Council continued to deliver projects,

initiatives and services that are creating a

better Brimbank. I would like to thank the many

organisations, agencies, community groups

and individuals as well as Council staff that have

contributed towards improving this proud City.

John Watson,

Chair

Jane Nathan,

Administrator

John Tanner,

Administrator

Introduction |

Challenges and Future Outlook | The Year in Review

Changes to the sector including

the announcement of rate capping

to come into effect in 2016–2017

Meeting higher community

expectations with diminishing funds

Working with major land owners

and developers to facilitate development

and optimise design outcomes in line

with town centre structure plans

Advocating for public transport

and safety improvements including

grade separations in town centres

Pursuing diminishing government

grants and other sources of funding

for major projects and initiatives

Keeping ahead of rapid

technological change

An ageing workforce

Challenges and

Future Outlook

Challenges

Complete the building of the new

Brimbank Community and Civic Centre,

the Errington Performing Arts community

centre and the Keilor Municipal offices

Plan for the redevelopment, or new build,

of the St Albans Leisure Centre

Continue to green the City and improve

the amenity of the area with better parks,

open spaces, public art and urban design

treatments within a constrained environment

Implement the

Brimbank Disability

Action Plan, Brimbank Community Learning

Strategy 2014–2017, Biodiversity Strategy

2012–2022, Green Wedge Management Plan

and

Sustainable Water Management Strategy

Investigate opportunities for cost

saving and service improvements

through shared procurement

Deliver more services online

to meet community needs

The future

Back to contents page

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

Organisational Performance

I am very pleased to say that Council met all

of the organisational indicators that were

established as part of the Local Government

Performance Reporting Framework. This

was the first year that Council was required

to report on this particular set of indicators

and they can be viewed in the Performance

Statement. In order to achieve the indicators,

the Council established a robust internal

process that allowed the indicators to be

tracked and reported upon to the Audit

and Risk Management Committee quarterly.

Council implemented a number of initiatives

to drive efficiencies within the organisation.

Major technology projects that started during

the year included planning for a new telephony

system, improving the user experience for

Council’s website and planning for building

a new website. Other initiatives included

preparing to move to a digital first workplace,

investigating online payment opportunities

and integrations to existing systems to better

manage data. All of these projects are focused

on improving the customer experience.

During the year, Council also negotiated

a new Enterprise Bargaining Agreement.

Brimbank continues to be a great place

to work and through the provision of good

working conditions, a safe workplace and

enabling technology we strive to deliver

services that meet our community’s evolving

needs and aspirations.

Thank you

I would like to thank our community, the

Council and all Brimbank City Council staff

for contributing towards Council’s vision and

Council Plan. Together we are making Brimbank

better – better services, better facilities and

better open spaces for everyone to enjoy.

Bill Jaboor,

Chief Executive Officer

Chief Executive Officer’s Message

On behalf of Brimbank City Council

it is a great pleasure to present the

Council’s 2014–2015 Annual Report.

The CEO is the person to which

Council delegates most powers and

has a number of responsibilities

which are set out in Section 94 A

of the

Local Government Act 1989

These include:

• Ensuring an appropriate organisational

structure exists for the Council

• Promptly implementing Council decisions

• Overseeing the daily management of council

operations with respect to the Council Plan

• Implementing and embedding a code

of conduct for Council staff

• Providing timely advice to the Council

• Ensuring compliance with relevant

legislation in respect to Council operations.

Highlights

The 2014–2015 year continued Council’s

ongoing commitment to creating a better

Brimbank. Construction started on the

Brimbank Community and Civic Centre, which

is the largest capital project in the Council’s

history. The Community and Civic Centre is a

landmark project that will consolidate Council

offices while also providing a new state of the

art library and community meeting spaces.

The consolidation of offices will create

significant efficiencies in Council operations.

In addition to the relocation there has been

significant progress in 2014–2015 in driving

business improvements.

Following the resignation of the Director

Corporate Services during the year there was

an opportunity to review the organisational

structure. Most of the responsibility of the

Corporate Services Directorate was transferred

to the Governance and Community Relations

Directorate, which was renamed Corporate

and Community Relations. A Chief Financial

Strategist position was also created that

reports in to the Director Corporate and

Community Relations and who oversees

Procurement, Rating and Revenue and

Finance. Asset management, which previously

sat in the Corporate Services Directorate,

was transferred to the Infrastructure and

Environment Directorate.

During the year, an IT Governance Group and

Business Transformation Project Team were

also established to further embed a culture of

improvement in the organisation, focussing on

technology as an enabler. The role of these two

groups is to further enhance the community’s

and other stakeholders’ experiences when

interacting and transacting with Council. This

is a major step in creating a community first

culture, which aims to offer our residents and

customers online access to Council services.

The 2014–2015 financial year

results reflect Council’s ongoing

commitment to financial and

infrastructure sustainability as

outlined in Council’s Long-term

Financial Plan.

Financial Summary

Council’s financial position continues to remain

sound. A summary of our performance is

outlined below. Detailed information relating

to Council’s financial performance is included

within the Financial Statements and Performance

Statement sections of this Report.

Operating Position

Council achieved a surplus of $31.42 million in

2014–2015. This surplus compares favourably

to the prior year’s surplus of $5.37 million. The

adjusted underlying surplus of Council, after

removing non-recurrent capital grants, cash

capital contributions and non-monetary capital

contributions, is a surplus of $13.78 million.

This compares favourably to the expected

target of >0%. Sustaining an adjusted

underlying surplus is a critical financial strategy

that provides capacity to renew the $1.73 billion

of community assets under Council’s control.

Liquidity

Cash has increased by 114 per cent from

the prior year mainly due to the receipt of

Financial Assistance Grants from the Victorian

Government totalling $6.9 million; this relates

to the first and second quarter allocations of

the 2015–2016 year. Furthermore, funds of

$16 million allocated for capital works were

not expended during the 2014–2015 financial

year and were carried forward to be spent in

2015–2016. The working capital ratio, which

assesses Council’s ability to meet current

commitments, is calculated by measuring

Council’s current assets as a percentage of

current liabilities. Council’s result of 200 per

cent is an indicator of satisfactory financial

position and within the expected target

band of 120 per cent to 200 per cent.

Introduction |

Chief Executive Officer’s Message | Financial summary

Financial summary

-5,000

5,000 0

10,000

15,000

20,000

-10,000

-15,000

-20,000

2011–12

2012–13

2013–14

2014–15

Adjusted Underlying Surplus / (Defecit)($’000)

Working Capital Ratio (%)

50 0

100 150

200

166.71

117.92

93.66

200.66

250

2011–12

2012–13

2013–14

2014–15

Back to contents page

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

Obligations

Council aims to ensure that it is able to maintain

its infrastructure assets at the expected levels,

while at the same time continuing to deliver the

services needed by the community.

At the end of the 2014–2015 year Council’s debt

ratio, which is measured by comparing interest

bearing loans and borrowings to rate revenue

was 35 per cent, which was within the expected

target band of 20–60 per cent.

Council’s asset renewal ratio, which is measured

by comparing asset renewal expenditure to

depreciation was 53 per cent, which is below

the expected target band of 90–110 per cent.

This is due to asset renewal falling in the

2015 year as capital funding is diverted into

constructing the Brimbank Community and

Civic Centre.

Stability and efficiency

Council raises a wide range of revenues

including rates, user fees, fines, grants and

contributions. Despite this, Council’s rates

concentration which compares rate revenue to

adjusted underlying revenue was 70 per cent

for the 2014–2015 year, which is toward the

top end of the expected target band of 40–80

per cent. Council has focused on broadening its

revenue base and for the 2014–2015 year was

able to keep its rate increase to 6.65 per cent.

This resulted in an average residential rate per

residential assessment of $1,465.55, which

compares favourably to similar councils in the

outer metropolitan area.

Economic factors

Financial Assistance Grants

Prior to the end of the 2014–2015 financial

year, Council received Financial Assistance

Grants from the Victorian Government totalling

$6.7 million relating to the first and second

quarter of the 2015–2016 year. As Council must

recognise these grants as revenue in the period

they are received, this has increased the surplus

of Council for the 2014–2015 year.

Rate Capping

The Victorian Government has committed to

capping the level of Local Government rate

increases to the Consumer Price Index. The

Minister for Local Government has asked the

Essential Services Commission to develop a

Local Government Rate Capping Framework

and provide a final report by October 2015.

The details of the Framework are not available

at this time, but are expected to apply from

2016–2017 year. The impact on Council is

that savings will need to be identified across

its operations to offset the reduced rates

income in the future. Work has commenced

on identifying these savings so Council has a

financially sustainable plan going forward.

Brimbank City Council delivers

more than $100 million in services

and programs. Council’s vision for

Brimbank as the dynamic centre

of Melbourne’s West, with a

community that is proud, diverse

and connected is supported by

this service provision.

The range of programs and services address

needs across the community, from the business

sector, environment, community wellbeing,

roads and infrastructure to animal management.

Community take-up of the services and programs

show the importance of these Council functions.

The Council Plan 2013–2017

outlines Council’s

Strategic Directions, which are supported by

a number of other Council strategies, plans

and policies. This includes the Annual Budget

2014–2015, which highlights project priorities

and spending.

Council’s Strategic Objectives are monitored

by a set of service performance indicators and

measures. They offer a corporate framework for

the delivery of services, facilities, support and

advocacy and achieving the vision and objectives

outlined in the Brimbank Community Plan. The

Council Plan sets out Council’s key strategic

directions and actions for a four year period.

Council’s actions are guided by Victorian and

Australian legislation which supports good

governance and enables Council to responsibly

deliver a community first approach.

Major capital works

During 2014–2015 the major capital works

included the following:

Brimbank Community and Civic Centre

The Brimbank Community and Civic Centre is a

once-in-a-generation project being constructed

on Hampshire Road in the Sunshine Town Centre.

The purpose-built building will include:

• A new Sunshine Library over two levels

• A new Sunshine Customer Service Centre

• A range of community meeting spaces

• Council Chambers

• Exhibition spaces, and

• A local history interpretive centre.

The Brimbank Community and Civic Centre will

also provide new offices for Council staff that are

currently located in a number of offices around

Sunshine and in Keilor, as well as tenant spaces

for other businesses.

Contractors commenced demolition works on

the former Sunshine Library and Customer

rvice Centre building on Hampshire Road

in October 2014. Construction commenced

in November 2014.

e new centre is on track to be completed

mid-2016 at a total cost of $52 million.

Errington Community Centre redevelopment

The Errington Community Centre and Performing

Arts Facility in Princess Street, St Albans,

is being redeveloped to provide accessible,

flexible community spaces and places for

all life stages for residents today and for

nerations to come.

The project will include the construction of a

second storey above the existing single storey

building, in addition to the reconfiguration and

improvement of existing facilities including halls,

meeting and activity spaces, as well as support

amenities such as kitchens and toilets.

New facilities will include a 200-seat flexible

performing arts space with associated support

spaces, additional meeting rooms, rehearsal

room, a dance space, art and craft studio, a

consultation room, office support space and

education/training spaces.

The project also includes a civic entry plaza,

landscaping and site improvements to integrate

the newly refurbished and expanded facility

within the wider, cohesive, Errington Precinct.

The total cost of the project is $8.96 million

and includes $2.5 million from the St Albans

Community Centre Co-Operative Ltd and a

$500,000 Community Support Fund grant

from the Victorian Government.

In A

pril 2015, Council awarded the contract

and the official contract between parties

s signed mid-June for construction of the

redevelopment to Devco Project & Construction

Management Pty Ltd.

The project is expected to be completed

in late 2016.

Extension of the Keilor Basketball

Netball Stadium

Construction of the extension of the Keilor

Basketball Netball Stadium commenced

in September 2014 and is anticipated to open

later in 2015.

e $6.5 million extension includes three new

basketball and netball courts. These courts are

expected to host high level games and attract

up to elite level training and competitions to

Brimbank. The extension also includes a 200

seat grandstand, change rooms and toilets,

a courtyard, and storage shed. The project

included construction of the car park in front

of the stadium.

urts will also be line-marked for other

uses including badminton and volleyball

to ensure they meet Brimbank’s growing

rting demands.

The project is supported by investments by

the Keilor Basketball Association ($1.2 million)

and

Victorian Government ($650,000).

Upgrade of Hampshire Road

(Dickson Street to Devonshire Road)

In October 2014, Council adopted the

Hampshire

Road Master Plan 2014

, which outlines a vision

for the evolution of Sunshine’s premier ‘main

street’ in four stages.

In April 2015, the contract was awarded for

the construction of stage one of the Hampshire

ad upgrade and construction commenced

in May 2015.

age one works included footpath and street

lighting upgrades, a raised pedestrian crossing

and construction of a sculptural seating wall.

Works will be constructed at a cost of $1,180,000

including a $200,000 grant from the Victorian

Government’s Community Infrastructure Fund

and are expected to be completed later in 2015.

Continuation of parks

and playground upgrades

In continuing the implementation of Brimbank’s

Creating Better Parks – Open Space and

Playground Policy and Plan Council

completed

five playground upgrades during 2014–2015.

Upgrades included Verona Drive Reserve

Suburban Park in Taylors Lakes at a cost

of $440,000, and a total of $400,000 in

neighbourhood park upgrades at:

• Cromwell Reserve, Kings Park

• Bonfield Reserve, Keilor

• Proctor Crescent Reserve, Keilor Downs

• Empress Court Reserve, Sunshine.

Roads, footpaths and pedestrian facilities

Council continued to implement the Road Asset

Management Plan through the delivery of a $16.9

million road rehabilitation and upgrade program.

Some of the projects completed as part of this

program include road pavement rehabilitation

works to Industrial Drive, Tullamarine ($813k),

Cox Street, St Albans ($778k) and Conrad Street,

St Albans ($555k). Local Area Traffic Management

works were also completed in Albanvale at a cost

of about $450,000.

Council also commenced the construction of

Jones and Bunting roads in Brooklyn, with a total

project value of $2.6 million.

