3.1 Defining strategic timeframes
Corporate and operational plans are part of a wider set of local government planning processes and timeframes that need to be integrated and aligned. The relationships between the major planning components are illustrated in the following diagram:
The planning timelines for a typical Queensland local government
Note:
The contents of this diagram are indicative only, and are presented to highlight the relationships between the strategic and operational components of the planning frameworks as well as the typical timeframes that apply to each plan. As such, the diagram is not meant to be interpreted as a prescriptive format.
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3.2 Integrating statutory planning functions with the corporate planning process
As the diagram above illustrates, the preparation of a corporate plan is one of many statutory planning functions exercised by Queensland local governments.
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3.2.1 The Integrated Planning Act 1997 (IPA)
Of particular interest and significance is the need for alignment between the process for preparing the corporate plan and the process for making a planning scheme under the Integrated Planning Act 1997 (IPA).
Just as the corporate plan seeks to assess local and regional issues, such as population change and development and environmental management, to establish an integrated response to the future and present needs of its community; the IPA planning scheme also seeks to manage growth and change for the local government area and coordinate and integrate State, regional and local matters.
Both are key planning processes involving plan making obligations for local government, and both have a similar overarching purpose, although delivered through different means. In particular, both processes adopt a similar strategic planning process that presents opportunities for integration and coordination at the initial stages of plan preparation as illustrated in the following diagram:
Toolbox 2 - Reference - Alignment between the IPA and Corporate plans (
PDF 284 kB) outlines how council can achieve alignment between the corporate plan process and the IPA plan-making process in conjunction with the steps described in Stages 1-3 of the planning cycle. This toolbox includes references to the planning processes for sport, recreation and open space planning.
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Sport, recreation and open space planning
Councils are encouraged to integrate their land use planning frameworks into the corporate planning and IPA planning processes. This framework would include:
- Recreation Plans
- Open Space Plans, and
- Facility Needs Plans.
An integrated planning approach will assist local governments to set priorities for the provision of services, facilities and open space, and identify opportunities within the local government area to deal with any deficiencies of land, programs or facilities for recreation and sport.
Why integrate the planning frameworks
Integrating recreational planning into council's land use and corporate planning frameworks can provide the following benefits:
- Recreation and sport infrastructures and opportunities are considered and planned for in terms of community need and development in the wider context of corporate planning
- The community is more involved in the planning process
- A planned hierarchu of land and infrastructure for recreation and sport is considered across local, district and regional levels along with the broader issues of regional planning
- Linkages between areas and public access are identified and planned
- Social equity principles are used in planning for the future distribution of land, infrastructure and services for recreation and sport.
Recreation and open space plans
Recreation and Open Space plans provide council with recommendations and strategies that ensure they are developing recreation and sport, and providing open space to meet the identified needs of the community. This provides council with a sound basis for decision making relating to:
- Appropriate use of land
- Recreation and sport carried out in appropriate locations and near compatible land uses
- Effective use of informal open space, structured sports fields, built facilities, and
- Effective use of financial resources.
The Recreation and Open Space Plans have development and non-development components. Ideally, they will inform the:
- Corporate plan - eg statements of strategic issues, outcomes and strategies
- Capital Works plan - eg estimated budget required for recommended actions
- Operational plans - eg responsibility for implementation by relevant work units
- Planning Scheme - eg desired environmental outcomes, code provisions, policies, and
- Land acquisition - eg potential locations for open space, infrastructure, cycleways.
These plans will also allow councils to justify criteria for quality and location of land in the developer contribution process.
