Integrated Planning and Reporting

Online Library for Integrated Planning and Reporting

The Integrated Planning and Reporting (IPR) legislation dramatically changes current strategic planning and reporting requirements for NSW councils. Under the legislation, every council will be required to prepare a series of new plans to guide and inform their operations and priorities, and to build strong links with local communities and other stakeholders.

The Centre for Local Government is committed to supporting Councils in responding to these reforms, and for this reason has developed a range of services to support NSW Councils in the transition to better planning:

1. In-house Capacity-Building Program - experienced local government consultants providing access to tailored training and capacity-building services for individual councils (download brochure);

2. Short Courses - accredited professional development courses at UTS for local government practitioners, enabling councils to share the latest information about industry innovations and good practice (Integrated Strategic Planning Short Course | Other Short Courses); and

3. Online Library - a collection of links to networks, websites and key documents specifically relating to the Integrated Planning and Reporting reforms (see below).

Online Library

	+ General Information - General Information Department of Local Government Includes a range of IPR Documents including the proposed legislation and guidelines, and a FAQ sheet for Councils - Link Integrated Planners Special Interest Group: LGMA The LGMA NSW Integrated Planners SIG meets quarterly, and is open for any Council Staff to attend - Link "Taking a Wider Perspective" Written as a submission to the DLG IPR reforms from the LGMA Corporate Planners' Network in 2006, this document outlines the aspirations and challenges of management planning in NSW - Link UK LG Communities of Practice: IDeA This is a community platform supporting professional social networks across local government in the UK. It provides a secure environment for knowledge development and sharing through online communities of practice on many different topics - Link IPR Briefing Notes for Managers Prepared for Kogarah City Council, this 14 page document summarises the IPR reforms and also provides a list of opportunities, challenges and observations. Written by UTS Centre for Local Government associate Melissa Gibbs - Link Community Strategic Planning: Ontario, Canada This website contains an overview of Community Strategic Planning. It provides some examples of techniques that can be applied at key initial stages and suggestions for where to find more specific tools and more detailed "how-to" publications - Link
	+ Council Exchange: Plans and Reports - Council Exchange: Plans and Reports This page presents a sample collection of links to the planning and reporting documents from 26 NSW councils. These councils have all begun to respond to the Integrated Planning and Reporting reforms - Link
	+ Community Engagement - Community Engagement NSW Community Builders This site is an interactive electronic clearing house for everyone involved in community level social, economic and environmental renewal - Link Community Engagement Resources: VIC LGA This website aims to provide local governments with the information, tools and support to consult effectively - Link Community Engagement Resources: SA LGA This LGA site offers a snapshot of community engagement in SA, as well as an Engagement Showcase, Manual and series of case studies - Link Good Practitioner Guides: Manchester Community Engagement Toolkit - Link ACT Community Engagement Manual - Link Liverpool Community Engagement Toolkit - Link Penrith Community Participation Manual - Link Just Communities Literature Review: This site includes key papers and articles relating to democracy, community wellbeing and local government from a range of sources - Link
	+ Financial Management - Financial Management IPART Review of the Revenue Framework for LG The Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal (IPART) recently released a draft report which recommends changes in the way that local government rates are regulated, including the possible modification of rate pegging - Link Finance Professionals Special Interest Group: LGMA The Financial Professionals is a special interest group of LGMA NSW - Link Strengthening Local Government Program This website contains a range of resources responding to the 2006 Final Report of the Independent Inquiry into the Financial Sustainability of NSW Local Government - Link NSW Rating Professionals Membership of the NSW Rating Professionals Inc. (NSWRP) is open to any person who is involved in the rating or revenue functions within Local Government in New South Wales - Link
	+ Workforce and Service Delivery Planning - Workforce and Service Delivery Planning The following is a collection of research and case studies relating to the topics of workforce planning and service delivery review. + Workforce Planning - Workforce Planning Bennett, P. Recruitment, Retention and Workforce Planning (WFP) at Whitehorse, City of Whitehorse. Download Medway Council, Medway Council critical data set pro forma, Medway Council. Download Medway Council, Workforce planning and development framework, Medway Council. Download Munro, J. 2009, 'love 'em or lose 'em: recruiting young blood and retaining wise heads in a financially challenging environment', LGPro Annual Conference, Brisbane City Council, Melbourne. Download Peterberry Consultancy 2007, Local Government HR practitioners making a difference, Newcastle City Council. Download + Service Delivery Review - Service Delivery Review Artist, S., Sansom, G. 2008, Service Delivery In Local Government, Services Research Paper 2008-2013, Penrith City Council. Download Lawson, T. 2007, Review of South Australian Local Government Joint Service Delivery Opportunities, Tony Lawson Consulting. Download Lofstedt, U. 2007, 'E-Government services in local governments - a study of development in Swedish municipalities', Journal of Organisational Transformation and Social Change, vol. 4, no. 2. Download McKinlay, P. 2009, 'New Directions in New Zealand Local Government', Future of Local Government Summit 5, Local Government Centre, Auckland. Download NSW Department of Local Government 2007, Collaboration and Partnerships between Councils, Department of Local Government, Sydney. Download QMI Solutions 2005, Service Practice and Performance in NSW Local Government, Final Report to the Panel of Independent Inquiry into the Financial Sustainability of Local Government, QMI Solutions. Download South Tyneside Council 2007, Tyneside Service Planning Template, South Tyneside Council. Download
	+ Social and Community Planning - Social and Community Planning Raising Expectations? A Review of NSW Social Plans This report presents the findings of a research project undertaken by the UTS Centre for Local Government to examine the recent experience of New South Wales councils in preparing social/community plans - Link Community Services Special Interest Group: LGMA Recently formed, this special interest group aims to provide leadership, advocacy, information, learning and support to local government community services professionals - Link Crime Prevention Planning: Resources The NSW Attorney General's Department supports local councils as lead agencies for identifying and implementing local crime prevention strategies in NSW - Link Culturemap.org A unique intranet environment especially developed as a place where people interested in cultural planning can meet, share and develop information and collaborate in private workrooms or member forums - Link Planning for Active Living: PCAL A number of resources have been developed by PCAL to help disseminate information relating to the application of active living principles and to facilitate the translation of theory into everyday practice - Link
	+ Environmental Planning and Reporting - Environmental Planning and Reporting Guidelines for Integrating NRM into Corporate Planning and Reporting These Guidelines have been developed by the LGSA, in conjunction with UTS CLG, and take into consideration the current IPR reforms - Link LGSA NRM Webpage: LGSA The Natural Resource Management (NRM) team of the LGSA maintain this website of current initiatives and NRM links for local government - Link References Page The UTS CLG have posted a range of current and relevant references relating to NRM and IPR - Link
	+ IPR and Capacity Building for your Council - IPR and Capacity Building for your Council Capacity Building Program The UTS Centre for Local Government has developed the Integrated Planning Capacity Building Program as a flexible, affordable package to assist NSW councils to implement the Integrated Planning and Reporting (IPR) reforms. The program is tailored to meet the individual needs of participating councils with two main objectives: To help councils meet the IPR requirements smoothly and without undue up-front costs To build councils' in-house skills and capacities to manage IPR tasks over the long term - Link Integrated Strategic Planning: 5 Day Short Course The UTS CLG also offers a 5 day short course covering different concepts and styles of strategic planning in local government and alternative approaches to implementation. The course will include a number of recent and current case studies presented by the involved practitioners. Dates for 2010: 1, 2 November and 1, 2, 3 December - Link