AGENDA
Rural Councils Victoria Executive Committee Meeting
Date and Time
Friday 14 August 2015 (12.40pm - 3:00pm)
Location:
The Gilbert Suite, Level 3, Rydges Hotel, 186 Exhibition Street, Melbourne
Order of BusinessItem 1 / 12.40 –12.50 / 1. RCV Operations / Page
1.1 Welcome / Cr Rob Gersch / 2
1.2 Apologies / Nicole Wakelin / 2
1.3 Conflicts of Interest / Cr Rob Gersch / 2
1.4 Confirmation of Minutes / Nicole Wakelin / 2
1.5 Correspondence Report / Nicole Wakelin / 2
1.6 Financial Statement / Nicole Wakelin / 2
1.7 Out of Session Updates / Nicole Wakelin / 2
Item 2 / 12.50 – 1.05 / 2. Finalisation oftwo NRCP Projects
- Creative Industries Toolkit
- Rural Recruitment Toolkit
Item 3 / 1.05 – 1.10 / 3. Approval of 2016 Summit Speakers / Nicole Wakelin / 13
Item 4 / 1.10 – 1.30 / 4. Finalisation of Rural Sustainability Project Stage Two and next steps / Olwyn Redshaw / 18
Item 5 / 1.30 – 1.45 / 5. Transitional Arrangements / Olwyn Redshaw / 25
Item 6 / 1.45 - 2.25 / 6. Update from Regional Development Victoria / Jenni Tierney, Manager, Strategic Relations & Projects, Craig Barrass, Program Director, Economic Infrastructure, Andrew Holm, Manager Regional Programs, RDV / 27
Item 7 / 2.25 – 2.40 / 7. Advocacy Discussion
- Update on Strategic Advocacy Services RFQ
- Essential Services Commission Draft Rate Capping paper
Item 8 / 2.40 – 2.55 / 8. Update from MAV / Rob Spence, CEO and Alison Lyons, Deputy CEO, MAV / 37
Item 9 / 2.55 – 3.00 / 9. Close and Other Business / All / 38
Reports and Key Dates
Item 10 / For noting / 10. RCV Monthly RAG Report / 39
Item 11 / For noting / 11. Communications Report / 43
Future RCV Key Meeting and Event Dates:
RCV Executive Meeting: Friday 11 September
RCV Executive Meeting and Forum: Thursday 21 October:
- Proposed Executive Meeting between 9am – 12pm
- RCV Mayor, Councillor and CEO Forum 2pm – 5pm (afternoon tea/registration from 1.30pm)
- RCV Networking Function (after Forum) 5pm -7pm
RCV Executive Meeting: Thursday 12 November
- Includes meeting with Minister Luke Donnellan between 2.15pm - 3.00pm
RCV Executive Meeting: Friday 11 December
- Includes meeting with Minister Jaala Pulford between 12.30pm – 1.30pm
Item 1
RCV Executive Committee Meeting Friday, 14 August 2015
Item 1
Title: RCV Operations
Item 1.1 Welcome and Apologies
The RCV Chair welcomed members to the meeting.
It was moved on the motion of ………………………………...and ………………………….….. that the apologies be noted and that leave of absence be granted.
Item 1.2Confirmation of Minutes
It was resolved on the motion of ……………………………. and ……………………………….. that the minutes of the previous meeting of the RCV Executive Committee held on Friday 10 July 2015 be confirmed as a true and accurate record.
Item 1.3Confirmation of Correspondence
It was resolved on the motion of ……………………………. and ……………………………….. that the correspondence report wasaccepted.
Item 1.4Confirmation of Financial Statement
It was resolved on the motion of ……………………………. and ……………………………….. that the financial report for the year to date be accepted.
Item 1.5Confirmation of Out of Session Updates
It was resolved on the motion of ……………………………. and ……………………………….. that the out of session updated are confirmed as a true and accurate record and are accepted.
Item 1.6Statement of Conflict of Interest
Note if anyone has a conflict of interest.
