Australia's National Local Government Newspaper Online

Tas amalgamations proceed
The Tasmanian Government's announcement, in June, that Local Government amalgamations will go ahead, has seen the State's 29 Councils reduced to fourteen. Six Councils, West Coast, Circular Head, Hobart, Glenorchy, Flinders Island and King Island, remain unchanged, while the remaining 23 will form eight new Councils.

Best Value supersedes CCT in UK
Jenny Tibbitts, Organisational Development Officer with Blue Mountains City Council, recently returned from a three week study tour to the United Kingdom. She is the inaugural recipient of the Institute of Municipal Management/Task Software SOLACE Research Scholarship.

Editorial
After '18 years of dark days of Conservative Government with Compulsory Competitive Tendering (CCT), competition and curtailed spending', the election of the Blair Government in 1997 has brought a new vision for Local Government based around the concept of Best Value. Although Best Value is less prescriptive than CCT which it replaces, Whitehall is very much calling the tune. The Blair Government has categorically told Councils if they were unable or unwilling to work to the modern agenda, it will have no choice but to look at other partners to take over their role.

President's comment
Each edition we feature the views of a State Local Government Association President. The following is from Councillor Ken Pech, President - Western Australia Municipal Association.

Working for a sustainable future
Committed to Local Agenda 21, Mandurah and its surrounds, is the perfect location for a national forum to address the issue of sustainability. Organisers chose Mandurah to host the Conference, titled 'Planning for Sustainable Futures', because of the City's clear commitment to sustainability in planning decisions.

Gold Coast's National Award for water conservation
Gold Coast City Council has won a national environment award for its outstanding water conservation program - Waterwise. The Banksia Awards have become known as Australia's premier environment awards and recognise the achievements of individuals, companies and government agencies.

Business and government get together in NT
Plans to celebrate Tennant Creek Town Council's 20th anniversary are coming to fruition. For one week, in September, the Town will be the focus of Australia wide attention hosting a national conference examining the future economic prospects for the Northern Territory on 16-17 September.

Bike education just as important in small towns
Investment by the Shire of Perenjori in a Bike Ed Unit for local children has been a great success. Although Perenjori is a small rural community where traffic would not be expected to be a major problem, the fact that a major road train route runs through the town means it is imperative that children know how to treat roads with respect when riding their bicycles.

Creating parks for people
Open space, parkland and preservation of precious indigenous species of flora are all important to the Council and residents of Maroochy Shire in Queensland. A series of public meetings, conducted around the Shire, has given Maroochy residents input to Council's Open Space Strategy.

Library services to meet increased demand
With one of the highest rates of library usage in Queensland, Toowoomba City Council has allocated increased funding to this service to meet residents' demands.

Charting new waters in Community Services
Local Government Community Services staff and Councillors from across Australia will gather in Sydney in October for the 7th National Conference on Local Government and Community Development. This biennial event, staged by the Local Government Community Services Association of Australia (LGCSAA), will run from 14-16 October at the Wesley Centre in Sydney.

Palmerston develops a cultural focus
After 16 years concentrating on building up the infrastructure necessary to sustain and develop a new and rapidly growing population, Palmerston Town Council in the Northern Territory is now turning its attention to issues of cultural and social development.

Balancing community needs with fiscal responsibility
Queensland's Redcliffe City Council believes that bringing in a responsible budget does not necessarily negate the need to meet community needs. Council believes this year's budget successfully combines the two objectives.

'Spirit of Kala' lives on
To celebrate its centenary, the Shire of Kalamunda has decided to restage a play written by senior citizens seven years ago. Titled, The Spirit of Kala's Past, the play was originally part of a Community Arts Project. It is based on extensive research by the seniors group into the district's early European history.

Graphic message promotes pedestrian safety
A pedestrian safety campaign sponsored by the Southern Sydney Regional Organisation of Councils (SSROC) aims to halt an increasing number of pedestrian deaths and injuries occurring on local roads.

Pedal power goes swimmingly
A partnership between the City of Unley and BikeSouth in South Australia has resulted in an increase in pool and bicycle use. This has fostered healthier lifestyles, particularly among the young.

A society for all ages
With 1999 designated as the International Year of Older Persons, the Office of Seniors Interests in Western Australia is calling on Councils to let them know about events they are planning to celebrate this.

Local Government's crucial role in community sport and recreation
The Australian Sports Commission is the national government body responsible for the funding and development of sport at all levels in Australia. The Commission has identified that Local Government is the largest provider of sport and recreation programs and facilities in Australia.

Active Australia Resource Kit
For many local Councils there is a great deal of interest in the Active Australia concept and how it might impact upon the policies and practices of Council. To provide Councils with the answers and information on how to do this, the Australian Sports Commission, with funding support from the National Office of Local Government has produced a resource kit.

Aussie Sport
AUSSIE SPORT is one part of Active Australia aimed at achieving quality junior sport and the development of young people through sport. Councils have an important role in assisting local sporting clubs, schools and community groups to develop active young Australians.

Funding for pilot projects
Local Government throughout Australia is an important provider of sport and recreation infrastructure and services to the community. In recognition of Local Government's role in the Active Australia framework, funding has been made available to the Australian Sports Commission (ASC) from the National Office of Local Government's Local Government Development Program (LGDP).

Local Government Network
A key aspect of the Resource Kit is the information on the Active Australia Local Government Network. Councils are being encouraged to join this network to show they have made a commitment to, and demonstrated a recognition of, the Active Australia vision and goals in their policies and practices.

Being active - it's never too late!
The Never Too Late! Program is a joint initiative of the Australian Sports Commission (ASC) and the Department of Veterans' Affairs (DVA). The Program provides funding to organisations who propose to modify their sport and recreational activities to enable veterans to participate in new and existing physical activity opportunities.

Sport and Recreation in Local Government - a case study resource
The Sport and Recreation in Local Government Case Study resource brings together over 150 case studies of successful sport and recreation projects and initiatives. They have been drawn from material collected from local Councils and sport and recreation organisations throughout Australia over recent years.

ASC's Disability Education Program
The Australian Sports Commission's (ASC) Disability Education Program has been conducting disability awareness workshops with local service providers for three years.

Active Australia Awards
The sport and recreation industry is emerging as one of Australia's major service industries. As an emerging service industry it is important that the organisations and people, both paid and voluntary, working hard to ensure enjoyable, safe experiences for all Australians are recognised for their good practices and achievements. The Active Australia Annual Awards will recognise good practices in sport and recreation organisations.

Facilities information planned for the internet
The management and development of sporting facilities is a major activity in Local Government but all too often the wheel is reinvented because there is insufficient exchange of information about sporting facility management and development. The need to exchange information has been recognised by the Standing Committee on Sport and Recreation (SCORS) and its standing subcommittee, the Australasian Facilities Committee (AFC).

Quality coaching
According to the recently released Australian Bureau of Statistics report, titled 'Sport and Recreation 1996/97', at least 4.1 million Australians are involved in playing sport each year and over 600,000 Australians are involved in coaching, instructing or teaching sport. At the moment, there is no legal requirement for a coach to have a minimum coaching standard before they can coach. In other words, anyone can coach! This raises the concern regarding how it can be ensured that coaches provide safe and quality experiences for sport participants?

Active Australia SportSafe
The Australian Sports Injury Prevention Taskforce has presented its report, 'SportSafe Australia: A National Sports Safety Framework'. The report provides broad guidelines for Australians to participate in sport in the safest possible environment.