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September 2013

Acknowledgements

This Annual Report was prepared to meet the operational and financial reporting requirements within the Local Government Act 1989 and the Local Government (Finance and Reporting) Regulations 2004. For further information contact the Hobsons Bay City Council on 9932 1000 www.hobsonsbay.vic.gov.au

The Council acknowledges the people of Yalukit Wilum of the Boon Wurrung Country that makes up the Greater Kulin Nation as the traditional owners of these municipal lands.

The Council acknowledges the legal responsibility to comply with the Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act 2006 and the Equal Opportunity Act 2010. The Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities is designed to protect the fundamental rights and freedoms of citizens. The Charter gives legal protection to 20 fundamental human rights under four key values that include freedom, respect, equality and dignity.

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Table of contentsAbout this report.........................................................................................................................................5A word from our Mayor...............................................................................................................................6A word from our CEO...................................................................................................................................8A snapshot of the year’s achievements......................................................................................................10Significant events in the city......................................................................................................................13Summary of financial performance............................................................................................................14City profile.................................................................................................................................................22Governing the city......................................................................................................................................26Organisational Structure............................................................................................................................34Performance against Key Strategic Objectives............................................................................................42Key Strategic Objective 1: Civic Leadership.................................................................................................43Key Strategic Objective 2: Community Wellbeing.......................................................................................48Key Strategic Objective 3: Environmental Sustainability.............................................................................53Key Strategic Objective 4: A Liveable City...................................................................................................63Key Strategic Objective 5: Economic Sustainability.....................................................................................68Key Strategic Objective 6: Arts, Recreation and Culture.............................................................................74Key Strategic Objective 7: Quality Infrastructure and Transport.................................................................79Corporate governance...............................................................................................................................85Statutory information................................................................................................................................92Best value report.......................................................................................................................................96Community grants...................................................................................................................................106Mayoral Program.....................................................................................................................................111Ward funds..............................................................................................................................................112Understanding the Financial Report.........................................................................................................118Financial Report........................................................................................................................................120Glossary....................................................................................................................................................187

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About this reportHobsons Bay is situated on Port Phillip Bay, about 10 kilometres west of central Melbourne. Its bay frontage, quality residential areas, expanses of environmentally significant open space and major industrial complexes all contribute to the city's culture, which is strongly linked to its maritime heritage, environment, industry and lifestyle.

This Annual Report focuses on the Council’s role as a representative government for the local community. As the closest level of government to the community, the Council is well placed to understand and respond to the community’s needs and aspirations. Everything the Council does is directed at serving the community and making Hobsons Bay a better place.

Local government is accountable to the community in the performance of functions, the exercise of powers and its use of resources. The Annual Report is a key demonstration of that accountability. This report provides a comprehensive review of the Council’s operational and financial performance from 1st July 2012 to 30th June 2013 against the Council Plan 2009-2013 and the Budget 2012-2013.

The report includes:

An overview of the Council and its performance; A detailed report on performance against each of

the Council’s seven objectives; Corporate governance and statutory information,

and A detailed financial report.

Our Vision

Working together to achieve a vibrant and sustainable community that celebrates its diversity and provides opportunities for all.

Our Values

Passion about our people, city, services and environmentRespect for each otherIntegrityDiversity in our people and environmentExcellence in all we do.

Our Objectives

The Council Plan 2009-2013 sets the strategic direction for the organisation, based on seven key strategic objectives:

Civic Leadership; Community Wellbeing; Environmental Sustainability; A Liveable City; Economic Sustainability; Arts, Recreation and Culture, and Quality Infrastructure and Transport.

Quick facts about Hobsons Bay

Population 88,082 with a forecast increase of 17 per cent by 2031

Municipality covers an area of 66 sq km Includes 16 sq km of open space 31 per cent of residents born overseas 19 per cent of residents have a disability An increasing ageing population 39, 121 Rateable properties 520 kilometres of roads Five Libraries 1,500 street trees planted.

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A word from our MayorOn behalf of all the councillors, it is with pride that we provide an overview of our achievements during the past year. The past 12 months have been a time of change and growth, with a new Council, new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and a new direction, as Hobsons Bay City Council moves forward to create a vibrant city of which our community can feel proud. As the level of government closest to the community, we have and will continue to work hard to respond to community needs and support the development of high quality built, social, economic, cultural and natural environments that are conducive to wellbeing.

Three new councillors were elected in October 2012, with three multi-member wards, ensuring equitable community representation. Hobsons Bay became one of eight Victorian councils with a female majority representation. Councillors Tony Briffa, Luba Grigorovitch, Peter Hemphill and I were re-elected, with Councillors Colleen Gates, Paul Morgan and Sandra Wilson joining us for the first time. I would also like to recognise the service of former Councillors Bill Tehan, Michael Raffoul and John Hogg, I thank them for their contribution this year.

We bid farewell to CEO Bill Jaboor, who was the CEO of the Council for almost nine years, and welcomed former Director Organisation Development Chris Eddy to the helm. As the Council moved towards a new era, a new strategic plan was required. In what was the Council’s biggest and most thorough community consultation, the Community Health and Wellbeing Plan and Council Plan 2013-2017 were formed. The plans reflect the values of the community and focus on maintaining and improving infrastructure, parks and open spaces, enhancing tourism, promoting arts and culture, protecting the environment and ensuring that the community has access to Council services.

As part of our work to provide quality infrastructure to our community, we opened the Laverton Community Hub and Williamstown Library. These signature buildings at either end of our municipality will offer a range of highly valued services. The $8.6 million Laverton Community Hub will be home to community groups, health care professionals, religious organisations, social services, sporting groups and a cafe. The $8.1 million Williamstown Library features computers, iPads, a Heritage Room, self-serve checkouts, a cafe supporting people with a disability, accessible facilities, a gallery, community meetings spaces, and a range of books, DVDs and CDs.

Another important community facility, the Newport Gardens Early Years Centre, commenced construction in September 2012. This centre will meet the needs of local families and aid the eastern end of the municipality in meeting universal access for four year old kindergarten places. It will be open in early 2014.

Preparations started for the Newport Youth, Library and Seniors’ Centre, with architects invited to tender for the design of the multi-purpose facility. Meanwhile, the restoration of the Williamstown Town Hall continued, including a restored facade and historical features, refurbished Supper Room, reinstatement of the thermal chimney, a new roof, replaced flooring in the ballroom, accessible access for prams, wheelchairs, and other walking aids, and a linkway to the new Williamstown Library next door. Work will be complete by the end of 2013.

At Hobsons Bay, the environment is central to almost everything we do. Our unique location and landscape means we have a responsibility to be sustainable to ensure future generations can enjoy the lifestyle we have now. To help with this, the Council developed a Climate Change Policy 2013, Climate Change Adaptation Plan 2013-2018 and Environmental Engagement Strategy 2013-2018. The plans provide a strategic framework to manage climate change vulnerability while

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reducing environmental impacts of the Council and community to achieve zero net emissions by 2020 and 2030 respectively. The framework provides opportunities for public engagement, education and action. These proactive plans aim to limit our risks and safeguard our beloved coastline.

Work was also substantially completed on the Water Security Project to capture, collect and treat storm water to irrigate the Williamstown Cricket Ground, Paisley Park, and Laverton Recreation Reserve. This is a great initiative that will lower the Council’s reliance on drinking water to irrigate our local sportsgrounds, parks and reserves.

Advocacy has long been a key role of the Council as a representative government. This will be stepped up over the coming four-year Council term. We joined a delegation to Canberra to advocate for support for the western region, strengthened our lobbying activities by resolving to join LeadWest and the Metropolitan Transport Forum, and met with the Minister for Planning regarding major hazard facilities. We also supported our community through advisory committees and groups, including women, people with disability, people from multicultural backgrounds and those from the gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, intersex and queer communities.

We will continue to create an inclusive, resilient and healthy community; a well planned, vibrant and sustainable place; quality community infrastructure and public open spaces and places, and an innovative, proactive and leading organisation.

Civic leadership, advocacy and good governance underpin everything we do at the Council and we will continue to ensure our community is proud to live, work and play in Hobsons Bay.

Finally I would like to thank my fellow councillors for their dedication towards making Hosbons Bay a vibrant and sustainable community. In addition I would like to thank our CEO, Chris Eddy, and his staff for all their hard work.

Cr Angela AltairMayor of Hobsons Bay

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A word from our CEONew beginnings and continual improvement have driven the Council in the 2012-2013 financial year. With a new Council, an organisation restructure and the development of the Community Health and Wellbeing Plan and Council Plan, we have a new strategic direction aligned with, and responding to, our community’s needs.

While we have to accept and confront the realities of today’s economic environment, I am absolutely confident that we have the capacity and, importantly, the people to meet these challenges head on and achieve high quality outcomes for Hobsons Bay.

To ensure that our resources are best utilised and the organisation is structured to support the delivery of the Council’s vision and objectives, the organisational structure has undergone a review. Through detailed consultation, the changes are aimed at improving cross-organisational cooperation, increasing efficiency within available resources, and further strengthening the organisation’s community focus. We will continue to streamline our operations into the next financial year to ensure we work efficiently and effectively for our community.

Along with changes within the organisation, Hobsons Bay elected a new Council, one of only eight Victorian councils to have a female majority. Following the election, the organisation facilitated the transition to a new Council, including Councillor induction sessions, planning activities and developing new values for the organisation. Key to this was engaging our staff and community to develop the Community Health and Wellbeing Plan and Council Plan 2013-2017 to guide the Council’s direction and priorities to improve the health and wellbeing of the community.

Our values will ensure we can continue to create: an inclusive, resilient and healthy community; a well planned, vibrant and sustainable place; quality community infrastructure and public open spaces and places, and an innovative, proactive and leading organisation.

On the ground, we have introduced new technology to improve our customer response time, accessibility and overall operations. These include the roll out of Phase 2 of the VOIP telephony project to more sites, such as child care centres, which will greatly assist our Customer Service team. Free WiFi was introduced to Commonwealth Reserve to give the 50,000 visitors to the popular Nelson Place precinct access to the internet. The Hobsons Bay Visitor Information Centre in Commonwealth Reserve and free internet is an additional service we can offer those who come to enjoy this picturesque location. It will also benefit the cafes and retail businesses in the area by further encouraging people to visit and spend time in Williamstown.

We also introduced a data management system to track carbon emissions and water usage to ensure we are on track to meet our environmental targets. The system calculates and monitors water usage and greenhouse gas emissions from Council buildings, fleet vehicles, electricity usage and waste sent to landfill. We aim to lead by example and are working hard towards our goal of achieving zero net emissions as an organisation by 2020.

As the tier of government closest to the community, we have stepped up our presence on social media. The Council posts content on Facebook and Twitter several times a day, which has allowed us to connect more with our community and beyond. It is a great tool not only to promote events and Council programs but to report issues,

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particularly through the smart phone app Snap Send Solve. These tools have been innovative for our Customer Service team and are just another way our community can raise concerns, find out information or simply contact us. We will continue to explore cost-effective ways to further increase opportunities for our community to engage with the Council.

We continue to provide a safe and flexible work place for our staff, through staff surveys, career development, the return to work and injury prevention programs and workforce management. We have also participated in the Sustainable Employment and Economic Development (SEED) project to help prepare young and disadvantaged people for employment. We welcomed several young people to short-term positions across the Council in a mutually beneficial program giving them valuable work experience and skills they may not otherwise have had access to.

I extend my thanks to the Mayor and councillors, my corporate management team colleagues and all the talented Hobsons Bay City Council employees for their efforts in meeting the challenges of the past year and the continued commitment to making Hobsons Bay a vibrant and sustainable community.

Chris EddyChief Executive Officer

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A snapshot of the year’s achievementsThis year has seen many milestones and events that the Council and the community can be proud of. Below is a summary of just some of these achievements.

Civic LeadershipTo provide high level representation, advocacy, customer service, governance and leadership while managing our financial and human resources and ensuring the integrity of systems, data and processes to benefit our community.

Key achievements Transition to a new Council, one of only eight with a female majority New CEO appointed Organisational structure review Delegation to Canberra to advocate for key issues in the western region Acknowledging 35 women in our community via the annual Hobsons Bay Inspirational Women’s Awards New workforce management plan and guidelines to build diversity of staff, active recruitment and retention.

Community Wellbeing By providing high quality services and amenity we improve the health, safety and wellbeing of our community.

Key achievements Developing an organisational vision for health and wellbeing through extensive community consultation Opening of the Laverton Community Hub, offering an array of health and wellbeing services for all ages Opening of Williamstown Library with the inclusion of a gallery, community meeting spaces, a cafe, heritage

room, computers, and large collection of books and audiovisual materials Commenced construction of the Newport Gardens Early Years Centre, providing families with services from

birth to school age.

Environmental SustainabilityThe Council and the community will work together to minimise our impact on the environment of today and the future.

Key achievements Development of a sustainability framework and overarching Climate Change Policy to address the

environmental challenges of climate change, water and waste management, and community engagement Continued inclusion of sustainable features in new Council buildings such as water tanks, hydronic slab

heating and cooling, solar panels and an environmental data management system A grant has been secured that will accelerate the Council’s street lighting upgrade program by approximately

two years and will include installation of 1,500 energy efficient street lights Two electronic waste (ewaste) recycling trials attracted approximately 1,500 vehicles through the gates and

recycled approximately 80 tonnes of ewaste My Smart Garden program continued to deliver free workshops to the community on topics including

growing food, shading the home, using water wisely and recycling waste The Council has joined Greening the West (GTW), a regional partnership facilitated by City West Water.

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A Liveable cityThrough appropriate planning we will achieve a sustainable balance between our natural and built environment and maintain the village character of the municipality.

Key achievements The Council adopted guidelines to assist its consideration of planning applications and amendments near

Major Hazard Facilities Planning Controls were introduced into the Hobsons Bay Planning Scheme along the Kororoit Creek Corridor

to help protect, promote and sustain this valuable community asset Land at 302-330 Millers Road, Altona North was rezoned from Industrial 3 Zone to Business 3 Zone. In line

with the Industrial Land Management Strategy 2008, this change aims to increase local business To increase community access to planning information the Council website included a section highlighting the

role of VCAT and links to recent cases concerning Hobsons Bay.

Economic SustainabilityTo deliver on our tourism and economic growth potential, supporting local businesses and jobs.

Key achievements In partnership with Destination Melbourne, the Council continued to roll out its Discover Your Own Backyard

(DYOB) campaign Business Excellences Awards were held recognising top local businesses across nine categories with an

additional four awards going to business for elements within environment and sustainability, good access and good business, the business of the year, and the Mayoral award

Continued involvement in the Sustainable Employment and Economic Development (SEED) project, aimed at preparing young disadvantaged people for employment.

Arts, Recreation and CultureTo foster and facilitate access to a multitude of art, recreation and cultural pursuits across the city.

Key achievements The Council substantially completed construction of the Hobsons Bay Storm Water Harvesting Project. The

project aims to capture, collect and treat storm water to irrigate the Williamstown Cricket Ground, Paisley Park, and Laverton Recreation Reserve

The Council secured over $300,000 in state government funding for safety and access improvements to boat ramp facilities. The Warmies Boat Ramp will benefit from upgraded lighting, while improvements to the trailer and overflow car parks will be carried out at the Altona Boat Ramp

The Council’s award winning Art In Public Places program took place with 50 artists exhibiting their work across 40 venues, transforming the city into one big gallery

The Woods Street Arts Space in Laverton celebrated its first anniversary. During this time it has held approximately 170 different events, programs, classes, launches or exhibitions

Merbha was held this year as part of the bi-annual multicultural celebration. This exhibition helped tell the story of Maltese migration, civic and community life in the west

The Council has supported a range of cultural opportunities across the municipality including the Eid Festival, Newport Folk Festival, and Williamstown Literary Festival.

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Quality Infrastructure and TransportProviding quality infrastructure that meets the demands of a thriving community and advocating for improved access to and provision of sustainable transport.

Key achievements Work continued on the large-scale restoration of the iconic 1920s Williamstown Town Hall, with upgrades to

the Supper Room, toilets, roof, ballroom floor, thermal chimney, and the establishment of a link-way to the new Williamstown Library next door

Construction of the Newport Gardens Early Years Centre reached lock up stage this year. The centre is on track to open for business early in 2014

Architects have been invited to tender for the detailed design of the Newport Youth, Library and Seniors Centre. The proposed opening date is early 2016

Revetment works to the sea wall on The Strand, Williamstown have been completed in a collaborative project between the Council and the Department of Sustainability and Environment

The Council become a member of the Metropolitan Transport Forum to strengthen its lobbying activities around public and active transport.

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Significant events in the cityThese are just some of the many and varied events that the Council produced, presented or supported in 2012-2013.

A key priority for the Council is to ensure the community has a strong social environment. One of the ways this is achieved is via community events which foster community inclusion, activation, culture, learning, and connection to history.

July 2012 August 2012 September 2012Newport Folk Festival Sub 12 The Bugalugs Bum Thief

NAIDOC Week flag raising National Theatre Ballet School performances Melbourne Chamber Orchestra

Winter Kids at the Substation Hobsons Voice The Substation Contemporary Art Prize

October 2012 November 2012 December 2012

Around The Bay In A Day Melbourne Piano Trio Carols by Candlelight at Laverton, Altona Meadows, Altona, Williamstown

Williamstown Chamber of Commerce Dog Day

Eid al Adha Carols at The Substation Newport

Handel’s Messiah Spotswood Film Anniversary

Maori and Polynesian Festival Day Altona Meadows

The Mudcakes Christmas for Little MonkeysLaverton Festival

Open Studios

January 2013 February 2013 March 2013Mitchelton Bay Classic and Jayco Herald Sun Criterion cycling events

Shakespeare in the Gardens Altona Beach Festival

Go West as part of Midsumma Go West as part of Midsumma Newport Lakes Bush Dance

Movies By the Bay

Summer Sounds

Shakespeare In The Gardens

Summer Sounds Colour Fest film screenings at The SubstationAustralia Day in Altona

April 2013 May 2013 June 2013

Art In Public Places Jack Charles vs The Crown at Altona Theatre

Merbha celebrating our Maltese community

Williamstown Literary Festival

Blak Out Day at Woods Street Arts Space

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Summary of financial performance It cost over $125 million to run the Council this year, including operational expenses and our capital works program.

This section provides a brief summary of the Council’s financial performance for 2012-2013. More detail is available in the Financial Report.

The Year in Brief

Total revenue: $113.6 million Total expenses: $104.3 million Operating surplus: $9.3 million Cash: $19.2 million Net assets: $837 million, providing infrastructure and community facilities Loans: $2.2 million Working capital ratio: 122 per cent, indicating the Council has $1.22 of current assets for each $1.00 of current

liabilities.

Income StatementBudget: $108.1 millionOperating Result: $113.6 million

An additional $5.5 million income was received that was not included in the original budget. The main increases were in relation to grants for capital projects ($2.9 million), statutory fees ($1.3 million, primarily comprising open space developer contributions) and a piece of land gifted to the Council ($732,000). As the table below indicates, the Council’s income is heavily dependent on rates and charges, accounting for over 71 per cent of our income in 2012-2013.

Table 1. Hobsons Bay City Council Income 2008-2013

Income 2008-09 $,000

2009-10 $,000

2010-11 $,000

2011-12 $,000

2012-13$,000

Rates 62,387 66,244 70,602 76,038 81,641

Operating Grants and Contributions 11,902 11,618 11,237 11,955 11,876

Capital Grants and Contributions 6,434 2,931 4,710 4,300 3,517

Interest 1,046 1,297 1,698 1,370 928

User Charges 8,449 8,209 9,005 8,910 9,072

Statutory Fees 3,600 3,761 4,130 4,102 5,313

Contract Income 2,905 3,089 2,089 555 501

Initial Recognition of Assets 0 0 0 0 732

Net profit on disposal of property, infrastructure, plant and equipment 0 807 278 0 42

Fair Value Adjustment for investment properties 0 713 0 2,039 0

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Total Revenues 96,723 98,669 103,749 109,269 113,622Expenses StatementBudget: $104.8 millionResult: $104.3 million

The Councils operational expenditure was $422,000 less than budgeted. As the table below indicates employee costs accounted for 45 per cent of operational expenditure and are the most significant cost to the Council.

Table 2. Hobsons Bay City Council Expenditure 2008-2009 to 2012-2013

Expenditure 2008-09($,000)

2009-10($,000)

2010-11($,000)

2011-12($,000)

2012-13($,000)

Employee Costs 36,402 39,058 44,197 52,239 47,317

Materials and Consumables 20,236 18,797 20,818 20,371 18,467

External Contracts 14,102 13,988 16,067 16,683 17,859

Utilities 2,064 2,235 2,181 2,117 2,757

Borrowing Costs 180 145 111 184 169

Depreciation and Amortisation 14,634 15,204 15,675 17,092 17,528

Other Expenses 146 38 32 113 233

Net loss on disposal of property, infrastructure,

plant and equipment0 0 0 453 0

Total Expenses 87,764 89,465 99,081 109,253 104,330

Where your rates goThe Council provides over 100 services for the Hobsons Bay community. As the figure below indicates for every $100 of expenditure in 2012-2013 the majority of funds were spent on capital works, followed by city maintenance and cleansing. This is consistent with previous years, with a slight decrease in capital works spendings.

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Capita

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City M

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ance

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Community Care

Parks &

Recrea

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Envir

onment

Govern

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e Ma..

.

Family

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Customer

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y Support

Health

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..

Asset, W

orks &

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ce

Librar

y Serv

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Community Dev

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Planning &

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Arts Ev

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City St

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5

10

15

20

25

Services Provided Per $100 of Expenditure

Figure 1. Hobsons Bay City Council Rates Expenditure per $100 for 2012-2013

Surplus Budget: $3.4 millionResult: $9.3 million

The operational surplus of $9.3 million exceeded the expected result of $3.4 million contained in the annual budget. As stated in the previous income section, the increased surplus was mainly as a result of the additional income received. The operational surplus excludes capital purchases and other changes to the Council’s balance sheet, which are not regarded as real income. Surpluses are required to cover current and future commitments, such as the capital works program proposed within the Council’s five-year financial plan.

Figure 2. Hobsons Bay City Council’s Surplus 2008-2013

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2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13$0

$1,000

$2,000

$3,000

$4,000

$5,000

$6,000

$7,000

$8,000

$9,000

$10,000

$15k

Hobsons Bay City Council Surplus

$,000(millions)

Financial Strength The balance sheet represents the overall wealth of the Council. It outlines our assets (what we own) and our liabilities (what we owe). The difference between the two is the Council’s equity (net worth or net assets). Most of the Council’s total wealth is property, infrastructure, plant and equipment, equating to $829 million. In 2012-2013 the Council’s net worth increased by $17.4 million due to the operational surplus ($9.3 million) and revaluations to assets ($8.1 million). As the figure below indicates the Council’s financial strength has slowly increased since 2008.