Attachments
Item 1.2: Executive Committee Minutes 10 July 2015
Item 1.4: RCV Financial Report (01 July 2014 – present)<separate attachment>
Item 1.2: Executive Committee Minutes 10 July 2015
Minutes of Meeting held Friday 10 July
Meeting Room 1201
MAV, Level 12, 60 Collins Street, Melbourne
Present
Committee / Staff/ Guests and othersCr Rob Gersch , Hindmarsh Shire (Chair) / Olwyn Redshaw, Program Manager, RCV
Helen Anstis, CEO Baw Baw Shire Council / Madelyn Jarvis, Project Coordinator, RCV
Cr Lyn Russell, Colac-Otway Shire Council / Nicole Wakelin, Program Coordinator, RCV
John McLinden, CEO Loddon Shire Council / David Brous, ACIG
Cr Malcolm Hole, Wellington Shire Council / Euan Locke, ACIG
Cr Robert Vance, Pyrenees Shire Council / Alison Lyons, Deputy CEO, MAV
Lenny Jenner, Borough of Queenscliffe
Richard Perry, CEO, Southern Grampians Shire Council
Ray Campling, CEO Yarriambiack Shire Council
Juliana Phelps, CEO Towong Shire Council
Cr Jan Vonarx, Alpine Shire Council
Apologies
Committee / Staff/ Guests and othersCr Gavan Holt , Loddon Shire Council (Deputy Chair) / Jenni Tierney, RDV
Cr Leo Tellefson, Buloke Shire
Agenda Item / Action/ Outcomes / Responsible
1.1 Welcome / Cr R Gersch welcomed everyone to the meeting
1.2 Apologies Received
1.3 Conflicts of Interest
1.4 Confirmation of Minutes / Apologies tabled.
Motion: It was resolved byJ McLinden and seconded by R Perry that the apologies as tabled for the RCV Executive Committee were accepted.
The motion was carried.
For noting: Cr M Hole sits on the MAV Board and may need to excuse himself from time to time during meetings if a conflict of interest arises.
L Jenner circulated an email on 28 June to the Committee advising that while the June minutes were a true and accurate record it was difficult to follow decisions. He put together some notes to accompany the minutes and proposed they be added as an adjunct to the June minutes. Committee agreed.
Motion: It was resolved by L Jenner and seconded by J McLinden that the minutes of the previous meeting held on 12 June 2015 be confirmed as a true and accurate record.
The motion was carried.
1.5Reports
Correspondence Report
1.6 Financial Statement
1.6 Out of Session Updates / 1. Letter from Minister Pulford received about the establishment of a ‘Young Farmers Ministerial Advisory Group’ and requesting RCV help promote the initiative. RCV forwarded to the Committee, RCV members in an enews and promoted on twitter.
2. Received an email from Cr Neville Goulding - he thinks RCV needs to become an incorporated body and the he would be advising his council to pull out of the MAV. Cr Gersch responded that RCV will soon have an independent advocacy person on board and that discussions around RCV’s independence are ongoing.
3. Minister Hutchins office wrote to Cr Gersch requesting a time to meet with her Chief of Staff re Advocacy priorities. Cr Gersch responded that RCV would make contact once further work had been done in this area and when the initial letter was written it included advocacy priorities that need to be discussed in further detail before RCV officially responds.
4. Received a letter from John Brumby advising that he would be happy to attend the October Forum and speak to delegates.
5. RCV made a submission to the parliamentary enquiry into rate capping policy and received an email from the Secretary, Keir Delaney confirming it had been received.
Motion: It was resolved by R Campling and seconded by J Phelps that the correspondence report was accepted.
The motion was carried.
A copy of the financial report was distributed with the agenda.
Secretariat advised the Committee that Crowe Horwath was tentatively booked in to undertake the NRCP Audit in August.
Motion: It was resolved byCr M Hole and seconded by Cr R Vance, that the financial report for the year to date be accepted.
The motion was carried.
The following items were circulated out of session – and the response was:
- Secretariat put forward a proposal to fund places at the MAV 'Future of Communities - Power to the People Conference' – Approved
- Draft Letter re Submission to the Parliamentary Inquiry into the Rate Capping Policy – Approved.
- Draft RFQ to engage an Advocacy Consultant was circulated for comment – decision was made by working group to put on hold so they could revise – L Jenner to provide an update at Item 2.
The motion was carried.
