Waimakariri District Council Report

Leading locally

Performing well

Waimakariri District Council continues to perform well in this priority area. They have particular strengths in their community engagement (both formal and informal) and in their stakeholder relationships. The governance culture around the Council table and across the organisation remains very strong. Considerable progress has been made since the first CouncilMARK™ assessment in organisational development work resulting in the development of the strategy, Tā Mātou Mauri, and its underlying principles.

The Council is aware of the implications of the impending departure of its long-serving and highly respected Chief Executive.

The impending departure of the Chief Executive, coupled with the recent departure of the District’s long-serving Mayor, will require the recently elected Mayor and the future Chief Executive to quickly form an effective partnership that maintains the continuity of Waimakariri’s successes, but also identifies further opportunities for growth and improvement.

Investing money well

Stand out

The Christchurch earthquakes necessitated an unprecedented level of financial investment in the District, but this work was done with the long-term needs of the community in mind. The prudent and long-term approach taken to financial management has paid off, and now provides a strong platform for funding the District’s needs into the future.

The Council has a strong financial strategy, which continues to reflect the care with which it has managed the District’s finances over the past six years. The effectiveness of the links between the Financial Strategy, the Infrastructure Strategy and the overall District vision are important in the success of the Council’s planning and delivery.

Delivering what’s important

Performing well

The Council has made improvements to its already well-functioning operations, particularly amongst its Infrastructure and Community Development Teams. The substantive quality of the Council’s core services could be enhanced by more demanding and relevant performance measures and by bolstering the quality of its project reporting and business case development documentation.

The performance of the Council against its current service levels is satisfactory, but not outstanding, with achievement of service levels ranging from 57-75 per cent in the past two years. The Council is, however, diligent in monitoring performance against agreed service levels on a more regular basis, and performance is well reported.

Listening and responding

Performing well

The Council devotes significant resourcing to its communication and engagement activities. The outcome of these efforts is a community that is positively engaged and generally appreciative of its Council.

The Council has developed some very positive initiatives, particularly amongst community groups, but needs to draw all initiatives into a single, coherent strategy for the future.