2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-130

100,000

200,000

300,000

400,000

500,000

600,000

700,000

800,000

900,000

1,000,000

Financial Strength

What we ownWhat we oweEquity (net assets)$,000

(millions)

Figure 3. Hobsons Bay City Council Financial Strength 2008-2013

Cash ReservesBudget: $19 million Result: $19.2 million

A comparison of cash inflows (receipts) and outflows (payments) for the year determines the cash balance at the end of the financial year. Cash increased by $4.8 million throughout 2012-2013 to a closing cash balance of $19.2 million. The closing balance was slightly higher than the expected $19 million closing balance. As the figure below indicates the Council’s cash reserves have increased from 2011-2012.

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2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13$0

$5,000

$10,000

$15,000

$20,000

$25,000

$30,000Hosbosn Bay Cash Reserves

$,000(millions0

Figure 4. Hobsons Bay Cash Reserves 2008-2013

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Capital Works ProgramBudget: $20.9 millionResult: $23.3 million

The Council has an extensive capital works program to renew, upgrade and provide new assets to meet the community’s needs. In 2012-2013 the Council spent $23.3 million on capital works. This included: $5.1 million on renewal works, $15 million on upgrades, $2.4 million on new assets, and $1.5 million on significant operational projects. There was an additional $1.7 million spent on capital works over what was expected and listed in the original budget, mainly due to the Council sourcing additional capital income.

Over the past few years, the Council has maintained a robust capital works program to renew, upgrade and provide new assets to the community. As the figure below indicates, considerable amounts were spent on the capital works program in 2010-2011 and 2011-2012. Capital works expenditure was reduced in 2012-2013 to a level more in line with previous years. This is expected to continue into the future.

2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13$0

$5,000

$10,000

$15,000

$20,000

$25,000

$30,000

$35,000

$40,000

Capital works expenditure

$,000(millions)

Figure 5. Hobsons Bay City Council Capital Works Expenditure 2008-2013

LoansThe Council has outstanding loans of $2.2 million. Over the past few years, internal and external funding was identified as the important source of funding for the capital works program, rather than borrowing additional funds. Where possible, the Council has focused on a debt reduction strategy, which has generally resulted in a reduction in debt servicing costs, and as the figure below indicates, a reduction in loan costs. The Council’s most recent borrowings were in 2010-2011 and 2004-2005. These borrowings relate to funding the superannuation guarantee shortfalls, for which the Council will be required to borrow again in 2013-2014.

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2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13$0

$500

$1,000

$1,500

$2,000

$2,500

$3,000

$3,500

Loans

$,000(millions)

Figure 6. Hobsons Bay City Council Loans Status 2008-2013

External FundingBudget: $12.3 millionResult: $15.4 million

As the figure below indicates, the operational grant funding received this financial year was similar to 2011-2012 and to the expected budget. Variations occurred in relation to capital grant funding. The capital grant amount received ($3.5 million) was significantly higher than anticipated in the budget ($666,000), although still less than that received the previous financial year ($4.3 million). The additional ‘unbudgeted’ income was spent by increasing the capital works expenditure.

2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-130

2,000

4,000

6,000

8,000

10,000

12,000

14,000

16,000

18,000

20,000

External funding

Operating Grants Capital Grants

$,000(millions)

Figure 7. Hobsons Bay City Council Operational and Capital Grant Funding 2008-2013

Liquidity Budget: 105 per cent

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Result: 122 per cent

Liquidity, or working capital ratio, indicates the Council’s ability to fund its short-term operations. The 2012-2013 working capital ratio of 122 per cent indicates the Council has $1.22 worth of current assets for each $1.00 worth of current liabilities. This result is slightly higher than expected in the budget (105 per cent), and as the figure below indicates, is higher than the 2011-2012 liquidity; however it will need to be carefully monitored into the future to ensure a ratio of over 100 per cent is maintained.

2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-130%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

120%

140%

160%

180%

Liquidity (working capital ratio)

Figure 8. Per Cent of Hobsons Bay City Council Liquidity per $1.00 of current liabilities 2008-2013

Looking AheadThe Council faces a number of financial challenges over the next few years, including: The high dependence on rates as a source of income, its differential rating structure and the continued

affordability of rates; The identification of alternative revenue sources; Reductions in investment return income due to reduced cash and lower interest rates; Diminishing state and federal government grants, particularly in relation to grants commission funding and capital

works income; Cost shifting from other levels of government; Increased costs in relation to the environment, building maintenance and ageing infrastructure, coupled with the

need to provide adequate funds to maintain and renew, and Repaying the existing and any future defined benefit superannuation shortfalls.

There are a number of financial objectives that the Council needs to adhere to in an effort to remain financially viable during its tenure. These include: Achieving operational surpluses; Increasing cash reserves each year; Maintaining a working capital ratio over 100 per cent, with small incremental increases each year, and Continuing the debt reduction strategy, where possible. The Council should only consider borrowing to fund

defined benefit superannuation shortfalls or where specific income generating activities are identified.

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City profileThe City of Hobsons Bay is located at the north western end of Port Phillip Bay and is home to the suburbs of Altona, Altona Meadows, Altona North, Brooklyn, Laverton, Newport, Seabrook, Seaholme, South Kingsville, Spotswood, Williamstown and Williamstown North.

Hobsons Bay is unique to the Western Metropolitan Region. It has over 20 kilometres of beaches and foreshore areas. It is also home to significant coastal wetlands, five creek systems, remnant native grasslands, and important flora and fauna habitats, together making up 24 per cent of the municipality’s land area. It contains the historic seaport of Williamstown, one of the oldest settlements in Victoria, a range of historic buildings as well as recently developed residential areas.

The City is host to a range of major industrial uses, including eight major hazard facilities, which contribute to the local and state economy. Industries include chemical and petroleum, manufacturing, transport and goods distribution companies.

Our community has told us that they love Hobsons Bay for its proximity to the CBD, the beach, its parks and green spaces, its vibrant atmosphere and sense of community, its character housing and above all its people, which makes the area the ideal place to live for many.

Heritage

Prior to European settlement, the Yalukit Wilum clan occupied the area now known as Hobsons Bay. A number of sites of significance to the Aboriginal community are located throughout the municipality, particularly along the coastal trail.

Williamstown, in the south-eastern part of the municipality, is the oldest continuous settlement on Port Phillip Bay. It was established in 1837 and has a range of heritage buildings from its history as a thriving seaport. In the decades following settlement, a number of communities developed around particular industries, such as the port in Williamstown and the railway workshops in Newport and Spotswood. Examples of this early development are still clearly evident in parts of the city.

From the 1840s onwards, the suburbs of Altona, Laverton, Brooklyn and Altona Meadows began to be used for heavy pastoral and industrial land uses. Coal was discovered in Altona by a prospecting company in 1881, which raised Altona’s profile. Land in Altona North and Brooklyn was leased for quarrying, which was Hobsons Bay’s first heavy industry.

Most residential development in the central and western parts of Hobsons Bay occurred in the second half of the 20 th

century. This was driven by significant industrial expansion throughout the city, especially after the Second World War. The building of the West Gate Bridge in the 1970s further improved access to central Melbourne and beyond, resulting in better access and further growth for the western region.

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Community Snapshot

PopulationThe current 2012 estimated residential population of Hobsons Bay is 88,082. The size of the population has been slowly trending upwards over the past decade with population forecast to increase by 17 per cent (14,864) by 2031. This is a relatively low rate of growth compared to most other metropolitan Melbourne municipalities. Hobsons Bay is also located next to two of the fastest growing municipalities in Victoria: the City of Wyndham and the City of Melton. (ABS, 2012)

While the population of Altona Meadows is, and will continue to be, the largest of all the neighbourhoods in Hobsons Bay, its population as well as that of Seabrook are forecast to decrease slightly between 2011 and 2022. The areas which are forecast to experience the main population growth are Altona North, Spotswood and South Kingsville, Williamstown and Altona-Seaholme.

Age StructureAs the figure below indicates, Hobsons Bay is generally seeing an increase in the ageing population, with increases in most age groups over 50 years. There is also evidence of regeneration with slight increases in the number of young children (0-4 year olds) and adults aged 25 to 34 years.

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Hobsons Bay Age Structure

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Figure 9. The Changing Number of Hobsons Bay Residents per Age 2001-2011

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Aboriginal and Torres Strait IslandersThere were 389 people who identified as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander and living in Hobsons Bay, about 0.5 per cent of the total Hobsons Bay population, similar to that of Metropolitan Melbourne. This is an increase of 0.1 per cent (77 people) from 2006 (ABS, 2012).

Cultural DiversityApproximately 31 per cent of residents (25,850) in Hobsons Bay were born overseas. The most common countries of birth were England, India, Italy, New Zealand and Vietnam (ABS, 2012). Twenty three per cent of the Hobsons Bay population comes from non-English speaking countries, primarily from India (2.8 per cent), Italy (2 per cent), Vietnam (1.6 per cent), Malta (1.6 per cent) and Greece (1.4 per cent) (ABS, 2012).

Households and IncomeHobsons Bay is the ninth most disadvantaged municipality in Metropolitan Melbourne with a SEIFA 1 index of 997.8. Some areas of Hobsons Bay are more disadvantaged than others, in particular Laverton, Brooklyn, Altona North and Altona Meadows.

Hobsons Bay grew by 927 households from 2006 to 2011. During this time household composition and size has stayed fairly constant at 2.53 people per dwelling (ABS, 2012). Hobsons Bay has a lower proportion of couple families with children (31.7 per cent) when compared to Metropolitan Melbourne (33.6 per cent) and a higher proportion of one-parent families (11.1 per cent compared to 10.4 per cent for Metropolitan Melbourne). There are also higher proportions of lone person households (24.3 per cent) in Hobsons Bay compared to Metropolitan Melbourne (22.3 per cent) (ABS, 2012). See figure below.

New housing developments within the municipality are largely through infill development, however there are also some larger scale development sites planned within Altona North, Spotswood and South Kingsville, and Williamstown, as land uses change from industrial to residential zones.

Across the municipality 31 per cent of households have a mortgage and 35 per cent fully own their home. The remainder of households are renting privately (23 per cent), renting public/social housing (3 per cent) or have other housing arrangements (7 per cent). The median (midpoint) house price in Hobsons Bay in 2011 was $532,000, requiring an annual income of more than $147,000 to purchase (DoT, 2011), well above the median household income in Hobsons Bay of $66,872.

1 Socio-economic indexes for areas (SEIFA) are produced by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The index of disadvantage considers factors such as low income, low educational attainment, high unemployment and jobs in relatively unskilled occupations to develop a score, with 1,000 being the Australian average.

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Couples w

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Hobsons Bay %Greater Melbourne %

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Figure 10. Hobsons Bay City Council Households by Type 2012 Compared with Greater Melbourne (ABS, 2012)

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Governing the citySeven Councillors form the governing body of the city, acting together as a representative government for the local community.

Council role and objectives

The role of the Council is set out in the Local Government Act 1989. The primary objective of the Council is to work to achieve the best outcomes for the local community, having regard to the long-term and cumulative effects of decisions. Key responsibilities of the Council include setting the strategic direction of the organisation by developing a Council Plan, approving an annual budget, making decisions on key issues, advocating on behalf of the community, monitoring organisational performance and appointing the CEO to be responsible for the day-to-day management of the organisation.

Council elections

The local government elections held in October 2012 saw a new Council elected from a revised multi-member ward structure. Councillors Colleen Gates, Paul Morgan and Sandra Wilson joined the Council for the first time, while Councillors Tony Briffa, Luba Grigorovitch, Peter Hemphill and Angela Altair were re-elected.

Our councillors

Mayor Cr Angela Altair Strand WardEmail: aaltair@hobsonsbay.vic.gov.au Elected: 1999, 2002, 2004, 2008, 2012Mayor: 2002-2003 and 2012-2013Deputy Mayor: 2007-2008, 2008-2009

Councillor Altair is a journalist and public relations practitioner. Now in her fifth term as a Councillor, she has always pushed for a clean, green, prosperous city where the arts flourish and the environment is enriched and protected. Councillor Altair is founder and president of the Williamstown Literary Festival.

Deputy Mayor Cr Luba Grigorovitch Wetlands WardEmail: lgrigorovitch@hobsonsbay.vic.gov.auElected: 2008, 2012Deputy Mayor: 2012-2013

Councillor Grigorovitch is now serving her second term at Hobsons Bay City Council. Councillor Grigorovitch completed a double degree at university in 2006 and numerous other courses to enhance her skills. In 2011 Councillor Grigorovitch was selected to hold an executive position on the Victorian Local Government Association Board. Councillor Grigorovitch’s key issues include ensuring a responsible budget, social inclusion, resident support and infrastructure, and maintaining and increasing Council services.

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Cr Tony Briffa Cherry Lake WardEmail: tbriffa@hobsonsbay.vic.gov.auElected: 2008, 2012Mayor: 2011-2012Deputy Mayor: 2009-2010, 2010-2011

Councillor Briffa is an independent councillor elected to represent the Cherry Lake Ward, which includes Altona, Altona Meadows, Altona North, Brooklyn and Seaholme. Councillor Briffa is a Bail Justice and Justice of the Peace.

Cr Colleen GatesWetlands WardEmail: cgates@hobsonsbay.vic.gov.auElected: 2012

Councillor Gates is an environmental engineer and community advocate with a particular interest in the areas of community engagement and consultation, philanthropy and social disadvantage. Councillor Gates’ key issues include enhancing neighbourhood amenity, raising awareness about the Council’s services and facilities, and advocating for smarter strategic outcomes to improve health and wellbeing, transport connectivity and local infrastructure.

Cr Peter HemphillStrand WardEmail: phemphill@hobsonsbay.vic.gov.auElected: 1999, 2002, 2004, 2008, 2012Mayor: 2008-2009Deputy Mayor: 2003-2004

Councillor Peter Hemphill has been a Councillor on Hobsons Bay City Council since 1999, serving as Mayor in 2008-2009. A Newport resident, Peter is an award-winning journalist with The Weekly Times newspaper in Melbourne, and is passionate about maritime history and preserving local heritage. He holds an Australian Institute of Company Directors diploma, is a member of the Hobsons Bay City Council Audit Committee and sits on the board of the Seaworks Foundation.

Cr Paul MorganStrand WardElected: 2012Email: pmorgan@hobsonsbay.vic.gov.au

First elected in 2012, Councillor Morgan is honoured to represent the area in which he was born and grew up. Councillor Morgan and his family have resided within Strand Ward for four generations and have strong ties to the community.

Councillor Morgan has over 12 years experience occupying leadership positions within the education and technology sectors and has significant experience as a consultant to enterprise and government. In addition to his role as Councillor, Councillor Morgan serves on a number of boards and committees in the community. Councillor Morgan is a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and holds a Bachelor of Business degree in Entrepreneurship from RMIT University.

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Cr Sandra WilsonCherry Lake Ward Elected: 2012Email: swilson@hobsonsbay.vic.gov.au

Councillor Wilson has worked as a consultant in workplace diversity including equal opportunity, bullying and flexible work practices, a manager of volunteers and a policy officer on volunteering issues. With her family, she enjoys outdoor adventures such as camping, bushwalking and cycling. She is a keen football lover, supporting the Altona Vikings and the Western Bulldogs. Councillor Wilson believes in upholding good governance and working positively with colleagues and the community to deliver sensible and sustainable outcomes for our diverse and vibrant municipality.

Outgoing councillors

Cr John HoggSeabrook Ward Elected: November 2008Retired: October 2012Deputy Mayor: 2011-2012

Cr Michael RaffoulAltona North WardElected: November 2008Retired: October 2012Mayor: 2010-2011

Cr Bill TehanSpotswood WardElected: November 2008Retired: October 2012Mayor: 2009-2010

Council meetings

The Council makes formal decisions at Council meetings by a majority of votes of the Councillors present. Council meetings are held twice a month, on Tuesday evenings at 7.00pm (except over the Christmas period). Council meetings are generally held at the Hobsons Bay Civic Centre, 115 Civic Parade, Altona; however as part of the 2013 Mayoral Program to promote accessibility and understanding of issues in different wards, Council meetings were held at the Williamstown Town Hall and Brooklyn Community Hall.

Members of the public are encouraged to attend Council meetings. There is a question-time session where members of the gallery can raise Council related queries for a response. The meeting agenda is made available on the Council website on the Friday evening before the Council meeting. Copies of the agenda are also available at the meeting.

Confidential matters

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Some matters considered by the Council are confidential in nature. In accordance with section 89(2) of the Local Government Act, the Council may close the meeting to members of the public if the meeting is discussing issues including personnel matters, contractual matters, proposed developments, legal advice or any other matter which the Council considers would prejudice the Council or any person. Members of the public will be asked to leave the meeting during the discussion of confidential matters. Three confidential items were considered during 2012-2013. The confidential status of items is reviewed after a two year period.

Council Meeting AttendanceA total of 18 Ordinary Council meetings were held during the period of July 2012 to June 2013. Six meetings were held between July and September 2012, prior to the Council election on 27 th October 2012. A further 12 Ordinary Council meetings were held between November 2012 and 30th June 2013. The attendance record of councillors is set out in the table below:

Delegations to officers and special committees

Decision making powers, duties and functions may be delegated by the Council to special committees and to nominated members of Council staff in order to effectively facilitate Council business.

The delegations reflect a model where the Council makes a comprehensive delegation to the CEO, who then makes sub-delegations to relevant staff. However, as some legislation does not provide for sub-delegation, it is necessary for the Council to delegate directly to officers by resolution, as set out in a formal Instrument of Delegation.

Section 98 of the Local Government Act requires the Council to review all officer delegations within 12 months after a general election, as well as providing the Council with the power to review its delegations from time to time. The officer delegations are reviewed at least once annually and were reviewed and updated on 6 th March 2012.

In 2011-2012 there was one Special Committee with delegated powers, the Special Planning Committee, which determines planning permit applications. The Special Planning Committee was established primarily to determine planning permit applications that had attracted significant third party objections, or which raised major policy issues,

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Council Meeting Attendance

Councillor Ordinary Council Meetings Attended

Cr Altair 17 out of 18

Cr Grigorovitch 16 out of 18

Cr Briffa 14 out of 18

Cr Gates 12 out of 12

Cr Hemphill 16 out of 18

Cr Morgan 12 out of 12

Cr Wilson 12 out of 12

Cr Hogg (July- October 2012) 6 out of 6

Cr Raffoul (July- October 2012) 5 out of 6

Cr Tehan (July- October 2012) 6 out of 6

and which fell outside the powers of officers to determine under delegation. The committee’s role has evolved into an integral part of the consultative process, which forms the basis of the Council’s approach to dealing with planning issues. The committee provides an opportunity for applicants and objectors to present their views in a dedicated

forum.

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Council committees

Councillors are appointed to a range of committees to enable a greater involvement in a full range of decision-making responsibilities.2 The below table indicates what committees each councillor is delegated to:

Councillor Council CommitteeCr Angela Altair Association of Bayside Municipalities

Audit Committee (ex-officio) Hobsons Bay Community Fund Multicultural Advisory Group Municipal Association of Victoria Port Capacity Community Liaison Group Special Planning Committee Sustainable Environment Group Williamstown Library Community Advisory Group

Cr Luba Grigorovitch Hobsons Bay Community Fund Metropolitan Transport Forum Multicultural Advisory Group Special Planning Committee Victorian Local Governance Association Women’s Advisory Group

Cr Tony Briffa Disability Advisory Committee Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex and Queer (GLBTIQ) Advisory

Committee Special Planning Committee Truganina Explosives Reserve Advisory Committee

Cr Colleen Gates Altona Treatment Plant Community Liaison Committee Hobsons Bay Community Fund Laverton Community Association Lead West Metropolitan Transport Forum Special Planning Committee

Cr Peter Hemphill Audit Committee Mobil Altona Refinery Community Liaison Committee Newport Youth, Library and Seniors Facility Project Reference Group Special Planning Committee

Cr Paul Morgan Audit Committee Hobsons Bay Licensees Accord Metropolitan Waste Management Group (Local Government Forum) Special Planning Committee

Cr Sandra Wilson Altona Complex Neighbourhood Consultative Group Audit Committee Brooklyn Community Reference Group (Industry Reference Group) Police Community Consultative Committee/Westgate Regional Police Community

Consultative Committee Roadsafe Westgate Community Road Safety Council Special Planning Committee Sport and Recreation Strategy 2011-2016 Project Reference Group Women’s Advisory Committee

Cr John Hogg(July–Oct 2012)

Audit Committee Community Grants Committee

2 Appointments are usually made in December, so there is some overlap for the financial year between appointments from July to December 2012 and new appointments from December 2012 to June 2013.

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Councillor Council Committee Landscape Advisory Committee Urban Planning and Development Advisory Group Laverton Community Association Inc

Cr Michael Raffoul(July–Oct 2012)

Audit Committee Altona Complex Neighbourhood Consultative Group Brooklyn Community Reference Group Laverton Community Association Inc

Cr Bill Tehan(July–Oct 2012)

Municipal Emergency Management Plan Committee Police Community Consultative Committee/Westgate Regional Police Community

Consultative Committee Roadsafe Westgate Community Road Safety Council

Managing conflicts of interest

Councillors are elected to act in the public interest. It is therefore necessary to ensure Councillors are transparent about any personal or private interests that may be seen to conflict with their public duty. Under the Local Government Act, an interest must be declared if a Councillor would receive, or could be reasonably perceived as receiving, a direct or indirect financial or non-financial benefit or detriment from the decision (other than as a voter, resident or ratepayer). At a Council or committee meeting, Councillors must disclose a conflict of interest immediately before the matter is considered or discussed. The declaration of the conflict of interest must be recorded in the minutes.

A Councillor may also make a conflict of interest disclosure by advising the CEO in writing of the details of the interest before the Council or committee meeting. Such written disclosures are kept in a register for three years after the date the Councillor who made the disclosure ceases to be a Councillor.

The Local Government Act also requires Council staff to disclose conflicts of interest when exercising delegations, as a member of a relevant committee and when providing advice to the Council. A Council staff member who has a conflict of interest in a matter must advise the CEO in writing of the nature of the interest and must not exercise the relevant power, duty or function. If the CEO has a conflict of interest in a matter, he must disclose the type and nature of the interest in writing to the Mayor and disclose the conflict of interest to the Council at the next Ordinary Council meeting. A register of conflict of interest disclosures made by staff is maintained by the Council.