2. Update on RFQ for RCV Advocacy Consultant / L Jenner provided an update on RFQ – has previously circulated a copy of the draft document to the Committee. Document included an allocation of $100,000 per annum with the Consultant to deliver four key components in the first year including;
1.Strategic Advocacy Plan
2.Operational Plan (role clarity)
3.How many advocacy campaigns could RCV run with in the first year (recommendation is four)
4. The production of collateral - including briefings, media and items for use by members.
Committee suggested that number of campaigns need to be kept fluid and worked out with consultant once they were on board and that there needs to be flexibility to respond to new issues as they arise, noting that campaigns will require an active contribution from members.
Committee queried if RFQ document had been checked by MAV – response was yes, MAV are in agreement with approach and it has been checked by MAV procurement.
Committee queried budget, currently listed as $100,000. Need to take into account other ongoing RCV costs. Committee suggested that budget be revised to $80-90,000 with the capacity to be increased for ad-hoc campaigns as necessary.
Action: L Jenner to amend RFQ amount to $80,000.
O Redshaw: Need to clarify the division of work/projects. -what is NRCP work and what is advocacy work. Committee advised that promotion of RCV & NRCP and reaction to news is a comm’s role (Secretariat) and what is being advocated by members needs to be a separate role. Public Relations work and advocacy are quite different pieces of work.
Action: L Jenner requested a copy of the Communication Consultants contract. N Wakelin to forward a copy.
Committee queries who will be undertaking the selection process – response was; L Jenner, H Anstis and member of the Secretariat to coordinate).
Motion: It was resolved byL Jenner and seconded by H Anstis that the Executive Committee adopts the draft RFQ with proposed amendments to be further developed by L Jenner and to be advertised by the Secretariat this week.
The motion was carried. / L Jenner
N Wakelin
L Jenner (updates) and N Wakelin (placing advertisement)
3. Advocacy / Committee broadly discussed the eight priority advocacy issues that were raised at the May Forum and sent to Minister Hutchins.
Questioned if RCV should wait for the Advocacy Consultant to come on board before responding to the Minister’s invitation to meet, or should the Chair respond in the interim?
Determined that as Minister already has the list it would be more beneficial to develop the advocacy plan in detail before meeting with her to build RCV’s more credibility. Agreed that this work would be a priority for the Advocacy Consultant.
Determined a meeting with the Minister should however progress in the near future with a focus on ‘good news’ – specifically, progress on the Rural Council Sustainability Project / R Gersch, J McLinden & O Redshaw
4. Buloke Rural Living Campaign / H Anstis spoke to this item. Advised at the June Peri Urban meeting the committee moved a motion “The PUG supports the Rural Living Strategy concept of minimum services and infrastructure for communities as initially raised by Buloke Shire, and suggested that the work would be best delivered by RCV”
The PUG was asked to support Buloke and make a financial contribution – however members advised they already pay RCV Membership fees and so it is the role of RCV and any support should come via RCV.
The Committee responded that the new advocacy position would play a part in this and that there is no doubt that RCV should be supporting Buloke, but doesn’t this significantly overlap with RCVs on rural council sustainability?
O Redshaw advised that Buloke have already been advised of RCV’s support.
L Jenner asked if this should be one of the key advocacy campaigns.
H Anstis made the following recommendations:
- RCV is to write to Buloke to express its support and outline the work being done under the NRCP rural council sustainability project
- RCV writes to all members with an update and lets them know that RCV is doing in this arena
- Committee also suggested that RCV needs to explain the Sustainability project to Buloke. Was agreed that O Redshaw would put together a presentation and Buloke would be invited to the next Exec meeting to discuss the overlap and a way forward.
Motion: It was resolved byH Anstis and seconded by J Phelps that RCV invite the Mayor and CEO of Buloke to the August Executive Committee meeting to discuss next steps and how RCV and Buloke can work together. That RCV writes to its membership advising that we support Buloke and will be meeting with them in August.
The motion was carried.
Action: Secretariat to put together two letters:
1. To Buloke - confirming support and inviting them to the August meeting
2. To members – advising that RCV supports the Buloke campaign / O Redshaw
Secretariat
5. Evaluation Update / Cr R Gersch welcomed E Locke and D Brous, consultants undertaking the Four Year Evaluation project from AGIG to the meeting.