Sports facilities

Council continued to invest in upgrades at

sporting facilities across the municipality.

Council commenced an upgrade of the male and

female change rooms at St Albans Leisure Centre

in January 2015. Works were completed in May

2015 at a cost of $265,000.

Council successfully completed its $200,000

2014–2015 sports reserve lighting renewal

program for the year.

The sports ground irrigation was upgraded

at Keilor Park Oval 2.

In M

arch 2015, the Keilor Park soccer pitch 3 flood

light installation project and Arthur Beachley

Reserve flood light installation project were

completed. The projects cost approximately

$363,000 and were funded by Council, including

a contribution of $10,000 from Keilor Park Soccer

Club for the Keilor soccer pitch 3.

In May 2015, Council completed the

redevelopment of Dempster Park change

rooms. The project was funded by Council

at a cost of approximately $1.3 million.

uncil commenced installation of new sports

reserve lighting at Selwyn Park Reserve as part

of Council’s sports ground lighting upgrade

program. Work commenced in June 2015

and is due for completion in 2015–2016.

The project will cost $200,000.

uncil also tendered for the refurbishment of

the Larissa Reserve pavilion in North Sunshine.

Works are scheduled to commence in 2015–2016.

Financial summary (continued)

Description of Operations

Introduction |

Financial summary | Description of Operations

10 15

25 30

35 40

2011–12

2012–13

2013–14

2014–15

100

20 30

50 60

70 80

2011–12

2012–13

2013–14

2014–15

Loan Borrowings (%)

Asset Renewal (%)

Rate Concentration (%)

66 64

68 70

74 76

2011–12

2012–13

2013–14

2014–15

Back to contents page

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

July 2014

August 2014

September 2014

October 2014

November 2014

December 2014

Significant service achievements 2014

• Council finalised arrangements with

the Department of Education and Early

Childhood Development, to begin clearing

and improvement works to the section of

the former Sunvale site purchased to create

a community park, ahead of Council taking

ownership of the site in early 2016

• Council endorsed Planning Scheme

Amendment C105, which has the potential

to unlock the Sunshine Town Centre and

generate over $1 billion in investment

and referred it to the Minister for Planning

for approval

• Council opened a $430,000 suburban

park upgrade of Dalton Drive Reserve

in Sunshine West

• Council introduced heritage overlay

Amendment C171 – Heritage Gaps Stage 2

to the Brimbank Planning Scheme, to apply

heritage controls to two properties at

11 King Edward Avenue, Albion and

17–27 Maxweld Street, Ardeer

• Council adopted its 2014–2015 Annual

Budget, demonstrating a commitment to

enhancing Brimbank’s social and physical

infrastructure through a capital works

program of $65.7 million, while having a plan

in place to maintain stability of the City’s

finances and ensure rates are predictable

going forward.

• Council took further steps to protect local

buildings and sites of heritage significance,

through an amendment to the Brimbank

Planning Scheme (Amendment C167 –

Heritage Gaps Report and Heritage Policy

Review). The amendment responded to

recommendations in the Heritage Gaps

Report 2014, which had assessed additional

sites of potential heritage significance and

anomalies within the Brimbank Heritage

Study of 2007

• Council received a commitment of $1.2

million funding over five years from the Keilor

Basketball Association (KBA) towards the

Keilor Basketball and Netball Stadium (KBNS)

redevelopment to fund a third new court to

be built as part of the stadium expansion

• The Sunshine Library and Sunshine Customer

Service Centre moved temporarily from

Hampshire Road to new locations in the

nearby Sunshine Municipal office precinct, to

make way for construction of the $52 million

Brimbank Community and Civic Centre

• On Friday 1 August Brimbank City Council

was announced Sustainable City of the

Year at the Keep Australia Beautiful

Awards Victoria awards which encourage,

motivate and celebrate local sustainability

achievements. Brimbank took out the

honours for the Community Action and

Leadership Award for the Brimbank Gems

Program and Resource Recovery and Waste

Management Award for the Sustainable

Living Expo.

• Winners of the Brimbank Writers Awards,

part of the 2014 Brimbank Writers and

Readers Festival, were announced following

320 entries across seven categories

• Council won the Stormwater Victoria Award

for Research and Innovation for its system

to manage the ongoing maintenance of its

Stormwater pipe assets

• Council called for tenders for the

$8.9 million redevelopment of Errington

Community Centre

• Council successfully prosecuted the owner of

an unregistered dog involved in an attack at a

sporting venue in June, with the owner being

fined and placed on a good behaviour bond

• Council won two Parks and Leisure Australia

awards gaining national recognition.

The Brimbank Cup won the Inclusive and

Connected Communities Award at the 2014

Parks and Leisure Australia National Awards,

while the online sports facility allocation

system won the Use of Technology Award

• Council launched a new Learning Hub — a

new online portal on the Brimbank Libraries’

upgraded website, to enhance learning

opportunities for the community

• Council supported the Sunshine Lantern

Festival, a free community event, organised

by the Sunshine Business Association

in Hampshire Road, Sunshine, which

included entertainment and a spectacular

fireworks display.

• Nominations opened for the Brimbank

Australia Day Awards, which recognises

community achievement by individuals or

groups who make a significant contribution,

or provide outstanding service, to the

Brimbank community

• Council commenced the Light Up Sunshine

program to improve vibrancy of the

town centre, attract visitors and address

perceptions around community safety.

It included a range of events from January

to March, including movies in the park,

live music as well as lighting upgrades

• Council endorsed the St Albans Leisure

Centre Feasibility Study, which positioned

Council to advocate for future external

funding opportunities

• Council held an investment forum in Sunshine

to showcase Sunshine’s development

potential, including its central location

to the West and proximity to the CBD

• Council adopted the

Hampshire Road Master

Plan

, cementing a vision for the evolution

of Sunshine’s premier main street

• Council adopted the Keilor Office Building

Future Use Project Progress Report, which

listed potential future uses for Brimbank City

Council’s Keilor Office Building developed

through community consultations

• Council awarded a contract for construction

of the new $52 million Brimbank Community

and Civic Centre

• Council held the Kids Day Out in Brimbank,

featuring musicians, storytelling, workshops,

sporting activities and more, at the Errington

Community Centre, St Albans

• Brimbank Youth Services’ B-Creative Urban

Aerosol Art Program was recognised as a

finalist in the 2014 READYS (Recognising

Excellence Awards for Delivery of Youth

Services) in the Local Government Category.

• Council endorsed Low Carbon West —

a strategy to reduce greenhouse gas

emissions, developed by the Western

Alliance for Greenhouse Action (WAGA),

a representative of western region

local councils

• Brimbank’s New Residential Zones came into

effect following the Minister for Planning’s

approval of Amendment C158. The zones

are applied in accordance with the Brimbank

Housing Strategy ‘Home and Housed’ to

provide for the Neighbourhood Residential

Zone (low change), General Residential Zone

(medium change) and the Residential Growth

Zone (high change) across the municipality

• Council launched public artwork, Reflexio

Qualis, at the bus interchange in Sunshine,

on the corner of Hampshire Road and

Dickson Street

• Council was awarded the National Award for

Resource Recovery and Waste Management,

after it represented Victoria at the National

Keep Australia Beautiful — Sustainable Cities

awards, held in Adelaide.

• The Greening the West initiative, which

aims to improve health through increased

urban greening in Melbourne’s western

metropolitan area, was recognised at the

Victorian Health Promotion Foundation

Awards. Council was a member of the

steering committee that developed the

Greening the West strategy

• Council approved Brimbank Planning

Scheme Amendment C166 – New

Residential Zones Stage 2, which was

then submitted for review by the State

Government’s Residential Zones Standing

Advisory Committee

• Council completed a new North Sunshine

Industrial Estate stormwater detention

tank, as part of its ongoing commitment

to essential services and infrastructure

in the area

• Council adopted a

Community Facilities and

Reserves Allocation Policy

, providing a strong

and robust process that will ensure available

facilities and reserves are allocated in a fair

and transparent manner, with maximum

benefit to the community

• Council opened a new $100,000 playground

at Cromwell Reserve in Kings Park

• Council launched a mosaic mural celebrating

community partnerships and local history

in the Deer Park Arcade, Ballarat Road

• For the second year running, Council

presented Carols at the Castle at

Overnewton Castle, with proceeds

from the sale of the tickets going to

the Brimbank Community Fund.

Introduction |

Significant service achievements 2014

Back to contents page

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

Significant service achievements 2015

• The 2015 Brimbank Australia Day Award

winners were announced at a special

ceremony attended by award winners

and nominees, their families and friends.

The winners were: Citizen of the Year,

Kim Thien Truong; Young Citizen of the

Year, Maima Massaquoi; Environmental

Achievement Award, Friends of Iramoo;

Cultural Achievement Award, Loketi Niua

Latu; Educator of the Year, Yvonne Reilly;

Lifetime Achievement Award, Allan ‘Titch’

Williams; Essential Services Excellence,

SES Brimbank Unit

• The City of Brimbank hosted one of the

largest citizenship ceremonies in Victoria,

with 180 conferees receiving Australian

Citizenship on Australia Day, 26 January.

• The 2015 Brimbank Sustainable Living

Expo, featuring Gardening Australia’s Costa

Georgiadis and showcasing sustainability

in the West, was held at St Albans’ Westvale

Community Centre

• Council welcomed an additional $950,000

in State Government funding to seal

and improve Jones and Bunting roads

in Brooklyn’s Industrial Precinct

• More than 32 teams competed in the fourth

annual award-winning Brimbank Cup

tournament, which was delivered by

Council in partnership with Victoria Police

and Balmoral Football Club and supported

by the Football Federation Victoria and

Melbourne Victory

• Brimbank Libraries launched a new Mobile

Print service allowing library customers

to print documents from any mobile device.

• Council’s In2Sport Program approved

its 1000th application supporting young

people in Brimbank to get involved in sport.

Applicants are eligible for up to $200

financial assistance to contribute to club

fees, for Brimbank children whose family

holds either a Health Care Card or Pension

Concession Card

• Sunshine Pho Fever was held across

three nights in March, as part of the 2015

Melbourne Food and Wine Festival. Hosted

by the Sunshine Business Association for the

third year and supported by Council, the 2015

event celebrated 40 years of Vietnamese

settlement in Australia and Sunshine with

the ultimate Vietnamese progressive dinner.

• Brimbank Libraries extended opening

hours in response to customer feedback

and a review of library processes

• Council adopted the

Brimbank Youth

Strategy 2015–2019

to address the needs

of young people aged 12 to 25 years old

that live, work, study or socialise in Brimbank

• Council awarded a contract for the highly

anticipated redevelopment of Errington

Community Centre in Princess Street, St Albans

• Council took another step towards

introducing a Design and Development

Overlay in Keilor Village to help maintain

the village character of the Keilor Town

Centre. Council requested the Minister

for Planning to appoint a panel to review

an unresolved submission objecting to

the proposed Brimbank Planning Scheme

Amendment C162 – Keilor Village Design

and Development Overlay

• Council completed a background report on

the Sunshine National Employment Cluster

that was provided to the Metropolitan

Planning Authority (MPA), to help inform

its preparation of the Sunshine National

Employment Cluster Framework Plan

• The great work of local sporting clubs was

acknowledged at the annual 2015 Brimbank

Sports Awards; clubs and individual club

members were awarded in six categories

• Council completed stage two of a program

to replace 11,500 streetlights, part of a larger

program, to save more than $500,000 in

electricity and maintenance bills each year.

• Construction began on the first stage of

the $1.8 million Hampshire Road Master

Plan implementation, concentrating on the

area between Devonshire Road and Dickson

Street, Sunshine. The first of four stages,

stage one works include footpaths and

street lighting upgrades, a raised pedestrian

crossing and a sculptural seating wall

• Community consultation began on the

proposed Ardeer Green Activity Hub,

which could include criterium racing,

and mountain bike and BMX facilities

with significant tree planting and remnant

grassland rehabilitation

• Work commenced on a $2.6 million project to

seal Bunting and Jones roads to reduce dust

and address air quality concerns associated

with the Brooklyn Industrial Precinct

• Council made a submission to the Royal

Commission into Family Violence outlining

Council’s recently adopted

Plan to Prevent

Men’s Violence Against Women – Towards

Gender Equity

• Council adopted its 2015–2016 Annual

Budget, to help Council deliver services

and works that reflect community needs

and expectations while also keeping rates

as low as practicable

• Council adopted the

Council Plan 2013–2017

(Year 3 – Updated 2015) and the

Strategic

Resource Plan

, following public consultation

• Council adopted the

Brimbank Children’s

Plan 2015–2019

, to guide the development

and coordination of education, care, health

services, infrastructure and activities for

children up to 12 years and their families

• Community satisfaction with Brimbank

City Council’s performance continued to be

generally stable, according to the results

of the 2015 Local Government Community

Satisfaction Survey coordinated by the

Department of Environment, Land, Water

and Planning (DELWP)

• The inaugural Brimbank Community Fund

grants were awarded, with four recipients

receiving grants totalling $15,000. The

Brimbank Community Fund is a charitable

fund account of the Lord Mayor’s Charitable

Foundation that provides a permanent and

growing source of much-needed investment

for the Brimbank community

• Council supported a proposed planning

scheme amendment (C181) to facilitate the

removal of the dangerous Furlong Road level

crossing, after it was funded and fast tracked

to be delivered with the Main Road, St Albans

Level Crossing project works starting in 2015

• Council successfully prosecuted a property

owner and builder for carrying out building

work without a building permit, in

contravention of the

Building Act 1993

• Council successfully prosecuted an individual

who had dumped a truckload of household

waste in Sun Crescent, Sunshine.

Introduction |

Significant service achievements 2015

January 2015

February 2015

March 2015

April 2015

May 2015

June 2015

Back to contents page

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

Local Law No. 3, 2014 – Governance

(Major Policy Consultation) (July 2014)

This law is designed to promote transparency

of decision-making. It enables Council to

determine whether a policy is, or is not, a ‘major

policy’ and prescribes a public consultation

process to be followed when the Council

proposes to make, amend, modify or revoke

a ‘major policy’.

