Governance Strategy
Feedback closed Friday 10 January 2025
Update:
Community consultation is closed and the Council decision was made on Monday 10 February.
This and all eight can be found here Informing Strategies.
You can watch the discussion from this meeting here: Council Meeting 10 February 2025.
Background
Evidence-based decision-making and transparent, accountable governance are fundamental to sustaining a well-functioning and strong community.
The Governance Strategy was instigated in February 2024 in response to ongoing issues associated with the North Sydney Olympic Pool project. It was prepared using insights from a workshop with Council’s Leadership Team, review of relevant legislation and research that included consideration of best practices within both the public and private sectors.
Key strategic directions
The Governance Strategy outlines a clear framework to guide Council’s operations and decision-making processes. At the heart lies a commitment to transparency, accountability and community engagement, ensuring that every action we take aligns with our overarching outcome of building an effective, accountable and sustainable Council that serves the community.
To realise this outcome, this strategy includes the following strategic directions:
Develop clear goals, create a plan to achieve them, and track progress with transparency and honesty.
Put community needs at the core of everything we do and deliver excellent customer service.
Make it easy for our community to engage and participate in decision-making.
Manage risks and maintain independent oversight in business operations and decision-making.
Exercise regulatory compliance responsibilities diligently to protect the environment and support our community.
Commit to efficiency and value for money in service delivery.
Build a resilient, inclusive and empowered workforce that is committed to delivering community outcomes.
Manage Council’s finances through robust long-term planning and ongoing financial management.
The Governance Strategy is one of eight draft informing strategies that articulate the needs and priorities of North Sydney over the next ten years. Once adopted, these strategies will form the basis of our new 2025-2035 Community Strategic Plan (CSP).
Cost of delivering the Governance Strategy
Timing and delivery of new projects and initiatives will be dependent on availability of funding.
To deliver the essential system upgrades and new projects and initiatives detailed in the Governance Strategy, the estimated additional funding required from rates income is detailed in the table below:
Council is currently engaging with the community on a proposed special rate variation that presents four potential rate increase options. All options will facilitate delivery of the essential governance system improvements detailed in this strategy.
Using option 2b as an example, the average percentage of rates income that would be spent on new projects and initiatives identified in the Governance Strategy over the full ten year period is 2.0%.
This means that for every $100 of rates income received, an average of $2.00 would be spent on governance improvements.
If you need help accessing the Strategy or would like to view a hard copy version, please call 02 9936 8100.