Facility Needs Plans and studies, together with land use planning outcomes and recommendations from Recreation and Open Space Plans are proposed to local governments during the IPA Planning Scheme process and integrated into relevant planning documents. The relationship and timing of these plans is illustrated in the overview diagram as indicated in Toolbox 2 - Reference - Alignment between the IPA and Corporate plans ( PDF 284 kB)
Planning principles and implementation notes
It is important for councils to have a sound planning policy in place to safeguard good quality land to be preserved for recreation purposes
Sport and Recreation Queensland (SRQ) has developed guidelines for local governments to assist them in their consideration of sport and recreation in the context of land use planning. These are entitled Open Space for Sport and Recreation - Planning Principles and Implementation Notes for Local Government and are available on the SRQ website http://www.srq.qld.gov.au/industry_information/recreation_planning/planning_notes.cfm.
Issues covered in the program include:
- Providing a diverse range of sport and recreation settings
- Recreation and sport in rural areas
- Non-motorised recreation trail networks and open spaced standards, and
- Park planning performance criteria.
Implementation measures are suggested for each issue with examples provided in the Guidelines. The publication also includes a range of case studies on topics such as multiple use of open space, waterways and riparian corridors, cross boundary strategic planning, facility location, co-location of facilities and redevelopment of land.
Funding for local government
Sport and Recreation Queensland (SRQ) provides funding to local governments to undertake recreational planning, provide opportunities and develop places to increase participation in sport and active recreation. Supporting information for applying for planning projcets under the Local Government Development Program is available on the SRQ website http://www.sportrec.qld.gov.au.
The objectives of the program are to:
- Provide opportunities for participation at all levels through active recreation and sports programs, competitions and events
- Improve skills and capabilities in all areas of the industry through education and training programs
- Grow and strengthen the industry into the future through solid organisational governance, and
- Deliver recreation and sporting infrastructure to meet the sport and active recreation demands of Queensland communities.
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3.2.3 Natural resource management (NRM) - corporate planning functions
In recent years, the Commonwealth and State governments have initiated a substantial program of environmental reforms to provide for sustainable natural resource management (NRM) across Queensland. Initiatives include new approaches to sustainable land, vegetation and water management.
The introduction of the National Action Plan for Salinity and Water Quality (NAP) and Natural Heritage Trust (NHT) seeks Local Government involvement in the development and implementation of integrated regional approaches to land-use and natural resource planning and management.
Many local governments currently do not have the capacity to be effectively involved in local and regional NRM planning. The primary issues involved are building the capacity of Local Governments to respond to the NRM agenda. Building capacity also involves facilitating a change in attitudes within Local Governments to the importance of sustainable NRM.
Local governments have consistently expressed concern that they have neither the understanding nor capacity to be as involved as they should be in NRM issues and have expressed support for assistance to become more engaged in the regional NRM planning process.
Acknowledging the support required for effective local government participation, the Local Government Association of Queensland (LGAQ) sought involvement in the development and implementation of a capacity building program that supports Local Government participation towards sustainable land-use and natural resource planning and management under the Australian Government National Action Plan for Salinity and Water Quality and the Natural Heritage Trust programs.
The LGAQ project CB01 Local Government and Sustainable Natural Resource Management in Queensland NAP & NHT regions aims to build local government's capacity to effectively participate in and integrate effort towards the design, establishment and delivery of sustainable NRM planning arrangements in the local and regional context across the NAP regions. This project will initially focus on contributing to regional NRM plans development and implementation.
The LGAQ CB01 project will result in a range of support products for local government participation in sustainable NRM planning in a local and regional context, including:
- Resource booklet on LGAQ services for NRM and local government
- Guidelines for the integration of NRM into local government corporate plans
- Best practive management guidelines for the achieving sustainable NRM in loval government
- Target setting guidelines developed jointly by the Australian and State governments, and
- Works procedural manual for achieving on-ground sustainable natural resource management practices.
For further information on the project, contact the LGAQ NRM team on (07) 3000 2222.
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3.2.4 Disaster Management - corporate planning functions
Queensland's Disaster Management Act 2003 (DMA) provides the framework for effective disaster management planning at State, District and Local levels. The intent of disaster management legislation and contemporary disaster risk management processes is to help communities plan for, and mitigate the potential adverse effects of, a significant emergency or disaster event; to effectively prepare for managing the effects of such an event, and to effectively respond to, and recover from an event.
