An interview with Cate Atkinson, General Manager, City of Playford, South Australia
While there will be numerous challenges facing the smooth operation of councils in the future, Cate Atkinson believes thorough planning and intergovernmental partnerships are key.
As one of two General Managers at the City of Playford in Adelaide’s north, Cate Atkinson works directly under the CEO to provide leadership and direction for group managers, while also coordinating major projects, such as township developments and urban regeneration.
She said that while the global financial crisis has been seen negatively in the private sector, the impact on the public sector, particularly Local Government, has been quite positive.
“The Rudd Government’s stimulus package has led to a significant increase in activity in the Local Government sector,” Cate Atkinson said. “It has injected significant funds into a large number of asset management projects and improved services to communities in a short period of time.
“While this has placed pressure on Local Government to get resources in place and get the task done, communities are benefiting now from investments that otherwise would have taken much longer to occur.”
Having maintained a comprehensive and credible asset management plan over the last few years, Playford was well placed to get its projects up and running and completed within the tight timeframes.
Cate Atkinson said plans that provide a clear direction for Councillors and the organisation are crucial at any time, but particularly when a package like this comes about.
“Thorough planning enables councils to be prepared for a stimulus package, grant or other funding opportunity, preventing them from taking a reactionary approach,” she said. “By tying asset management plans in with financial planning, a council will have a clear view of each of its asset’s whole of life costs, assets required in the future and maintenance needs. That means when unexpected money pops up, council can look at its plans, prioritise where the money can be spent and work from costings and expenses that have already been identified.”
Looking to the future, Cate Atkinson said it will be a challenge to continue servicing existing communities while managing expected growth.
“How Local Government partners with the Federal and State Governments and other service providers to meet these expectations will be key,” she said. “We must build partnerships with other sectors to avoid duplicated service delivery and to address funding issues that will prevent us from being pre-emptive with regard to service demands.
“Councils only receive income from their new communities once they are there, but residents want services and structures in place from day one. We must work with Federal and State Governments to establish the right governance and service delivery structures so services can be provided proactively, not reactively.
“Local Government also needs to consider a better basis point model than CPI for setting rates. Our costs are increasing above the CPI level and we are not keeping pace with the real cost of service delivery.”
Cate Atkinson said resource sharing would also be more successful if tackled across the spheres of government, rather than between councils.
“In the past, resource sharing between Local Governments has been successful in such areas as emergency management and crime prevention, but the real potential lies in how we can work across government levels to deliver a range of projects,” she said.
“Projects such as the Playford Alive urban regeneration project have established a partnership between Local, State and Commonwealth Governments, creating real opportunities for residents to receive training, employment opportunities and access to health services.
“Apprenticeships and short term work to deliver housing and open space improvements within an accredited training program are also making a difference.
“We need to fund more opportunities for these ‘real life’ changes if we are to succeed in ultimately reducing our community’s reliance on State and Commonwealth support programs.”
Turning to the skills shortage, Cate Atkinson said that there are enough people available in the marketplace, but they do not necessarily have the right skills to meet Local Government needs.
“We need to increase available educational opportunities to ensure changes,” she said.
“Our society currently has a strong focus on primary and secondary school education, but we need to increase our investment in transitional educational opportunities between school and work. Technical colleges are a good approach and remain necessary, but we also need to focus on additional training and skills development programs to ensure it is accessible to a broader community base.”
Cate Atkinson said councils can also increase their staff retention rate by developing a culture of support and opportunities.
“Local Government staff appreciate and want to take advantage of the multi disciplinary environment councils have to offer,” she said. “It is important to provide education and work opportunities outside of a staff member’s core role and skills set and enable them to move across the organisation and work in other areas.
“Whether it be short term, for example, a six to eight week project where they can demonstrate their skills in different areas, or through an internal recruitment process, it is important to provide staff with variety.”
