Funding the future - Council Services 2010-22

Council's special rates variation application

On 25 March 2011 Council submitted an application for a special rates variation under section 508A of the Local Government Act.  The application and supporting information is available here.

The Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal (IPART) released its determination on this application on 10 June 2011.  They supported  increases for three years commencing with the 2011/12 financial year.Details of the determination are available on the IPART website.  Council is very mindful of the potential impacts of increases in charges for ratepayers and has generous hardship provisions for those in need.

Funding Council services to 2022 - steps we took

Council consulted with the community about preferred options for funding Council services over the next 12 years. The community consultation ran from 1 August to 31 October. Thank you very much to everyone who took the opportunity to have their say about this very important topic. You can access the report on the outcomes of the community consultation here.

If you would like to read the comments that were posted on the online discussion forum, or access the library of fact sheets, frequently asked questions and other reference material, visit the archived forum at www.haveyoursaywaverley.com.au/councilservices2022. A Power Point presentation previously given to Councillors is also available.

Background to the consultation - what needs to be funded?

Waverley Council has experienced large increases in demand for services - with service levels more than doubling in the last decade. Today, Waverley Council delivers 148 different services in 22 main service categories. Over 40 of these services didn't exist 12 years ago.

Over the next 12 years, the cost of providing Council services is projected to rise by 50%, yet our overall income is set to rise by just 31%. Council spent the last year working with our community to develop a strategic plan, Waverley Together 2, which sets out the community's vision of what life should be like in Waverley by 2022. We've worked out what it will cost to deliver the services you'll need from us to make that vision a reality. With our current income sources, we won't be able to raise all the funds we need.

Specifically, in the next decade we need to find another $125 million for existing services and a further $99 million for the enhanced services requested by the community for Waverley Together 2. 

For a summary of Waverley Council's strategic plan, Waverley Together 2, download a copy of What is Waverley Together 2? 

What did we ask the community to do?

During the recent community consultation, Council asked the community to examine choices about Waverley Council services and associated funding options.

This information brochure explains:
  • the services you currently receive
  • your future service options
  • how we can fund these options in the most cost-effective way.

Go to the archived consultation forum library for all related reference material.