Councillor Code of Conduct

Section 76C of the Local Government Act requires the Council to prepare and approve a Code of Conduct within 12 months after each general election. The Code of Conduct sets out a range of Councillor conduct principles as required by legislation, as well as values and principles of behaviour to be observed in their conduct with each other, the organisation and the community. The code was most recently updated on 8 th February 2011. The Code of Conduct is scheduled for review in 2013.

Protocol on interaction with staff

Councillors are prohibited by S76E of the Local Government Act from improperly directing or seeking to influence Council staff. The election of a new Council provided a timely opportunity to review the organisational protocols governing Councillor-staff interactions.

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A revised protocol on Councillor-staff interaction was adopted and communicated throughout the organisation. The protocol sets clear accountabilities and lines of communication to support high standards of governance and service delivery. The protocol complements the Councillor Code of Conduct and supports compliance with the Conduct and Interests provisions in Part 4 of the Local Government Act.

Councillor support and expenses

To assist Councillors in performing their duties as elected representatives, Councillors are provided with administrative support, resources and facilities and are reimbursed for certain expenses, as specified in the Councillor Support and Expenses Policy. The policy is published on the Council website, along with a list of expenses incurred.

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Organisational StructureThe organisation’s management structure is comprised of a corporate management team and a management group who oversee the administration and service delivery of the Council Plan. As of 30 th June 2013, there were five directorates and 19 departments, each of which is overseen by a manager who is responsible for the day-to-day operations. The Council delivers a range of services to meet the needs of the community. See the organisational chart on the following page for more details on services.

CEOChris EddyResponsible for the day-to-day management of the organisation in accordance with the Council Plan, ensuring the Council decisions are implemented promptly, and providing timely advice to the Council.

Director Business and Finance Glenn O’SullivanResponsible for Finance, Property and Health and Regulatory Services.

Director Community ServicesPeter HuntResponsible for Community Development, Community Care, Family, Youth and Children’s Services, and Library Services.

Director Organisation Development (Acting)Stephen Cooper / Suzanne PattersonResponsible for Customer Service, Governance and Communications, Human Performance, Information Services, Occupational Health and Safety, Risk Management and Mayor and Councillor Support.

Director Planning and Environment (Acting)Natalie WalkerResponsible for Arts, Events and Tourism, City Strategy, Sustainability, Waste Management Services, Social Policy and Research and Urban Planning and Development.

Director Works and AssetsPhillip McDonaldResponsible for City Maintenance and Cleansing, Parks, Capital Works and Assets and Recreation.

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Our values

The corporate values guide how staff treat each other, the community, and their work: Passion about our people, city, services and environment Respect for each other Integrity Diversity in our people and environment Excellence in all we do.

Organisational culture

The Council aims to foster a culture where employees feel valued and are able to contribute to the direction of the Council’s operations. The aim is for employees to have a positive experience during their working life at the Council, with a high level of job satisfaction.

A number of initiatives are in place to promote a positive corporate culture, including flexible working policies and practices, detailed learning and development programs, and active health and wellbeing programs.

Workforce composition

The Council employs 811 people, equivalent to 548 full time staff, across wide variety of occupations, including professional, technical, operational and administrative, who proudly deliver over 120 services to the community.

The Council aims to build and maintain a staffing profile that: demonstrates a commitment to excellence; ensures an appropriate workforce mix in relation to gender, age and diversity, and is developed through proactive recruitment and retention strategies to meet current and future employment

needs.

Gender equitable workplace

The workforce comprises 550 females and 261 males. As shown in the graph below, the Community Services directorate is where the majority of the organisation’s females are employed. Most of these staff are also employed on a part-time basis. The majority of males are employed within the Works and Assets department.

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Figure 11. Hobsons Bay City Council Workforce by Gender 2013

When looking further at the gender breakdown within the organisation, as the graph below indicates, while females are represented across all management levels, they are largely focused within bands one to six roles.

The Council is committed to ensuring the development of a supportive and enabling gender equitable workplace. The Council is doing this through a range of strategies such as workforce planning, fostering a culture of career and personal development, promotion of women in leadership and further supporting the provision of a family friendly workplace.

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Figure 12. Hobsons Bay City Council Gender Breakdown via Management Level 2013

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Age profile

As the figure below indicates, the organisational workforce at Hobsons Bay is spread across all ages. However with an ageing population, the Council is aware of the need to ensure a suite of flexible employment arrangements have been developed to support older workers to remain in the workforce and to retain their skills, expertise and corporate knowledge.

The transfer of skills gained by mature workers to newly appointed employees is also a key priority for the Council. As such the Council has developed a Phased Retirement Scheme.

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Figure 13. Hobsons Bay City Council Workforce by Age 2013

Our volunteers

Volunteers make an invaluable contribution to supporting the work of the Council. Volunteers serve in a range of areas including the Friends of the Library, Meals on Wheels, Planned Activity Groups, community transport, senior citizen groups, the Hobsons Bay Visitor Information Centre, parks and conservation activities and Youth Services. The Meals on Wheels service is a long-standing program with 63,000 meals delivered in Hobsons Bay this year by volunteers and disability groups. The Council hosts an annual celebration to thank and acknowledge the hard work and passion of its volunteers, as without their help and support, the organisation would not be able to achieve as much as it currently does.

Workforce stability

Staff retention is important for organisational stability. A workforce with long-serving employees is positive for the Council in terms of capitalising on the investment in training and development and reducing recurring recruitment costs. Staff currently have an average length of service of 7.61 years. As the below graph indicates in 2012-2013 the Council had over 25 staff reach their 10th year of service, with a number of others reaching their 15th, 20th and 25th

year.

The annual corporate target for staff turnover is 15 per cent or lower. Turnover can be attributed to a number of factors including retirement and career progression. The industry average for staff turnover is 10.3 per cent, on par with the Council’s turnover figure this year of 10.2 per cent.

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Figure 14. Number of Hobson Bay City Council Staff Reaching Key Milestones in 2012-2013

Learning and Development

The Council is investing in training to ensure the workforce is equipped to meet current and future organisational and community needs.

The Learning and Development Strategy 2012-2014 identifies the learning and development requirements of our employees and establishes an integrated approach to developing, delivering and monitoring learning and development across the entire organisation. The strategy aims to support the strategic objectives of the Council Plan 2009-2013 by ensuring that all Council employees have the necessary skills to perform core functions and deliver quality services.

In its second year of operation, the strategy continued to reinforce and strengthen a workplace culture that delivers on our values and promotes good governance and management practices. This year, learning and development focussed on career development. Thirty-three staff were supported to complete qualifications which were relevant to their current role or provide for future career development. The Council also offered a Business Administration qualification, which was successfully completed by 11 staff, and a Dual Diploma of Management and Government.

The other key focus of learning and development this year was diversity and cultural competence (engaging with multicultural youth, working with interpreters), disability awareness training, youth mental health first aid and Auslan training.

Health and Wellbeing

The corporate health and wellbeing program continued to provide a wide range of events and activities to support employees in achieving personal health and lifestyle goals. There were 269 staff wellbeing activities held this year, with 562 participants. The Council also offers support and counselling for staff through the Employee Assistance Program and offers all staff the opportunity to access private health insurance at a reduced rate through the Local Government Employees Health Plan.

The Council has been striving to develop and implement policies, procedures and systems that sustain a safe and healthy work environment. Early return to work continued to be a key focus for the Council, along with injury prevention and early intervention in injury management.

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Given the focus on health and wellbeing, injury prevention and early return to work, the number of injuries in the work place has been reducing. This has led to a reduction in the number of premium sensitive workcover claims with better return to work outcomes. The number of days lost due to work related injuries has also been decreasing (see figures below).

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Figure 15. Hobsons Bay City Council Staff Injuries and Claims 2008-2013

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Total days lost due to work re-lated injuries Total days lost at the time the in-jury occurredDays

Figure 16. Hobsons Bay City Council Staff Days Lost due to Work Related Injuries 2008-2013

The reduction in “days lost at the time the injury occurred” demonstrates the effectiveness of early return to work programs and matching staff with suitable duties. The “total days lost” figures do not include time lost for injuries occurring in previous years. As at 30th June 2013, the total days lost for work-related injuries, irrespective of the date

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of injury, was 416.5, reflecting a number of serious injuries with significant recovery periods and a gradual return to work process.

The Council’s Occupational Health and Safety Management System is externally audited and certified as SafetyMAP compliant.

Equal Opportunity

The Council’s Equal Employment Opportunity and Bullying and Harassment Policy supports a commitment to the principles of equal employment opportunity and to providing a safe and productive work environment free of harassment. This commitment extends to achieving equal opportunity for all employees as a means of increasing organisational effectiveness and recognising the true potential of all employees. It is compulsory for all employees to attend training to ensure everyone is aware of the policy and their obligations. This training must be renewed every three years.

The Council has an established Equal Employment Opportunity Consultative Committee. The Committee is made up of both management and employee representatives. The goals of the committee are to promote a culture of fairness, respect and awareness of rights and responsibilities and to prevent discrimination and harassment in the workplace. The Council also has a Contact Officer program, training employees to provide confidential assistance and advice to employees who feel they may be subject to discrimination, bullying or harassment.

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Performance against Key Strategic ObjectivesAbout this section

The following section of the report is divided into the seven key strategic objectives of the Council Plan 2009-2013, each reviewing the Council’s performance for 2012-2013 in detail. The seven key strategic objectives include:

1. Civic Leadership2. Community Wellbeing3. Environmental Sustainability4. A Liveable City5. Economic Sustainability6. Arts, Recreation and Culture7. Quality Infrastructure and Transport.

Our planning frameworkThis diagram represents the organisational planning framework, as published in the Council Plan 2009-2013.

As shown, delivery of the Council Plan is supported by an annual Operations Plan, the Council Budget and supporting departmental and staff plans.

The Council Plan is required by law to contain strategic indicators to monitor success. Performance against these indicators is set out in the following pages under the heading “Council indicators”.

Performance against the annual Operations Plan 2012-2013 is reviewed in the following pages under the heading “Our Commitments”.

Community feedback on performance The Council’s performance is formally reviewed by the Hobsons Bay community every year through the annual Local Government Community Satisfaction Survey, coordinated by Local Government Victoria on behalf of participating Victorian councils. Four hundred community members are surveyed to determine satisfaction levels with a range of Council services, functions and processes. The following pages contain charts depicting the Council’s performance in the survey. Results are scored on an index scale of 0 to 100. The Council’s scores have a margin of error of +/-4.9. Data has only been provided for 2012 and 2013 due to major revisions that occurred in the survey methodology and questions two years ago.

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Key Strategic Objective 1: Civic LeadershipTo provide high level representation, advocacy, customer service, governance and leadership while managing our financial and human resources and ensuring the integrity of systems, data and processes to benefit our community.

Major Achievements

Transition to a new Council

The community elected a new governing body for Hobsons Bay at the local government elections on 27 th October 2012. The election resulted in Hobsons Bay being one of only eight Victorian councils with a majority female representation. A detailed induction program was conducted to smooth the transition to a new Council.

In the lead-up to the election, the organisation adopted stringent processes to ensure business was conducted in accordance with the caretaker provisions in the Local Government Act. These provisions aim to ensure that Councils do not make major policy decisions that may bind an incoming Council and that Councillors do not use public resources in their election campaigns. The caretaker provisions were in force from 25 th September 2012 until 6pm on Election Day. A Caretaker Policy was adopted to guide the organisation through this period. The policy covered decisions made by the Council and special committee, publications, conduct of functions, appropriate use of Council resources, access to Council information and media services.

New CEO appointed

On 24th April 2013 the Council announced the appointment of Mr Chris Eddy as CEO for a five-year term. Prior to the appointment, Mr Eddy served for six months as Acting CEO and before that was the Director Organisation Development. With a 13-year record of service in local government and a history of achievement in the private sector, Mr Eddy brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the role.

Organisational structure review

A key priority for a new CEO is to ensure the organisation is structured to support delivery of the Council’s vision and objectives. Mr Eddy initiated a detailed review coupled with internal consultation to engage staff in the review process. Changes were identified to improve cross-organisational cooperation, increasing efficiency within available resources, and further strengthening the organisation’s community focus. The new structure will take effect on 1 st

July 2013.

Strengthening regional advocacy

The Council resolved this year to join LeadWest, an organisation that supports sustainable growth and development of Melbourne’s west. LeadWest aims to build on the existing social, economic and environmental capacity of the west to plan and create a sustainable future for the region. LeadWest is governed by a Board of Directors comprising one representative from each participating Council, four elected Directors from organisation members and an independent chairperson. On 11th June 2013 Cr Colleen Gates was appointed as a Director of LeadWest to represent the Council. Membership of LeadWest will take effect in the 2013-2014 financial year.

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Delegation to Canberra

The Mayor and CEO joined a western region delegation to Canberra this year to meet key government and opposition figures. The trip provided an opportunity for the west to develop relationships with key decision makers from both sides of the political spectrum, as well as advocating with a united voice for support and assistance on the most pressing issues for the region: transport, health services, employment, education, and arts and culture. The delegation included representation from LeadWest.

Acknowledging inspirational women

The second annual Hobsons Bay Inspirational Women’s Awards were announced at the Civic Centre in March. Thirty-five inspirational women from all walks of life were honoured for their valuable contributions to the local community. The awards program is an initiative of the Women’s Advisory Committee, which aims to strengthen female leadership within the community and ensure the Council’s policies are gender equitable.

New Workforce Management Plan and Guidelines

The Workforce Management Plan and Guidelines were introduced this year. These documents ensure the future Council workforce is characterised by a staffing profile that demonstrates a commitment to, and development of, excellence. They also ensure an appropriate workforce mix in relation to gender, age and diversity of staff across all management levels within the organisation. Proactive recruitment and retention strategies to meet current and future employment needs are also addressed through these guidelines.

Best Employer staff survey

All staff were invited to participate in the Best Employer Staff Engagement survey conducted by AON Hewitt, which is part of an Australian and New Zealand Best Employers’ Accreditation program. Thirty three per cent of staff completed the survey, representing all departments. The survey found 61 per cent of employees are fully engaged in what they do, which is on par with the Best Employer average of 60 per cent. Specific strategies and actions are being formulated in response to the survey findings.

Enterprise Agreement negotiations

Negotiations for a new enterprise agreement formally commenced in March, with the Australian Services Union, Australian Nurses Federation and Association of Professional Engineers, Scientists and Managers Australia (APESMA) presenting management with their log of claims. Union representatives met with management representatives regularly to discuss the terms of the 2013 agreement. The agreement is anticipated to be finalised in 2013-2014.

Recognition for excellence in reporting

The Council was honoured with a Silver Award in the 2013 Australasian Reporting Awards for its 2011-2012 annual report. The awards recognise excellence in reporting among the private, government and not-for-profit sectors across Australasia. The Annual Report 2011-2012 also received an Honourable Mention for Best Reporting on Sustainability from the Municipal Association of Victoria, which runs an awards program designed to encourage best practice in annual reporting.

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Challenges

Meeting the funding shortfall in the Victorian local government industry superannuation fund defined benefits scheme;

A reduction in funding available for local governments from state and federal government; Preparations for including the state government’s Fire Services Levy in the rates collection process; Managing skill shortages in the employment market; Attracting and retaining quality staff as the workforce ages; Managing organisational activities through the caretaker period; Dealing with the changes initiated by the organisational structure review, and Increasing reliance on information technology and infrastructure, coupled with rapid technological change and

escalating use of bandwidth for a range of purposes.

Looking ahead

Developing a sustainable plan to meet the funding shortfall in the Victorian local government industry superannuation fund defined benefits scheme;

Work in collaboration with state and federal governments, via processes such as the Community Health and Wellbeing Partnership Model, to ensure community needs are being addressed;

Transition to a new organisational structure to ensure the Council is well placed to implement the community’s vision, as set out in the Community Health and Wellbeing Plan and Council Plan 2013-2017;

Develop an Advocacy Strategy to guide the Council in advocating on issues of importance to the community; Implement Phase 1 of an Information and Communications Technology disaster recovery solution to better

protect the Council from major disruptions to business continuity; Implement an organisational reporting database to report on implementation of the Community Health and

Wellbeing Plan and Council Plan 2013-2017; Develop a program of continuous improvement and organisational excellence; Review the Council Meeting Procedure Local Law; Pilot the Local Government Performance Reporting Framework draft indicator set, as developed by Local

Government Victoria; Review the current organisational community engagement strategy; Revise and implement the Business Continuity Plan, and Prepare a Gender Equity Policy Statement to further support the Council in achieving gender equity goals.

Measuring our performance

The Council answered 87 per cent of calls to the main telephone number in less than one minute, up from 82.5 per cent last year

The score for Customer Service in the Local Government Community Satisfaction Survey was 77, four points higher than the inner metropolitan council average.

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Our Indicators

Indicator Results Report quarterly to the Council on the Operations Plan.

Quarterly reports were produced.

Maintain a working capital ratio of greater than 100 %

The working capital ratio was 122 %, which indicates the Council has $1.22 worth of current assets for each $1.00 worth of current liabilities.

Achieve a Liability Mutual Insurance risk rating within the top 25th percentile

Achieved. The Council scored 88 % in the audit and was ranked 9th out of those councils audited during the relevant period.

Resolve 75 % of calls to the Council (9932 1000) at the first point of contact.

83% of calls were resolved at the first point of contact.

Deliver a minimum of 3,000 hours of internal training

5,832 hours of internal training were delivered.

Maintain staff turnover at less than 15% per year

Achieved. Staff turnover was at 10.2%.

Annual Community Survey

As the figure below indicates, overall Hobsons Bay is on par with the state average for core measures, scoring slightly above average for customer service. Core measures are those that can be compared against with all Victorian councils.

Overal

l Per

forman

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Serv

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Overa

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Directi

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20406080

100Community Satisfaction Survey results - core measures

Hobsons Bay 2012 Hobsons Bay 2013 Inner metro average 2013 State-wide average 2013

Figure 16. Hobsons Bay City Council Community Satisfaction with Core Measures 2012-2013

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Our Commitments

Below is a report on progress against the Operations Plan, which lists the annual actions planned for 2012-2013 to implement Civic Leadership within the Council Plan 2009-2013. Most of the actions are either completed or progressing.

No. 2012-2013 Commitments Comment1.1 Advocate on issues of importance to our community.

Continue to advocate of behalf of the Council Progressing and ongoing.1.2 Reinforce and strengthen a culture that delivers on our values and promotes good governance and management practices. 1.2.1 Oversee conduct of council elections in accordance

with the Local Government ActCompleted

1.2.2 Develop the Council Plan 2013-2017 in accordance with the Local Government Act

Completed

1.2.3 Continue the corporate Wide Area Network (WAN) upgrade project.

Completed

1.2.4 Roll out the VOIP telephony project (Phase 2) to additional Council sites to further benefit the management of the Council’s customer service.

Progressing. VOIP testing is under way at Altona North and Altona Meadows Childcare centres. Newport PAG and Altona North PAG are networked and VOIP testing is being planned.

1.3 Consider initiatives to increase and support full and equal community participation in the civic life of Hobsons Bay.1.3.1 Develop a new Disability Access and Inclusion

Strategy 2013-2017 and Action Plan 2012-2013.Completed

1.4 Secure a financially sustainable future through prudent and proactive financial management.1.4.1 Complete the annual audited financial statements

with an unqualified audit opinion.Completed

1.4.2 Coordinate the annual budget process and present to the Council for adoption.

Completed

1.5 Deliver a high quality customer-focused service.1.5.1 Increase the available channels for customers to

contact the Council through implementing 'webchat' and an appointment booking system for customers to obtain specialist advice from officers.

Progressing. Preparations under way.

1.6 Attract and retain quality staff to deliver on the Council's vision.1.6.1 Roll out the Workforce Management Plan and

Guidelines to the organisation.Deferred. The rollout was put on hold due to organisational restructure.

1.6.2 Negotiate the terms of the Hobsons Bay City Council Enterprise Agreement.

Completed

1.7 Keep the community informed and engaged in the Council’s activities and processes.1.7.1 Develop a revised Community Engagement

Framework.Progressing. Final draft prepared.

1.7.2 Develop a social media strategy. Progressing. The strategy is in the second draft and nearing completion.

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Key Strategic Objective 2: Community WellbeingBy providing high quality services and amenities we improve the health, safety and wellbeing of our community.

Major Achievements

Developing a vision for health and wellbeing

In June the Council adopted the Community Health and Wellbeing Plan and Council Plan 2013-2017 to guide the organisation in improving health and wellbeing in Hobsons Bay. To inform the development of these plans, the Council conducted an extensive community consultation with over 1,000 community members via online surveys, listening posts, focus groups and a statistically representative telephone survey. The CHWP, driven by community direction, set outs the organisation’s vision and priorities for the next four years. The Council Plan 2013-17 will sit under this plan and describe how the organisation will work to achieve the goals and objectives of the CHWP.

The consultation conducted for the Community Health and Wellbeing Plan and Council Plan identified clear organisational priorities for the next four years:

Supporting the wellbeing of children and young people; Advocating for accessible public transport throughout the municipality; Ensuring the Council assets and infrastructure are well managed and maintained in accordance with community

needs; Promoting and protecting our open space, biodiversity and environment; Ensuring land use planning and development is appropriate and in line with community values; Improving our communication and actively engaging with community; Supporting the sustainability of economic development and growth of business across the municipality; Advocating for and ensuring the availability of affordable housing throughout the municipality, and Ensuring the Council is advocating for the current and future needs of the community.

Community hub opens for business

The $8.6 million Laverton Community Hub has opened its doors to the public, offering an invaluable array of health and wellbeing services for all ages. To maximise the value of the new hub, the Council has ensured a broad mix of tenants, including social services, community groups, a migrant resource centre, a local newspaper, and education and training providers. As at the end of the financial year, the hub housed 25 regular user groups. In future, the hub will accommodate medical and allied health services and a cafe. Building on the success of the Laverton Community Hub, preparations are also under way in Newport to create a multi-purpose facility comprising a library, youth services, maternal and child health services, seniors’ facilities and meeting rooms.

New library for Hobsons Bay

In September the $8.1 million Williamstown Library officially opened for business. Funded by the Council and the state government, the library features 1,399 square metres of floor space in a modern, environmentally sustainable design. The wide-ranging services and facilities offered by the library reflect the diverse manner in which the community is using libraries. The library houses a large collection of books and audiovisual materials, a gallery, community meeting spaces, a café, 16 computers, iPads, gaming consoles and a dedicated Heritage Room. The Council’s commitment to accessible services translates into the building design, which features a lift, an accessible bathroom with full shower and hydraulic lift and hoist, fully integrated ramps, and accessible shelving heights. In the

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first nine months of operation, the new library had 165,000 visits, loaned 196,000 items and offered over 20,000 hours of internet and wifi access.