Sports Facility Hire, Licenses

and Leases Agreement Policy

(July 2014)

Council’s Sports Facilities Agreement provides

guidance for the ongoing allocation of 46

sporting pavilions, 94 playing fields, and 40

courts to community sports clubs. The policy

was updated to provide Council with a basis

to enter into new formal agreements with all

sports clubs for the future.

Brimbank Place Naming Policy

(August 2014)

The purpose of the policy is to provide guidance

for the naming of geographic places, features,

localities and roads in the City of Brimbank.

The policy places an emphasis on preserving

the City’s identity and heritage, recognising its

rich cultural and ethnic diversity, and ensuring

naming decisions are made in the best interests

of the whole community.

Revised Protected Disclosures Policy

and Procedure (August 2014)

Key changes to Brimbank Council’s revised

Protected Disclosures Policy

and procedures

mainly relate to clarification around disclosures

being made confidentially (in the policy),

consistent terminology, and updated links,

contact details and penalty units information.

Revised Asset Management Policy

2014 (September 2014)

The policy serves to outline a strategic

framework for the management of

infrastructure assets to deliver Council’s Vision.

Council’s previous

Asset Management Policy

was adopted in 2011. The revised policy aims

to present its objectives in a more succinct and

easier to interpret way.

Brimbank Community Grants Policy

2014 – Major Policy (October 2014)

This Major Policy guides the delivery of the

Brimbank City Council Community Grants

Program, which provides one-off financial

assistance to not-for-profit organisations that

deliver services or undertake activities that

benefit the Brimbank community.

Brimbank Community Strengthening

Policy (October 2014)

This policy provides the context for Council’s

actions and commitment to building stronger,

more resilient communities. It identifies key

information that will guide Council’s support

for Brimbank’s individuals and community

groups to increase civic participation, and

ensure robust, accessible and democratic

local organisations.

Hampshire Road Master Plan

(October 2014)

The

Hampshire Road Master Plan

has been

created to guide the development of Sunshine’s

premier ‘main street’ as it evolves to meet the

needs of a changing and growing population.

The Master Plan guides the redevelopment of

the precinct as a unique, vibrant, legible, safe

and comfortable place for pedestrians, cyclists

and public transport users.

Sunshine Town Centre Pedestrian

Way Finding Signage Strategy

(October 2014)

This strategy has been developed to improve

the legibility, accessibility, connectivity and

identity of the Sunshine Town Centre, by

defining a distinct and clearly delineated

network of pedestrian connections across

public and private spaces.

Privacy and Health Records Policy

Review 2014 (November 2014)

The policy governs how Council works within

the legislative framework to comply with the

Information Privacy Principles (IPPs). It provides

information to the community about how their

private information will be used and protected

by Council. The

Privacy and Health Records

Policy

was revised and updated following

changes to Victorian privacy legislation.

Integrated Asset Management

Strategy 2014–2024

(December 2014)

The strategy has been revised in line with the

strategic directions set out in the

Council Plan

2013–2017

. The strategy outlines long-term

actions and objectives for the management of

infrastructure assets, to deliver Council’s vision.

Community Facilities and Reserves

Allocation Policy Major Policy

(December 2014)

This policy provides the direction for the

allocation of available community facilities and

reserves within Brimbank to ensure their fair

and equitable distribution to sports clubs and

community groups within Brimbank, and ensure

the optimal use of community facilities to meet

community needs.

Council adopted the following strategies, policies and plans in 2014–2015.

The

Local Government

(Brimbank Council) Act

2009

to dismiss elected

Councillors was passed by

the Victorian Parliament

on 12 November 2009.

About the Administrators

Administrators act as the Council,

and have no additional power

outside the formal decision-making

process as outlined in the

Local

Government Act 1989

Administrators have no special

responsibility to the Victorian

Government, nor any special

reporting relationship.

The Governor in Council appointed

a panel of three administrators on 17

November 2009 on the advice of the

Minister for Local Government.

This panel was to be in place until the

Local Government elections in 2012.

In May 2012, the Victorian Government

extended the Administration of the

Brimbank City Council to March 2015 with

changes to the composition of the panel

taking place from October 2012.

In May 2014, the Victorian Government

introduced legislation into parliament

to further extend the term of

Administrators until October 2016,

aligning with state-wide Council elections.

John Tanner was appointed as an Administrator

on 11 March 2014, bringing extensive

experience in Local Government, small

business, and regional development.

He was a Commissioner of the Shire of Delatite

from 1994–1997 following amalgamations.

He is well regarded for his expertise in

community engagement, management,

governance, and strategic planning.

Brimbank Electronic Gambling Policy

2015–2019 (December 2014)

Council recognises the potential for significant

harm caused from electronic gaming products,

in particular electronic gaming machines (EGMs)

and the important role Local Government

plays in minimising the harm associated with

EGMs. This policy outlines Council’s approach to

managing the location and the social economic

impacts of EGMs.

Brimbank City Council’s Plan to

Prevent Men’s Violence Against

Women (2015–2019) (March 2015)

Council’s

Plan to Prevent Violence Against

Women

reaffirms Council’s long-term

commitment to address the underlying causes

of violence against women. Accountability to

actions outlined in this plan will be achieved

through ongoing monitoring and annual

reporting to Council and the community.

Brimbank Youth Strategy 2015–2019

(April 2015)

This four-year strategy was adopted to

address the needs of young people aged

12 to 25 years old, who live, work, study or

socialise in Brimbank. It is part of a longer-term

vision for Brimbank as a community of active

and connected young men and women with

opportunities, choices, and a strong sense

of belonging.

Brimbank City Council – Council Plan

2013–2017 (June 2015)

The updated

Brimbank City Council Plan

2013–2017

guides Council’s work to strengthen

community capacity, enhance urban and

public places, improve transport networks,

boost local economy and deliver responsive

and much needed community services.

Local Law No. 1, 2015

(Meeting Procedure) (June 2015)

The Meeting Procedure Local Law regulates

use of Council’s common seal, election of the

Mayor, Deputy Mayor and Chairs of Special

Committees, and governs the conduct of

meetings of the Council and its Committees.

To view these documents or other Council

plans, strategies, policies or guidelines,

visit

www.brimbank.vic.gov.au

About the Council

The Administrators act as members

of Council and govern on behalf of

the citizens of Brimbank.

Brimbank City Council operates

under the requirements of the

Local Government Act 1989

Brimbank City Council has an obligation

to achieve best value for its community

and stakeholders and to ensure the

community receives the most benefit

from available resources.

The

Council Plan

guides future planning in

Brimbank and establishes priorities for action.

Council’s annual planning process involves:

• Engaging with and seeking input

from the community

• Analysing social, political, economic

and natural environment factors

and influences setting the strategic

objectives of the Council

• Developing strategies to

achieve the objectives

Strategies, policies and plans adopted

Our Council

Introduction |

Strategies, policies and plans adopted | Our Council | The Brimbank Administrators Panel

• Establishing strategic indicators for

monitoring the achievement of the

objectives

• Determining financial and

non-financial resource requirements

• Coordinating the implementation

of strategies, and

• Monitoring, reporting, evaluating

and improving performance.

The Administrators are guided in their

decision-making by legislation and a range of

Council policies, including, but not limited to:

•

cal Government Act 1989

•

Planning and Environment Act 1987

•

ad Management Act 2004

•

Bri

mbank Council Plan 2013–2017

•

General Local Law 2008

•

Bri

mbank Community Plan 2009–2030

• Governance (Major Policy Consultation) 2014.

In June 2015 Council adopted a new local law,

Governance (Meeting Procedure) Local Law

No. 1, 2015. This law is intended to ensure

increased transparency of Council

decision-making and further enhance

its community consultation processes.

The purpose of this Local Law is to:

• Provide for the election of the Mayor

• Regulate the use of the common seal

• Provide for the procedures governing

the conduct of Council Meetings,

Special Committee meetings and

Advisory Committee meetings

• Set the rules of behaviour for those

participating in or present at Council

Meetings, Special Committee meetings,

Advisory Committee meetings, and

• Provide for the appointment of Councillors

as members of committees established by

the Council or as Council representatives

to external committees and organisations.

Council’s suite of plans, strategies and

policies are available to view on the

website,

www.brimbank.vic.gov.au

Jane Nathan was appointed as an Administrator

on 20 November 2012. She has a long and

successful association with Local Government.

She was a Commissioner of Brimbank City

Council following amalgamations in 1994, and

prior to that was a Councillor and Mayor for the

City of Hawthorn.

Jane is well known in the Local Government

sector, particularly for her skills and experience

in community relations and strategic planning.

Jane Nathan,

Administrator

0419 101 411

janen@brimbank.vic.gov.au

John Tanner,

Administrator

0409 417 849

johnt@brimbank.vic.gov.au

John Watson,

Chair

0419 984 675

johnw@brimbank.vic.gov.au

Mr John Watson is the Chair of the Panel

of Administrators.

He was appointed by the Governor in Council

on the advice of the Minister for Local

Government and commenced on 1 November

2012. Mr Watson worked previously as the

Executive Director of Local Government

Victoria, within the Department of Planning

and Community Development, since early 2007.

John has more than 40 years of experience

working with Local Government, including as Chief

Executive Officer of the Shire of Bulla, and the

Moonee Valley and Hume City Councils, and also

at the Victorian Government level, specialising

in the area of governance and legislation.

The Brimbank Administrators Panel

Brimbank’s Administrators are responsible for making decisions about local issues and ensuring the ongoing enhancement

of the liveability, productivity and sustainability of the City and for all members of the Brimbank community.

Back to contents page

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

Executive Management Team at 30 June 2015

Bill Jaboor

Chief

Executive Officer

Paul Younis

Director Infrastructure

and Environment

Stephen Sully

Executive Officer,

Positioning Brimbank

Stephen Sully, previously General Manager

City Development, was appointed Executive

Offi cer Strategic Positioning in September

2012. In this role Stephen works with the Chief

Executive Offi cer and Council to advocate and

attract investment, development, facilities and

services to key locations of the municipality.

Stephen is an urban planner with over 30

years of professional experience. He has led

numerous planning and economic development

areas for local and Victorian Government.

Prior to joining Brimbank Stephen was director

of a private planning consultancy.

Bachelor of Arts Urban Studies.

Bill Jaboor was appointed Chief Executive

Offi cer of Brimbank City Council in 2012. He

has over 46 years of experience working in

diff erent roles within Local Government across

Victoria and Queensland, including a total of

21 years as CEO at the Cities of Brimbank,

Hobsons Bay, Greater Shepparton and Benalla.

Bill also has extensive experience across

industry, health and education. He is currently

Chair of the Western Melbourne Regional

Development Australia Committee and

Board Member of Community Chef. He is

also a Board Member of the Alpine Resorts

Co-ordinating Council and past Board

Member of the Port Phillip and Westernport

Catchment Management Authority.

Associate Diploma of Business Studies,

Bachelor of Arts, MBA, Harvard University

short course for State and Local Government

Executives, and Williamson Leadership Fellow.

Stuart Menzies

Director

City Development

Stuart Menzies is an urban planner with

25 years’ experience. Stuart joined Brimbank

City Council in 2005 and was appointed to the

position of Director City Development in June

2013. Prior to working with Brimbank, Stuart

held management roles at Yarra Ranges Shire

Council and Nillumbik Shire Council, and has

worked in China with Australian Volunteers

International advising on sustainability policy

and social impact assessment.

Stuart is a Vice President — Local Government

of the Planning Institute of Australia’s

Victorian Committee.

Bachelor of Applied Science (Planning),

Graduate Diploma in Public Policy,

Masters of Environmental Studies.

With over 30 years’ experience in Local

Government prior to coming to Brimbank

in November 2010, Helen Morrissey was the

General Manager of Corporate Services at

Maribyrnong City Council, and prior to that

had a variety of management roles in both

community services and corporate areas

at Darebin City Council.

Helen is responsible for the Corporate and

Community Relations Division that has a focus

on providing reliable, consistent value-adding

support to internal services across the Council

in a range of areas, enabling the organisation

to continuously improve and deliver effi cient

eff ective services whilst improving Council’s

relation with the community.

The Corporate and Community Relations

division incorporates the Governance,

Communications, Customer Service, Financial

Services, Procurement and Rating and Process

Management units, People and Performance,

IT Services and Business Transformation.

Graduate Diploma in Social Science, Diploma

Human Service Research & Evaluation,

Certifi cate of Marketing Practice.

Paul Younis commenced at Council in July 2010.

Paul has over 20 years’ experience in a range

of senior management positions.

Prior to joining Brimbank, Paul held the position

of Chief Executive Offi cer of Corangamite

Shire Council, and in 2014, Paul was seconded

for six months as Acting Chief Executive

Offi cer of Buloke Shire Council. Along with

experience in the water sector, Paul has

also worked for consulting engineering

companies based in Frankston and Mornington.

Bachelor of Civil Engineering,

Post Graduate qualifi cations in Law,

Graduate Diploma in Business.

Neil Whiteside

Director

Community Wellbeing

Helen Morrissey

Director Corporate and

Community Relations

Neil Whiteside has worked in Local Government

for over 15 years in various management roles.

Neil was appointed to the position of Director

Community Wellbeing in June 2013. Previously Neil

held the position of Group Manager Operations

at Council since January 2008. Prior to joining

Brimbank, Neil held several management

positions at Whittlesea City Council.

Masters in Environmental Science, Bachelor

of Education/Environmental Science (Neil is

currently completing a Masters of Public Policy

and Management).

Our People

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Our People |

Executive Management Team at 30 June 2015

Back to contents page

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

As at 30 June 2015, Council employed 1,368 people (854 Full-Time Equivalent), which is a slight decrease

from 2013–2014.

Workforce turnover overall for the year increased slightly on the previous year, reaching 10 per cent, a one percentage point increase on 2013–2014.

