MESSAGE FROM THE GENERAL MANAGER

Council appreciates and acknowledges the importance of utilising the best possible technology in order to facilitate not only its own business needs, but also the information and customer service needs of the community.

 

We are looking forward to vastly improved financial management and reporting and customer service with the implementation last week of a widely recognised Local Government businesses system, Civica Altitude.

 

Civica Altitude is a cloud-based enterprise management software designed for local government and offers comprehensive tools for administration, citizen engagement, and operational efficiency.

 

This system will sit behind many of the services residents use every day. It supports rates, payments, customer requests, planning applications, purchasing, budgeting and financial reporting.

 

It provides a full suite of enterprise management capabilities, including HR, payroll, finance, asset management, customer request management, and planning services.

Since the introduction in 2022 of a previous business system that was sold to Council as a cost-effective and fit-for-purpose solution, it became clear that the system did not live up to the expectations set by the original vendor.

 

This resulted in significant challenges for Council's financial management and reporting, significantly contributing to three consecutive disclaimed financial statement audits.

 

Council has expended enormous time, energy, and money attempting to make the system work and eventually made the almost unheard of decision to very quickly abandon it and replace it with a well-known business system used widely by Councils across Australia.

 

Council's business system plays an important role in the day-to-day management of public funds. It supports functions such as budgeting, purchasing, property and rating, payments, financial reporting and the preparation of annual financial statements, helping ensure Council can effectively manage its finances and meet its reporting obligations.

 

Whilst the community can be confident that Council's overall financial position has been able to be determined, the requirements of a full financial audit have not been able to be satisfied for the past three years.

 

This has led to Council being under scrutiny from the Office of Local Government in relation to both its financial sustainability and the disclaimed audits and this scrutiny by the OLG underlines the seriousness of the situation and we expect it to continue.

 

With the introduction of the Civica Altitude business system, residents will soon be able to have better access to information important to them. It will be it easier to manage payments, service requests, and applications without having to navigate multiple systems.

 

Residents will also be able to experience modern and secure payment options with integrated gateways, receiving clear email receipts and downloadable payment records for added peace of mind. These features will be offered in phase 2 of the system implementation scheduled for September 2026.

 

These steps reflect Council's commitment to making decisions in the best long-term interests of the community. Establishing financial sustainability and having systems and processes that work and meet our legislative responsibilities as well as enhancing customer service are key foundations that will enable Council to deliver on its vision of transforming today for a better tomorrow.