Services for Children and Families

Construction of the Newport Gardens Early Years Centre commenced in September. The $5.4 million facility, which is located on the Newport Gardens Primary School site, is unique in that it will provide families with services from birth to school age. The centre will provide long day care, a kindergarten, maternal and child health services, Yooralla’s Early Intervention Service, a toy library and playgroups. The kindergarten service will assist the eastern end of the municipality in meeting universal access requirements for four-year-old kinder places. A capital and infrastructure grant of $1 million has been secured from the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development towards the project, which will open in early 2014.

Challenges

Hobsons Bay is the ninth most disadvantaged municipality in metropolitan Melbourne, with a SEIFA3 of 997.8. Growth in the ageing population and associated chronic health conditions will see increased pressure on our

already stretched health services Access to services across the municipality is limited, especially general practitioners and mental health services

for young people Food security, affordable housing, employment, education and transport are all key issues within the municipality Restructuring our services and buildings to meet the requirements of the Commonwealth government’s Universal

Access to 15 hours of funded four-year-old kindergarten.

Looking Ahead

The Council aims to provide equitable access to services, infrastructure and economic opportunities, especially within areas of the municipality with a lower SEIFA by; Ensuring new Council infrastructure is accessible for all age levels using principles such as universal design; Development of an organisational Advocacy Strategy and the Community Health and Wellbeing Partnership

Model to advocate for improve health services, access to nutritious food, affordable housing, employment, education and transport;

Ensure the Council’s services and programs are accessible for all community members, including older adults, people with a disability, children, young people, women, newly arrived, a people with low literacy;

Facilitate an extended range of early years services within the municipality; Review the Gaming Policy Statement in support of responsible gambling behaviours in the municipality; Complete an assessment of the current Volunteer Strategy and identify the range and extent of volunteering; Establish a virtual library branch and information portal to create an informed and connected community with a

strong sense of identity and capacity to learn and thrive in an online environment; Develop the Children and Young People’s Plan 2014-2018 to articulate the Council’s role in service and

infrastructure provision, planning, advocacy and community development; Implement the Road Safety Strategy, and Implement the Multicultural Policy.

Measuring our performance

3 Socio-Economic Indexes for Areas (SEIFA) are produced by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The index of disadvantage considers factors such as low income, low educational attainment, high unemployment and jobs in relatively unskilled occupations to develop a score, with 1,000 being the Australian average.

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Over 1,000 community members were consulted during the preparation of the Community Health and Wellbeing Plan and Council Plan 2013-2017

An increase in library website usage to 89 per cent Youth Services programs targeted at identified disadvantaged groups: 84 per cent Residents involved in volunteering: 9,800.

Our Indicators

Indicators ResultsAchieve an average score of 95 % or better against the Home and Community Care service targets, as set by the Department of Health.

A result of 96.37% was achieved for the Home and Community Care service targets.

Respond to 85 % of non-urgent referrals for assessments within seven working days.

An 80% response rate was achieved.

Respond to 85 % of urgent referrals for assessments within two working days.

An 85% response rate was achieved.

Conduct 85 % of assessments within 10 working days of making contact with the client.

75% of assessments were conducted within 10 days of making contact with the client.

That 98 % of new library materials are available within 10 business days of a request.

100% were available within 10 business days.

Increase visits to the Hobsons Bay Libraries website, online catalogue and use of online collections by 5 %.

Website usage increased 89.29%. Online catalogue increased 3.8%. Implementation of the new catalogue in July 2012 encountered some initial integration issues causing periods of outage. Online collections decreased 22.56%, a significant decrease from the previous financial year due to I.T. issues with the vendors of the collections and internal IT issues.

That 90 % of library programs meet the attendance targets as set by the Library Service’s annual plan.

69.78%. This is a significant decrease due to a new booking system following the implementation of the library website in July 2012 and staff expectations of event attendance rates. The booking system is now familiar to staff; therefore the result should increase next year.

That 90 % of library programs achieve a customer satisfaction rating of “good” or higher.

98.2% customer satisfaction of “good” or higher.

Seek endorsement of the Hobsons Bay Sport and Recreation Strategy by 31st December 2012.

The draft strategy was established, with Council endorsement set for late 2013.

Hold three training sessions and one exercise to test the Municipal Emergency Management Plan.

The required number of training sessions and exercises were held.

Attain a 5 % increase on families visited throughout the key ages and stages of the Maternal and Child Health service.

Home visit and two-week participation rates remain stable at 100% and 96%. Increases in remaining eight Key Ages and Stages visits range from a 0.3% increase to a seven % increase. Two year old and 3.5 year old visits are the highest, being 6.7% and 7.7% respectively.

Achieve no less than 85 % participation rates at Maternal and Child Health services by children in their first year of life.

Participation rates up to 12 months were high, ranging from 86.9% to 100%.

Achieve childhood immunisation rates of over 90 % for all cohorts.

Immunisation rates of over 90 % were achieved for each cohort.

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Annual Community Survey

As the figure below indicates, overall the community’s satisfaction with Council services from 2012 to 2013 has remained relatively stable and above 50 per cent; however there was a greater increase in satisfaction among the community for library services.

Figure 17. Hobsons Bay City Council Community Satisfaction with Key Services 2012-2013

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Maternal and Child Health Services

Home Care Services Libraries Enforcement of Local Laws

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10

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30

40

50

60

70

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90

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Hobsons Bay Community Satisfaction Survey Results

2012 2013

Our Commitments

Below is a report on progress against the Operations Plan, which lists the annual actions planned for 2012-2013 to implement Community Wellbeing within the Council Plan 2009-2013. Most of the actions are either completed or progressing.

No. 2012-2013 Commitments Status

2.1 Ensure equitable access and a high level of service to meet the varied needs of our community.2.1.1 Construct and activate Laverton Community

Hub.Completed.

2.1.2 Conduct demographic analysis, community consultation and a policy review to inform development of a draft Municipal Public Health and Wellbeing Plan 2013-2017.

Completed.

2.1.3 Implement the new National Quality Standards across the Council's childcare services.

Progressing. Altona North Children’s Centre and Family Day Care both rated as exceeding the National Quality Standard. Altona Meadows Children’s Centre is yet to be assessed, with timing to be determined by the state government.

2.1.4 Promote responsible pet ownership and management by developing a new Domestic Animal Management Plan 2013-2017.

Progressing. The plan is almost complete and Council endorsement will be sought in early July.

2.2 Provide a range of accessible library spaces, collections and services for all as a gateway to knowledge, lifelong learning, increased opportunities and social support. 2.2.1 Complete construction of the Williamstown

Library.Completed.

2.2.2 Complete the detailed design of the Newport Library, Youth and Senior Citizens Centre.

Progressing. A revised concept plan is under development and will be presented to Council in July.

2.2.3 Develop a comprehensive Digital Services Strategy for Libraries to ensure the ongoing relevance of library services in the digital age.

Completed.

2.3 Promote and foster health and wellbeing in our community.2.3.1 Prepare a Climate Change Adaptation Response

Plan.Prepared. To be presented to the Council in 2013-2014.

2.3.2 Establish a planned activity group for aged residents in the western end of the municipality.

Progressing. Literature review and best practice benchmarking nearing completion with a view to informing a new model of approach.

2.4 Provide a broad range of sport, recreation and leisure facilities and services. 2.4.1 Implement the Hobsons Bay Sport and

Recreation Strategy.Progressing. Yet to be presented to the Council.

2.4.2 Implement the Playspaces Strategy. Progressing. Playgrounds were upgraded in accordance with budget allocations throughout the year. Final report of the Playspaces strategy to be presented to Council in August.

2.4.3 Implement the Synthetic Surfaces Strategy. Completed.2.4.4 Implement the Altona Central Sports Precinct

Plan.Completed.

2.5 Ensure the Municipal Emergency Management Plan is fully maintained, audited and tested.2.5.1 Implement the Emergency Management Plan. Completed.

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Key Strategic Objective 3: Environmental SustainabilityThe Council and the community will work together to minimise our impact on the environment of today and the future.

Major Achievements

A framework for sustainability in Hobsons Bay

A Sustainability Framework has been developed to address the environmental challenges of climate change, water and waste management, and community engagement. A significant part of the framework is the Environmental Engagement Strategy 2013-2018, which was endorsed for public exhibition this year. This document creates an innovative, organisation-wide strategy for assisting the community to participate in environmental events and programs. The strategy is complemented by a Climate Change Policy and Climate Change Adaptation Plan. The policy addresses how the Council will manage its climate change vulnerability, while the adaptation plan identifies actions and strategies to address climate change risks. The Sustainable Environment Advisory Group and other key stakeholders were consulted throughout the development of the framework.

Reducing our environmental footprint

The Council strives on an ongoing basis to minimise its environmental impact. The commitment to incorporating state-of-the-art sustainable features in new Council buildings continued this year. The Williamstown library boasts a 45,000 litre water tank, hydronic slab heating and cooling, and design features that minimise the use of lighting. Likewise, the Laverton Community Hub features an underground water tank, harvestable rainwater and solar panels. In order to quantify the impact of such initiatives, the Council has also installed an environmental data management system. This system calculates and monitors water usage and greenhouse gas emissions from sources including Council buildings, fuel, electricity and waste sent to landfill. Through this system, the Council will be better positioned to track its progress in meeting its greenhouse targets.

Grant secured for energy efficient lighting

A grant has been secured that will accelerate the Council’s street lighting upgrade program by approximately two years. A total of 1,500 energy efficient street lights will be installed in the municipality in 2013-2014 as part of the Lighting the West project. Funding will be provided by the Australian Government’s Community Energy Efficiency Program (CEEP).CEEP is providing $112 million in grants to 170 local governments and non-profit community groups for energy efficiency upgrades such as lighting, heating, ventilation and air conditioning. The successful funding application was made in partnership with Wyndham and Moonee Valley City Councils. Funding was prioritised to projects that were easily communicable to the community in municipalities with a low SEIFA index. The project will receive $2,473,076 in grant funding, with Hobson Bay City Council receiving $434,427 from the CEEP grant.

Electronic waste recycling trials

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Two electronic waste (ewaste) recycling trials conducted by the Council in September and November 2012 attracted approximately 1,500 vehicles through the gates and recycled approximately 80 tonnes of ewaste. The ewaste items that were accepted included televisions, computer equipments and accessories, laptops, DVD players, network and memory cards, toner and ink cartridges, printers, scanners, mobile phones, telephones, joysticks, computer game consoles, hi-fi equipment, stereo equipment, digital and video cameras. Options for a future ewaste recycling program are under investigation.

Empowering the community through education

Residents of Hobsons Bay continued to benefit from the My Smart Garden program, which delivers free workshops on topics including growing food, shading the home, using water wisely and recycling waste. This year’s program included a session on selecting and caring for fruit trees and a permablitz (free working-bee style event) to build a self-watering garden bed and worm farm at the Laverton Community Hub. These themes were also covered in other educational activities conducted this year, including World Environment Day workshops on sustainable food production, sustainable cooking, and gardening.

Partnering for urban greening

The Council has joined Greening the West (GTW), a regional partnership facilitated by City West Water. GTW recognises that access to green spaces has a positive impact on community health. Therefore, GTW facilitates projects designed to enhance the quantity and quality of vegetation and open space in the urban environment. The Council is an active member of the steering committee, which has been working to develop a Greening the West Strategy to be launched in 2013-2014.

Challenges

The immediate and long-term challenges from climate change and its impacts on the local community, businesses, industry and on Council functions and service delivery;

The Council’s ability to reduce carbon emissions within industry and businesses; Maintaining and protecting biodiversity from impacts such as climate change, urban development and pests; Air quality, dust and amenity issues in Brooklyn, and The declining population of 954 elm trees, with 227 assessed as high risk and 43 identified as a high priority for

removal and replacement.

Looking Ahead

The adoption and implementation of the Hobsons Bay Climate Change Policy; Increasing partnership with industry and businesses newly develop economic development function within the

Council; The Council will actively work with Brimbank City Council on its Living Brooklyn program to address the issues of

air pollution and amenity in that precinct; The Council will actively work with the Brooklyn community to understand and work towards addressing needs; The Council will be undertaking retrofit works on its largest greenhouse emitting buildings during 2013-2014 to

reduce greenhouse gas emissions; The Council will adopt the Climate Change Adaptation Plan, integrating risks in the Council’s Risk Register; Complete Stage 2 of the street light replacement program to replace 80-watt mercury vapour street lights with

32-watt compact fluorescent lights; Implement the Water Security Plan to irrigate selected sites with collected stormwater; Prepare a discussion paper on a Biodiversity Strategy; Develop, implement and evaluate a cigarette butt litter program; Develop an organisational sustainable event policy, and

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Conduct elm tree removal and replanting works around Williamstown.

Measuring our performance

77,165 local indigenous plants planted in conservation sites 90 per cent satisfaction level from 750 My Smart Garden program participants 80 tonnes of electronic waste collected 127 conservation events held involving Friends groups, schools and the general community.

Our indicators

Indicator Result and Comment

Achieve no net loss in street trees across the municipality due to removal.

A net gain was achieved: 1,500 street trees were planted and 360 street trees were removed.

Divert 45 % or more of waste from landfill per year.

46.6% of waste was diverted from landfill.

Undertake four activities that assist the reduction of the Council’s greenhouse gas emissions.

More than four activities were conducted.

Complete a Community Greenhouse Strategy by 30th December 2012.

Strategy developed in readiness for public exhibition on 9th July 2013, with adoption anticipated in September 2013.

Undertake four environmental education and awareness activities during the year.

More than four activities were conducted.

Participants in the My Smart Garden program report an average satisfaction rate of 70 % or more with the workshops.

A 90% satisfaction level was achieved from approximately 750 participants.

Implement an Environmental Data Management System to track carbon emissions and water usage by 30th June 2013.

The system was implemented on 3rd August 2012.

Seek endorsement of the Hobsons Bay Open Space Strategy by 31st March 2012

Progressing. A key issues paper has been developed and an internal consultation and research review has been completed.

Annual Community Survey

As the figure below indicates, overall the Hobsons Bay community is relatively satisfied with the Council’s environmental sustainability and waste management services and projects, with improved satisfaction for waste management.

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Figure 18. Hobsons Bay City Council Community Satisfaction for Environment and Waste 2012-2013

Key environment and waste data

One of the Council’s key aims is to reduce the Council’s greenhouse gas emissions and water usage. As the graph below indicates, emissions have risen steadily since 2008-2009 by approximately 1,000 tonnes. The increase in total emissions between 2011-2012 and 2012-2013 was 243 tonnes. The Council expected to see an increase due to the introduction of the Environmental Reporting System, which allows for more accurate data reporting. The increase is also attributable to commencement of operations of four new buildings within the Council’s building portfolio during 2012-2013.

The Council continues to work towards reducing our greenhouse gas emission through the implementation of the Corporate Greenhouse Strategy.

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Environmental Sustainability Waste Management0

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1,000

2,000

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4,000

5,000

6,000

The Council's greenhouse gas emissions

Tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent

(tC02e)

Figure 19. Hobsons Bay City Council Carbon Dioxide Emissions 2008-2013

Mains (drinking) water consumption has increased substantially over the last two years, largely due to the lifting of water restrictions. Soil moisture content is measured monthly for playing fields that receive irrigation to ensure over-watering does not occur. The Hobsons Bay Storm Water Harvesting Project, discussed in the Arts, Recreation and Culture section, will assist in reducing the reliance on mains water on a range of sporting fields and ovals.

Bore water is used to ‘top up’ Newport Lakes. Due to old and unreliable data, bore water use for the previous two years have been estimated to be the same as the use for 2010-2011. Bore and mains water usage is shown in the figure below.

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2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 -

50,000

100,000

150,000

200,000

250,000

300,000

350,000

Council water usage

Mains waterBore water

kL

Figure 20. Hobsons Bay City Council Mains and Bore Water Usage 2008-2013

Waste management and recycling is a key priority for the Council. As shown below, the percentage of waste diverted from landfill has remained relatively stable since 2008.

2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-130%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%Percentage of waste recycled

Figure 21. Hobsons Bay City Council Percentage of Waste Recycled 2008-2013

The graph below demonstrates the Council’s commitment to purchasing ‘green’ products and services such as green power. Green expenditure equated to seven per cent of total available expenditure in 2012-2013. The slight reduction in green purchases reported in 2012-2013 compared to 2011-12 was largely due to a reduced capital works program. Green spending is reported to ECO-buy Limited, a not-for-profit organisation that promotes demand and use of environmentally sustainable products and services.

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2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13$0

$500,000

$1,000,000

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$2,000,000

$2,500,000

$3,000,000

$3,500,000

$4,000,000

$4,500,000

$5,000,000

Value of ‘green’ purchases reported to ECO-Buy

Figure 22. Hobsons Bay City Council Green Products and Services Spendings 2008-2013

Tree planting, biodiversity and protecting local ecosystems is also a key priority for the Council. In 2012-2013 the Council maintained a net gain in the number of municipal street trees and achieved a slight increase in the number of local indigenous plants planted within conservation reserves. See figures below.

2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-130

200

400

600

800

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1,400

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Street trees planted and removed in Hobsons Bay

Planted RemovedFigure 23. Hobsons Bay City Council Street Tree Planting and Removal 2008-2013

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2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-130

2,000

4,000

6,000

8,000

10,000

12,000

14,000

16,000

18,000

Local indigenous plants planted in conservation reserves

Figure 24. Hobsons Bay City Council Indigenous Planting in Conversation Reserves 2008-2013

Community engagement in environmental sustainability is key to raising community awareness and ensuring long-term sustainable practices. The Council has been increasing community conservation activities with the community since 2009-2010. Activities include planting, weeding, rubbish pick-ups, maintenance and environmental education. The graph below indicates how many activities have been held.

2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-130

20

40

60

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Number of community conservation activities coordinated in parks and conservation areas

Friends Group Activities Conservation Community Events School EventsFigure 25. Hobsons Bay City Council Community Conservation Activities Held 2009-2013

Our Commitments

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Below is a report on progress against the Operations Plan, which lists the annual actions planned for 2012-2013 to implement Environmental Sustainability within the Council Plan 2009-2013. Most of the actions are either completed or progressing.

No. 2012-2013 Commitments Status

3.1 Enhance the urban environment through the greening of the Municipality.3.1.1 Implement the Street Tree Asset Management Plan. Completed.

3.2 : Move towards more sustainable use of resources.3.2.1 Implement an Environmental Data Management System to

track carbon emission and water usage.Completed

3.2.2 Report to Ecobuy on the annual third party spend of environmental and sustainable procurement

Completed.

3.3 Provide a quality open space network across the municipality and promote our unique coastal parklands3.3.1 Develop the Hobsons Bay Open Space Strategy. Progressing. Key issues paper developed.

Internal consultation and research review completed in previous quarter.

3.4 Ensure environmentally responsible and effective waste management and recycling practices3.4.1 Implement use of Rotating Drum Trommel to separate sand

from seaweed in the Altona Beach seaweed collection process.

Progressing. Trommel being trialled and requires some modifications before being put into full operation.

3.4.2 Implement the Metropolitan Waste Management Group's Metropolitan Improving Kerbside Recycling program.

Progressing. Now known as Get It Right on Bin Night, the Metropolitan program is entering the final phase and will comprise a general communications strategy, a Culturally and Linguistically Diverse groups (CALD) strategy and the development of tools to support direct engagement. Reporting is through the Council’s service report.

3.5 Work towards reducing the Council’s net emissions of greenhouse gases to zero by 20203.5.1 Complete Stage 2 of the street light replacement program

to replace 80-watt mercury vapour street lights with 32-watt compact fluorescent lights.

Deferred while awaiting the outcome of a funding application to the Australian government’s Community Energy Efficiency Program. Preparations have commenced to install 1,500 lights in 2013-2014.

3.5.2 Review the corporate Greenhouse Action Plan to prepare a cost curve to achieve a carbon-neutral target.

Completed.

3.5.3 Reduce energy consumption by completing the transition to an energy-efficient virtualised computer server environment.

Progressing. Ten servers virtualised. Five servers remain to be virtualised.

3.5.4 Modify Council buildings to achieve Environmentally Sustainable Design outcomes.

A decision has been made to focus audit and retrofit activity on the Civic Centre, as analysis of the Greenhouse Action Plan and Environmental Reporting System

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No. 2012-2013 Commitments Status

indicate concentration of activity should be on a single building. Focussing activity on the main council building is expected to achieve the greatest impact in reducing carbon emissions from energy usage in Council buildings. While the target of 15 building audits will not be achieved, the revised approach will provide better value to the community.

3.5.5 Complete a Community Greenhouse Strategy. Progressing. This has been developed. Public exhibition anticipated July-August 2013 with adoption in September 2013.

3.6 Undertake environmental education to improve community practice.3.6.1 Implement the My Smart Garden program. Completed.

3.7: Use water in a responsible manner and with maximum efficiency.3.7.1 Prepare an integrated water management plan. Progressing. Under development. Phase 1

completed, including initiation; data collection and analysis; initial vision and objectives workshop; catchment models; community consultation plan. Community consultation held in February.

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Key Strategic Objective 4: A Liveable City

Through appropriate planning we will achieve a sustainable balance between our natural and built environment and maintain the village character of the municipality.

Major Achievements

Interim guidelines for Major Hazard Facilities

Hobsons Bay is home to eight of Victoria’s 45 major hazard facilities (MHFs). While MHFs are closely regulated, there is limited guidance in the state planning framework regarding land use planning decisions near MHFs. This year, the Council adopted guidelines to assist its consideration of planning applications and amendments near MHFs. Further, the Council met with the Minister for Planning to discuss how community safety and future development proposals can be balanced with the needs of industry. Clearer measures to address policy gaps are important for planning permit applications such as the former Port Phillip Woollen Mills site, where a planned development is near a MHF.

Planning controls along the Kororoit Creek corridor

In March 2013 Planning Controls were introduced into the Hobsons Bay Planning Scheme along the Kororoit Creek Corridor to implement the recommendations in the Kororoit Creek Regional Strategy 2005-2030. The Kororoit Creek corridor is regarded as an important and valuable asset by local communities of the western suburbs and visitors. The Creek is used extensively for active and passive recreation such as walking, cycling, picnics, and relaxation. The Environmental Significance Overlay that has been adopted will protect and improve waterway health and biodiversity values of Kororoit Creek and its environment, including native vegetation, fauna habitat, flora and fauna species. These planning controls will help protect, promote and sustain this valuable community asset now and into the future.