The average age of Council’s workforce is 45.5 years. Sixteen per cent of Council employees are in the 61-plus age group, with these staff

predominantly employed as School Crossing Supervisors and within Council’s Operations Centre.

Organisation structure at 30 June 2015

Workforce profi le

MANAGER

COMMUNITY CARE

John MacDonagh

CEO

Bill Jaboor

DIRECTOR

COMMUNITY

WELLBEING

Neil Whiteside

DIRECTOR CITY

DEVELOPMENT

Stuart Menzies

DIRECTOR

INFRASTRUCTURE

AND ENVIRONMENT

Paul Younis

DIRECTOR

CORPORATE AND

COMMUNITY RELATIONS

Helen Morrissey

MANAGER LEISURE

SERVICES

Ashley Fleming

MANAGER LIBRARIES

AND LEARNING

Christine McAllister

MANAGER COMMUNITY

PLANNING AND

DEVELOPMENT

Kath Brackett

MANAGER

CITY STRATEGY

Leanne Deans

MANAGER BUILDING

AND DEVELOPMENT

COMPLIANCE

Ashley Hansen

MANAGER CITY

PLANNING

Kristen Gilbert

EXECUTIVE OFFICER

POSITIONING

BRIMBANK

Stephen Sully

MANAGER

ENGINEERING SERVICES

Adrian Ashford

MANAGER

URBAN DESIGN

Adrian Gray

ACTING MANAGER

ENVIRONMENT

Matthew Aquilina

GROUP MANAGER

OPERATIONS

Tom Razmovski

MANAGER PEOPLE

AND PERFORMANCE

Helen Lawless

MANAGER

FINANCIAL SERVICES

Jacqueline Vanderholt

MANAGER

GOVERNANCE

Melanie Fleer

MANAGER REVENUE

AND QUALITY SYSTEMS

Peter Horne

MANAGER MEDIA

AND

COMMUNICATIONS

Rebecca Solomon

CHIEF FINANCIAL

STRATEGIST

Shane Marr

MANAGER

PROPERTY

Trent Prince

MANAGER

ASSET SERVICES

Dominic Di Martino

MANAGER CITY

COMPLIANCE

Herb Horell

MANAGER

CUSTOMER

SERVICE

Paul Tate

MANAGER

PROCUREMENT AND

TENDERING

Pauline Hassakis

Employees by division and employment status

Division

Status

Female

Male

Total

CEO

Full-Time

Part-Time

Casual

Corporate & Community Relations

Full-Time

Part-Time

Casual

Infrastructure & Environment

Full-Time

256

282

Part-Time

Casual

City Development

Full-Time

Part-Time

121

Casual

Community Wellbeing

Full-Time

108

144

Part-Time

314

388

Casual

145

206

Brimbank total

785

583

1,368

Council Staff

Age groups

Age

Female Male Total

<21

21 – 25

26 – 30

31 – 35

124

36 – 40

133

41 – 45

109

170

46 – 50

103

163

51 – 55

108

161

56 – 60

149

61>

129

225

Brimbank total employment status

Status

2014–2015

Casual

232

Full-time

579

Part-time

557

Total

1,368

Our People |

Organisation structure at 30 June 2015 | Workforce profi le

Back to contents page

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

Enterprise Bargaining Agreement

An Enterprise Bargaining Committee comprising

management representatives, nominated

workplace union delegates and union industrial

officers was established to negotiate a new

Enterprise Agreement for Council employees.

As a result, a new Enterprise Agreement was

successfully negotiated and approved by Fair Work

Australia, with an operative date of 4 February

2015 for a period until 28 February 2018.

Preventing Violence Against Women

Brimbank City Council recognises that family

violence, including men’s violence against

women and children, is a serious and pervasive

issue in Australia; the health, social and

economic costs of family violence are profound.

In 2014–2015, Council actively worked to

advance gender equity and prevent men’s

violence against women in the municipality.

During this period, the Council used lessons

learnt from implementing the

Family Violence

Prevention Action Plan (2010–2013)

, and

evidence in the literature to develop Brimbank

City Council’s

Plan to Prevent Men’s Violence

Against Women: Towards Gender Equity

(2015–2019)

, which was adopted in March 2015.

A Reference Group of internal and external

representatives was established to provide

advice and feedback to guide development

of the new plan. Council consulted more

than 80 internal and external partners over

a six-month period. Two community and

stakeholder consultation forums were held

to assist in drafting the Brimbank Gender

Equity vision. Consultation reinforced the

need for Council to prioritise its effort on

actions to enhance gender equity and

prevent men’s violence against women.

Council’s

Plan to Prevent Men’s Violence Against

Women: Towards Gender Equity (2015–2019)

sets out a bold and innovative approach for the

delivery of Council’s actions to enhance gender

equity and primary prevention of men’s violence

against women in the municipality. It outlines

Council’s commitment to preventing men’s

violence against women, directed by the vision

that ‘Brimbank is a gender equitable city where

women live free from violence’.

Key themes to guide Council’s action to tackle

underlying causes of violence against women

over the next four years are:

• Promoting equal and respectful relationships

between women and men

• Promoting non-violent, gender equitable

and inclusive organisational, cultural and

social norms

• Promoting a culture of non-violence.

Other activities the Council was involved

in during the 2014–2015 period included:

• Community awareness activities on

preventing men’s violence against women

during the International Day For Elimination

Of Violence Against Women/White Ribbon

Day on 25 November 2014

• Submission to the Royal Commission

into Family Violence in May 2015

• Contributing to the implementation of

Preventing Violence Together United

project, which brings together 16 agencies

across north-western region of Melbourne

to build organisational capacity to prevent

men’s violence against women by tackling

the causes and key determinants of gender

inequity in the West.

• Participating in the Municipal Association of

Victoria forums on preventing men’s violence

against women.

Other staff matters

A summary of the number of full-time equivalent (FTE) staff categorised by employment classification and gender is set out below.

Type

Gender

Infrastructure

& Environment

FTE

City

Development

FTE

Corporate &

Community

Relations FTE

CEO

FTE

Community

Wellbeing

FTE

Grand

Total

Full-Time

Female

104

215

Male

256

354

Part-Time

Female

167

203

Male

Casual

Female

Male

Total

290

105

360

854

Note:

Casuals recorded as 0.03 of FTE. Council has 232 casuals that are contracted to five hours per week, which brings FTE for casuals down

A summary of the number of full time equivalent (FTE) Council staff by organisational structure, employment type and gender is set out below.

Employment

Classification

Female

FTE

Male

FTE

Total

FTE

Band 1

Band 2

Band 3

Band 4

Band 5

110

Band 6

110

Band 7

115

Band 8

other

104

106

210

Total

440

414

854

Brimbank has an internal e-learning Equal

Opportunity (EO) training program that focuses

on the policies and procedures relating to EO.

In addition, field-based employees who do not

have access to a computer received formal

classroom training on EO. For both platforms,

employees are required to complete an

assessment in addition to signing a statement

of attestation.

Council promotes equity and diversity

outcomes to ensure an inclusive workplace

culture and EO, and recognises the importance

of equity and diversity to optimise our service

design and delivery to the broader community.

The Brimbank Leadership Essentials Program

includes a module on Diversity @ Work. In this

program the focus is on unconscious bias,

gender, diversity and inclusion, inter-cultural

communication, disability awareness and

inter-generational awareness. This module

is also made available more broadly to all staff

via the Corporate Training Calendar.

The indicators that measure the effectiveness

of Council’s EO Program and the results for the

year are:

• Indicator: percentage of new employees

receiving equal opportunity training

within six months of commencement.

Target: 100 per cent. Result: 95 per cent

• Indicator: percentage of existing employees

receiving refresher equal opportunity

training at least every two years.

Target: 100 per cent. Result: 87 per cent

• Indicator: number of contact officers

per number of council employees.

Target: 1:50. Result: 1:73

Workforce profile (continued)

Equal Opportunity

Note:

Casuals recorded as 0.03 of FTE. Council has 232 casuals that are contracted to five hours per week, which brings FTE for casuals down

Our People |

Workforce profile | Equal Opportunity | Other staff matters

Back to contents page

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

Council recognises the importance of all new

staff receiving a comprehensive induction to

Council on commencement, ensuring they

understand:

• Council functions, processes and policies

• The requirements of their role and the

functions of the directorate where they work

• The policies and procedures that apply to

their behaviour and performance in the

workplace.

To assist with this, all staff must complete a

four-step Brimbank Induction Program. This

includes the commencement kit provided with

the letter of offer, the first day departmental

induction checklist, online Community First

induction and the formal corporate induction.

As part of the on boarding process, new

employees are given access to ‘Welcome to

Brimbank’ — an interactive program designed

to provide newly recruited employees with

information on Brimbank City Council, our

Community First culture and the benefits of

working at Brimbank.

The formal, one-day Corporate Induction

Program continued to run on a monthly basis

and was revamped to ensure a more interactive,

informative and engaging session to formally

welcome new employees to Council. The

corporate induction, coupled with Council’s

eLearning modules, aim to pass on vital

information to new employees as well

as meet statutory compliance obligations.

Leadership Essentials

The Brimbank Leadership Essentials program

is targeted at new or aspirational leaders,

and has been designed to have an immediate

impact on individuals as it brings theory and

work related experience together. It is practical,

contemporary and focuses on both personal

and professional development.

The program looks at the real issues occurring

in the workplace and assists participants

in discovering relevant solutions to these

issues. The program confirms the need for

a professional and productive workplace

and aims to provide ways to create a more

positive culture. It also assists participants in

establishing strategies for the implementation

of their learning back into their workplaces.

The program provides an opportunity to gain

in-depth knowledge of business functions

and build foundational skills to integrate these

functions into the organisation, examine new

techniques and technologies for driving results,

identifying problems and formulating solutions,

and adapting to change and expand capacity to

lead cross-functional initiatives.

The program has been aligned so that upon

completion, participating staff gain a Diploma

of Management through Victoria University.

Base units are facilitated formally and core

electives are completed using Recognition

of Prior Learning.

Upon commencement of the program in

March 2014, 63 employees have completed the

program and 62 employees have successfully

obtained the Diploma of Management. The

Leadership Essentials Program will undergo

realignment to new government standards and

will recommence in the first quarter of 2016.

Occupational Health and Safety

Council continued to develop and implement an

extensive OHS Management System that aims

to prevent injury to employees, contractors,

volunteers and members of the public.

The key areas focused on in 2014–2015

included the following:

• Updated Council’s OHS Policy reaffirming the

organisational commitment by the Executive

Management Team. The policy and Council’s

commitment to OHS will continue to be

communicated to all relevant stakeholders

• Council continued its proactive health

and wellbeing activities to reduce the

likelihood of employee health being

negatively affected by workplace and

non-workplace related harm

• Continued implementation of the Incident

Reporting and Injury Management System,

ensuring incidents are investigated and

corrective actions identified and managed

to minimise the likelihood of workplace

hazards and incidents resulting in injuries

• Monitored Council processes ensuring OHS

legislative compliance and best practice

across the organisation

• Continued to implement successful

Return to Work Initiatives

• Council conducted and developed an

OHS training needs analysis to identify

the OHS training requirements across

the organisation

• The Executive Management Team

endorsed the OHS Strategic and

Governance Framework, which included

the establishment of the OHS Executive

Safety Council and the development

of an OHS Strategic Plan.

Key Performance Indicators and Workers’ Compensation

Year

Lost time

injuries

WorkCover

claims

Days lost due to

workplace injuries

2015

986

2014

973

2013

1,568

2012

1,346

2011

1,302

2010

1,481

2009

1,942

2008

722

Days lost by division

City Development

51 days

Community Wellbeing

200 days

Infrastructure & Environment

735 days

Governance & Community Relations

0 days

Total days lost:

986 days

Learning and development

Employee development is a key focus for

Council, with a suite of programs offered

across the organisation to meet behavioural,

technical and compliance obligations as well as

enhance the knowledge, skill, experience and

competency of our employees.

Development is delivered formally, self-paced

or via Brimbank’s own e-learning tool bTrain.

Modules are made available to staff to learn at

their own pace, at their convenience. Modules

on bTrain include Equal Opportunity, Fraud and

Corruption Awareness and TRIM – Council’s

Information Management system.

A total of 63 corporate training calendar

courses were coordinated in 2014–2015 with

131 sessions and a total of 1,777 participants.

In addition, two Leadership Essentials Programs

were facilitated which saw 36 participants

achieve a Diploma in Management.

Learning programs offered took into

consideration departmental, interpersonal

and organisational needs to help employees

meet Council’s objectives.

Some of the key programs included:

• Leadership Essentials

• Managing Aggressive Behaviour

• Myers Briggs

• Working Together

• Communicating with Others

• Corporate Induction

• Equal Opportunity

• Fraud Awareness

• iPad & You

• Project Management

• Contract Management

• Effective Time Management

• Occupational Health and Safety (OHS)

• Emotional Intelligence

• i.d. consulting

• PRINCE2 Project Management

• Business Writing Skills

• Diversity @ Work

• Aggression & Negotiation Skills.

The number of claims lodged decreased in 2014–2015, with a marginal increase on lost time

injuries and number of days lost. Of the 34 claims lodged, 18 were minor and 13 resulted in no days

lost. The overall number of days lost is comparable with last year. Council continued with its early

intervention Return to Work initiatives of onsite physiotherapy consultancy, off site physiotherapy

treatment, and working closely with managers to facilitate immediate return to work programs.

These initiatives resulted in a significant reduction in days lost compared to 2013–2014, which also

significantly decreased Council’s WorkCover Premium.

Other staff matters (continued)

Workplace Health and Wellbeing

A healthy workplace influences workers and

can have a positive effect on the health and

wellbeing of families and communities.

Council continued its proactive health and

wellbeing initiative by providing a range of

programs that aim to support and promote

the health and wellbeing of employees.

These programs aim to enhance and proactively

improve overall fitness of employees, focusing

on injury prevention and reducing the negative

impacts on business.

