Fit for the Future

The NSW Government has introduced a series of reforms for Local Government called Fit for the Future. The focus is on encouraging each council to create its own roadmap on how it will be a sustainable and efficient provider of services to the community and contribute to a stronger and more effective local government sector in NSW.

The Office of Local Government has developed four criteria against which each council will be assessed to see if they are Fit for the Future, namely:

• Scale and Capacity
• Sustainability
• Effective Infrastructure and Service Management
• Efficiency

You may have heard some discussions around councils merging, particularly in Sydney. However, Blue Mountains City Council has not been recommended to merge with neighbouring councils or for any other boundary adjustment. Instead we are looking at working more strategically with Penrith and Hawkesbury City Councils to explore the possibilities and benefits of regional cooperation. A regional alliance of the three councils could offer opportunities to do things together more effectively and efficiently in the interest of our respective communities.

By 30 June 2015 all NSW councils must make a submission to the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal (IPART) showing how they are Fit for the Future. This involves reporting on Council's current and projected performance against each of the Fit for the Future criteria, and outlining strategies to improve Council's performance across all criteria over the next five years.