Changes to land use at the former Cabot’s site in Millers Road

In May 2013 land at 302-330 Millers Road, Altona North was rezoned from Industrial 3 Zone to Business 3 Zone. Additionally, a Design and Development Overlay was added to further guide development of the site, as well as an Environmental Audit Overlay to address possible contamination issues and long term environmental sustainability. The amendment aligns with the Industrial Land Management Strategy 2008 and also acts to increase the supply of business zoned land within the municipality, increasing the local economy.

Increasing community access to information

A new section was added to the Council website to provide an overview of the role of VCAT, as well as links to details of recent cases concerning Hobsons Bay. This initiative will help the community better understand and participate in the VCAT process. This information is provided in addition to the information already available on the Greenlight online permit management system.

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Challenges

Policy gaps in the planning framework regarding land use decisions near major hazard facilities; Addressing interface and buffer distance requirements from major industries including major hazard facilities; The growing complexity of the planning land use system and the continuous use of State Planning Policies being

used to override local planning policy consideration such as neighbourhood character and heritage at VCAT; Balancing pressure for increased density and height of development while maintaining local neighbourhood

character and “village” feel; Provisions of affordable housing and a mix of housing types; Balancing increased coastal development with potential sea level rises due to climate change; The increased use of legal representation and multiple expert witness to push applications through VCAT, and Planning implications of the future growth of the port.

Looking ahead

Continue to advocate to the state government to establish an advisory committee to consider land use planning around Major Hazard Facilities;

Undertake a review of key policy documents to strengthen Municipal Strategic Statement; Review the existing Neighbourhood Character Study and prepare a Housing Strategy to protect areas with

significant neighbourhood character and direct where housing growth should occur to include in the Planning Scheme;

Commence the implementation of the Council Climate Change Adaption Plan; Implement the Vibrant Villages Program; Implement the Gateway Entrances Program; Implement Master Plans for open space and natural areas in accordance with the budget; Implement the Street Tree Asset Management Plan, and Continue to advocate to the Port Liaison Committee on behalf of the community.

Measuring our performance

Over 250 parks, gardens, reserves, sportsgrounds, roundabouts and roadsides maintained Requests for municipal cleansing resolved within five days: 92 per cent Over 23,340 sq m of graffiti removed.

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Our Indicators

Council Plan Strategic Indicator Results

No more than five appeals per year against failure to determine a planning permit application within the prescribed time.

Four appeals were lodged.

Respond to 90 % of requests for further information within 28 days of receipt of a planning permit application.

95% of requests were responded to within 28 days.

Present a draft Outline Development Plan for Precinct 15 to the Council by 1st December 2012.

To date, a Planning Scheme Amendment for the site, which includes an Outline Development Plan, has not been submitted to the Council for consideration. Work on the plan remains ongoing.

Complete a draft Stage 2 Municipal Strategic Statement (MSS) rewrite by 30th June 2013 for the purpose of public exhibition

The Planning and Environment Act 1987 requires councils to review their MSS to ensure that it aligns with the Council Plan. The rewrite has been deferred pending adoption of the new Community Health and Wellbeing Plan and Council Plan 2013-17 to enable the MSS to be aligned with these plans.

Annual Community Survey

As the figure below indicates, overall the satisfaction with some of the Council’s planning services is fairly low. Planning is a complex issue and the Council has committed to invest in strategic planning resources and staff to prepare robust policies, housing strategies and neighbourhood character studies to address this issue.

Good planning can mean the difference between an average development and an excellent one that meets the community’s expectations. The Council has tailored its processes to ensure that anyone with an interest in a proposed development may get involved and have their say. In 2012-2013, the Council received 738 town planning applications and approved 674.

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Appearan

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100Community Satisfaction Survey results

2012 2013Figure 26. Hobsons Bay City Council Community Satisfaction with Planning 2012-2013

Our Commitments

Below is a report on progress against the Operations Plan, which lists the annual actions planned for 2012-2013 to implement A Liveable City within the Council Plan 2009-2013. Most of the actions are either completed or progressing.

No. 2012-2013 Commitments Status

4.1 Manage increased growth and development and ensure our strategies balance heritage.

4.1.1Complete a draft Stage 2 Municipal Strategic Statement rewrite for the purpose of public exhibition.

Deferred pending adoption of the new Community Health and Wellbeing Plan and Council Plan 2013-17 to enable the MSS to be aligned with these plans.

4.2 Improve the quality and amenity of public space.

4.2.1 Develop nature strip landscaping guidelines. Completed

4.2.2 Review the Vibrant Villages and Gateway Entrances Programs and develop a works program.

Progressing. Programs reviewed and draft works programs developed.

4.2.3Review the Gateway Entrances Programs and develop a works program.

Progressing. Programs reviewed and draft works programs developed.

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No. 2012-2013 Commitments Status

4.3 Prepare and implement structure planning and master planning for the activity centres and major gateways within the municipality.

4.3.1 Prepare a range of master plans and structural plans for key activity centres.

Progressing. This remains ongoing.

4.4 Prepare Outline Development Plans in consultation with stakeholders to manage the implementation of the Industrial Land Management Strategy.4.4.1 Prepare a draft Outline Development Plan for Precinct

15 for presentation to the Council.Progressing. This remains ongoing.

4.5 Plan for the sustainable future use of Hobsons Bay Coastal areas4.5.1 Review the management plan for the Altona Coastal

Park.Progressing. The Management Plan for Altona Coastal Park is being finalised.

4.5.2 Adopt the Altona Foreshore Strategy. Progressing. Draft Seaholme and Altona Foreshore Community Vision presented to the Council and placed on public exhibition.

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Key Strategic Objective 5: Economic Sustainability

To deliver on our tourism and economic growth potential, supporting local business and jobs.

Major Achievements

Promoting the city as a destination

In partnership with Destination Melbourne, the Council continued to roll out its Discover Your Own Backyard (DYOB) campaign, harnessing the considerable spending power of the Visiting Friends and Relatives (VFR) market, on the premise that informing and inspiring residents about things to see and do in Hobsons Bay will help them to become ambassadors for and encourage spending in the west. DYOB won the Marketing Strategy Award at the National Economic Development Awards in 2012, and demonstrates the Council commitment to local tourism and small business support. The campaign included editorial and advertising features in the local press, with seasonal themes referring to local businesses and attractions.

In other marketing support for tourism and business operators, each issue of the quarterly Victoria Official Visitors Guide featured two pages promoting the features of tourism across Hobsons Bay, and coverage was provided also in the Official Visitors Guide apps. Through the 2012-2013 Mayoral program, WiFi was installed to provide a free internet service at Commonwealth Reserve, helping Williamstown maintain a competitive edge as a tourist destination.

2012 Business Excellence Awards

The fourth Hobsons Bay Business Excellence Awards were held on September 2012 to acknowledge the importance of a thriving local business community. The awards recognised top local businesses across nine categories at a gala dinner at the Williamstown Town Hall. Additional winners were then selected from all entries for the Environment and Sustainable Business Award, Good Access/Good Business Award, the Business of the Year and the Mayoral Award. Winners are listed in the table below.

2012 Hobsons Bay Business Excellence Awards

Category Winner

Business of the Year Burbank

Environment and Sustainability OMCS International

Good Access/Good Business UCAN Cafe

Mayor’s Business Award UCAN Cafe

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2012 Hobsons Bay Business Excellence Awards

Home Based Seaside Fitness

Hospitality Captains Retreat and Mosaic (joint winners)

New/Start Up Business Helen’s Kitchen Favourites

Not for Profit/Community Tracy The Placement People

Manufacturing and Industry Burbank

Professional Services Mancini Real Estate

Retail Elle and Stuart

Tourism Quest Williamstown North

Transport and Logistics Jim’s Self Storage

Providing work opportunities for young people

The Council continued its involvement in the Sustainable Employment and Economic Development (SEED) project, aimed at preparing young disadvantaged people for employment. This program is a collaboration between the community, industry and government. Short term employment was provided to four young people within the City Maintenance and Cleansing and Human Resources departments.

Festivals and events

A number of festivals and events were supported by the Council through funding and major event sponsorship this year. The Mitchelton Bay Series in January coincided with the first stage of the Jayco Herald Sun Tour providing a big day of racing for cycling fans, and extensive metropolitan and state media coverage. The midway point of the 50km leg of the annual Around The Bay In A Day participatory event brought many thousands of cyclists to Logan Reserve in Altona and promoted the Hobsons Bay Trail to many visitors and residents. Cultural and community events brought opportunities to business including the Laverton Festival, the Altona Beach Festival, and the Go West events program as part of Midsumma, among many others. In May the Council endorsed the development of an integrated Events and Festivals Strategy 2014-2018 so that the resourcing, benefits and impacts of both events and festivals programs can be considered collectively.

Challenges

The changing nature of the industrial sector and long-term impacts on employment opportunities on Hobsons Bay residents and local businesses;

Attracting businesses to the municipality and continuing economic growth, and Further building on tourism opportunities across the municipality especially in relation to culture, heritage, the

coast, industry and other unique elements of Hobsons Bay.

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Looking ahead

Work with industries and local education providers to ensure opportunities for community skill development; Implement Phase Two of the Discover Your Own Backyard campaign; Promote and support economic development through business and tourism support services and industry

partnerships; Continue to plan an annual events calendar consistent with cycling, maritime and cultural themes while delivering

the Events and Festivals Strategy 2014-2018; Scope the development of a new Sustainable Tourism Strategy; Maintain Level 2 Accreditation of the Hobsons Bay Visitor Information Centre, and Create activities in support of Victoria Tourism week.

Measuring our performance

Business workshops held: 14 Fortnightly business e-news delivered to over 400 businesses Four trader associations supported and funded by the Council.

Our indicators

Indicator Result and Comment Showcase at least three activities or events in support of the Sustainable Tourism Strategy.

Many and varied activities were showcased including Movies By The Bay, Summer Sounds, Art In Public Places, Altona Beach Festival, Williamstown Literary Festival, and cycling events such as the Mitchelton Bay Series, Jayco Herald Sun tour and the Around The Bay In A Day half way 50km event at Logan Reserve.

Conduct the 2012 Hobsons Bay Business Excellence Awards.

Awards conducted on 7th September 2012.

Maintain visitation at the Visitor Information Centre at 50,000 visits or more.

Visitation numbers were 47,552, down four % from the previous year, noting that visitor information centres generally are experiencing slight down turns due to online research. The majority of visitors were walk-ins.

Maintain Level 2 Accreditation of the Hobsons Bay Visitor Information Centre.

Level 2 accreditation maintained.

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Annual Community Survey

As the figure below indicates, overall the community’s satisfaction with Hobsons Bay’s Business, Community Development and Tourism has remained stable and above 60 per cent.

Business and Community Development and Tourism0

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Figure 27. Hobsons Bay City Council Community Satisfaction with Business, Community Development and Tourism 2012-2013

Key data on the Hobsons Bay Visitor Information Centre

While local residents enjoy accessing the Visitor Information Centre, as the graph below indicates, over half of the visitors to the Visitor Information Centre are from other areas across Victoria. There are also a significant proportion of visitors from overseas. It is the busiest Visitor Information Centre in metropolitan Melbourne outside the CBD.

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Hobsons Bay Visitor Information Centre - Origin of visitors

Local Victoria Interstate Overseas

Figure 28. Hobsons Bay City Council Visitor Information Centre Visitors 2013

As the graph below indicates, the main reason that people use the Visitor Information Centre is to find out information on things to do around the city. People also access maps, get directions and access information about local services.

Nature

of inquirie

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8,000

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16,000Inquiries at the Hobsons Bay Visitor Information Centre

Figure 29. Hobsons Bay City Council Visitor Centre Inquiries 2013

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Our Commitments

Below is a report on progress against the Operations Plan, which lists the annual actions planned for 2012-2013 to implement Economic Sustainability within the Council Plan 2009-2013. All actions are completed except one which has been deferred due to organisational reviews.

No. 2012-2013 Commitments Status

5.1 : Promote and support sustainable economic development and tourism opportunities that benefit the City and the local community. 5.1.1 Maintain Level 2 Accreditation of the Hobsons Bay Visitor

Information Centre.Completed.

5.1.2 Prepare for the review of the Sustainable Tourism Strategy 2006-12 by identifying the scope of a new tourism plan for Hobsons Bay.

Deferred. Work to commence after organisational review is complete.

5.1.3 Complete the Discover Your Own Backyard tourism campaign.

Completed.

5.2 Build tourism potential by capitalising on Hobsons Bay’s natural assets.

5.2.1 Coordinate an events calendar consistent with cycling, maritime and cultural themes.

Completed.

5.3 Encourage and support initiatives that create high value employment opportunities

5.3.1 Assist in the coordination of SEED program to help address long-term unemployment and disadvantage among young people.

Completed.

5.4 Support local businesses and trader associations to create vibrant shopping precincts.

5.4.1 Deliver the Hobsons Bay Business Excellence Awards and workshops program.

Completed.

5.4.2 Provide funding and meet regularly with trader associations to support and assist their activities.

Completed.

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Key Strategic Objective 6: Arts, Recreation and CultureTo foster and facilitate access to a multitude of art, recreation and cultural pursuits across the city.

Major Achievements

Waterwise sports grounds The Council substantially completed construction of the Hobsons Bay Storm Water Harvesting Project this year. The project will capture, collect and treat storm water to irrigate the Williamstown Cricket Ground, Paisley Park, and Laverton Recreation Reserve. Works at Williamstown Cricket Ground are expected to be completed in October 2013 and the Laverton scheme is expected to be completed by early November 2013. The Paisley Park scheme was commissioned in August 2013 and is now operational. It is estimated that these three schemes will save up to 184 megalitres of water annually (almost 74 Olympic-sized swimming pools). The project will not only deliver environmental benefits from responsible resource usage, but also deliver significant cost savings. This project is a collaborative effort, with federal government funding of $3.13 million.

Further, the Council adopted a Synthetic Sports Surfaces Feasibility Study recommending synthetic sports surfaces as a viable alternative to turf surfaces that are affected by drought or heavy rainfall. Synthetic surfaces also provide an alternative venue when other sporting locations are closed for repairs. The recommendations in the study will be implemented as funding becomes available and specific needs are identified.

Community input sought on plans

Open space such as coastal areas and parks are a key defining feature of the city and a significant asset for the community. Public comment was invited in April on the draft master plan for Kim Reserve. Key features of the draft plan are improvements to the car park, training lights, a storage shed and shelter, replacement fencing, improved pedestrian access, and landscaping, including turf cover. The Council also prepared a draft concept design for a pavilion at the reserve to replace the current building. The design of the new pavilion aims to improve the functionality of the building and provide larger storage, social areas and change rooms.

Funding for recreational facilities

In a boost for boating and fishing enthusiasts, the Council secured over $300,000 in state government funding this year for safety and access improvements to boat ramp facilities. The Warmies Boat Ramp will benefit from upgraded lighting, while improvements to the trailer and overflow car parks will be carried out at the Altona Boat Ramp. In total, almost $400,000 will be invested to improve these popular facilities. Funding was also secured from Sport and Recreation Victoria to upgrade soccer pitches at Paisley Park.

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Art in Public Places taking arts out across the city

The Council’s award winning Art In Public Places program took place from 5 th April until 5th May 2013. Fifty artists exhibited their work at 40 venues, transforming the city into one big gallery. Cultural events and temporary arts installations are a growing focus of Art In Public Places, and this year it brought together an inspiring and inclusive calendar of events that included projection tours, pop-up music performances, an art auction, a celebration of tea, children’s workshops, paste-ups on buildings, professional development for artists, street art, and street chalk. Paint The Gardens at the Williamstown Botanic Gardens and a fancy dress tree exhibition at Logan Reserve created much interest in outdoor city spaces.

Arts-driven urban renewal

The Woods Street Arts Space in Laverton celebrated its first anniversary in April 2013. The former post office at Lohse and Woods Street, a once dilapidated building in a prominent location close to the Laverton train station, is now transformed into a shop front arts hub supporting a program of cultural workshops and exhibitions. In its first year, approximately 170 different events, programs, classes, launches or exhibitions have been held across a diverse realm including indigenous culture, Pacific weaving, writing development, storytelling, pottery, street beats and percussion, drawing, professional development and crafts. It has been a venue for Street Smart, Art In Public Places, Open Studios, local government arts network meetings and Refugee Week events.

Celebrating community pride and cultural diversity

A bi-annual multicultural celebration is part of the Council’s arts commitment to the Louis Joel Arts and Community Centre in Altona. This year, in June, Merbha (meaning ‘welcome’ in Maltese) helped tell the story of Maltese migration, civic and community life in the west. The exhibition opened in June 2013. It comprised a film, storyboards and photographs, a large interactive mapping project and a popular run of storytelling sessions. Over four per cent of Hobsons Bay residents have Maltese heritage.

Creating cultural opportunities

By providing funding to assist cultural festivals including the Eid Festival, Newport Folk Festival, Williamstown Literary Festival, the Council helps to create opportunities for people to participate, whether as audience, organisers, volunteers, artists and business. Grants are provided to the Altona Laverton Historical Society and Williamstown Historical Society, to the Hobsons Bay Band and funding is provided to organisers of community events, Laverton Festival, Australia Day in Altona and Carols by Candlelight. A priority of the Council is engaging young people. Pixel 8, a photographic competition for young people organised in partnership with Victoria Police, drew record numbers this year culminating in some winning entries being displayed as an outdoor exhibition at Airtime, the flags program at Altona Meadows Skate Park. Another Airtime highlight was the literary flags exhibition organised with Bayside College. Funding support was provided to Crashendo, the immersive music program that is in its third year at Laverton College P-12.

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Challenges

Delays to construction of the Laverton stormwater harvesting scheme due to extreme weather; Considerable damage to street and park trees due to strong winds and storms; Maintaining and meeting community expectations for Hobsons Bay’s extensive park and open space network; Maintaining accessible shared pathways within the municipality, and Ensuring meaningful engagement through access to the arts for all people, especially our young people.

Looking ahead

Complete the Hobsons Bay Public Art Strategy; Develop the Hobsons Bay Events and Festivals Strategy; Implement the annual actions of the Arts and Culture Plan 2011-2015; Oversee the operation of Woods Street Arts Space as part of urban renewal in Lohse and Woods Streets,

Laverton; Ensure The Substation thrives as a contemporary arts destination with local and regional significance; Develop the Hobsons Bay Open Space Strategy in consultation with the community; Implementation of the Hobsons Bay Strategic Bicycle Plan; Implement the Club Development Program, building sustainable sporting clubs, and Completing the Lohse Reserve, Laverton redevelopment.

Measuring our performance

Tickets sold through Hobsons Bay Tickets: 4,089 Increase in Bayfit gym visits: 28.6 per cent There are 165 sporting clubs offering 29 different sports activities.

Our Indicators

Indicator ResultsPromote at least three events that enhance community cultural experience during the year

Events included Newport Folk Festival, Art In Public Places, Arts At Your Doorstep, Merbha (Maltese exhibition), Spotswood film screening and festival, and Laverton Festival.

Prepare a new five-year Public Art Strategy for Council endorsement by June 2013

The strategy is currently under development and will be presented to the Council for endorsement in October 2013.

Seek endorsement of the Hobsons Bay Open Space Strategy by 31st March 2012

Progressing. A key issues paper has been developed and an internal consultation and research review has been completed.

Annual Community Survey

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As the figure below indicates, overall the community’s satisfaction with recreation facilities and community and cultural activities has remained stable, with a score well above 60.

Recreational Facilities Community and Cultural Activities0

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Figure 30. Hobsons Bay City Council Community Satisfaction with Recreation Facilities, Community, and Cultural Activities 2012-2013

Our Commitments

Below is a report on progress against the Operations Plan, which lists the annual actions planned for 2012-2013 to implement the Council Plan 2009-2013. All of the actions are either completed or progressing.

No. 2012-2013 Commitments Status

6.1 Promote and enhance the community pride and sense of belonging.

6.1.1 Oversee the operation of Wood Street Arts Space as part of urban renewal in Lohse and Woods Laverton.

Completed

6.2 Promote the artistic and cultural life of the city.

6.2.1 Implement the annual actions of the Hobsons Bay Arts and Culture Plan 2011-15.

Completed

6.2.2 Prepare a new five-year Public Art Strategy. Progressing. Work on this has commenced and will be presented to Council this quarter for endorsement.

6.3 Maintain and improve parks and open spaces for recreation and amenity.

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No. 2012-2013 Commitments Status

6.3.1 Complete water security storm water harvesting projects to enable irrigation with collected storm water at - Williamstown Cricket Ground- JT Gray Reserve- Laverton Park Precinct- Paisley Park.

Progressing.

6.3.2 Implement the Laverton Park Future Directions Plan. Completed6.3.3 Implement the Cherry Lake Master Plan. Completed

6.3.4 Implement scheduled remediation works at Jack Madigan Reserve.

Progressing. Rehabilitation management plan and tender documentation completed in previous quarter. This quarter, a statement of environmental audit was obtained from the EPA appointed environmental auditor to allow for the design documentation to commence. A fact sheet is on the Council website.

6.3.5 Develop a Vegetation Management Plan for the Rifle Range Reserve.

Progressing. The Vegetation Management Plan for the Rifle Range is being finalised.

6.3.6 Finalise the review of the Master Plan for the Truganina Explosives Reserve.

Progressing. The Master Plan for the Truganina Explosives Reserve is being finalised.

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Key Strategic Objective 7: Quality Infrastructure and Transport

Providing quality infrastructure that meets the demands of a thriving community and advocating for improved access to and provision of sustainable transport.

Major Achievements

Key projects completed

Two major infrastructure projects were completed this year: the Williamstown Library and the Laverton Hub. These projects represent a major investment in infrastructure that will serve the community in a variety of ways. The $7.6 million Laverton Hub delivers a multi-purpose community and health facility to the Laverton community. The $8.1 million Williamstown Library creates a meeting place and an opportunity for the community to develop knowledge and skills. Environmental and accessible elements feature strongly in the design of both buildings, in line with the Council’s commitment to sustainability and access for all via the principals of universal design.

Refurbishing Williamstown Town Hall

Work continued on the large-scale restoration of the iconic 1920s Williamstown Town Hall, arguably the finest and largest of its kind in the state. The Supper Room and toilets are complete, the roof and ballroom floor renewed, and the thermal chimney reinstated. A linkway was also established to integrate the Town Hall with the new Williamstown Library next door.

Community Services and Infrastructure Plan under development

The Council is developing a Community Services and Infrastructure Plan (CSIP) to guide the Council in providing quality infrastructure to meet demand into the future. There are 60 community facilities across Hobsons Bay catering to a diverse range of needs. The CSIP will provide an evidenced based strategic direction for the future provision of community services infrastructure. To date, extensive research has been undertaken to determine the demographic changes in population over the next 10 years, the service needs of the community, the condition of the buildings and a functional review of how each building operates and supports service provision.

