Transformation Information

• We can deliver better in more accessible places in our community.
  
  
• We will have one customer team across all our facilities and services.
  
  
• Transformation is about making Council services more accessible and user-friendly, with more online services available, and the ability to access services from multiple facilities, not just over the counter at Council HQ. e.g. pay rates or register a dog at other facilities that have broader opening hours for example.
  
  
• The change we are working hard to implement means that all parts of Council are undergoing change, including our community facilities.
  
  
• Our transformation programme is focused on putting our community at the heart of everything we do here at Council.  Resident feedback shows this is something that many of our facilities, including our libraries, do well. We want to make sure that we act more as One Team working hard for all our community, taking the approach throughout Council as one unified customer services team.

We’re opening things up. We’re not closing things down

We’re not lowering services in the library. It’s the opposite. We will be expanding services there. We recognise that the library has already become much more than just books. We believe there is even more potential here. Transformation is about unlocking this by transforming the library into a hub for our community. We’ll be making space for our staff, partners and community groups to come together – under one roof – to support our community.

If we want to keep our district affordable, we need to work differently, use our spaces efficiently and share resources better. Our goal is to create a space where many people can come together to create new opportunities and deliver. We’ll also be applying these changes in Palmerston to improve access to services, and plan to establish a hub up the Valley too. This will benefit the communities outside of Oamaru and provide a base for Council staff that further improves efficiency and service deliver.

How will we do this? Transformation will help create a more versatile, cross-trained team of customer facing staff – including some of the current library staff – giving us more flexibility to cover absences and provide for continuity of services for our community. Council’s customer service team will be supported by staff with specialist skills and knowledge, including librarians.

We’ll work differently too. For example, the range of events, currently put on by the Cultural Facilities, will still be provided but will have the operational support of our communications and engagement team, with the benefit of additional resourcing to support these events.

Our library will always be more than just a place for great books, but a wonderful thriving community centre. The difference being, we are working differently to achieve this by having many teams from across Council contribute, rather than this being left to one team and by partnering with others to help us deliver on our shared ambitions for our community.

Timings:

• The first steps to establish the Oamaru and Waihemo Libraries as Community Hubs will get underway early next year. A location in the Waitaki valley is yet to be determined.

• There have been no sackings or redundancies. We value our staff and the work they do for our community. We want our staff to be successful through the changes and are supporting our staff with change and to find roles within the new Organisation Design. We are working through our change process and take the welfare of our staff very seriously.
  
  
• There have been no "gag orders". Council respects privacy and will not publicly discuss employment details of current and previous staff.
  
  
• The change we are working hard to implement means that all parts of Council are undergoing change, including our community facilities. Every part of the council will experience change – with a focus on how we can deliver more effectively for our community and at a cost that is affordable.
  
  
• We recognise that change is difficult. These changes can be difficult for everyone to get a handle on. It can be challenging let go of some things, making space for new things and different ways of doing things. It’s an adjustment that we hope all our staff are willing to make.

Like all councils, we’re facing big pressures – high costs, ageing infrastructure, and rising demands.

The current system was set up for a very different time. Our community and district has changed and so what they need from us has changed. Everyone at Council is working hard for our district but, with the way we’re set up, it’s not working as well as it could be and it’s sometimes hard to get things done. There are opportunities to do things differently and better. That’s why we need to start doing things differently now.

This is mainly about being a more effective organisation in what we deliver and how we deliver it for you. But we aim to be more efficient too, to keep costs down. We’ll work hard to keep rate rises to a minimum and deliver value for money with essential services we deliver.

We’re committed to focusing on the big issues that matter the most to all of you.

The changes we plan are big and will take time to put in place. You won’t see changes overnight, but they’ll start to happen as part of our annual and long-term plans for the district, which you can feed into right now.

We won’t bombard you with lots of information – but you’ll always have an easy way to get in touch with us and share your feedback when you need to.

• Council is looking at doing things differently to make sure we deliver value for money and your hard-earned dollars are targeted on what matters most to you, your family, and your business, right across our district.
  
  
• Changes won’t happen overnight, but we need to start now, so you see a real, difference going forward.
  
  
• We know we need to get better at focusing on what matters most to you. We will be clearer on our priorities so we can make sure we deliver on the most important things for our district and communities.
  
  
• Our district is growing and becoming more diverse. We’ll be more visible and act quicker to empower you locally.
  
  
• We’ve already rolled out our Let’s Talk Waitaki tool and Community Conversations so we can hear your views better and use this to focus our actions on what matters most.

• Based on your feedback, we’re looking at how to improve satisfaction and give you a better experience when dealing with the council.

• Imagine being able to access council services 24/7 from anywhere - through an app, or online. We’ll keep it simple and help you get used to anything new.

• You’ll still have local people to talk to when you need to, and we want to sort out 90% of your requests at first contact – that means resolving as much as possible there and then when you contact us. It’s ambitious but we’re aiming high!

• For the more complicated stuff, like applying for consents, we will ensure you have one point of contact to help you through the process and that we make it as simple as possible.

• We’ll be able to track requests, make sure the right team is looking after you and share updates from start to finish so you know what’s happening at each stage.

• We’re also looking at setting up convenient locations to make it easier for you to access council services.

• We’re a big district with many different communities. We want to make sure we’re visible and on top of what’s going on throughout the district so we can deal with things quickly and more efficiently.

• We want council to be a place our staff can thrive. A council that’s an employer of choice that we all feel proud to be a part of.

• Organisational Design is only the first step of our transformation. We’re bringing the whole team together so that we break down silos and focus on what matters for our community and customers.

  
  

• This means there will be different ways of working in the future so that we are joined up. Meaning we are all better supported and we get the best result for our customers, communities and district.

• You’ll be able to see the “golden thread” of how what you do on a daily basis helps council to deliver for our community.

• We aim to be a place where our people are really well supported in their development and in doing their jobs. You’ll see a number of investments in our people. From continuous learning, enjoyable workspaces, and modern technology – to flexible working. Get involved now and help shape your future here.

• Our partners are essential to us in delivering for our communities and district.
  
  
• It’s business as usual for Council partners for now.
  
  
• If things change, we’ll take you through anything you need to know about.
  
  
• It’s our aim to work better with our partners so we can all serve our communities and together we can help Waitaki thrive.