Within the provisions of the DMA, all local governments are required to develop a disaster management plan.
The Local Government Finance Standard 2005 (LGFS) requires local governments to include information in their corporate plans about council's role in disaster management. For more information on this requirement as part of council's assessment of local and regional issues, refer to Section 2.2 Local Government Finance Standard 2005 (LGFS) - at a glance.
All Queensland councils will be provided with a copy of the Queensland Disaster Management Planning Guidelines for Local Government to assist them to comply with requirements under Section 57 of the DMA. The Guidelines have been designed to to provide 'how to' information for developing local disaster management plans through a series of questions that cover all aspects of disaster management Ideally, the plans will be flexible, owned by the local community, and cater to community needs.
Electronic access to these Guidelines is available on the Department of Emergency Services (DES) website.
In addition to the legislative requirement for a plan, documenting the preparation and responses that local governments undertake regarding disaster management will:
- Ensure there is a consistent approach to disaster management within local government
- Create an auditing tool for disaster management functions
- Demonstrate a commitment to the safety of local communities
- Ensure there is a central coordination of disaster management information for local governments, and
- Demonstrate mitigation efforts and accountability for the purposes of eligibility for available funding.
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3.3 The strategic planning process
3.3.1 What is the planning process?
Strategic planning is an overarching process used to assist council and the community to plan for the future and realise their vision. It is a continuous, systematic process for identifying intended future outcomes, how outcomes are to be achieved, and how success will be measured.
This diagram of the strategic planning process has been adapted from a range of sources and is based on common usage by planners from Australia and overseas in the private sector and all levels of government in Australia. These sources include:
- Fazldeen, A. 1997, Business Planning Workbook, Brisbane, Australia.
- Government of Jamaica, 2000, Corporate Planning Guide and Template, Jamaica.
- Hill. C.W. and Jones, G.R. 2004, Strategic Management, Houghton Mifflin, New York.
- Local Government Association of South Australia, 2000, Council Members' Guide to Planning, Adelaide, SA.
- Queensland Health, 2004, Strategic plan 2004-2010, Brisbane, Australia
- State of Arizona, 1998, Strategic Planning and Performance Management Handbook, Arizona, USA.
Toolbox 13 - Reference - Corporate plan terminology ( PDF 72 kB) provides comparisons of the terminology used by Queensland councils to describe the various components of the strategic planning process.
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3.3.2 How do we use the process?
Use this diagram of the strategic planning process in conjunction with the information presented in Section 4.3 How to implement the planning cycle. Together, these two frameworks identify the steps required to be considered in response to the four key questions:
Where are we now? | | Determined through the environmental scan, SWOT analysis and review of council's mission and guiding principles. |
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Where do we want to be? | | Determined by the vision, strategic direction, outcomes and outputs. |
| |
How will we get there? | | Determined through various strategies and specific activities. |
| |
How do we measure our progress? | | Determined through establishing a monitoring and evaluation process that reviews program outcomes, outputs, budgets, resource controls and reporting systems. |
Many councils have adapted these questions to guide their strategic planning processes and to assist in the presentation of their corporate plans. Brisbane City Council uses these questions as a major component of their strategic planning and budgeting guidelines. Cairns City Council uses the format; What we want to achieve, how we will achieve it, and how we will measure it. Redland Shire Council uses the questions; Where are we now? Where are we going? and How do we get there?
The terminology used in these Guidelines to describe the strategic planning process incorporates the LGFS 2005 that is described in Section 2.2 Local Government Finance Standard 2005 (LGFS) - at a glance.
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3.4 The Quadruple bottom line (QBL)
3.4.1 What is Quadruple bottom line (QBL)?
The QBL framework is recommended by the International Council for Local Environment Initiatives (ICLEI) as the most appropriate planning and reporting format for local governments. QBL has its origins in the 1992 United Nations Local Agenda 21, a program aimed at implementing sustainable development at a local level 1.