Newport Gardens Early Years Centre under way

Construction of the Newport Gardens Early Years Centre reached lockup stage this year. The $5.4 million centre will house long day care, kindergarten, maternal and child health services, Yooralla’s Early Intervention Service, the Hobsons Bay Toy Library and playgroups. Community rooms will also be available for hire. The Department of Education and Early Childhood Development has contributed $1 million to the project through a capital and infrastructure grant. The centre is on track to open for business early in 2014.

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Designing a new hub for Newport

Architects have been invited to tender for the detailed design of the Newport Youth, Library and Seniors Centre. It is envisioned that the centre will incorporate a youth facility, flexible library, senior and community activity spaces, Maternal and Child Health consulting rooms, a seniors club and the refurbished Newport Mechanics Hall. The final design is anticipated to be completed by June 2014. The proposed opening date is early 2016.

Sea wall strengthening

Revetment works to the sea wall on The Strand, Williamstown, have been completed in a collaborative project between the Council and the Department of Sustainability and Environment. This section of coastline will now be able to withstand strong tidal movements and waves caused by one-in-50-year storms.

Public and active transport

Access to transport is a key issue for the Hobsons Bay community. The Council resolved in May to become a member of the Metropolitan Transport Forum to strengthen its advocacy on behalf of the community. The forum includes 20 other councils and advocates to the state and federal governments for effective, efficient and equitable transport in metropolitan Melbourne.

Further, the Hobsons Bay Strategic Bicycle Plan 2003 was reviewed and endorsed for public exhibition in June. The plan provides a framework for developing a connective bicycle network in the municipality, with on-road and off-road routes. The review identified gaps in the provision of on-road routes and shared trails that restrict commuter and recreational cyclists and pedestrians and identified priority projects for the future.

Key capital works projects 2012-2013

Major ProjectsLaverton Hub $3.8 MillionNewport Gardens Early Years Centre $2.4 MillionWilliamstown Library $1.5 MillionEsplanade Williamstown and Foreshore $1.3 MillionWilliamstown Town Hall Restoration $1.2 Million

Environmental InitiativesGreenhouse Action Plan $220,000Storm water Harvesting $1 Million

Sporting FacilitiesNew Cricket nets $130, 000Sporting ground floodlighting $400,000

Roads, Footpaths and DrainageFootpath upgrades and renewals $750,000Road resurfacing Program $950,000Road rehabilitation Program $1 MillionDrainage upgrades $200,000Traffic management $150,000

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Parks and Open SpacePlayground redevelopments $300,000Cherry Lake Reserve Improvements $100,000Paisley Park $650,000McCormack Park $200,000Shared Trail development $200,000Laverton Park $200,000Car park upgrades $500,000Elm Tree management $90,000

Urban Design and City ImageWilliamstown Library/ Town Hall Precinct Landscape Master Plan $200,000Urban design and city image projects $150,000

BuildingsBuilding renewals and upgrades $900,000Public toilet upgrades $560,000Altona Sports Centre $100,000

Challenges

Ageing community infrastructure and facilities; Limited access to frequent, reliable public transport that is accessible for young people, people with a disability,

women and older people; Decreasing state government funding to jointly fund bicycle path construction projects; Wet weather since mid-2010 after around 10 years of drought has highlighted problems with drainage

infrastructure and kerb and channel in the city; Community concerns regarding an inadequate supply of car parking in key areas; Managing community expectations regarding maintenance of unconstructed laneways; Lack of underground drainage, and Managing rehabilitation of rights of way.

Looking ahead

Adopt the Community Services and Infrastructure Plan; Prepare a discussion paper on an Integrated Transport Strategy; Complete the Newport Gardens Early Years Centre; Participate in the MAV STEP Asset Management Improvement Program; Implement car parking strategies; Implement the Road Safety Strategy; Complete refurbishment and heritage preservation works at Williamstown Town Hall; Plan and tender for the rehabilitation of Jack Madigan Reserve with a view to creating open space for community

use; Complete pavilion extension works at the Newport Athletics Centre, and Implement foreshore protection and maintenance projects in accordance with the budget.

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Measuring our performance

Our Indicators

Indicator Result and Comment Carry forward at year end not more than 5 % of the annual Capital Works budget as adjusted by resolution of the Council.

5.26% of the budget was carried forward

Achieve a score of 87 % or better in the Liability Mutual Insurance Risk Management Audit of proactive inspections and reactive requests for the Road Management Plan

95 % (includes scores for risk based assessment of frequencies and intervention levels, internal reviews of proactive and reactive inspections and traceable links to documented evidence of proactive and reactive inspections.)

Annual Community Survey

As the figure below indicates, overall the community’s satisfaction with the Council has remained consistent over the last two years. The Council will continue to implement car parking and road safety strategies on an ongoing basis, as well as implementing the annual footpath program and conducting road works in accordance with the budget.

Condition of local streets and footpaths

Traffic Management Parking Facilities0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100Community Satisfaction Survey results

2012 2013

Figure 31. Hobsons Bay City Council Community Satisfaction with Footpaths, Traffic and Parking 2012-2013

Capital Works is a key program within the Council. As the figure below indicates, in 2012-2013 over 90 per cent of capital works projects work completed. The timing of the commencement and delivery of projects can be affected for a range of reasons, including unfavourable weather conditions.

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2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-130%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Percentage completion of the capital works program

Figure 32. Hobsons Bay City Council Capital Works Completion 2008-2013

Our Commitments

Below is a report on progress against the Operations Plan, which lists the annual actions planned for 2012-2013 to implement Quality Infrastructure and Transport within the Council Plan 2009-2013. All of the actions are either completed or progressing.

No. 2012-2013 Commitments Status

7.1: Provide roads, drainage and footpath networks at a standard to meet the needs of the City.

7.1.1 Undertake drainage investigations in Altona and Williamstown to develop a long-term program of drainage installations and upgrades.

Progressing. Consultants were engaged to undertake two further drainage studies in Williamstown.

7.1.2 Digitise drainage data and link it to the Geographic Information System.

Progressing. Development and digitisation of drainage data is being done progressively, but was delayed due to resourcing issues.

7.1.3 Make recommendations arising from the review and assessment of the four-yearly road condition audit results.

Completed.

7.1.4 Implement major road works in accordance with the budget.

Progressing. Works were completed as budgeted, except the Percy Street budget was deferred due to other priorities.

7.1.5 Complete the Footpath Program. Completed.

7.2 Enhance the safe and efficient flow of traffic throughout the municipality.7.37.2.1 Commence implementation of recommendations from the

Altona Meadows and Williamstown South Local Area Traffic Management Studies.

Progressing. Altona Meadows Local Area Traffic Management Study 80% completed. Williamstown South Local Area Traffic Management Study 20% completed due to available funding.

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No. 2012-2013 Commitments Status

7.2.2 Continue implementation of the annual actions of the Road Safety Strategy.

Completed.

7.4 Manage the community’s assets in accordance with best practice asset management7.57.3.1 Complete upgrades to the Williamstown Town Hall Grand

Hall ceiling, supper room ceiling, floor, thermal chimney and toilets.

Progressing.

7.3.2 Complete Community Services and Infrastructure Plan. Progressing. Draft plan developed for Council consideration.

7.3.3 Complete asset management and life cycle audits and reporting on Council buildings.

Completed.

7.4 Deliver a sustainable long-term Capital Works program.7.4.1 Complete and hand over major Council building projects:

Williamstown Library and Laverton Hub.Completed.

7.4.2 Complete the capital works program. Completed.

7.5 Advocate for public transport improvements and improve access and infrastructure for bicycles and pedestrians.7.5.1 Continue implementation of the Bicycle Strategy. Progressing. Draft plan approved by the

Council and placed on public exhibition.

7.5.2 Establish a Regional Trails Strategy. Progressing. Commitment secured in previous quarters from other Local Government Authorities and state government. Project to be completed in 2013-2014.

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Corporate governanceQuality internal processes enhance public confidence in local government.

FOI requests processed within statutory deadlines: 100 per cent Policies adopted: 12.

What is corporate governance?

On a daily basis the Council makes decisions that affect people’s lives, endeavouring to achieve the best outcomes for the local community. Corporate governance aims to ensure that the manner in which decisions are made and implemented is open, honest, transparent, communicative and accountable. It is about putting robust controls in place to manage policy development, legal compliance, risk and finances. It is also about how the Council consults, represents and communicates with the community. The Council regularly seeks to involve the community in its decision making through a range of avenues and also has processes in place to facilitate public access to information in accordance with statutory obligations. The following information provides further detail on the controls and processes in place to promote good corporate governance.

Audit Committee

Good corporate governance requires an effective Audit Committee. The Audit Committee is an advisory committee that provides independent advice to the Council. It was established in 2001 in accordance with Section 139 of the Local Government Act. The committee operates in accordance with the best practice guidelines for audit committees.

Role of the Audit Committee

The role of the Audit Committee is to assist the Council in the effective conduct of its responsibility for financial reporting, management of risk, maintaining a reliable system of internal control and facilitating the organisation’s ethical development. The committee operates under a charter and focuses on monitoring the Council’s risk management, control framework, external accountability, legislative compliance, internal audit and external audit.

Membership of the Audit Committee

The Audit Committee consists of: Three Councillors: Cr Peter Hemphill, Cr Sandra Wilson and Cr Paul Morgan; Three suitably qualified, independent members; Mayor Cr Angela Altair (non-voting), and CEO (non-voting).

The Chairperson is appointed by the Council and is one of the independent members. In the event of a tied vote, the Chairperson has the casting vote.

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The independent members are as follows:

Mr David Ashmore – FCA, GAICD, F Fin, CIA (Chair). Mr Ashmore is a chartered accountant with more than 40 years of public practice experience initially with Ernst and Young and then with Grant Thornton. His key roles have been as an audit and assurance services partner, including external and internal audit services and the related and extensive finance, risk and governance advisory roles.

Mr Ashmore’s focus is now on board and related finance, risk advisory and governance work. Mr Ashmore has a number of formal appointments to audit committees as an independent member. In 2012-2013 he was the Chairman of three local government entities and a member of a further three, including Hobsons Bay. Mr Ashmore is a fellow of the Australian Institute of Chartered Accountants, a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and a fellow of the Securities Institute of Australia.

Mr Rodney Page – Dip Bus (Acc), MBA (Vicmelb) FCA . Mr Page is a partner of Page Tantau, a chartered accounting practice. He has experience in auditing and in business services. Mr Page has been a State Councillor for The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia, is currently a member of the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal’s Legal Practice List and Guardianship List, a board member of the Seaworks Foundation, and is a past President of the Williamstown Summer Festival Ltd.

Mr David Gibbs – B.Comm.,FCA.,CTA.,FAICD. Mr Gibbs is a Principal of The Bennett Group Pty Ltd a chartered accounting practice. He is a business strategist and adviser with 35 years experience in financial matters. Mr Gibbs has seen the effects of many business cycles and the succession of management with a wide range of business operations. This experience has sharpened his passion for excellent corporate governance and the identification and management of risk.

Mr Gibbs currently chairs and participates in a wide range of governance boards, teams and committees. He is a committed supporter and office bearer of numerous community based and youth organisations, including as a foundation director of the Melbourne Community Foundation. Mr Gibbs also served as the Chairman of the Victorian State Council of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia.

Key activities of the Audit Committee 2012-2013

The Audit Committee met on four occasions during 2012-2013. It has provided constructive advice to the Council and its management team on a broad range of issues, including: The Council’s Annual Financial Statements, the external audit strategy, report and management letters; Outstanding audit recommendations; Internal audit program and reports; Risk management and the continued implementation of the risk register; Quarterly financial and operations plan reports; Council’s cash and investments; Contaminated sites; Victorian Auditor General’s Office – Report on results of 2011-2012 Audits; Fire Services Property Levy, and Employee Payments.

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Internal audit

Internal audit is a significant component of the Council’s corporate governance, risk management and internal control framework. It provides management with information concerning the adequacy and effectiveness of internal controls governing the operation, quality, standard, efficiency and effectiveness of the Council’s financial management and operational systems. The following internal audits were conducted by Moore Stephens during the year:

Accounts Payable / Payroll – Computer Assisted Audit Techniques (CAAT’s) transactional based; Information Technology security penetration testing; and Contract Management procedural review.

The challenge in the future will be to ensure that the internal audit program addresses those areas of higher risk to the Council’s ongoing operations.

External Audit

All local government entities in Victoria are required to be audited by the Victoria Auditor General’s Office (VAGO), who appointed HLB Mann Judd to act as their agent. HLB Mann Judd completed their review of the Annual Financial Report, Standard Statements and Performance Statement, in accordance with the Local Government Act.

The external auditors’ primary role is to provide an assurance that the financial statements present fairly the financial performance for the financial year and the financial position at the end of the year. Hobsons Bay City Council received an unqualified audit for the year.

During 2012-2013 the Audit Committee considered the Council’s Annual Financial Statements, the external audit strategy, report and management letters in relation to the 2011-2012 external end of year audit. It is the normal process for the Audit Committee to recommend the Council to: Approve in principle the ‘draft’ annual financial report; Make any immaterial changes recommended or agreed to by the Auditor General, and Nominate two councillors to sign the annual financial report in its final form.

Integrated risk management

Integrated risk management is a continuous, proactive and systematic process used to understand, manage and communicate risk from a corporate-wide perspective. It relies on making strategic decisions that contribute to achieving corporate objectives. A Risk Management Cross Directorate Team is responsible for the development, implementation and monitoring of the Risk Management Strategy and Action Plan.

The risk register has undergone a robust review process, with relevant business department managers responsible for managing risks at both strategic and operational levels, which includes identifying and documenting risks and setting control measures to mitigate those risks. The risk register, which is aligned to the organisational objectives, is overseen by the Audit Committee at regular intervals.

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Health and Safety

The Occupational Health and Safety Management System is externally audited and Certified as SafetyMAP compliant. Re-certification is achieved with annual surveillance audits.

Fraud Risk Management

The Council adopted a Fraud Risk Management policy on 7 th June 2011. The policy is published on the Council website. The policy outlines employees’ expected behaviour, how to report a suspected fraud, the role of various bodies within the Council and the Council’s commitment to increasing employee awareness, training and recording of possible fraud.

Managing disclosures of improper conductThe Council recognises the value of transparency and accountability in its administrative and management practices and supports the making of disclosures that reveal corrupt conduct, conduct involving substantial mismanagement of public resources, and conduct involving a substantial risk to public health and safety or the environment.

State government integrity reforms introduced in February 2013 mean that whistleblower protection is now part of a new Victorian integrity regime comprising: the Independent Broad-based Anti-Corruption Commission (IBAC), which promotes integrity and accountability in

the Victorian public sector; the Victorian Inspectorate, which oversees IBAC and the Victorian Ombudsman, and the Accountability and Oversight Parliamentary Committee, which oversees the Freedom of Information

Commissioner and the Victorian Ombudsman.

The Whistleblowers Protection Act 2001 has been repealed and replaced with the Protected Disclosure Act 2012. The Protected Disclosure Act aims to encourage and facilitate disclosure of improper conduct by Councillors and Council staff and to protect those who make disclosures from reprisals. The protection extends not only to the person making the disclosure, but also to witnesses and persons subject to an investigation.

The Council has developed guidelines and procedures to manage compliance with the Protected Disclosure Act. The guidelines are consistent with the guidelines published by IBAC. Further information, including the Council’s policy and guidelines, is available on the Council website.

During 2012-2013: No disclosures alleging improper conduct were made to the Council; No disclosures were referred by the Council to the Ombudsman or to IBAC for determination as to whether it was

a public interest disclosure; No public interest disclosures were referred by IBAC or the Ombudsman to the Council for investigation; No disclosed matters were referred by the Council to IBAC or the Ombudsman for investigation; No investigations of disclosed matters were taken over by IBAC or the Ombudsman from the Council; No requests were made under section 74 of the Whistleblowers Protection Act to the Ombudsman to investigate

disclosed matters; There were no disclosed matters that the Council declined to investigate, and There were no applications for an injunction made by the Council under section 50 of the Protected Disclosure

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Managing privacy and health records

Protection of personal information and safeguards for the collection and use of that information is a key aspect of democratic governance. The Council is committed to full compliance with its obligations under Victoria’s Information Privacy Act 2000 and Health Records Act 2001. The Council’s privacy policy outlines how Council officers will handle information to maintain privacy. The policy also details how any complaints will be addressed. The policy is available from the Privacy Officer on 9932 1000 or on the Council website.

Community Engagement

The Council is committed to engaging with the community to ensure the Council is aware of, and addressing, the community needs as they change over time.

Community engagement is an essential way for the Council to involve the community. Through community engagement the Council can gather data, keep people informed, hear a range of opinions, generate creative ideas and solutions, understand and respond to concerns, address competing priorities, build relationships and bring people together to work towards a common goal. Engaging with the community, via active participation and ownership, results in quality services that address community needs, ensuring greater satisfaction, uptake and sustainability.

The Council understands that a range of community engagement methods are needed to ensure everyone can be involved. Current engagement methods include: Delivering and receiving information via social media, mail, local paper, websites, information sessions; Consulting with community on the development of strategies, policies and plans via surveys, workshops, focus

groups, listening posts; Providing a range of avenues to contact the Council via email, phone, meetings with staff and or Councillors, and

services; Council Advisory Committees, and Council Meetings.

The Hobsons Bay Community Engagement Framework guides staff on when and how to effectively engage with the community.

Policies and Strategies

All of the Council policies and strategies are guided by consultations and are subject to review to ensure they remain relevant and meet the objectives of the plans, community needs, and organisational directions.

The Council advertises the development and exhibition of new policies via methods such as submission opportunities at key community facilities and on the Council website, consultation with the Council advisory groups and other key groups in the community, and information via social media, local papers and Council newsletters. Further in-depth community consultations are also held during the initial policy development process.

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The following policies were adopted in 2012-2013: Audio Recording of Council and Committee Meetings (including Podcasting) Circus Bookings Policy Councillor and Staff Interaction Protocol Flying of Flags Policy Graffiti Management Policy and Strategy Hardship Policy Library Collection Development Policy Memorial Plaques and Cremated Remains in Public Places Policy Procurement Policy Sponsorship Policy Street Stall and Collections Policy Three Year Old Kindergarten Policy and Guidelines.

Information available for public inspection

Certain information is publicly available for inspection pursuant to regulation 11 of Victoria’s Local Government (General) Regulations 2004. The following information can be inspected at the Hobsons Bay Civic Centre, 115 Civic Parade, Altona, during office hours:

Details of current allowances fixed for the Mayor, and councillors under section 74 or 74A of the Local Government Act;

The total annual remuneration for all senior officers in respect of the current financial year and the previous financial year, set out in a list that states ranges of remuneration of senior officers, where the difference between the lower amount and the higher amount in each range must not exceed $10,000, and the number of senior officers whose total annual remuneration falls within that range;

Details of overseas or interstate travel (with the exception of interstate travel by land for less than three days) undertaken in an official capacity by councillors or any member of Council staff in the previous 12 months, including the names of the councillors or members of Council staff and the date, destination, purpose and total cost of the overseas or interstate travel, including accommodation costs;

Names of Council officers who were required to submit a return of interest during the financial year and the dates the returns were submitted;

Names of councillors who submitted returns of interest during the financial year and the dates the returns were submitted;

Agendas for and minutes of ordinary and special meetings held in the previous 12 months kept under section 93 of the Act, except if the minutes relate to parts of meetings which have been closed to members of the public under section 89 of the Act;

A list of all special committees established by the Council and the purpose for which each committee was established;

A list of all special committees established by the Council which were abolished or ceased to function during the financial year;

Minutes of meetings of special committees established under section 86 of the Act and held in the previous 12 months except if the minutes relate to parts of meetings which have been closed to members of the public under section 89 of the Act;

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A register of delegations kept under sections 87 and 98 of the Act, including the dates on which the last review under section 86(6) and 98(6) of the Act took place;

Submissions received in accordance with section 223 of the Act during the previous 12 months; Agreements to establish regional libraries under section 196 of the Act; Details of all property, finance and operating leases involving land, buildings, plant, computer equipment or

vehicles entered into by the Council as lessor or lessee, including the name of the other party to the lease and the terms and the value of the lease;

A register of authorised officers appointed under section 224 of the Act; A list of donations and grants made by the Council during the financial year, including the names of persons or

bodies which have received a donation or grant and the amount of each donation or grant; A list of the names of the organisations of which the Council was a member during the financial year and details

of all membership fees and other amounts and services provided during that year to each organisation by the Council, and

A list of contracts valued at $150,000 for contracts for the purchase of goods and services and $200,000 for the carrying out of works (or such higher amount as is fixed from time to time under section 186(1) of the Act) or more which the Council entered into during the financial year without first engaging in a competitive process, and which are not contracts referred to in section 186(5) or (5A) of the Act.

Freedom of Information

The public has a right to access documents held by the Council under the Victorian Freedom of Information Act 1982, unless the requested information is deemed exempt by the Freedom of Information Act. Applicants are notified of decisions not later than 45 days after the day a request is received.

FOI requests must be in writing, be specific enough to enable relevant documents to be identified, and be accompanied by the prescribed application fee. In 2012-2013 the application fee was $25.10. Access charges may also be levied for search time and photocopying in accordance with the FOI (Access Charges) Regulations 2004. An application form and further information on making a FOI request is available from the Council’s website or from the FOI Officer on 9932 1000.

In 2012-2013 the Council received 13 FOI requests. There were no applications for internal review or appeals to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal or the Freedom of Information Commissioner.

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Statutory informationThis section contains information the Council is required to disclose for compliance purposes, which has not been previously covered in this report.

Domestic Animal Management Plan

The Council’s Domestic Animal Management Plan aims to improve the control of animals in the municipality. The Annual Report is required by section 68A(3)(c) of the Domestic Animals Act 1994 to evaluate the implementation of the plan.

The plan was reviewed and updated for 2013-2017. The revised plan will be presented to the Council for adoption on 23rd July 2013, and then be submitted to the Department of Primary Industries.

Highlights and achievements under the key programs and service objectives of the plan included the following.

Animal Management Officer Training and Development Both Animal Management Officers have completed Certificates IV in Local Government (Statutory Compliance

and Animal Management) as well as attending seminars, workshops and conferences. Two Parking and Local Laws Officers commenced the Certificate IV during the year

Standard operating procedures relating to attending potentially dangerous situations and addresses were reviewed and documented.

