Charting new waters in Community Services

Local Government Community Services staff and Councillors from across Australia will gather in Sydney in October for the 7th National Conference on Local Government and Community Development.

This biennial event, staged by the Local Government Community Services Association of Australia (LGCSAA), will run from 14-16 October at the Wesley Centre in Sydney.

Changes, including economic globalisation, corporatisation, privatisation and Local Government reform, have had significant impact on the delivery of community services. This Conference will provide the opportunity for participants to look at how various Councils are managing this.

Among the many critical issues to be discussed will be the innovative ways in which rural communities are addressing their current difficulties, public participation in the decision making process, the role of the corporate sector and housing affordability.

Prominent Jesuit priest and lawyer, Father Frank Brennan, will address the Conference discussing issues of social justice in the changing world, and Commissioner Peter Ryan from the NSW Police Department will also speak on ways in which partnerships between bodies such as Police and Local Government can create safer communities.

Other issues to be discussed include benchmarking community services and competitive tendering.

For further information and registration details contact the Conference Secretariat, telephone (02) 9363 9858.