E Locke advised they had previously provided a working draft of the Evaluation Report to the Advisory Group on Wednesday and were currently seeking feedback. Group comprises Cr M Hole, O Redshaw, Alison Standish (MAV) and RDV reps. They talked the Exec Committee through the draft recommendations. Advised they have been looking at the NRCP over the past four years. The approach is not to look at every project, but select projects based on size, strategic value and currency. Results (via interviews) found:
- there is strong support by members for NRCP and that networking events (such as the Summit, Forums and Spring Tour) are well attended and rated highly
- Members would like to see the advocacy role strengthened.
- Projects have been variable – with delays and variation across the program - in reaction to shifting member priorities.
- There has been a low uptake of NRCP tools and resources by members. Training is well regarded but attendance numbers are low. Members would like to see more projects & resources in regions.
- Contractual process and in particular the complexity of variations is problematic
- RCV needs mechanisms to address issues, especially around style of communications
- The structure of the Committee and Secretariat delivery is appropriate – but doesn’t need to be within MAV necessarily.
- RCV could relocate to a rural location and be auspiced by a different organisation (i.e. local council)
6. Update on the NRCP2 Four Year Framework / O Redshaw outlined and sought feedback from the Committee on the draft framework developed in line with what was developed at RCV’s recent planning days and the NRCP2 work program agreed by the Executive at the June meeting. Advised an earlier draft was given to RDV, who advised it was reasonably consistent with the RJIF (pre-launch of the RJIF).
This framework has been developed on the basis of the adopted NRCP1 four year framework, but at this stage the breakdown is at a work stream level, and does not specify individual projects. It proposes a notional breakdown of funding across work streams over the four years, but this is subject to further development of the program details and is likely to shift considerably before final approval by the Exec Committee and RDV. The development of the framework and its associated work plan is likely to be an iterative process. In line with key learnings, the NRCP2 program will need to have the flexibility to evolve over time as RCV learns more about the work, priorities change and new priorities emerge. The next stage of work will be to determine specific priority projects and budget allocations under each work stream.
While work-stream one and the operations sections are relatively straight forward, work streams two and three need further development, which will occur over the next month with the relevant working groups.
Working groups established to work with RCV staff to further develop these work streams:
- Work stream Two: J McLinden and J Phelps
- Work stream Three: L Jenner, H Anstis and Cr L Tellefson
1. Committee requested that work stream one be defined – Secretariat to do 2. O Redshaw to meet with each group before the August planning days to develop material as an input to the Planning day.
3. Invite the new RDV CEO to the next RCV Executive Committee meeting. / Secretariat
7. Update from MAV and other RCV Executive Committee Matters / Secretariat asked to leave the room for this discussion.
Motion: It was resolved by L Jenner and seconded by H Anstis that the RCV Executive Committee commence a confidential meeting and suspend standing orders
The motion was carried.
Motion: It was resolved by L Jenner and seconded by H Anstis that the RCV Executive Committee cease the confidential meeting and resume standing orders
The motion was carried.
Motion: It was resolved by J Phelps and seconded by H Anstis that the RCV Executive Committee requests that RCV Executive Officer prepares a submission in relation to the Inquiry into the Sustainability and Operational Challenges of Victoria’s Rural and Regional Councils and circulates a draft to the Committee for comment before submitting it to the Environment, Natural Resources and Regional Development Committee.
The motion was carried.
Action: O Redshaw to put draft together and circulate for comment
Motion: It was resolved by J Phelps and seconded by H Anstis that the RCV Executive Committee requests the RCV Chair writes to the Victorian Premier and Minister for Ports requesting the State Government allocate a proportion of the proceeds of sale of the leasehold of the Port of Melbourne to rural communities for maintenance of rural infrastructure used by heavy vehicles to transport goods to and from the Port of Melbourne.
The motion was carried.
Action: Letter to be drafted
Motion: It was resolved by J Phelps and seconded by H Anstis that the RCV Executive Committee writes to Mr Lachlan Bruce congratulating him on his new appointment and expressing gratitude of RCV for his leadership and support while CEO of Regional Development Victoria.
The motion was carried.
Action: Letter to be drafted / O Redshaw
RCV Secretariat
RCV Secretariat
8. Close and Other Business / Committee suggested E Lockie or D Brous could be considered as facilitators for the August planning sessions.
Action: Secretariat to look into this and get a quote. / Secretariat
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