Encouraging Responsible Pet Ownership – Community Education A microchipping day was held in conjunction with the Williamstown Chamber of Commerce’s Dog Day in Dog

Town event Responsible pet ownership issues were promoted through the Council’s Pelican Post advertorial Animal management information and educational materials were maintained and updated on the Council

website and in the Customer Service Centre Participation in the subsidised desexing program continued Seventy five per cent of impounded dogs were returned to owners Fourteen per cent of impounded dogs were euthanased Eleven per cent of impounded dogs were sold and re-homed.

Identification and Registration Annual registration renewal notices were issued in March Registration renewal reminder notices were issued in June.

Compliance and Enforcement – Local Laws and Orders Routine activities continued, including investigation of dog attacks, barking complaints, off-lead offences, dogs at

large and nuisance and feral cats The cat trap loan service continued Provision and stocking of dog litter bag dispensers continued.

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Domestic Animal Businesses Annual inspections of registered Domestic Animal Businesses were conducted to ensure compliance with relevant

codes of practice.

Declared Dogs Annual inspections occurred to ensure compliance with “declared dog” requirements of the Domestic Animals Act

1994 Thirteen Restricted Breed Dogs are currently registered Nine declared dangerous dogs are currently registered Five guard dogs are currently registered.

The figure below indicates the number of dogs registered within Hobsons Bay from 2008-2013. Registrations have remained relatively stable over this time period.

2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-130

2,000

4,000

6,000

8,000

10,000

12,000

14,000

16,000

18,000Number of dogs registered

Figure 33. The number of dogs registered per year in Hobsons Bay 2008-2013

Recognition of Carers

According to the 2011 Australian Census of Population and Housing, five per cent of the Hobsons Bay population, or 4,382 people, need assistance with core activities such as mobility, self care and communication. Twelve per cent of our population, or 7,867 people, are carers who provide unpaid assistance to a person with a disability, long term illness or old age.

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The Council has taken all practicable measures to comply with the responsibilities outlined in the Carers Recognition Act 2012 by: The development and implementation of the Disability Access and Inclusion Strategy 2013-2017; Improving accessibility of the built (including housing) and natural environment beyond minimal accessibility

compliance requirements; Advocating for a public, private and community transport system that is accessible and reliable for all; Advocating for and partnering with relevant organisations to ensure disability supports are responsive to

individual needs; Affiliation with the Victoria Carer Card program; Provision of carers leave for Council staff; Information and referral to other services; Direct services through in-home support: domestic assistance, personal care; respite to give carers a break; and

home maintenance; Planned activity groups providing social activities for eligible residents, which also provides respite for their

carers; Group respite activities; Retreats and trips away for residents, which also provides respite for their carers; Day and overnight respite care at Bateman House under the National Respite for Carers Program; Food Services – delivered meals, cafe meals, cooking programs and assistance, centre based meals; Support to Seniors Groups and centres; Distributing printed material through relevant Council services; Displaying posters at Council community venues; Providing links to state government resource materials on the Council’s website, and Providing information to organisations represented in Council/community networks.

Steps have been taken to ensure staff, Council agents and volunteers working for the Council are informed about the principles and obligations of the Carers Recognition Act by including information on the care relationship in: Induction and training programs for staff working in Home and Community Care, Disability services and in front-

line positions; Induction and training programs for volunteers working directly with the community, and An Auslan training program for staff working in front-line positions.

Measures have been taken to review and modify policies, procedures and supports to include recognition of the carer relationship on an ongoing basis.

Road Management

No Ministerial directions were received under section 22 of the Road Management Act 2004 by the Council in its capacity as a road authority.

National Competition Policy compliance

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The reporting requirements for compliance with National Competition Policy no longer require a compliance certificate to be included in this Annual Report. The Council has an ongoing commitment to competitive neutrality as a matter of good business and transparency and remains obliged to adhere to competitive neutrality principles.

Victorian Local Government Indicators

The state government collects data annually from councils against 11 indicators to build an overview of Victorian local government performance. As shown in the tables below, the Victorian Local Government Indicators include financial data and information from the annual Community Satisfaction Survey.

Community Satisfaction Indicators 2012-2013 Result 2011-2012 Result

Overall performance 64 62

Lobbying on behalf of community (Advocacy) 56 56

Community consultation and engagement (Community Consultation) 55 56

Financial Indicators 2012-2013 2011-2012 2010-2011 2009-2010 2008-2009

Average rates and charges per assessment $2,074 $1,948 $1,826 $1,727 $1,633

Average residential rates and charges per assessment $1,467 $1,376 $1,299 $1,191 $1,137

Average operating expenditure per assessment $2,650 $2,798 $2,562 $2,333 $2,298

Average capital expenditure per assessment $611 $905 $745 $640 $573

Renewal 29% 94% 79% 58% 52%

Renewal and Maintenance 59% 97% 88% 76% 72%Average liabilities per assessment $854 $861 $681 $575 $558

Operating result per assessment $236 $0 $121 $240 $280

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Best value report Community consultation and continuous improvement are integral to the way we work.

The Council is committed to complying with the Best Value principles, which are set out in Victoria’s Local Government Act. The principles state that a council’s services must meet quality and cost standards, be responsive to community needs, be accessible to those members of the community for whom the service is intended, and achieve continuous improvement in service provision. Further, the principles require the Council to develop a program of regular community consultation in relation to its services and to report regularly to its community on its achievements in relation to Best Value. The Council is committed to community consultation and continuous improvement.

Examples of how the Council addresses the Best Value Principles are set out below.

Services are responsive to the needs of service users

Consulting with the Hobsons Bay community when developing plans and policies; Seeking feedback from the community on Council programs and activities through community consultations, and Providing ongoing training to staff to ensure they provide services that reflect best practice community

engagement methods.

Services are accessible to those for whom the service is intended

Addressing service accessibility issues from a physical, cultural, literacy, and affordability perspective when developing programs and activities;

Providing services to assist community members who are older, frail, have a disability, or need additional supports;

Providing high quality services for families and children; Offering translation services for community members Offering Council publications in different formats and

languages where required; Accessibility features on the Council web site; Ensuring that projects are designed to reflect the needs of targets populations, and Ensuring social media is kept you to date and accessible for all community members.

Continuous improvement is achieved in service provision

Conducting ongoing evaluation of internal service areas; Undertaking benchmarking with other like services within the private, not for profit and government sectors, and Providing training to staff to enable continuous improvement within their practice.

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Regular consultation is conducted in relation to the services provided

Ensuring that consultation and engagement processes are embedded as core business; Seeking regular feedback from service users through effective community engagement mechanisms, and Consulting with the Hobsons Bay community when planning, developing and implementing programs and

services.

Performance against Best Value standards

Best Value standards are adopted and reported against on an annual basis in accordance with legislative requirements.

Department Target Result 2012-13 Business And FinanceFinanceOutstanding rates (less hardship) as a % of the rates income.

≤ 4% 4.8%

Working Capital Ratio. ≥ 100% 122% Value of green purchases made by the organisation.

≥ $2 million $4,059,754

Certification of financial statements by Auditor-General.

Certified with unqualified audit opinion.

Financial statements certified with an unqualified audit opinion.

Health and Regulatory Services Local Government Community Satisfaction Survey result – Enforcement of Local Laws.

≥ 64 62

Percentage of public health service management requests attended to within business rule timeframes.

≥ 80% 79%

Percentage of local laws service management requests attended to within business rule timeframes.

≥ 80% 90%

Percentage of registered premises receiving at least one onsite assessment per registration period.

100% 90%

Number of food samples submitted as required by the Food Act.

Statutory targets metNot achieved. Policies and procedures will be reviewed with a view to improvement.

Percentage of eligible school crossings supervised.

100% 100%

Community ServicesCommunity Care

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Department Target Result 2012-13 Local Government Community Satisfaction Survey result – Home Care Services.

≥ 71 69

Client satisfaction with In Home Support Services.

≥ 90% of survey respondents rate the service as ‘satisfactory’ or better

86%

Client satisfaction with the Delivered Meals Service, taking into account taste, appearance, choice and size of meal.

≥ 90% of survey respondents rate the service as satisfactory or better

92%

Client satisfaction with Planned Activity Group Services.

≥ 90% of respondents rate the service as satisfactory or better

95%

Client satisfaction with Seniors Transport Services.

≥ 90% of respondents rate the service as satisfactory or better

90%

Time taken from an urgent referral to the contact with a client for the purposes of assessment and review for community care services.

≥ 85% within two working days

85%

Time taken from a non-urgent referral to the contact with a client for the purposes of assessment and review for community care services.

≤ 10 working days Average of 12 days from referral to assessment. This result is due to data entry and database issues. A plan has been implemented to rectify the problem to fix data entry errors and track progress against targets.

Community DevelopmentNumber of local residents and volunteers trained through the community training program.

≥ 200 210

Increase in local residents and volunteers trained through the community training program.

≥ 5% increase 75% increase

Increase in eligible applications to the Council’s community grants program.

≥ 5% 14% decrease. This occurred in the Social Support Subsidy category and is likely due to groups no longer receiving three-year funding but being required to apply annually in 2012-2013.

Family, Youth and Children's ServicesLocal Government Community Satisfaction Survey result – Maternal and Child Health Services.

≥ 73 71

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Department Target Result 2012-13 Local Government Community Satisfaction Survey result – Child and Family Day Care Services

≥62 66

Utilisation rate of the Occasional Care Program by the community.

≥ 95% of available places utilised

91.5% (2012 calendar year). From the start of 2013, utilisation has increased to 95%. This is a 15 place program that had average utilisation of 13.7 places per week. The 2012 calendar year had low utilisation all year compared to previous years, for reasons unknown.

Client satisfaction with the Family Day Care Service.

≥ 95% Every new family that commenced with the service had a follow-up phone call for feedback four weeks after commencing care, with a 100% satisfaction rate.

Number of Effective Full-Time Places in Family Day Care.

≥ 125 places 145 places

Number of babies receiving services through the Enhanced Maternal and Child Health Service.

≥ 86 babies 88 babies

Babies under one month enrolled at the Maternal and Child Health service from the birth notification.

≥ 95%

96.5%

Number of children receiving service in the Pre-School Field Officer Program.

≥ 95 children 143 children. There has been an increase due to the services becoming more engaged with staff and an increase in the number of services providing funded kindergarten places.

Percentage of the Youth Services and programs that are targeted towards identified disadvantaged groups.

≥ 70% 84%

Library ServicesLocal Government Community Satisfaction Survey result – Libraries.

≥ 80 86

Turnaround from purchase of reserved items to placement on the library shelf.

100% within 14 days 13 days

Turnaround from purchase non-reserved items to placement on the library shelf.

100% within 28 days 100% within 10 days

Percentage of the library collection that is five years or younger (excluding local history items).

70% 68%

Proportion of ebooks loaned. ≥ 80% of titles borrowed 89.7% of titles borrowed99

Department Target Result 2012-13 Increase in hours of internet usage in the libraries, including Wi Fi.

≥ 5% Wi Fi use increased 113.7% and internet hours increased 1.30%. The significant increase in Wi Fi usage resulted in the internet hours not increasing to the desired level for the financial year.

Increase in attendance at Lifelong learning programs (including training) delivered to the community by the library.

≥ 5% Decreased 3%. The service was involved in the National Year of Reading, a national initiative, throughout 2012, bringing with it some highly attended marquee events. In contrast, 2013 has not had the same volume of marquee events, resulting in a slight decrease in overall program attendance for the financial year.

Organisation DevelopmentGovernance Percentage of scheduled safety walks conducted.

100% 100%

Percentage of Freedom of Information requests responded to within statutory timeframes.

100% 100%

Percentage of register of interest returns completed and returned to Governance within the legislative timeline.

100% 100%

Instruments of Delegation to staff members reviewed and updated at least annually.

One or more annual reviews One review was conducted. The delegations reviewed and adopted on 6th March 2012.

Percentage of Council meeting agendas posted on the Council's website by 6.00pm on the Friday before the Council meeting.

100% 100%

Percentage of Council policies that are current (not scheduled for review).

≥ 80% 71%. The ongoing review of existing policies will continue throughout 2013.

Timely production and publication of the Council’s Annual Report.

Lodged with the Minister for Local Government by 30th September and uploaded to the Council website by 7th October

Deadlines met.

Standard achieved for annual reporting in the Australasian Reporting Awards.

Bronze award or higher Silver award received.

100

Department Target Result 2012-13 Periodic presentation of performance reports against the annual Operations Plan to the Council.

Quarterly reports Quarterly reports presented.

Communications Local Government Community Satisfaction Survey result – Keeping the Community Informed.

≥ 62 59

Number of advertorials produced to communicate Council information to the community.

≥ 50 advertorials 50 advertorials

Number of communications plans developed to support communication of Council activities.

≥ 40 plans 40 plans

Growth of Twitter followers. ≥ 10% Twitter followers have grown from 110 in June 2012 to over 500.

Growth of Facebook followers. ≥ 10% Target exceeded. Facebook Friends have gone from zero to over 400.

Number of methods by which the community can request services and communicate with the organisation through social media and mobile devices.

≥ 4 Achieved: Facebook, Twitter, website, snap send solve.

Proportion of Council publications offered in different formats upon request.

100% 100%

Customer ServiceLocal Government Community Satisfaction Survey result – Customer Service.

≥ 77 77

Percentage of calls to the Council's 9932 1000 number resolved at first point of contact.

≥ 75% 83%

Overall percentage of service management requests that are attended to within the timeframes set by the business rules.

≥ 80% 88%

Wait period for a call to be answered. ≤ 30 seconds 24 secondsNumber of mobile customer service programs conducted.

≥ 4 9

Human Resources

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Department Target Result 2012-13 Percentage of employees who have had Annual Reviews conducted in the previous year.

≥75%

77%

Number of course topics offered in the Corporate Training Program.

≥ 40 71

Number of employees attending training offered in the Corporate Training Program.

≥ 800 1,250

The number of injuries in the workplace.

≤ 150 119

Number of days lost due to work-related injuries.

≤ 100 192

Information ServicesPercentage of normal priority incidents resolved within 16 hours (two business days).

≥ 75%

93%

Percentage of high-priority incidents resolved within 8 hours.

≥ 75% 89%

Network server downtime during normal business hours.

≤ 5% 0.8%

Satisfaction level of internal customers from user survey.

≥ 80% 97%

Number of written privacy complaints received.

0 2 privacy inquiries were received and upon response from the Council, neither was pursued as a formal complaint.

Percentage of requested files retrieved from secondary storage within 48 hours.

≥ 99% 99%

Percentage of daily correspondence processed and uploaded into the Electronic Documentation Management System on day of receipt.

≥ 85% 99%

Planning And EnvironmentArts, Events and TourismLocal Government Community Satisfaction Survey result – Community and cultural activities.

≥ 69 69

Local Government Community Satisfaction Survey result – Business and community development and tourism.

≥ 63 63

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Department Target Result 2012-13 Number of visitors to the Hobsons Bay Visitor Information Centre.

≥ 50,000 47,552

Provision of arts and cultural activities in the Council’s cultural venues.

≥ 1 event per facility Achieved. Each of the Council’s cultural venues hosted two or more events.

City StrategyLocal Government Community Satisfaction Survey result – Waste management.

≥ 65 76

Local Government Community Satisfaction Survey result – Environmental sustainability.

≥ 73 64

Local Government Community Satisfaction Survey result – Planning for population growth in the area.

≥ 48 47

Local Government Community Satisfaction Survey result – Council’s general town planning policy.

≥ 53 52

Percentage of waste service management requests attended to within business rule timeframes.

≥ 80% 95

Urban Planning and DevelopmentLocal Government Community Satisfaction Survey result – Planning and building permits.

≥ 51 51

Percentage of building permit details recorded on Council's computer system within 5 days of receipt.

≥ 90% 100%

Percentage of building complaints responded to within 10 day of receiving written notification.

≥ 90% 100%

Percentage of dispensation applications where assessment commences within 7 days of receipt.

≥ 90% 100%

Number of appeals against failure to determine a planning permit application within the prescribed time.

≤ 5 appeals 4 appeals

Percentage of requests for further information to be sent out within 28 days of receipt of a planning permit application.

≥ 90% 95%

Works And Assets

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Department Target Result 2012-13 Capital Works and AssetsLocal Government Community Satisfaction Survey result – Traffic management.

≥ 55 53

Local Government Community Satisfaction Survey result – Parking facilities.

≥ 52 55

Carry forward at year end not more than 5 % of the annual capital works budget as adjusted by resolution of the Council.

≤ 5% 5.26%

City Maintenance and Cleansing Local Government Community Satisfaction Survey result – The condition of local streets and footpaths.

≥ 52 53

Percentage compliance with requests for building and facilities maintenance.

≥ 95% Compliance by contractors was 99% according to manual contractor records; however the result appearing in the Council’s system was 45.6% due to a delay in entering the contractor records into the Council’s system. The Council is working to develop an interface whereby contractors will be able to update Council system records automatically.

Percentage of requests to fix potholes responded to within three working days.

≥ 99% 84.8%. Refer to comment above.

Percentage of footpath maintenance requests responded to within three working days.

≥ 99% 84.8% Refer to comment above.

Percentage of complaints or requests for municipal cleansing resolved within five working days.

≥ 97% 91.9%

ParksLocal Government Community Satisfaction Survey result – The appearance of public areas.

≥ 70 71

Percentage of service management requests attended to within business rule timeframes.

≥ 80% 87%

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Department Target Result 2012-13 Percentage completion of customer service requests regarding street trees in accordance with contract specifications.

≥ 80% 90%

RecreationLocal Government Community Satisfaction Survey result – Recreational facilities.

≥ 70 71

Percentage of service management requests attended to within business rule timeframes.

≥ 80% 57 due to a significant number of complex requests and some administrative processes leading to delays with closing assignments. Departmental processes and business rule timeframes are being reviewed to address this issue.

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Community grantsThe Council conducts an annual grants program to support local activities and projects that meet community needs.

The Community Grants program gives community groups and organisations opportunities to continue provision of important services and programs. The funding programs offered during the year were:

Community Partnerships and Networking Grant: A two-year funding opportunity for innovative community partnership projects that strengthen the community through the development of strong networks and collaboratively supported activities. Applications were assessed via an expression-of-interest process for funding within the grants funding process.

Shared Equipment Grant: To support local community organisations to purchase or replace equipment to support core activities and projects of the applicant organisation. A requirement of this grant was that the equipment funded was able to be actively shared by other local community organisations and listed on a resource sharing database.

Social Support Subsidy: One year’s funding to meet specific needs of community groups and organisations who meet on a regular basis to promote active community involvement and reduce isolation in the community.

Small Grant: For one-off projects or activities that encourage community participation in active, healthy, art and cultural activities for new or enhanced projects.

Quick Response Grant: Funding for up to $800 was available throughout the year to support unexpected one off projects that did not meet the Community Grants program timeframes.

The table below indicates the grants given out via the Community Grants Program during 2012-2013.

Community Partnerships and Networking Grant

Organisation Project Amount Year 1

Amount year 2 (indicative)

Altona Yacht Club AYC/NZMPWSG Cald Sailing Initiative

$5000 $5000

Barkly Arts Centre (a division of Western Region Health Centre)

Collective Space $3000 $5000

Charities Aid Foundation Australia Timehelp Timehelp Hobsons Bay ESL Support

$5000 $5000

Melbourne City Mission A Kinder Place - A Place for Families of Young Children in Laverton

$5400 $3600

MIND Australia Planting Pathways $5000 $5000

Volunteer West Youth Volunteer Engagement Partnership

$5000 $5000

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Shared Equipment Grant

Organisation Equipment Name Amount

Altona City Soccer Club Mobile automated Coffee/Tea/ Hot Chocolate machine

$500

Altona University of the Third Age Laser printer $500

Australian Arabic Women's Community Group Microwave oven $500

Friends of Newport Lakes Inc. Garden Sanitisation Aid $500

Gateway Social Support Options Inc. Mixer KPM5 Deluxe Commercial Kitchenaid $500

Hobsons Bay Police Community Consultative Committee (P.C.C.C.)

3 cordless drills with screwdriver attachments

$447

Latitude Directions for Young People Inc. Outdoors Set $192

Lions Club of Altona Inc. Food Preparation Equipment $500

Louis Joel Arts and Community Centre Large Fold Up Screen $500

Maltese Bocce Social and Recreation Club Lawn Mower $500

Newport Organic Collective Inc. Food Dehydrator $470

Note: all Shared Equipment funded is placed on a Shared Equipment Register for community use.

Small grants

Organisation Project Amount

Alhuda Youth Association Harmony between Father and Sons $3000

Altona Lifesaving Club Youth Involvement Program ”YIP's" $2352

Alle Munchkins Inc. Wir Machen Ein Buch - We Create A Book $1500

Altona City Soccer Club Get well, stay well and advance $3000

Altona Lifesaving Club Youth Involvement Program 'YIP's" $2352

Altona Men's Shed Inc. Computer Refurbishment for Our community $1500

Altona North Bowls Club Inc. Training Program in Lawn bowls for school children and elderly citizens.

$1200

Altona University of The Third Age Maribyrnong River Cruises $1000

Altona Yacht Club GLBTIQ Try Sailing Day $3000

Annunciation Primary School Playgroup and after school activities $3000

Association of New Elderly Inc. Look up at the Sky at Science Museum $1160

Australian Arabic Women's Community Group Improve skills for Arabic women $800

Child Wise Speed Networking $1000

Finnish Friendly Visiting Service Inc. Seniors Sowing Seeds $2600

Friends of Floyd Lodge Community Garden Community Garden Connection Tours $1000 107

Small grants

Organisation Project Amount

Hobsons Bay Altona Garden Club Inc. Blue Lotus Watergarden $1605

Hobsons Bay No Interest Loan Scheme (NILS) Hobsons Bay NIL Operations $1696

Hobsons Bay Police Community Consultative Committee (P.C.C.C.)

Christmas Hampers for Rehoused Youth $2000

Holy Trinity Anglican Church Lunch Program $800

Italian Social Club – Altona 15 Year anniversary $1000

Karen Baptist Community of Victoria Inc Open Doors for Karen Youth $2900

Latitude Directions for Young People Inc. Week in the Country with Counselling $1280

Laverton Community Children's Centre Pictures of You - A Learning Style $2200

Lions Club of Altona Inc. Lions Soup Van $3000

Louis Joel Arts and Community Centre Hobsons Bay Literary Festival - "A Gay Afternoon" with author from the GLBTI community.

