Rangitīkei District Council’s strong vision and strategies to support population growth over the next decade have been applauded by Local Government New Zealand (LGNZ) with the council receiving a BB rating from the body’s CouncilMARK™ programme.
CouncilMARK™ is an independent assessment programme that assesses how councils are performing and is designed to support individual councils to improve the service and value they provide.
The Council has retained its BB rating and improved its operations in several key areas, with standouts being development of its strategic vision backed by policies and plans as well as building a strong values-led workplace culture, LGNZ said in a statement today.
The rating result received a mixed reaction from Rangitīkei District Council Chief Executive, Peter Beggs.
“Receiving the same rating as our previous assessment of BB is disappointing given the effort undertaken by staff and the noted significant areas of operational improvement,” said Mr Beggs.
“The assessment, however, provides us with excellent feedback to continue our improvement initiatives, many of which are already underway.
LGNZ President, Stuart Crosby said the Council was planning ahead to ensure critical infrastructure delivers desired service levels for the region’s growing population.
“The Council has embarked on an ambitious programme of work to both re-establish and deliver on what is a compelling vision for this rural and geographically large district,” said Mr Crosby.
“The Executive Leadership Team is well-regarded by staff and stakeholders alike and debt is low, which provides headroom to fund infrastructure renewals and capital projects.
“Likewise, the Mayor is highly regarded by stakeholders as he is visible and accessible. He’s an ally of business and has also been pivotal to building the Council’s mature and effective relationship with Māori.”
The report notes that a healthy workplace is emerging across the organisation, championed by the Chief Executive and Executive Leadership Team.
“The result will be clearer boundaries between governance and management, which is essential to the effective and efficient operations of council.”
The report also notes that the Council has recognised the work required to strengthen its risk management framework and is working to build a more integrated framework that will improve resilience, enhance decision-making quality and resource allocation.
“I am delighted to be working collaboratively with the Mayor and Elected Members on an ‘all of Council’ approach to improvement and continue to build on the successes that were highlighted in the report,” said Mr Beggs.