The program was introduced in 2014–2015 to

address manual handling education in high-risk

areas. The program introduced participants to

the benefits of a healthy lifestyle and provided

a practical exercise strengthening program

designed to reduce injuries.

The program has contributed to a reduction

in workplace injuries and long-term injury

management practices, and has had a positive

impact on the physical and mental health of

employees, promoting healthy behaviours.

Other initiatives included:

• Audiometric testing for employees

working in high noise roles

• Health & Wellness Strengthening Program

• Injury Management Early

Intervention Program

• Sons of the West program

• Immunisation program flu vaccinations

• beyondblue Programs

• Diabetes Wellness program.

Council awarded a new provider for Council’s

Employee Assistance Program on 1 September

2014. Employees and their immediate families

have access to confidential counselling and

support to address work and/or personal issues

that may be impacting productivity, morale

and wellbeing.

OHS performance

Council is committed to a positive and safe work

culture. Any incidents deemed notifiable were

reported to WorkSafe.

Proactive incident management has allowed

Council to enhance its OHS Management

Systems, ensuring a safer workplace for

employees and continual improvement to

Council systems and processes.

WorkSafe conducted a Proactive Intervention

Program, focusing on healthcare and social

assistance attending six sites across the

organisation. WorkSafe was satisfied with

Council processes and procedures in place.

Our People |

Other staff matters

Back to contents page

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

• A Council Plan within the six months

after each general election or by

30 June, whichever is later

• A Strategic Resource Plan for a period

of at least four years and include this

in the council plan

• A Budget for each fi nancial year

• An Annual Report in respect

of each fi nancial year.

The following diagram shows the relationships

between the key planning and reporting

documents that make up the planning

and accountability framework for Local

Government. It also shows that there are

opportunities for community and stakeholder

input and feedback at each stage of the

planning and reporting cycle.

Brimbank’s integrated planning framework

ensures that strategic and fi nancial resources

are aligned in order to deliver the Council Plan.

Engaging with and consulting the community

is a vital element of this process.

Our

Performance

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Planning and Accountability Framework

Brimbank Community Plan

The

Brimbank Community Plan 2009–2030

(updated 2013) describes the community’s

vision and long-term priorities for the next 20

years and establishes a shared basis for joint

planning, service delivery and advocacy.

The plan has been shaped by an intensive

community consultation process that

explored the community’s understanding of

the strengths within the community and the

opportunities for improvement, and came up

with a vision for the future.

Council Budget

The Annual Budget documents the fi nancial

resources required to implement the key

activities identifi ed in the Council Plan that

will be undertaken in order to achieve Council’s

strategic objectives.

Our Performance |

Planning and Accountability Framework

Community engagement

and consultation

The community’s involvement in planning

and policy development, service delivery and

advocacy is supported by increasing community

awareness and education and opportunities

for community members to be consulted and

involved in all aspects of community life. The

information gathered is also used to develop

the strategies and commitments in the Council

Plan. For more information, see the Advocacy,

Consultation and Community Engagement

section on page 70.

Council Plan

The Council Plan is one of Brimbank’s primary

strategic documents.

The Council Plan 2013–2017

(updated 2014)

outlines Council’s strategic

directions and focus for the next four years.

It also details the objectives and key actions

that are to be completed over the 2014–2015

fi nancial year in order to achieve these

directions, as well as measures to monitor

performance in delivering services to the

community and fulfi ll Council’s commitment

to ongoing improvement.

It is the 2014–2015 performance that is

reported in this Annual Report.

The

Council Plan 2013–2017

includes strategic

objectives, strategies for achieving these

for the four-year period, strategic indicators

for monitoring achievement of the strategic

objectives and a Strategic Resource Plan.

The following are the six strategic objectives

as detailed in the Council Plan.

>>>

Year End

Accountability

Audited Statements

30 years +

Long Term Planning

{

Community Plan

Medium Term Planning

and Sustainability

4 years

{

Council Plan

12 months

Short Term Planning

{

Budget

{

Community vision, Mission, Values,

Long term fi nancial plan, Asset management plan

Strategic objectives, Strategies, Strategic indicators,

Strategic resource plan, (incl, Standard statements)

Standard statements, Activities & initiatives,

Key strategic activities, Other information

Standard statements, Financial statements,

Performance statement

Brimbank’s planning framework

The

Local Government Act 1989

requires councils to prepare the following planning and reporting documents:

Time horizon

Medium term

Short term

Planning

Reporting

Timing

Council plan

• Strategic objectives

• Strategies

• Strategic indicators

Stakeholder

and

community

engagement

Annual report

• Report of

op erations

• Financial

statements

• Performance

statement

Strategic resource plan

• Financial statements

• Statements of

non-fi nancial resources

Budget

• Services and initiatives

• Service outcome indicators

• Major initiatives

• Financial statements

Jan – Jun

Feb – Jun

Mar – Jun

Jul – Sep

Back to contents page

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

Brimbank City Council is committed

to promoting the long-term sustainable

development of the municipality

Brimbank City Council is committed to the

ongoing delivery of a broad range of services

that meet the needs and aspirations of the

diverse and growing Brimbank community

Brimbank City Council is committed

to providing local employment and business

development opportunities whilst also ensuring

that such activities do not have a detrimental

impact on local communities

Brimbank City Council

is committed to working in close

collaboration with the community

Sustainable

environments

Organisational

effectiveness

Industry and

economic development

and strategic sites

Council and the

community working

together

Council Plan

Council will do this by facilitating a dynamic and accessible environment that is supported by a healthy and informed community that enjoys rich

environmental characteristics within the municipality. Council is committed to environmental protection, planning for sustainable developments,

improving the sustainability of our building stock, and reducing our ecological footprint.

• Reducing the city’s ecological footprint

• Protecting and enhancing our natural environment

• Fostering sustainable urban development.

Guided by the Australian Business Excellence Framework, the ongoing development of our staff is a critical element to our continuous

improvement of service delivery. We will continue to benchmark services to ensure best practice, lead by example, and implement best

practice services to the community.

• Developing our people

• Creating a high performance organisation through continuous improvement.

Brimbank City Council is committed

to creating an enhanced quality

of healthy and active community life

Community

wellbeing

Our rich cultures are celebrated, embraced and connected to the broader community. Within a strong foundation of social justice, Council is

committed to the provision of affordable services and community infrastructure that builds healthy people and communities through education,

recreation, arts and culture and sport.

• Creating connected, supported and welcoming communities

• Celebrating our history creativity and diversity

• Creating healthy, safe communities

• Creating a community of lifelong learners

• Building economically sustainable communities.

Brimbank City Council

is committed to fostering strong

pride for residents and visitors

Urban design and

infrastructure

Council creates an urban environment that is attractive, clean and green and which improves living and housing, business and recreational

opportunities, demonstrates environmental leadership and fosters a sustainable economy. Council is also committed to developing its town

centres and its smaller urban villages, across the municipality, as a network of safe, attractive, vibrant, liveable and prosperous places that

provide accessible retail, business, community, social activities, employment and residential opportunities.

• Contributing to an accessible, connected city

• Enhancing the character and identity of our city

• Providing a range of places for people to play, relax and meet

• Ensure that there are sustainable plans for the management of Brimbank’s physical assets.

The municipality contains a range of strategic sites (outside of Town Centres or Urban villages) that, due to their location, size, environment

or current or past use, can greatly assist Council achieve its economic, social or environmental objectives.

• Promoting and advocating for the appropriate recognition, development and use of Brimbank’s strategic sites

• Increasing local employment, business, office and economic development

• Facilitating future industrial, commercial or residential development at strategic sites.

Council facilitates a wide cross-section of community participation, including ‘hard to reach’ groups, through a variety of forums and partnerships

to better engage, develop, represent, and communicate with our diverse community. Brimbank City Council will fulfil its statutory and legal

obligations to the community and manage the municipality in a financially sustainable manner to meet the current needs of our community

and those of future generations.

• Developing leadership in the community

• Governing responsibly and community advocacy

• Keeping the community informed and involved

• Working in partnership

• Responsible financial management.

Our Performance |

Council Plan

Back to contents page

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

Strategic Objective 1:

Council and the community working together

Strategic Indicator / Measure

Result

Comments

Developing leadership in the community

Actively promote the roles and skills of Community

Resource Members across relevant Council work areas

to ensure their participation in local projects.

The number of Community Resource Members and the

number of participative projects in which they were involved

both increased between 2013–2014 and 2014–2015.

Governing responsibly and community advocacy

Resident perception of Council performance

on lobbying on the behalf of the community.

This score is below target, but in line

with average state-wide scores.

Resident perception that Council

is generally heading in the right direction.

This score is below target but is in line

with metro Melbourne and state-wide scores.

Keeping the community informed and involved

Resident perception of Council performance

on community consultation and engagement.

This score is above target and in line

with metro Melbourne, and above state-wide scores.

Resident perception of Council performance

on informing the community.

This score is below target, but in line

with average state-wide scores.

Working in partnership

Number of meetings with the Sunshine, Sydenham

and St Albans Town Centre Partnership Groups.

Target achieved.

Responsible financial management

Debt servicing ratio.

1.00%

Target achieved.

Adjusted Working Capital Ratio.

291.72%

Target achieved.

The following statement reviews the performance of Council against the Council Plan including results achieved in relation to the strategic

indicators included in the Council Plan.

Council’s performance for the 2014–2015 year has been reported against each strategic objective

to demonstrate how Council is performing in achieving the

Council Plan 2013–2017

Performance has been measured as follows:

• Results achieved in relation to the strategic indicators in the Council Plan

• Progress in relation to the major initiatives identified in the Budget

• Services funded in the Budget and the persons or sections of the community who are provided those services

• Results against the prescribed service performance indicators and measures.

Performance

Major Initiatives

Progress

Deliver Council’s Community Governance training program to community groups,

small not for profit organisations and interested individuals across Brimbank to

support good governance practice in community organisations.

Completed.

The following statement reviews the progress of Council in relation to major initiatives identified in the 2014–2015 Budget for the year.

Service

Description

Net Cost Actual

Budget

Favourable /

(Unfavourable) $000

Governance

Governance includes three areas:

Council Business

• Council meeting support (agendas and minutes);

• Administrative support;

• Ensuring Council compliance to a range of legislation;

• Management and investigation of complaints relating to statutory breaches and Coordination

of proposals for place and street name changes within the municipality; and

• Legal advice.

Audit

• Oversees internal risk and control regime; and

• Conducting internal fraud and risk management audits in accordance with Annual Plan.

Risk Management

• Insurance premiums and management of insurance claims.

5,568 5,722 154

Media and

Communications

Responsible for the provision of timely information to the community, and:

• Media liaison – managing the organisation’s relationship with the media;

• Publications – producing Council’s corporate publications;

• Corporate Communications – developing, coordinating, and advising on Council’s communication

and consultation strategies and direction;

• Graphic design – producing high quality design in Council documents;

• Managing and updating Council’s website;

• Managing advertising;

• Speech writing; and

• Keeping the community informed and promoting Brimbank.

2,176 2,288 112

Financial

Services

Responsible for providing a fully integrated financial service across Council. Key functions include:

• Coordinating budget information from Service Units in order to develop a Council Budget;

• Preparation of Annual Financial Statements and various other Statutory Returns;

• Support to Service Units with financial analysis of their business to help support business decisions;

• Prompt payments to suppliers;

• Prompt payment of Employees’ salaries and wages;

• Monitoring of Council’s cash and investment of Council’s funds in order to maximise interest

earnings; and

• Ensuring compliance with Legislation, Industry Awards and Accounting Standards.

2,822 3,129 307

Procurement

and Tendering

Provides centralised management of the procurement policy and procedures.

Key responsibilities include:

• A centralised tendering coordination function;

• Provision of training and system administration for Council’s procurement systems/software;

• Provision of assistance in procurement matters across all Service Units;

• Management of Council’s procurement procedures and processes for the purchasing of goods

and services; and

• Governance of procurement and tendering processes.

1,197 1,203 6

Property

Services

Provides strategic advice on Council’s property portfolio, manages the Facilities Asset

Management Plan, develops lease documentation and manages lease negotiations.

The Property Department also manages the capital works program for facilities

and ensures that approved major building and construction projects are delivered.

1,879 1,648 (231)

Revenue

and Process

Management

Responsible for valuing all properties within the municipality, raising annual rates

and charges and for the collection of revenue. Also responsible for management

of Council’s policies and procedures system.

1,833 1,966 133

Customer

Relations

Provides a professional customer focused service through call centres and front desks

(face-to-face interactions).

3,694 2,884 (810)

The following statement provides information in relation to the services funded in the 2014–15 budget and the persons or sections of the

community who are provided the service.

Our Performance |

Strategic Objective 1: Council and the community working together

Back to contents page

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

Service / Indicator / Measure

Result

Material Variations

Governance

Appropriateness

Transparency

Council decisions made at meetings closed to the public

[Number of Council resolutions made at ordinary or special meetings of Council,

or at meetings of a special committee consisting only of Councillors, closed to

the public/number of Council resolutions made at ordinary or special meetings

of Council or at meetings of a special committee consisting only of Councillors ] x100

0.63%

No Material Variations

Consultation and engagement

Satisfaction with community consultation and engagement

[Community satisfaction rating out of 100 with how Council

has performed on community consultation and engagement]

No Material Variations

Quality

Attendance

Councillor attendance at council meetings

[The sum of the number of Councillors who attended each ordinary and special Council

meeting/(number of ordinary and special Council meetings) × (number of Councillors

elected at the last Council general election)] x100

94.20%

No Material Variations

Cost

Service cost

Cost of governance

[Direct cost of the governance service/number of Councillors

elected at the last Council general election]

$161,679.00 No Material Variations

Service outcome

Satisfaction

Satisfaction with Council decisions

[Community satisfaction rating out of 100 with how council has performed

in making decisions in the interest of the community]

No Material Variations

The following statement provides the results of the prescribed service performance indicators and measures including explanation

of material variations.

