Council’s commitment to community engagement
Published on 14 December 2021
As COVID restrictions recede, Clarence Valley Council’s new executive team is reviewing how it engages with the community.
Planned for 2022 is the commencement of an annual program of community engagement events in the various villages and towns around the Clarence Valley.
Clarence Valley Council Acting General Manager Laura Black said a limited program was trialled in May and June 2021, with staff engaging with the community in Grafton, Maclean, and Yamba.
This was welcomed by more than 100 residents who took the opportunity to discuss various matters with senior staff.
“We continue to hear from some smaller communities that staff are not accessible to residents,” Ms Black said.
“I would like to change that, with a new program that is an expansion of what we trialled in 2021.
“The engagement program will provide residents with access to senior staff to talk about operational activities that affect them, and it gives an opportunity for the staff to discuss planned projects with community members.
“During COVID we became reliant on email to communicate with many residents. We feel that now restrictions have lifted it will be much more effective to speak with residents onsite and in person.”
Director Environment and Planning Adam Cameron said Council was also planning to introduce a scheduled program of meetings with developers to discuss improvements in the development assessment process.
“We’d like to catch up with individual builders and the project home industry more regularly,” Mr Cameron said.
“There have been a significant number of changes across development certification processes in recent years and having an opportunity to discuss new requirements with those who are directly affected would be beneficial all round.”
Council’s senior staff have, for some time, been meeting with the Yaegl Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation’s Executive Board and Management team.
In 2022, Council’s executive team hopes to establish similar relationships with other Traditional Owners Corporations and Local Aboriginal Land Councils (LALC) across all three Aboriginal Nations within the boundary of the Clarence Valley local government area.
Council’s Director Works and Civil Jamie Fleeting said meeting with Yaegl TOAC had been extremely beneficial to understanding the impact of our projects on Country.
"Strengthening our relationships with the Traditional Owners is something we are looking forward to in coming years,” Mr Fleeting said.
Ms Black said 2021/2022 introduced a new look to the organisation’s Annual Operational Plan, which has added a level of transparency around deliverables.
“The former Council approved the preparation of a Council magazine that will strengthen our communications around completed key projects, how they were funded and their value,” Ms Black said.
“It will also highlight upcoming projects, including opportunities for participation in project planning.
“We know we have our critics, and in some cases that’s understandable, however, there are many more residents who just want to know who we are, what’s happening and when it will be done.
“Our forward plans are being developed to fill those gaps.”