This approach means that development must be sustainable, managed in a way that achieves, social and economic sustainability. More recently, a "Quadruple Bottom Line" (QBL) approach has emerged which takes into account the growing focus on "Corporate Governance".
Refer to Toolbox 12 ( PDF 85 kB) - Reference - Quadruple Bottom Line (QBL) for an explanation of the related concepts of sustainability, triple bottom line and corporate governance to assist councils to implement the QBL approach.
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3.4.2 How does Quadruple bottom line (QBL) work?
The introduction of QBL as the framework for an integrated planning, decision-making and reporting process requires a significant commitment of resources over time. While all councils are encouraged to embrace the QBL concepts, many will find it necessary to implement QBL in an incremental way.
For example, as a starting point, Diamantina Shire Council prepared a draft corporate plan 2004-2008 that reflects the four compontents of QBL in its statement of strategic direction. Further work will be required by council in the coming planning cycle to establish formal monitoring and reporting systems that support the QBL approach (including development of key performance indicators).
For specific examples of successful QBL approaches, refer to the following case studies:
Case study 7 - QBL approach - Redland Shire Council ( PDF 42 kB)
This case study illustrates how the QBL approach has been incorporated into the Redland Shire Council Corporate Plan 2002-2006 as the basis for managing future growth.
Case study 8 - QBL approach - Diamantina Shire Council ( PDF 43 kB)
This case study demonstrates how Diamantina Shire Council applied the QBL framework for their planning, reporting and decision-making framework as part of their draft corporate plan 2004-2008.
Case study 9 - QBL approach - Gold Coast City Council ( PDF 53 kB)
This case study presents the Gold Coast City Council corporate plan 2003-2007 that uses the QBL framework to acheve their vision.
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3.5 The Balanced Scorecard
3.5.1 What is the balanced scorecard?
The balanced scorecard is an approach to strategic management developed in the early 1990s by Drs Robert Kaplan (Harvard Business School) and David Norton (Balanced Scorecard Collaborative)2. It retains traditional financial measures but acknowledges that, in themselves, financial measures are inadequate for guiding the strategic planning process.
Balanced scorecard is a management system that enables organisations to clarify their vision and strategy and translate them into action. It suggests that we view the organisation from four perspectives:
1. The learning and growth perspective
This includes employee training and corporate culture attitudes related to individual and corporate self-improvement in knowledge and technical skills. The system enables councils to focus training efforts and funds where they can be of most use.
2. The business process perspective
This refers to council's internal business processes and providing the means for decision-makers to know how well the business is running and whether its products and services match or exceed customer and stakeholder requirements.
3. The customer perspective
Consistent with the emphasis on community engagement in the planning cycle, this perspective takes on the customer and stakeholder view of the way council conducts its business while providing timely and desirable services and products.
4. The financial perspective
The traditional focus on financial data remains a key element of any successful organisation. Timely and accurate funding data will always be a priority together with effective planning and monitoring council's financial matters.
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3.5.2 How does balanced scorecard work?
Balanced scorecard allows decision-makers to define and monitor performance from the four perspectives recommended by Kaplan and Norton. It provides a basis for establishing and tracking the key elements of an organisation's strategic direction In the context of local government the key elements would include ensuring the financial viability of council.
For example, Brisbane City Council has incorporated the balanced scorecard framework in its strategic planning and budgeting processes as a management tool for discussing program achievements, identifying areas for improvement and performance reporting.
Refer to Case study 12 - Balanced scorecard - Bankstown City Council ( PDF 42 kB) for a summary of the Bankstown City Council experience with implementation of the Balanced Scorecard approach their business planning and monitoring.
For more information on recent publications by Kaplan and Norton, visit the website at http://www.valuebasedmanagement.net/books_kaplan_strategy.html.
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Footnotes
1 For more information refer to the website www.environment.sa.gov.au
2 For more information refer to www.balancedscorecard.org
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