Strategic Objective 2:

Community Wellbeing

Strategic Indicator / Measure

Result

Comments

Creating connected, supported

and welcoming communities

Resident perception about Council’s

general town planning policy.

This score is above target and in line with metro

Melbourne and state-wide average scores.

Celebrating our history creativity and diversity

Resident perception about Council performance

on community and cultural activities.

This score is above target, but is below metro

Melbourne and state-wide average scores.

Creating a community of lifelong learners

Resident perception about Council

performance on art centres and libraries.

This score is below target and is below metro

Melbourne and state-wide scores.

Building economically sustainable communities

Resident perception about Council performance

on business and community development and tourism.

This score is above target, but is below metro

Melbourne and state-wide scores.

The following statement reviews the performance of Council against the Council Plan including results achieved in relation to the strategic

indicators included in the Council Plan.

Major Initiatives

Progress

Design and develop a new Brimbank Community and Civic Centre in Sunshine.

In progress.

The following statement reviews the progress of Council in relation to major initiatives identified in the 2014–2015 budget for the year.

Our Performance |

Strategic Objective 2: Community Wellbeing

Back to contents page

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

Service

Description

Net Cost Actual

Budget

Favourable /

(Unfavourable) $000

Community

Planning and

Development

The Community Planning and Development Department is responsible for the following

key service areas:

Arts and Culture

Develops and delivers arts short courses, exhibition programs and artists’ studios to support

creativity in Brimbank. It maintains and expands the indoor art collection and public art to increase

vibrancy in local areas and public spaces. Festivals and event management increases celebrations

of Council’s diversity and heritage.

Community Development

Supports community development through community leadership programs, Brimbank

Leadership Alumni, community grants, facilitation of volunteering opportunities

in Brimbank and coordination of Neighbourhood Houses and activities in local areas.

Council currently manages Neighbourhood Houses in Cairnlea, Delahey, Sydenham,

West Sunshine and Westvale. It also has a partnership agreement with community

managed Neighbourhood Houses to increase strategic planning and promotion.

Community Planning

Supports community planning through population and data analysis, effective research

and evaluation, the implementation and review of the Community Plan, Council Plan and

action plans to support cultural diversity and reconciliation.

Social and Health Policy

Supports the development of a socially just and healthy community through the implementation

of a Social Justice Charter, Social Justice Coalition and policy development and review such as

language services, housing, gambling, family violence, healthy eating, drug and alcohol use

and mental health. The Municipal Health and Wellbeing Plan is integrated into the Brimbank

Community Plan in recognition of the contributions of all environments to health and wellbeing.

7,220 7,533 313

Community

Care

Provides a number of services to support community wellbeing including:

Ageing and Inclusion

Provides a range of services to support, maintain and enhance the physical,

social and emotional well-being of its clients, including:

• Home care: personal, home care, property maintenance / garden care, planned activity groups,

respite care and delivered meals;

• Community transport: seniors support, community register and volunteer coordination.

Families and Early Years

Oversees the delivery of a range of early childhood and family services as following:

• Children’s Services and Family Services.

Council undertakes and facilitates planning and development of early childhood opportunities

that benefit the health and wellbeing of children and families in Brimbank. Council also provides

support to playgroups, preschools and child care services throughout the municipality.

• Maternal and Child Health

Council provides a universal primary care service for families with children aged from birth to

school age. The service also provides intensive support for vulnerable families experiencing

significant parenting difficulties.

• Pre School Services

Seeks to further children’s social, emotional, physical and intellectual development in the year

before they start primary school.

Youth Services

Provides services that are aimed at strengthening, protecting and building resilience in young

people so that they face the challenges of adolescence and adulthood.

10,732 10,959 227

Service

Description

Net Cost Actual

Budget

Favourable /

(Unfavourable) $000

Library

Services

Libraries and learning includes:

Community Programs and Engagement

The provision of programs and learning opportunities that support; early years learning, school

years, skills for employment, digital literacy, social connectedness, english literacy skills and a

reading culture.

Library Service Points

The libraries are community hubs that provide access to library collections, computers and the

internet, wireless internet access, staff assistance with information retrieval and computers,

spaces for study and recreation.

Virtual Library

Access to online resources, services and programs via the library website.

6,817 7,003 186

Leisure

Services

Leisure Services is responsible for four key areas:

Sport & Recreation

Management of the seasonal and casual allocation of grounds and actively works

with clubs and community members. The unit supports clubs through training and

other capacity building programs.

Community Facilities

Management of community bookings and administration of community facilities such

as the Errington Community Centre and supports the groups using those facilities.

Council, through its Community Facilities Unit, plans and delivers community

infrastructure needed to strengthen local communities

(e.g. community hubs, and sporting and recreation facilities).

Leisure Planning & Policy

Undertakes research and consultation to plan for the development of sport and recreation

projects throughout the municipality. It provides information on needs and recommends

priorities for future capital works.

Leisure Centres:

Council has four leisure facilities:

1. The Keilor Basketball/Netball Stadium

2. Keilor public Golf Course

3. St Albans Leisure Centre

4. Sunshine Leisure Centre.

These facilities provide affordable opportunities for residents and others to engage in healthy

physical activity of fitness, sport and social activities.

6,778 6,559 219

Our Performance |

Strategic Objective 2: Community Wellbeing

The following statement provides information in relation to the services funded in the 2014–2015 Budget and the persons or sections

of the community who are provided the service.

Back to contents page

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

Service / Indicator / Measure

Result

Material Variations

Aquatic Facilities

Quality

Service standard

Health inspections of aquatic facilities

[Number of authorised officer inspections of Council

aquatic facilities/number of Council aquatic facilities]

4.00

No Material Variations

Service standard

Reportable safety incidents at aquatic facilities

[Number of WorkSafe reportable aquatic facility safety incidents]

0.00

No WorkSafe notifiable incidents

occurred during the reporting

period 1 July 14 to 30 June 15.

Aquatic facilities staff undertake

regular training and have systems

of work in place to minimise the

likelihood of an incident occurring.

Cost

Service cost

Cost of indoor aquatic facilities

[Direct cost of indoor aquatic facilities less income

received/number of visits to indoor aquatic facilities]

$4.83

No Material Variations

Service outcome

Utilisation

Utilisation of aquatic facilities

[Number of visits to aquatic facilities / municipal population]

2.78

Visitation numbers have been

affected by pool closures due

to maintenance.

Home and Community Care

Quality

Service standard

Compliance with Community Care Common Standards

[Community satisfaction rating out of 100 with how Council

has performed on community consultation and engagement]

100.00

No Material Variations

Service outcome

Participation

Participation in HACC service

[Number of people that received a HACC service / municipal

target population for HACC services] x100

12.81%

No Material Variations

Participation

Participation in HACC service by Culturally and Linguistically Diverse

(CALD) people

[Number of CALD people who receive a HACC service / municipal target

population in relation to CALD people for HACC services] x100

12.20%

No Material Variations

The following statement provides the results of the prescribed service performance indicators and measures including explanation

of material variations.

Service / Indicator / Measure

Result

Material Variations

Libraries

Appropriateness

Utilisation

Library collection usage

[Number of library collection item loans / number of library collection items]

4.96

No Material Variations

Quality

Resource standard

Standard of library collection

[Number of library collection items purchased in the last 5 years

/ number of library collection items] x100

73.60%

No Material Variations

Cost

Service cost

Cost of library service

[Direct cost of the library service / number of visits]

$5.91

No Material Variations

Service outcome

Participation

Active library members

[Number of active library members / municipal population] x100

16.54%

No Material Variations

Maternal and Child Health (MCH)

Appropriateness

Satisfaction

Participation in first MCH home visit

[Number of first MCH home visits / number of birth notifications received] x100

100.30%

No Material Variations

Quality

Service standard

Infant enrolments in MCH service

[Number of infants enrolled in the MCH service (from birth notifications received)

/ number of birth notifications received] x100

94.20%

No Material Variations

Service outcome

Participation

Participation in the MCH service

[Number of children who attend the MCH service at least once (in the year)

/ number of children enrolled in the MCH service] x100

72.46%

No Material Variations

Participation

Participation in MCH service by Aboriginal children

[Number of Aboriginal children who attend the MCH service at least once

(in the year) / number of Aboriginal children enrolled in the MCH service] x100

68.29%

No Material Variations

Our Performance |

Strategic Objective 2: Community Wellbeing

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| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

Strategic Objective 3:

Urban Design and Infrastructure

Strategic Indicator / Measure

Result

Comments

Enhancing the character and identity of our city

Resident perception of Council performance around

condition of local streets and footpaths.

This score is above target and above metro Melbourne and

state-wide average scores.

Resident perception of Council performance

on the appearance of public areas.

This score is above target, but is below metro Melbourne and

state-wide average scores.

Providing a range of places for people to play,

relax and meet

Resident perception of Council’s performance

on recreational facilities.

This score is below target, and is below metro

Melbourne and state-wide scores.

The following statement reviews the performance of Council against the Council Plan including results achieved in relation to the strategic

indicators included in the Council Plan.

Major Initiatives

Progress

Implement the Road Asset Management Plan through the delivery

of a $16.9 million road rehabilitation and upgrade program.

Completed.

The following statement reviews the progress of Council in relation to major initiatives identified in the 2014–2015 budget for the year.

Our Performance |

Strategic Objective 3: Urban Design and Infrastructure

Service

Description

Net Cost Actual

Budget

Favourable /

(Unfavourable) $000

Engineering

Services

The Engineering Services Department is responsible for the following services:

Asset Management

• Development and implementation of Road Asset Management Plan;

• Development and implementation of Stormwater Asset Management Plan;

• Footpath maintenance program and inspections; and

• Construction management of capital works footpath and kerb.

Strategic Engineering

• Co-ordination of capital works planning and delivery;

• Pavement management system coordination;

• Transport planning;

• Strategic capital planning;

• Traffic Management;

• Infrastructure Development;

• Subdivision Approvals; and

• Project Services.

7,604 7,203 (401)

Environment

Ensures that the City’s environment has a strategic direction, is responsive to changing needs

and focuses on long-term sustainability. The Environment unit provides leadership, education,

coordination and project management roles in various environmental matters. In addition

it aims to engage the community in the conservation, management and restoration of

Brimbank’s natural areas, including grasslands, waterways and rocky escarpments.

2,146 2,445 299

Service

Description

Net Cost Actual

Budget

Favourable /

(Unfavourable) $000

Operations

The Operations Group is responsible for the following key service areas:

Operations Management and Administration

Responsible for the emergency management and the overall co-ordination

and administration of the following operational departments:

• Operations Centre Management;

• Building Maintenance;

• Fleet Services;

• Park Services;

• Road and Cleansing Services; and

• Waste Services.

Building Maintenance

Responsible for the following key service areas:

• Programmed and response maintenance and minor upgrades of municipal buildings, toilets

and facilities throughout the municipality, including mechanical equipment and pest control;

• Programmed and response maintenance of playgrounds, street furniture, flags and banners,

park furniture and fencing;

• Graffiti removal; and

• Supervision of Council’s security contract and cleaning contract for numerous sites.

Fleet Services

Responsible for the management, servicing and maintenance of Council’s entire fleet,

including leased and Council owned vehicles, plant and equipment.

Parks Services

Responsible for park, street tree, sports ground, streetscape and Keilor Public Golf Course

maintenance. Also responsible for the maintenance of the grounds of Council facilities.

Roads and Cleansing

Responsible for the maintenance and upkeep of Council’s road and drainage network

and associated infrastructure as per Council’s Road Asset Management Plan and the

overall cleanliness of Council land.

Waste Services

Responsible for the kerbside refuse collection, kerbside recycling collection, kerbside green

waste collection, the management of Council’s Detox Your Home Facility and the provision

of the annual hard waste and green waste collections.

63,154 64,050 896

Urban

Design

Improving the appearance of the Municipality through the delivery of capital works projects,

design advice, development facilitation and policy creation. Key areas of influence include:

• Town centres and urban villages;

• Parks;

• Linear corridors along waterways; and

• Streetscapes and urban gateways.

Public realm improvements are also facilitated by the unit through advocating for good design

outcomes with private developers, government departments and other areas within Council, and

by lobbying for State Government and other funding.

1,523 1,766 243

Asset

Services

Provides the administration and statutory enforcement of the Building Act within the Brimbank

municipality as well as facilitating the issuing and inspection of building permits for new building

work. The unit also undertakes the statutory enforcement of the Planning and Environment Act,

which ensures Planning Scheme compliance throughout the municipality.

1,282 1,279 (3)

Building

Services

Provides the administration and statutory enforcement of the Building Act within the Brimbank

municipality as well as facilitating the issuing and inspection of building permits for new building

work. The unit also undertakes the statutory enforcement of the Planning and Environment Act,

which ensures Planning Scheme compliance throughout the municipality.

1,506 1,295 (211)

The following statement provides information in relation to the services funded in the 2014–2015 budget and the persons or sections

of the community who are provided the service.

Back to contents page

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

Service / Indicator / Measure

Result

Material Variations

Roads

Appropriateness

Satisfaction

Sealed local road requests

[Number of sealed local road requests / kilometres of sealed local roads ] x100

56.29

No Material Variations

Quality

Condition

Sealed local roads below the intervention level

[Number of kilometres of sealed local roads below the renewal

intervention level set by Council / kilometres of sealed local roads] x100

89.63%

No Material Variations

Cost

Service cost

Cost of sealed local road reconstruction

[Direct cost of sealed local road reconstruction / square metres

of sealed local roads reconstructed]

$206.04

No Material Variations

Service cost

Cost of sealed local road resealing

[Direct cost of sealed local road resealing /

square metres of sealed local roads resealed]

$28.91

No Material Variations

Service outcome

Satisfaction

Satisfaction with sealed local roads

[Community satisfaction rating out of 100 with how council

has performed on the condition of sealed local roads]

60.00

No Material Variations

The following statement provides the results of the prescribed service performance indicators and measures including explanation

of material variations.

