Have Your Say Randwick website 9 Sept. - 15 Nov. 2013 Randwick community and other interested Website with all documents and background material, and online survey. During this period there were: - 1,432 unique site visits -15,238 page views Summary in Attachment T Social Ongoing Randwick community and other interested Facebook followers- 4,172 Twitter (Mayor) - 1,023 followers Council 256 followers Summary of activity in Attachment T Stall at the fair September 2013 Randwick community and visitors Information and survey available Approx. 6,000 attended Vox pop made at the Eco-living fair September 2013 Randwick community and visitors Students interviewed visitors to fair as part of a school project involving them in environmental activities with their Council Posters September - October 2013 Posters for libraries, customer service centres and bus shelters Included in Attachment Q Mayors letter to all ratepayers October 2013 Randwick ratepayers Letter from addressed to 55,000 ratepayers which provided a fact sheet and invited people to make comment via survey with a reply paid envelope included. Letter and Fact included in Attachment Q Community engagement workshops October Randwick ratepayers- randomly selected Two workshops held- 29th & 30th October 37 participants Report provided In Attachment U The information given to the community outlined: that the current environment levy was due to expire in June 2014 why the environment program should be able to continue proposed future projects and programs including the cost of the proposed special variation showing the cumulative impact financial impact of the preferred option with a range of examples based on different land values showed the varying impacts of the accumulated increase
Assessment criterion 5: Productivity improvements and cost containment strategies The DLG Guidelines state this criterion as follows: An explanation of the productivity improvements and cost containment strategies the council has realised in past years, and plans to realise over the proposed special variation period. In this section, provide details of any productivity improvements and cost containment strategies that you have implemented in the last 2 years (or longer) and any plans for productivity improvements and cost containment during the period of the special variation. These plans, capital or recurrent in nature, must be aimed at reducing costs. Please also indicate any initiatives to increase revenue eg, user charges. Identify how and where the proposed initiatives have been factored into the council’s resourcing strategy (eg, LTFP and AMP). Where possible, quantify in dollar terms the past and future productivity improvements and savings. You may also use indicators ofefficiency, either over time or in comparison to relevant councils. We will make similar comparisons using various indicators and the DLG Group data provided to us. COUNCIL RESPONSE The Council adopts a strategic approach to achieving efficiency and productivity savings and is committed to continuing this work into the future. The identification and implementation of productivity improvements is an integral part of Council’s Long Term Financial Planning. Table 30 below provides a summary of recent productivity initiatives that have delivered: recurrent savings increased revenue efficiency improvements improved customer focused services Table 30: Productivity Initiatives INITIATIVES DELIVERING RECURRENT SAVINGS OR INCREASED REVENUE INITIATIVES DELIVERING EFFICIENCY IMPROVEMENTS INITIATIVES DELIVERING IMPROVEDCUSTOMER FOCUSED SERVICES New IT system resulted in cost savings of up to $1 million per annum Use of technology enables irrigation, recycling and floodlights to be remotely Provision of a range of online services including lodgement of development applications
Southern Sydney Regional Organisation of Councils (SSROC) joint procurement venture resulted in approximate Randwick Council annual savings of $1.2m. (Estimated regional savings over 10 years of $105 million ) A review of fleet management extend the plant replacement schedule for passenger and light commercial vehicles to 3 years/60,000 kms. delivering savings of over $200,000 per annum S94A Development Contributions Plan was reviewed and updated in 2012 and extended to Complying Development Applications providing additional revenue for community infrastructure Diversification in the range of vehicles offered resulted in a decrease in average vehicle purchase price with savings of over $40,000 per annum Implemented flexible leave arrangements such as cashing out annual leave and purchasing leave reducing leave balances by 9,000 hours with a $375,000 reduction in leave liability Savings achieved under the SSROC Large Site Electricity controlled and monitored delivering more efficient water and electricity use Redesigned the recruitment strategy to increase candidate numbers by 49% over 3 years and delivered a 66% reduction in recruitment costs through better branding and online focus Improved and more tightly managed leases have resulted in lessees of all community buildings assuming responsibility for maintenance as detailed in their leases and licenses saving money for council. Establishment of new environmental performance targets for new Council vehicles has realised a reduction in fuel consumption and CO₂ emissions from Council's fleet Implemented an employee engagement program which increased employee productivity by 1.1% over 12 months The introduction of an E tendering system has streamlined the issue and evaluation of tenders leading to a reduction in staff time allocated to assessing submissions and BPoint for payment of rates (in 2011-12 $3.3 million of rates paid online Range of innovative ways provided for the community to interact with Council such as Council website with 255,000 unique visits in 2012 (18% increase from 2011); myRandwick smartphone App; multi-lingual website; yourSayRandwick.com.au for community consultation; Online Electronic Housing Code (EHC) was introduced in 2013 enabling property owners check whether approvals for proposed residential work is required. The system also allows complying development to be lodged and progress tracked online Dashboard iPad Software delivers live information to better inform councillors and senior management The review of the Comprehensive DCP consolidated 29 existing DCPs and 9 policies into the one document, for easier and consistent guidance for applicants and the community Heritage - background research statements on heritage items and conservation areas now on our web site as useful aid to