Reform Wollongong City Council

From Engagement Coordinator (Acting)
Wollongong City Council

“We tried to not make the Charter too prescriptive because at the end of
the day it sets out Council’s expectations for the groups we are
supporting and working closely with, but does not form the constitution
of that group. Membership is not a formal undertaking in any of the
groups as people often attend when the topic suits them or they have an
issue to raise. My understanding is that the Neighbourhood Committees
needed members to only live in the specific area as they were voting on
Council resolutions. The forums are independent and can make
submissions to Council but not resolutions as such. So applying that
rule strictly was no longer necessary. Some forums use voting as a way
to determine agreement with a group’s “position” or to formulate a
formal group response to Council. Without signatures or names however I
take a group submission as one, as it is not clear how many people
agreed with the position put forward.

The key point of the forums is community and Council working closely
together to solve local issues. How community members define local
varies according to the person and the issue. If for instance you were
concerned with coastal management you may feel that the whole LGA is
local to you. I am inclined to expect that Neighbourhood Forums will be
inclusive and encourage membership from people who feel an infinity to a
community or issue relating to that area.

At a recent NF convenors meeting we were asked to review the boundaries
included in the charter as not everyone feels that they fit the natural
community boundaries well. We will be looking at this and any further
developing our processes to ensure that they work as well as possible
for the community and Council.”

(note, Any opinion stated in this e-mail is not the opinion of Wollongong City Council unless stated or apparent from its contents.)