Service / Indicator / Measure

Result

Material Variations

Waste Collection

Appropriateness

Satisfaction

Kerbside bin collection requests

[Number of kerbside garbage and recycling bin collection requests

/ number of kerbside bin collection households] x1000

239.86

No Material Variations

Quality

Service standard

Kerbside collection bins missed

[Number of kerbside garbage and recycling collection bins missed

/ number of scheduled kerbside garbage and recycling collection bin lifts] x10,000

12.16

No Material Variations

Cost

Service cost

Cost of kerbside garbage bin collection service

[Direct cost of the kerbside garbage bin collection service

/ number of kerbside garbage collection bins]

$104.18

No Material Variations

Service cost

Cost of kerbside recyclables bin collection service

[Direct cost of the kerbside recyclables bin collection service

/ number of kerbside recyclables collection bins]

$29.05

No Material Variations

Service outcome

Waste diversion

Kerbside collection waste diverted from landfill

[Weight of recyclables and green organics collected from kerbside bins / weight of garbage,

recyclables and green organics collected from kerbside bins] x100

37.98%

No Material Variations

Our Performance |

Strategic Objective 3: Urban Design and Infrastructure

Back to contents page

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

Strategic Objective 4:

Sustainable environments

Strategic Indicator / Measure

Result

Comments

Reducing the city’s ecological footprint

Reduction in Greenhouse Gas Emissions

from Council operations.

Currently at 5% below 2011 levels but trending

in a positive direction.

Protecting and enhancing our natural environment

Resident perception of Council performance

on environmental Sustainability.

This score is below target, and is below

Metro Melbourne and state-wide scores.

Fostering sustainable urban development

Resident perception of Council performance

on planning and population growth in the area.

This is below target, but above the state-wide

and Melbourne Metro average scores.

The following statement reviews the performance of Council against the Council Plan including results achieved in relation to the strategic

indicators included in the Council Plan.

Major Initiatives

Progress

Pursue implementation of the Sunshine Town Centre Structure Plan,

St Albans Structure Plan and Keilor Village Vision.

Completed.

The following statement reviews the progress of Council in relation to major initiatives identified in the 2014–2015 budget for the year.

Service

Description

Net Cost Actual

Budget

Favourable /

(Unfavourable) $000

City

Planning

Provides Statutory Planning services to Council, the Brimbank community and the development

industry including:

• Administration of the Brimbank Planning Scheme;

• Assessment of planning permit applications for land use, development and subdivision;

• Representation of Council at the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal; and

• Responses to property information requests and provision of planning information.

1,814 1,651 (163)

City

Compliance

Provides education and enforcement through relevant legislation, local laws and Council policies.

Maintains a safe and healthy environment in which the community can enjoy a quality of life

that meets their expectations. Prohibits, regulates and controls activities which may be unsafe,

a nuisance or detrimental to the peace and quality of life. Encompassing the following:

Local Laws

• Enforcement of the parking regulations under State Laws (Victorian Road Rules) so there is safe

and fair use of our roads and parking areas;

• Compliance with Council’s Local Laws to ensure that living in the municipality is enjoyable for all;

• Promotion of responsible pet ownership; and

• Providing a safe environment around school crossings.

Environmental Health Services

• Reducing the incidence of food borne disease by ensuring food sold, prepared, manufactured,

stored and transported in the municipality is safe for human consumption;

• Providing an Immunisation Program to reduce preventable diseases;

• Minimising public health risks from environmental hazards;

• Implementing Infectious Diseases Programs to identify and take preventative measures

to minimise the risk of infectious disease outbreaks;

• Enforcing the Tobacco Act requirements including the sale of cigarettes to minors; and

• Providing a Needle Disposal Program and providing advice about handling Sharps.

2,818 2,624 (194)

The following statement provides information in relation to the services funded in the 2014–2015 budget and the persons or sections

of the community who are provided the service.

Our Performance |

Strategic Objective 4: Sustainable environments

Back to contents page

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

Service / Indicator / Measure

Result

Material Variations

Statutory Planning

Appropriateness

Timeliness

Time taken to decide planning applications

[The median number of days between receipt of

a planning application and a decision on the application]

92.00

No Material Variations

Quality

Service standard

Planning applications decided within 60 days

[Number of planning application decisions made within

60 days / number of planning application decisions made] x100

65%

No Material Variations

Cost

Service cost

Cost of statutory planning service

[Direct cost of the statutory planning service / number of planning applications received]

$1,868.98

No Material Variations

Service outcome

Decision making

Planning decisions upheld at VCAT

[Number of VCAT decisions that did not set aside council’s decision in relation to a planning

application / number of VCAT decisions in relation to planning applications] x100

71.43%

No Material Variations

Service / Indicator / Measure

Result

Material Variations

Animal Management

Quality

Service standard

Animals reclaimed

[Number of animals reclaimed / number of animals collected] x100

34.39%

No Material Variations

Cost

Service cost

Cost of animal management service

[Direct cost of the animal management service / number of registered animals]

$55.29

No Material Variations

Service outcome

Health and safety

Animal management prosecutions

[Number of successful animal management prosecutions]

6.00

No Material Variations

Food Safety

Quality

Service standard

Food safety assessments

[Number of registered class 1 food premises and class 2 food premises

that receive an annual food safety assessment in accordance with the

Food Act

1984

/ number of registered class 1 food premises and class 2 food premises that

require an annual food safety assessment in accordance with the

Food Act 1984

] x100

100%

No Material Variations

Cost

Service cost

Cost of food safety service

[Direct cost of the food safety service / number of food premises

registered or notified in accordance with the

Food Act 1984

]

$1,131.51

No Material Variations

Service outcome

Health and safety

Critical and major non-compliance notifications

[Number of critical non-compliance outcome notifications and major non-compliance

notifications about a food premises followed up / number of critical non-compliance

outcome notifications and major non-compliance notifications about a food premises] x100

100.00%

No Material Variations

The following statement provides the results of the prescribed service performance indicators and measures including explanation

of material variations.

Our Performance |

Strategic Objective 4: Sustainable environments

Back to contents page

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

Our Performance |

Strategic Objective 5: Industry and Economic Development and Strategic Sites | Strategic Objective 6: Organisational Effectiveness

Strategic Objective 5:

Industry and Economic Development and Strategic Sites

Strategic Objective 6:

Organisational Effectiveness

Strategic Indicator / Measure

Result

Comments

Promoting and advocating for the appropriate recognition,

development and use of Brimbank’s strategic sites

Level of website and social media presence for strategic sites.

2,452

Target achieved.

Increasing local employment, business,

office and economic development

Resident perception of Council performance on business

and community development and tourism.

This is above target, but remains lower than

Melbourne Metro and state-wide averages.

Facilitating future industrial, commercial

or residential development at strategic sites

Number of facilitation meetings held with proponents

for major industrial, commercial or residential development

projects on strategic sites.

Target exceeded.

Strategic Indicator / Measure

Result

Comments

Developing our people

Separation of low tenure (less than one year)

employees as a percentage of total hires.

7.14%

28 new staff were recruited in an ongoing capacity

in the 2014–2015 FY. Within this time, 2 of these

employees have since left the organisation.

Review and improve Council’s organisational

capabilities within a best practice framework

Resident perception of Council performance

in relation to customer service.

This score is on target and above Metro Melbourne

and state-wide average scores.

The following statement reviews the performance of Council against the Council Plan including results achieved in relation to the strategic

indicators included in the Council Plan.

The following statement reviews the performance of Council against the Council Plan including results achieved in relation to the strategic

indicators included in the Council Plan.

Major Initiatives

Progress

Promote local tourism attractions through

local and regional networks and initiatives.

Completed.

Major Initiatives

Progress

Extend quarterly reporting on adherence

to Customer Service Standards.

Completed.

The following statement reviews the progress of Council in relation to major initiatives identified in the 2014–2015 budget for the year.

Service

Description

Net Cost Actual

Budget

Favourable/

(Unfavourable) $000

City

Strategy

Provides economic development services to Council, the Brimbank community and business sector

including:

• Preparation and implementation of long-term land use planning strategies, including the

Municipal Strategic Statement;

• Preparation of planning scheme amendments and review of the Brimbank Planning Scheme;

• Economic development, investment attraction, project facilitation, and marketing;

• Place management and coordinated planning for Brimbank’s town centres and urban villages;

and

• Planning and redevelopment of ‘strategic sites’ being sites with complex environmental

and infrastructure issues.

615 587 (28)

Service

Description

Net Cost Actual

Budget

Favourable /

(Unfavourable) $000

People and

Performance

The key responsibilities of the People and Performance department include:

• Supporting and advising Council’s management and employees on all aspects

of Human Resources and Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) management;

• Leading and driving cultural change through the development and implementation

of programs such as:

• Leadership and management development

• Organisational values and behaviours

• An integrated performance management system.

• Reporting of progress against the Council Plan;

• Best Value;

• Business Excellence;

• Process improvement; and

• Knowledge Management.

3,665 3,393 (272)

Information

Management

The key objectives of the Information Management department include:

• To provide a consistently high level of Information Technology and Information

Management services to all service units and community centres, thus enabling

them to effectively manage their business processes;

• To develop and implement Information Technology projects in line with

corporate strategic objective; and

• To assist in providing better Council services to the community.

5,126 6,936 1,810

The following statement provides information in relation to the services funded in the 2014–2015 budget and the persons or sections

of the community who are provided the service.

The following statement provides information in relation to the services funded in the 2014–2015 budget and the persons or sections

of the community who are provided the service.

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| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

Governance

and

Management

and other

information

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Governance and Management

Brimbank City Council derives its

power, role, purpose and functions

from the

Local Government Act 1989

Governance framework

Brimbank City Council’s Governance Framework

provides for the achievement of best practice

governance, as well as ensuring compliance

with the

Local Government Act 2009

Governance at Brimbank is defi ned as the

process of decision-making, and the process

by which decisions are implemented. This

translates into how Council operates as a

decision-making body, and its relationship

with the organisation that provides advice

to Council and implements its decisions.

It also includes the ways that Council

engages with the community in this process.

Council meetings

Council makes its decisions at meetings

that are open to the public.

Ordinary Council Meetings

Council

considers a range of matters that aff ect the City.

On 9 December 2014, the schedule for 2015

Ordinary Council Meetings, comprising of twice

monthly meetings, was adopted.

As in previous years, the fi rst meeting was

held on the second Tuesday of the month,

at the Keilor Municipal Offi ces. The second

meeting was held on the fourth Tuesday of

the month, at the Sunshine Municipal Offi ces.

Special Council Meetings

are convened for

a specifi c purpose and only matters advertised

and listed on the agenda for the meeting may

be dealt with (except via resolution).

Governance and Management

Council Agenda

The business to be considered by the Council

is set out in the Council Meeting agenda. The

agenda is available on Council’s website prior

to Council Meetings. Hard copies are available

on the night of the Council Meeting, and at

the Keilor, Sunshine and Sydenham Customer

Service Centres, and at any of Brimbank’s public

libraries, on the day before the meeting.

Council Minutes

Council records the decisions made at each

Council Meeting. Minutes of recent meetings

are available at Council offi ces and on the

website for all meetings held during the current

calendar year (and preceding 12 month period)

as required by the

Local Government (General)

Regulations 2004 Reg

. 11 9(f).

Questions to Council

Community members have the opportunity

to raise questions in writing before an Ordinary

Council Meeting, which are then answered at

the meeting, or taken on notice with a written

response to be sent to the questioner.

Members of the public are also able to petition

Council in accordance with the requirements

of Brimbank City Council’s Meeting Procedure

Local Law.

In 2014–2015, a total of fi ve petitions were

presented to the Council for receiving and

response, and 54 public questions were

put to the Council and answered.

Administrators’ remuneration

and expenses

The Minister for Local Government sets the

remuneration paid to Council’s Administrators.

Expenses incurred by the Administrators in

undertaking their duties for Brimbank are

reported quarterly in a Governance Report

presented at an Ordinary Council Meeting,

in accordance with their Code of Conduct.

The total expenses reported for travel and

communications in these reports for

2014–2015 is $14,053.

Code of Conduct

Section 76C of

the Act

requires councils

to develop and approve a Councillor Code

of Conduct complying with the requirements

of the

Local Government Act 2009

Pursuant to section 76C (3) of

the Act

the Code of Conduct must contain:

(a) The Councillor Conduct Principles set

out in sections 76B and 76BA of the Act

(b) A process for resolving internal

disputes between Councillors, and

conduct of Councillors, which the

Council considers appropriate.

Following the appointment of Administrators,

a new Code of Conduct incorporating the

requirements of the

Local Government Act

2009

was developed and adopted by Council

in December 2009. The Code was reviewed

and updated in 2011 and Council adopted

the revised Code of Conduct on 14 December

2011. The document is again being reviewed

in anticipation of the return of Councillors in

October 2016. The Code of Conduct is available

for public inspection at Council offi ces and is

also available on Council’s website.

Back to contents page

| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

Attendance at Council Meetings by Administrators – 1 July 2014–30 June 2015

Name

Ordinary Council Meetings

(22 held)

Special Meetings

(1 held)

John Watson

Jane Nathan

John Tanner

Local laws

Brimbank had two local laws, the

General Local

Law 2008

, which came into effect on 1 January

2008 and the

Meeting Procedure Local Law No. 1

2009

, which came into effect on 28 July 2009.

On 8 July 2014, a third Local Law – the

Governance (Major Policy Consultation) Local

Law No. 3 was made. Local laws apply within

the area of the City of Brimbank and act as

secondary legislation to State and Federal laws.

General Local Law 2008

Brimbank’s

General Local Law 2008

was

adopted on 27 November 2007. The objectives

of the local law are to provide for the:

• Administration of Council’s powers

and functions

• Protection, safe and fair use and

enjoyment of Council property

• Safe and fair use of streets,

roads and footpaths

• Protection, maintenance and enhancement

of the amenity of the municipality to

a standard that meets the general

expectations of the community

• Keeping and control of animals

on land and on Council property, and

• Uniform and fair administration

and enforcement of the local law.