$2000

Macedonian Community Welfare Association Cultural Mosaics Classes $2800

Maltese Bocce Social and Recreation Club Inc. Maltese Independent Day $1000

Melbourne Queer Film Festival Q and A: Queer and Ageing (MQFF present Documentary and Panel)

$3000

Newport Islamic Society Youth Committee Australian Youth Ready for Tomorrow $3000

Newport Organic Collective Inc Web Wise $2490

Seabreeze Quilters Inc. Quilt-in 2013 $3000

Seaholme Kindergarten Healthy Eating Hub $2200

Somers Parade Kindergarten The BTG @ SPK Project (Bush Tucker Garden at Somers Parade Kindergarten)

$1060

The New Hope Foundation Inc. Laverton Karen Women's Health and Fitness Program

$3000

The Slovak Social and Cultural Association Ludovit Stur Inc.

Wellbeing and Fitness Through Dance $2587

Volunteer West Supported Volunteers Pathways project - Expert Advisory Group

$3000

Western Region Health Centre - Older Persons High Rise program

Floyd Walkers $3000

Western Suburbs Legal Service Inc. Legal Needs Analysis: Identifying unmet legal need in the City of Hobsons Bay

$3000

Williamstown Swimming and Lifesaving Club Historic Video - 90 years on $3000 108

Small grants

Organisation Project Amount

Wintringham The Bucket List $2910

Wombat Housing and Support Services Stepping Up Stepping Out Project $2900

Social Support Subsidy

Organisation Amount

Alhuda Youth Association $692

Altona Ladies Probus Club Inc. $692

Association of New Elderly Inc. $692

Australian Arabic Women’s Community Group $692

Carers Links Men’s Group Inc. $692

Croatian Senior Citizens Club Altona $692

Finnish Friendly Visiting Service Inc. $692

Gateway Social Support Options Inc. $692

Greek Senior Citizens Club Altona and Region Inc. $692

Greek Seniors 60 Walker Close Inc. $692

Hellenic Hobsons Bay Women’s Club $692

Hobsons Bay Men’s Shed $692

Italian Social Club $692

Macedonian Senior Citizens Group Altona North Inc. $692

Macedonian Senior Citizens Group of Hobsons Bay $692

Macedonian Senior Citizens Pension Group of Altona Meadows, Laverton and Point Cook $692

Macedonian Women’s Senior Citizens Group of Altona North and Districts Inc. $692

Macedonian Women’s Seniors Group of Hobsons Bay $692

Maltese Association Hobsons Bay (Ladies Auxiliary) $692

Maltese Bocce Social and Recreation Club $692

NZ Maori Polynesian Welfare Support Inc. $692

Pacific Women’s Weaving Circle $692

Polish Senior Citizens Club Altona Inc. $692

Spanish Speaking Recreation Group $692

Spotswood Multicultural Older Group Inc. $692

Tarxien Social Club Inc. $692

Tripoli Social Club Inc. $692

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Westgate Support Group Inc. $692

Williamstown and Districts Greek Elderly Club Inc. $692

Williamstown Church of Christ $692

Quick Response Grants

Organisation Project Amount

Italian Book Club Italian Book Club $690

Conversations for the Curious Conversations for the Curious $690

Bayside P-12 College Great Victorian Bike Ride $800

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Mayoral ProgramThe Mayoral Program provides the opportunity for the Mayor of the day to implement key strategic activities in response to the needs of the Hobsons Bay community.

The program has an annual allocation of $49,000. It is therefore vital that an appropriate level of transparency is provided to the public about how this expenditure was spent.

During this financial year Cr Tony Briffa held the position of Mayor from December 2011- October 2012 followed by Cr Angela Altair, who was elected as the incoming Mayor on the 13 th November 2012, following Council Elections. As of 30th June 2013 the Mayor Program had an expenditure of $31,300. Highlights from Cr. Briffa’s Mayoral Program

Health and Wellbeing: The Spring into Life healthy living day, held at Bayfit Leisure Centre, providing information and advice on how to live a healthy life.

Communication: Various initiatives were implemented to increase engagement and communication including podcasting of Council meetings, an official Council twitter feed, twitter links to the Council website, and Mayor participation in the Customer Service Mobile Program.

Supporting Primary Schools: Each primary school in Hobsons Bay has been supported in providing students with opportunities to foster their musical abilities, through the provision of a music kit, comprising a recorder, ukulele, percussion pack, guitar, glockenspiel and tambourine.

Friendship Alliances: Continuation of the Council’s commitment to friendship alliances, including support for the Buloke Business Awards, the annual Hobsons Bay/Buloke Bowls Tournament, and the ongoing relationship with Queensland’s Yarrabah Shire Council.

Highlights from Cr. Altair Mayoral Program Civic Engagement: A series of meetings was held in various locations across the municipality to provide an

opportunity to engage at a local level. These included Ordinary Council Meetings and Councillor Briefing Sessions at the Williamstown Town Hall, Mobil Altona Refinery and Brooklyn Community Hall.

Economic Development: A business lunch was held for local trader groups at a cost of $800, and provided an opportunity for the Mayor to discuss a range of issues of relevance to traders.

Environmental Initiatives: The Mayoral Program provided $11,000 toward an Eating for Sustainability Forum on World Environment Day featuring Millie Ross, Lauren Burns, Rod May, Professor Barbara Norman and Vasili Kanidiadis.

Performing Arts: Performances prior to Council Meetings have been a popular feature instigated by the Mayoral Program. They have included Hayley Edwards, the Altonica’s and the Karen Hip Hop group. This program has cost approximately $600.

Recognition of Volunteers: A seeding grant of $1,000 has been provided directly to the Parkinson’s Singing Choir.

Sister Cities: The Mayor hosted the Buloke Bowls Tournament in April. Wi-Fi: Publically accessible Wi-Fi has been installed at Commonwealth Reserve, Williamstown at a cost of

$12,900. Youth Project: The Mayor has supported participation by six local young people in the YMCA Victoria Youth

Parliament, at a cost of $4,300.

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Ward fundsThroughout the year, the Council makes ward fund allocations, via Council resolutions, in order to enhance social and community good in Hobsons Bay.

The allocation of ward funds recognises that community needs for funding can arise after the adoption of the annual municipal budget. Up to October 2012, funds were allocated per ward. The amount available to be allocated up to October 2012 was $2,333 ($7,000 per year pro rata). From November 2012, following ward redivision, the remaining funds were allocated per Councillor. The amount available to be allocated from November 2012 to June 2013 was $4,667 ($7,000 per year pro rata).

Change to Ward Structure impacts ward fund allocations

An independent electoral representation review conducted by the Victorian Electoral Commission resulted in changes to the municipal ward structure. These changes are reflected in the ward fund allocations below.

Prior to the election in October 2012, the Council consisted of seven Councillors representing the seven wards of Altona, Altona Meadows, Altona North, Seabrook, Spotswood, Williamstown and Williamstown North. The new Council consists of seven Councillors; three from the Strand Ward, two from the Cherry Lake Ward, and two from the Wetlands Ward.

Ward Fund Allocations - Former Ward StructureThe below table indicates the funds spend per ward prior to the Council elections and ward changes in October 2012.

Recipient Purpose AmountALTONA WARDAltona Lions Club To assist with their convention this November. $500Altona City Soccer Club To assist with ongoing costs. $500Australian Arabic Women's Group To assist with Ramadan festivities. $250Newport Senior Citizens Group To assist with ongoing costs. $250Altona North Italian Social Club Contribution towards 2012 St Nicola Festival in September. $500

Tarxien Social Club To assist them with the Mass for All Souls on 4th November 2012. $333

Total to October 2012 $2,333ALTONA MEADOWS WARDAltona Gator Senior and Youth League teams Big V Basketball League for the annual pink event. $1,000Altona Meadows Macedonian Pensioner Group For their end of year celebrations. $350Hobsons Bay Roosters Rugby Club For thank you gifts for the coaches. $300Laverton Jets Basketball Club For end of season gifts for volunteers. $200Laverton Bowling Club For their upcoming annual tournament. $200

Total to October 2012 $2,050

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ALTONA NORTH WARD

Annunciation Primary School To assist with their end of year Family Disco night on 7 December 2012. $250

Australian Arabic Women's GroupTo assist with their upcoming pre-Ramadan celebration/conference on 19th July 2012. $500

Altona North Italian Social ClubTo contribute towards the 2012 St Nicola Festival in September 2012. $500

St Mary’s Primary School, Williamstown For the "Kids teaching Kids Conference". $333

Total to October 2012 $1,583

SEABROOK WARDJoseph's Corner Inc. To assist with their free counselling services in Laverton. $400

Australian Arabic Women's Group To assist with Ramadan festivities. $250Second Laverton Scouts To assist with ongoing programs in Laverton. $1,000Laverton Traders Association To assist with funding the Laverton Festival on 25th

November 2012.$683

Total to October 2012 $2,333SPOTSWOOD WARD

Multicultural Conference

To provide catering for the multicultural conference held in Hobsons Bay on 2 July 2012 by South Asian Community Link Group Australasia. $555

St Marys Primary School, Williamstown For the "Kids teaching Kids Conference". $333Newport Senior Citizens Group To assist with ongoing costs. $250Altona Fishing Club To assist with ongoing theatre costs. $600

Teluga Assoc of Aust To assist with the 20th anniversary function to be held at the Williamstown Town Hall in October 2012. $500Total to October 2012 $2,238

Recipient Purpose AmountWILLIAMSTOWN WARDBarnestoneworth United Football Club For soccer equipment. $350Williamstown Chamber of Commerce For networking event. $500St Marys Primary School, Williamstown For the "Kids teaching Kids Conference". $333Hobsons Bay's Annual Breast Cancer Breakfast To assist with operational costs. $300Williamstown High School Centenary Theatre Fund To assist with ongoing theatre costs. $500Williamstown Juniors Football Club To help cover costs of their annual trophy presentations. $250Williamstown Soccer Club To help cover costs of their trophy presentations. $100

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Total to October 2012 $2,333WILLIAMSTOWN NORTH WARDBarnestoneworth United Football Club For soccer equipment. $350Williamstown High School Centenary Theatre Fund To assist with ongoing theatre costs. $500Newport Power Football and Netball Club

To cover costs with annual junior football and netball presentations. $600

Williamstown Soccer Club To help cover costs of their trophy presentations. $400Williamstown Juniors Football Club To help cover costs of their annual trophy presentations. $250Outlets Cooperative Neighbourhood House Ltd To help cover costs of equipment. $200

Total to October 2012 $2,300

Ward Fund Allocations - Current Ward StructureThe below table indicates the funds spend per ward for each councillor post election and ward changes in October 2012.

CHERRY LAKE WARD - Allocated by Cr Tony Briffa

Altona North Cricket Club Financial assistance. $250Bayside College (Altona North Campus) To assist local students with disabilities. $500Immaculate Conceptions Social Club

To assist with festivities at St Mary's Church, Altona in December 2012. $250

Hobsons Bay Men's ShedTo assist with putting on the annual classic car and bicycle show as part of 2013 Altona Beach Festival in March. $500

Louis Joel Arts and Community Centre To support their next program for the 2014 Go West Festival. $500Altona Life Saving Club To assist with their ongoing activities. $500Phoenix Westgate Migrant Centre

To assist with their ongoing programs for our local multicultural community. $500

Altona All Abilities Cricket Team To assist them with participating in a competition in Ballarat this May. $250

Hobsons Bay Maltese Assoc To assist with their ongoing activities and programs. $1,000

Joseph's Corner Incorporated To assist with funding for ongoing services for disadvantaged people in Hobsons Bay. $200

Somers Parade KindergartenTo assist their committee's fundraising efforts to run an additional activity. $200

Total to June 2013 $4,650CHERRY LAKE WARD -Allocated by Cr Sandra Wilson

Altona North Cricket Club Financial assistance to the Club. $250

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Latitude Directions for Young People Christmas party

To assist with costs for Christmas party to be held on 20th December 2012. $250

Australian Senior Women's Lacrosse Team

To assist with costs to travel to Canada to compete in the 2013 World Cup Championship. $500

Altona Sports Club Social Ballroom Dancing Competition

To support an upcoming ballroom dance for seniors during 2013. $500

Rotary Club of Altona Inc. To support the Rotary Club of Altona City Inc. 2013 Sydney to Melbourne Bike Ride. $250

Altona All Abilities Cricket Team To assist them with participating in a competition in Ballarat this May. $250

Hobsons Bay Greek Senior Citizens Club To assist with ongoing costs in 2013. $250Greek Orthodox Community of Hobsons Bay Inc

To assist with its ongoing programs and activities to benefit the local Greek community. $1,000

Second Laverton Scouts Group To assist with memberships and uniforms. $300Australian Arabic Women's Community

To assist with their upcoming pre-Ramadan celebration/conference in 2013. $250

Louis Joel Arts and Community Centre Workshops in traditional dot painting during NAIDOC Week. $500Forget Me Not Foundation Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Forum on 14th July 2013. $350

Total to June 2013 $4,300

Recipient Purpose AmountWETLANDS WARD -Allocated by Cr Luba Grigorovitch

Altona Roosters Cricket Club For start up costs for the newly established women's junior cricket team for 2012-2013 season.

$500

Latitude Directions for Young People Christmas party

Christmas party to be held 20th December 2012. $250

Laverton Women's Cricket Club To help with the conduct of the Annual Pink Stumps Day event.

$500

Victorian Basketball Referees Association

To assist in an invitation received for five local referees to participate in a national tournament

$250

Rotary Club of Altona Inc. To support the Rotary Club of Altona City Inc. 2013 Sydney to Melbourne Bike Ride.

$250

Yarnsmiths Group To assist with organising a community excursion for local members and other ongoing running costs.

$200

Laverton Community Garden For costs associated with the relocation and re-establishment

of the garden Laverton P-12 College.

$500

Laverton Jets Basketball Club To assist with the purchase of team uniforms. $200Second Laverton Scouts Group To assist with memberships and uniforms. $350Altona Gators Senior Men's and Women's teams

To assist with the running of the annual Gators Pink Event in July.

$500

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Recipient Purpose AmountLaverton Soccer Club To assist with the purchase of new goal nets. $250

Jake Ballestrino - International Paralympics Table Tennis Tournament

For an upcoming International Paralympics table tennis tournament.

$250

Shane Crick for the Deaflympics Participation in the Deaflympics in Bulgaria. $250Altona Meadows Macedonian Pensions Group

For ongoing costs during 2013. $150

Total to June 2013 $4,400WETLANDS WARD - Allocated by Cr Colleen Gates

The 5th Annual Street SmART Auction

To help cover costs with organising the event. $500

Laverton Women's Cricket Club To help with the conduct of the Annual Pink Stumps Day event.

$500

Victorian Basketball Referees Association

To assist in an invitation received for five local referees to participate in a national tournament.

$250

Hobsons Bay Greek Senior Citizens Club

To assist with ongoing costs in 2013. $250

Yarnsmiths Group To assist with organising a community excursion for local members and other ongoing running costs.

$200

Laverton Community Garden For costs associated with the relocation and re-establishment of the garden of Laverton P-12 College.

$500

Laverton Jets Basketball Club To assist with the purchase of team uniforms. $200Second Laverton Scouts Group To assist with memberships and uniforms. $350Australian Arabic Women's Community

To assist with their upcoming pre-Ramadan celebration/conference in 2013.

$250

Altona Gators Senior Men's and Women's teams

To assist with the running of the annual Gators Pink Event in July.

$500

Laverton Soccer Club To assist with the purchase of new goal nets $250Jake Ballestrino - International Paralympics Table Tennis Tournament

Upcoming International Paralympics table tennis tournament. $250

Shane Crick for the Deaflympics Participation in the Deaflympics in Bulgaria. $250Total to June 2013 $4,250

Recipient Purpose AmountSTRAND WARD - Allocated by Cr Angela Altair

Doug Heywood To help cover costs for the running of the Messiah Concert in Williamstown.

$500

Australian Senior Women's Lacrosse Team

To assist with costs to travel to Canada to compete in the 2013 World Cup Championship.

$250

Williamstown Botanic Gardens To assist with the Paint the Garden's Art Competition to be $225116

Recipient Purpose Amountheld on 14th April 2013.

Seaworks Foundation To assist with the display of their acquisition of the National Trust Maritime Library.

$1,000

Jackie Kerin (Federation of European Storytelling Conference)

To assist with costs associated with Jackie’s attendance at the Federation of European Storytelling Conference where she is representing Australia.

$500

Williamstown CYMS Football Club

To assist with their 2013 Club Awards. $500

Williamstown Juniors Football Club

Towards the costs associated with the season launch and purchase of plaque.

$500

Australian Arabic Women's Community

To assist with their upcoming pre-Ramadan celebration/conference in 2013.

$500

Probus Club of Williamstown To assist with their 90th birthday function on 6th August 2013. $400Total to June 2013 $4,375

STRAND WARD - Allocated by Cr Peter Hemphill

Doug Heywood To help cover costs for the running of the Messiah Concert in Williamstown.

$500

Outlets Co-operative Neighbourhood House Ltd

Financial assistance to Outlets Co-operative Neighbourhood House.

$200

South Kingsville Community Centre

To help cover costs for the centre's cooking program for people with disabilities.

$500

Williamstown Literary Festival To help cover costs for the 2013 Williamstown Literary Festival.

$1,000

Newport Folk and Fiddle Club To help cover costs for the 2013 Newport Folk and Fiddle Festival.

$1,000

Lachlan Williams To help cover costs representing Australia in the Under 23 Lacrosse Championships.

$100

Spotswood Football Club To help cover costs for the junior teams presentation night. $500Newport Digman Cricket Club To provide equipment for its junior cricket players. $867

Total to June 2013 $4,667STRAND WARD - Allocated by Cr Paul Morgan

South Kingsville Community Centre

To help cover costs with the centre's cooking program for people with a disability.

$500

Australian Senior Women's Lacrosse Team

To assist with costs to travel to Canada to compete in the 2013 World Cup Championship.

$250

Rotary Club of Williamstown To assist with the costs of suppling and installing playground equipment at the Laverton Autistic School.

$500

HeartStart Foundation To continue implementing their "defibrillators in school" program.

$1,000

Western Health Foundation Purchase and installation of a television for the waiting room of the Williamstown Hospital.

$750

Altona Meadows Macedonian For ongoing costs during 2013. $350117

Recipient Purpose AmountPensions Group

Total to June 2013 $3,350

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Understanding the Financial ReportThe financial report reviews the Council’s performance against the budget and shows the financial position of the Council as at 30th June 2013.

The financial report is audited by the Victorian Auditor-General to ensure it fairly represents the financial performance and position of the Council and is presented in accordance with Australian Accounting Standards and the Local Government Act.

The audited financial report is divided into three sections: the financial statements, the standard statements and the performance statement.

The Financial Statements

The financial statements compare the current financial year with the previous year. It comprises of the following four statements:

1. Statement of comprehensive income;2. Balance sheet;3. Statement of changes in equity; and4. Cash flow statement.

Statement of Comprehensive Income

The statement of comprehensive income is sometimes referred to as a profit and loss statement and is generally divided into income and expenses to show the financial performance of the Council for the year ended 30 th June 2013.

All income sources of the Council are listed, including rates and charges, statutory fees and fines, user charges and grant funding. Operational expenses such as employee costs, materials and services, depreciation and finance costs are also listed. It is important to note that capital purchases (i.e. assets) are not included, as these are not regarded as ‘operational’.

The difference between income and expenses determines the surplus (if revenue is greater than expenses) or the loss (if revenue is less than expenses) for the year. It is extremely important that the Council continues to maintain operational surpluses to cover current and future capital works.

‘Other comprehensive income’ is also included in the income statement. This section includes increases and decreases to the Council’s balance sheet that are not regarded as real income (or expenditure). When added to the surplus, this forms the comprehensive result.

Balance Sheet

The balance sheet shows the financial position of the Council at a point in time, being 30 th June 2013. It outlines the Council’s assets (what we own) and its liabilities (what we owe), the difference being the net assets of the Council.

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The balance sheet confirms that the Council is in a sound financial position at 30 th June 2013, with no immediate financial concerns.

The Council’s assets and liabilities are broken down into current and non-current sections. Current generally means that those assets and/or liabilities will fall due within the next 12 months.Net assets describe the difference between the value of assets and liabilities and always equal total equity. The Council’s equity is broken down between accumulated surpluses and reserves.

Statement of Changes in Equity

The statement of changes in equity shows the movements in the Council’s equity from the beginning to the end of the financial year. It shows changes to:

Accumulated surplus, which changes according to the surplus or loss for the year; Asset revaluation reserve, showing any revaluation adjustments made to assets, and Other reserves, showing transfers to and from the Council’s reserves such as funding set aside for recreation

reserves, developer contributions, plant replacement and future infrastructure works.

Cash Flow Statement

The cash flow statement summarises all of the cash received and paid throughout the year. It differs from the income statement, which is based on the accrual accounting basis.

The statement shows the cash balance at the start of the financial year, then adds cash inflows (receipts) and deducts outflows (payments) for the year to determine the cash balance at the end of the financial year. This figure reconciles to the cash figure outlined in the balance sheet.

Cash flows are generated and used in the following three main areas:

1. Operating activities refers to the cash generated or used in the normal service delivery functions of the Council;

2. Investing activities refers to cash generated or used in the enhancement or creation of infrastructure and other assets, including the acquisition and sale of assets such as property, plant and equipment, and

3. Financing activities refers to cash generated or used in the financing of Council functions and includes borrowings from financial institutions and the repayment of principal and interest loan repayments for the year.

Notes to the Financial Report

Details of the Council’s accounting policies are contained in Note 1. This provides an outline of many of the accounting policies, usually consistent with other entities that also follow the Australian Accounting Standards. It also provides information on the assumptions and accounting decisions made by the Council that can affect the financial figures. These include asset recognition limits, revaluation schedules and depreciation rates.

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The next section of notes provides further detail as to how the figures in the four financial statements are derived. The four main statements contain references to the relevant notes that provide greater detail on each of the summarised figures in the statements.

Further notes disclose additional information to the reader that cannot be incorporated into the four main statements, but can be used to further determine the financial performance and position of the Council.

Standard Statements

The standard statements compare the actual financial results against the initial budget set at the beginning of the financial year for three of the four financial statements, being the standard statement of financial performance, balance sheet and cash flows.An additional standard statement of capital works is presented here, comparing the Council’s actual capital expenditure throughout the year against the initial capital budget. Again, it is worth noting that these items are not included as expenses in the income statement (standard statement of financial performance), as the benefit from expenditure on capital works will be received over many years. This is an example of why an operational surplus will not necessarily always lead to an increase in cash.

Performance Statement

The performance statement compares the (mostly non-financial) audited results that the Council achieved against its performance targets set as part of the 2012-2013 budget process. These targets are directly linked to the Council’s objectives set out in the Council Plan 2009–2013.

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