A copy of

General Local Law 2008

can be viewed on Council’s website.

Meeting Procedure Local Law No. 1 2009

Brimbank’s

Meeting Procedure Local Law

was

adopted on 28 July 2009. The primary purposes

of the Meeting Procedure Local Law 2009 are to:

• Provide for the procedures governing

the conduct of Council Meetings and

Committee Meetings

Governance and Management (continued)

• Set the rules of behaviour for those

participating in and attending meetings, and

• Regulate the use of Council’s common seal.

A copy of the Meeting Procedure Local

Law 2009 was available for viewing on

Council’s website.

The

Meeting Procedure Local Law No.1 2009

was reviewed and updated in 2014–2015.

The Meeting Procedure Local Law No.1 2015

(new Meeting Procedure Local Law) was

made on 18 June 2015, following community

consultation conducted in accordance with

the

Local Government Act 2009

. The new

Meeting Procedure Local Law has the same

purposes as the Meeting Procedure Local Law

2009, including provision for greater support

of people with a disability, Council to resolve to

have the position of Deputy Mayor and updates

to assist understanding of its contents.

Governance (Major Policy Consultation)

Local Law No. 3 2014

Brimbank’s Governance (Major Policy

Consultation) Local Law No. 3 was made

on Friday 18 July 2014. It enables Council to

determine whether a policy is, or is not, a ‘major

policy’, and prescribes a public consultation

process to be followed when the Council

proposes to make, amend, modify or revoke a

‘major policy’. The purpose of the local law is to:

• Provide for some policies of Council

to be designated as major policies

• Prescribe the procedure to be followed

before making, amending, modifying

or revoking a major policy

• Promote transparency of decision-making

• Promote best practice in governance

processes, and

• Provide for the peace, order and good

government of the municipal district.

Internal Committees

/External Committees

External Advisory Committees

Three advisory committees with external

representation: Community Wellbeing

Committee; Economic Development and

Transport Committee; and Sustainability

and Environment Committee continued

to meet for the first half of 2014–2015.

Reports of committee meetings were

provided to Ordinary Council Meetings.

Community Wellbeing Committee

Chair:

Brimbank Administrator, John Tanner

(from 21 March 2014).

Community representatives:

Ms Anne Bourke,

Ms Melissa Prescott (until 16 May 2014), Ms

Mary Panayiotou-Bereux, Mr Tim Johnston, Ms

Laura Nicolouleas (until 30 September 2013)

and Ms Joan Ellis.

Sustainability and Environment Committee

Chair:

Chair of the Panel of Brimbank

Administrators, Mr John Watson.

Community representatives:

Mr Anthony

Mangiardi, Ms Larissa Stewart, Mr Guy Edgar,

Mr Damien Wigley and Ms Yeshim Ismail.

Economic Development

and Transport Committee

Chair:

Brimbank Administrator, Mrs Jane Nathan.

Community representatives:

Mr Bill Petreski,

Mr Rodney Con Foo (until 30 November 2013),

Mr David Anderson, Mr Tony Smith, Mr Robert

Chessell and Ms Sue La Greca.

During 2014, the format of the advisory

committees evolved and the committees

merged on several occasions to consider

issues of municipal significance. As the majority

of key committee-specific policies had been

completed, the committees were dissolved

in December 2014.

The fourth advisory committee – the Audit

and Risk Management Committee – continued

to meet on a quarterly basis in 2014–2015.

Administrator Representation

on Committees

Each calendar year, Administrators are

nominated to represent Council on a range

of Council Committees for the following

year. Council Committees comprise Advisory

Committees (with external representation),

Community Consultative/Reference

Committees (with external representation)

and External Committees (where an

Administrator acts as a delegate).

Council advisory committees

(with external representation)

Role of committee

Nominated July 2014

– December 2014

Administrator

Nominated January

2015 – June 2015

Administrator

Audit and Risk Management

Committee (ARMC)

Advisory Committee to Council established in accordance with section 139(2)

of the

Local Government Act 1989

, to provide oversight of internal and

external audit activities.

John Watson

Community Wellbeing Committee

Advisory Committee to Council on community wellbeing issues.

Not applicable

Economic Development

and Transport Committee

Advisory Committee to Council on economic development and transport issues.

Jane Nathan

Not applicable

Sustainability and

Environment Committee

Advisory Committee to Council on environmental and sustainability issues.

John Watson

Not applicable

Community Consultative

/ Reference Committee

(with external representation)

Role of committee

Nominated July 2014

– December 2014

Administrator

Nominated January

2015 – June 2015

Administrator

Australia Day Awards

Selection Committee

Selection of Australia Day Award recipients.

John Watson

Brimbank Arts

Advisory Committee

To oversee the operational aspects of the

Brimbank Arts Collection Policy Guidelines 2011–2015.

Jane Nathan

Brimbank Community

Fund Committee

To provide guidance of the administration

of the Brimbank Community Fund.

John Tanner

Brooklyn Industrial

Precinct Strategy Committee

To provide advice and recommendations to Council on the amenity

of Brooklyn Industrial Precinct.

Jane Nathan

Community Liaison Committee –

Former Sunshine Quarry

To examine the management of environmental, amenity and traffic issues,

as well as planning for the end use of the site.

John Tanner

Errington Precinct Master Plan

Implementation (Phase One)

Community Reference Group

To provide for community input into the implementation

of Phase One of the Errington Precinct Master Plan.

John Tanner

Heritage Advisory Committee

To provide a forum for Council to work with the local community to promote

the retention, protection and enhancement of Brimbank’s heritage.

Jane Nathan

Keilor Office Building Community

Consultative Committee

To provide for community input into the development

of future use options for the Keilor municipal offices.

John Watson

Municipal Emergency

Management Plan Committee

To ensure all agencies are involved in emergency

planning for the municipality.

John Watson

St Albans Connect

Strategic Partnership Group

To provide governance for the St Albans Connect Project,

a Council initiative to coordinate the social, community and physical

infrastructure in the St Albans area.

John Tanner

Jane Nathan

(substitute

Council representative)

John Tanner

Jane Nathan

(substitute

Council representative)

Sunshine Town Centre

Partnership Group

To assist in the implementation of the Sunshine Rising program.

To assist Council realise the vision for Sunshine Town Centre.

Jane Nathan

Sydenham Town Centre

Partnership Group

To facilitate regular dialogue between Council, QIC and relevant agencies,

relating to the Sydenham Town Centre.

John Watson

Brooklyn Community

Reference Group

To foster collaboration between community, industry and government,

to ensure ongoing clean air in the Brooklyn area.

Jane Nathan

LeadWest Ltd Board

Representing the councils of Brimbank, Hobsons Bay, Maribyrnong,

Moonee Valley, Melton and Wyndham, to support sustainable growth

and regional development in Melbourne’s West.

John Watson

(Delegate)

John Tanner

(alternate

Delegate)

John Watson

(Delegate)

John Tanner

(alternate

Delegate)

Metropolitan Local Governments’

Waste Management Forum

To assist in the implementation of the Victorian Government’s ‘Waste

and Resource Recovery Policy – Getting Full Value’ and management

and administration of waste disposal contracts.

John Tanner

Council advisory committees

(with external representation)

Role of committee

Nominated July 2014

– December 2014

Administrator

Nominated January

2015 – June 2015

Administrator

Metropolitan Transport Forum

Advocacy group for promotion of effective, efficient

and equitable transport in metropolitan Melbourne.

John Tanner

Municipal Association of Victoria

(MAV) State Council

Victorian Local Government peak body, comprised of representatives whose

role is to advocate on behalf of the industry and support its development, and

represent the interests of their council by presenting its position on issues.

John Watson

(Delegate)

Jane Nathan

(substitute

Delegate)

John Watson

(Delegate)

Jane Nathan

(substitute

Delegate)

Victorian Local Governance

Association (VLGA)

Acts as a peak body for councillors, local governments, community leaders

and groups to support good governance, sustainability and social justice.

John Watson

In 2014–2015, the representatives/delegates to Council Committees were:

Governance and Management

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| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015

Governance and Management |

Governance and Management Checklist in Report of Operations

Audit and Risk

Management Committee

Council’s Audit and Risk Management Committee

is an Advisory Committee appointed under

Section 139 of the

Local Government Act 1989

During 2014–2015, the Audit and Risk

Management Committee was responsible for:

• Enhancement of Council’s external

financial reporting

• Effectiveness of both the external

and internal audit functions

• Effective management and protection

of Council assets

• Oversight of strategic risk

management framework

• Compliance with laws and regulations and

consideration of best practice guidelines

• Provision of an effective means of

communication between the external

auditor, internal auditor, management

and Council.

Audit and Risk Management

Committee Charter

The Audit and Risk Management Committee’s

Charter was approved by Council at its

Ordinary Council Meeting on 15 March 2011,

and has been reviewed annually.

As a result of the Charter annual review in

November 2014, the Charter was reformatted

and updated to include the strategic audit

plan and an annual meeting with the external

auditor and internal audit services provider.

In 2014–2015, the responsibilities of the

committee outlined in the Charter have

been carried out.

Composition of Audit and Risk

Management Committee

During the reporting period, the committee

was chaired by independent member,

Mr Michael Beer, and comprised independent

members Mr Richard Jones, Mr Homi Burjorjee,

and Ms Linda MacRae, and Brimbank

Administrator Mr John Watson.

Michael Beer

Independent Chair of Audit Committee

• Accounting and finance

• Audit, corporate governance and risk

management

• Strategic planning.

Richard Jones

Independent Member

• Local Government

• Accounting and finance

• Governance and company secretarial.

Homi Burjorjee

Independent Member

• Chartered accounting

and business administration

• Internal audit

• Local Government

• Risk management and

information technology.

Linda MacRae

Independent Member

• Local Government

• Corporate services and

financial management

• Audit and governance

• Strategic and operational

risk management.

John Watson

Chair of Panel of Brimbank Administrators

• Former Executive Director of Local

Government Victoria

• Local Government

• State Government – specialising

in governance and legislation.

During the reporting period, the committee

received and considered internal audit reports

on the following matters:

• Procurement Review

• Accounts Payable, Procurement – Purchase

Order System, Payroll, Rates – Data Analytics

Review –

• Statutory Planning Review

• Long Term Financial Plan Review

• Records Management Review.

The audit recommendations and management

responses were considered by the Audit

and Risk Management Committee, and were

implemented, or in the process of being

implemented, over 2014–2015. The Audit and

Risk Management Committee monitored the

implementation of audit recommendations at

each meeting of the committee.

The external audit report on the Annual

Financial Report 2013–2014 was received and

considered, as well as the VAGO management

letter and recommendations.

The operation of the Audit and Risk

Management Committee was reported

to Council following each meeting.

Internal audit function

Council’s internal audit function was contracted

to Crowe Horwath in 2014–2015.

Council appointed its internal auditor through

a public tender process in accordance with

section 189 of the

Local Government Act 1989

and Council’s Procurement Policy. Following the

tender process, Council re-appointed Crowe

Horwath Melbourne as its internal audit services

provider in March 2014, for a three-year term.

The annual internal audit program for

2014–2015 was successfully conducted.

Governance and Management (continued)

Governance and Management Checklist in Report of Operations

Meetings

The following ordinary meetings of the Audit

and Risk Management Committee were held

during the reporting period:

Meeting No. 100

1 September 2014

Meeting No. 101

7 November 2014

Meeting No. 102

20 February 2015

Meeting No. 103

29 May 2015

The attendance record of Audit and Risk Management Committee members for 2014–2015 was:

Name

No. of meetings

eligible to attend

No. of meetings

attended

Michael Beer (Chair)

Richard Jones

Homi Burjorjee

Linda MacRae

Chair of Panel of Administrators John Watson

Governance and Management Items

Assessment

Community engagement policy

(policy outlining Council’s commitment to engaging

with the community on matters of public interest)

Policy

Date of operation of current policy: 18 September 2012

Community engagement guidelines

(guidelines to assist staff to determine when

and how to engage with the community)

Guidelines

Date of operation of current guidelines: 2012

Strategic Resource Plan

(plan under section 126 of the Act outlining the financial and non-financial

resources required for at least the next four financial years)

Adopted in accordance with section 126 of the Act

Date of adoption: 8 July 2014

Annual budget

(plan under section 130 of the

Local Government Act 1989

setting out the

services to be provided and initiatives to be undertaken over the next 12

months and the funding and other resources required)

Adopted in accordance with section 130 of the Act

Date of adoption: 8 July 2014

Asset management plans

(plans that set out the asset maintenance and renewal needs

for key infrastructure asset classes for at least the next 10 years)

Plans

Date of operation of current plans:

• Road AMP – June 2012

• Open Space AMP – March 2012

• Facilities AMP – January 2012

• Stormwater AMP – March 2011

Rating strategy

(strategy setting out the rating structure

of Council to levy rates and charges)

Strategy

Date of operation of current strategy: 8 July 2014

Risk policy

(policy outlining Council’s commitment and approach

to minimising the risks to Council’s operations)

Policy

Date of operation of current policy: 16 October 2012

Fraud policy

(policy outlining Council’s commitment

and approach to minimising the risk of fraud)

Policy

Date of operation of current policy: 20 August 2014

Municipal emergency management plan

(plan under section 20 of the

Emergency Management Act 1986

for emergency prevention, response and recovery)

Prepared and maintained in accordance with

section 20 of the

Emergency Management Act 1986

Date of preparation: 14 October 2014

Procurement policy

(policy under section 186A of the

Local Government Act 1989

outlining the matters, practices and procedures that will apply

to all purchases of goods, services and works)

Prepared and approved in accordance with section

186A of the

Local Government Act 1989

Date of approval: 29 October 2013

Local Government (Planning and Reporting) Regulations 2014

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| Dynamic Centre of the West

Brimbank City Council

Annual Report 2014–2015