Tag: committee member

Delegates’ Report: Annual General Meetings and Seniors Week

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This month has marked the beginning of the Spring season for Annual General Meetings, and I had the pleasure of attending the Ringwood Historical Society AGM on the 22nd of September.

The Society documents the history of Ringwood and it is great to see renewed interest in our local history. The Ringwood Historical Society previously met on a quarterly basis, but now meets monthly covering a diverse range of topics within our community.

The Eastern Volunteers Annual General Meeting followed on the 24th of September and I was joined by Cr. Lamont and Cr. Macdonald in attending this event. Eastern Volunteers is continuing to grow strongly and is planning three major events over the course of the next year, its annual Fun Run for March, the return of its community conference in July and a Multicultural Festival planned for October.

The Ringwood Diving Club Annual General Meeting was held on the 11th of October and is a sporting club that encourages participation in diving based at the Ringwood Aquatic Centre.

Several special weeks all seemed to converge in October, including Mental Health Week, Maroondah Business Week and the Maroondah Seniors Festival.

On the 8th of October I attended a presentation on the National Seniors Association. The National Seniors Association is unique in that while it provides a social connection, it also provides significant policy advice and advocacy.

On the 9th of October I attended the Ringwood Bowls Club 80th anniversary and season launch. The Ringwood Bowls Club is a successful sporting club and has a strong community focus. The club has had an emphasis on environmental sustainability through the installation of a water retention system and is also focused on social sustainability, through developing partnerships with community organisations.

One of the partnerships the Bowls Club has developed is with the Ringwood Spiders and is great to see that the Club mentioned the Ringwood Spiders Trophy Presentation Night as one of its highlights. The Club is planning further community events including a jazz evening in November and partnerships with Eastern Volunteers.

Lastly, I attended a combined Ringwood U3A, North Ringwood Seniors and Enjoying Planned Retirement Luncheon on Saturday the 17th of October.

It is great to see the members of each group supporting each other and I would like to commend the committee members and members for the holistic view of the facility. In addition, I would also like to commend the council officers that have supported these groups and responded to the concerns that they have raised.

Norwood Hall Users Luncheon

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This afternoon I was invited to a luncheon for the committees of the groups that utilise Norwood Hall, located at Norwood Park along Warrandyte Road in Ringwood North.

Norwood Hall is one of Maroondah’s most highly utilised community buildings and houses several groups including Enjoying Planned Retirement, North Ringwood Seniors and Ringwood U3A. In addition, the Ringwood Arts Society and the Ringwood Historical Society are also located within the facility.

Ringwood U3A, Enjoying Planned Retirement and the North Ringwood Senior Citizens share the main facilities between themselves and with such a large number of users, it is important that the groups are able to cooperate and share facilities.

The luncheon, which is organised in turn by each of the groups, provides an opportunity for committee members to get to know one another and to discuss the aims of each groups. This year’s luncheon was hosted by Ringwood U3A and was extremely successful with each of the three groups speaking about the cooperation that exists within the facility.

While each of the groups do have a different focus, there are shared goals between the groups and it is encouraging to see this cooperation between them.

North Ringwood Community House – consultation over feasiblity study

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North Ringwood Community House is currently undertaking the feasibility study into its relocation. The study is required to ensure that the community house is able to provide an accessible and diverse range of courses for the community.

As part of the study process the consultants have undertaken consultation with staff, committee members and students to help identify the current and future requirements for the house.

Today’s consultation sessions involved a series of workshops involving several groups of people who are part of the community within the house. A range of issues were discussed including the need for an accessible location that is in close proximity to public transport and available to both the Ringwood and Ringwood North communities.

The feedback received from today’s sessions will help guide the consultants as they undertake an assessment of potential locations for North Ringwood Community House.

Maroondah Citizens Advice Bureau Policy Adoption

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Policies and good governance help ensure a sustainable future for a non-profit organisation, through outlining acceptable behaviour and providing clarity and certainty for staff, volunteers and the committee of management.

This afternoon the Maroondah Citizens Advice Bureau committee of management formally adopted polices covering several areas of the organisation, including volunteer recruitment, the committee of management and dispute resolution.

These policies will assist in clarifying roles and responsibilities and outline the requirements for volunteers and staff within the organisation.

Several workshops were held to ensure that the policies reflected the organisation and to gain feedback from staff, volunteers and the committee of management.

Copies of the adopted policies will be available at both the Croydon and Ringwood Office and new volunteers will be provided with a copy.

Further policies are now being developed to further enhance the governance of an organisation.

To ensure that the policies remain relevant they will be reviewed every three years and checked on annual basis.

Maroondah Leader: New local law causes conflict

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While it is critical that there is accountability and transparency within Local Government recent changes in the Local Government Act have had the unintended result of potentially restricting councillor involvement within community organisations.

The Maroondah Leader has reported on these changes and their repercussions.

Cr Alex Makin said he resigned from the Croydon Conservation Society committee after five years so that he could continue to vote on council environmental policy.

The changes to the Local Government Act now mean that a Councillor is stated to have a conflict of interest if they are a committee member of an organisation that makes a formal submission or request to Council.

He said he would otherwise have been excluded from debating or voting on motions where the society had made a submission.

Previously Councillors were still able to partake in discussing these items, even if they were precluded from voting due to a potential conflict of interest.

As a result this often means that the Councillor who is most aware of the issues brought forward is now eliminated from being able to formally discuss these matters within council.

This meant I had to resign as Treasurer of the Croydon Conservation Society so I could continue to debate and represent environmental concerns within Council unhindered by this legislation.

While I can certainly appreciate the State Government’s intent with the Legislation changes and I genuinely applaud measures that increase the transparency of local government, these changes have had unintended consequences.

Cr Alex Makin called on the State Government to review the laws and distinguish between commercial interests and community organisations. He proposed instead a public register of community groups councillors represented.

The community rightfully expects Councillors to take an interest in the community and work towards towards a better municipality. Likewise many community organisations welcome the involvement of a Councillor to assist them in achieving their aims.

Unfortunately these legislative changes make it difficult for councillors to remain involved within these organisations. A public register would improve transparency while ensuring that councillors can remain involved within the community.

North Ringwood Community House – Business Plan Workshop

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North Ringwood Community House, is located at 120 Oban Road in Ringwood and is the only community house in Maroondah that is not located on council land.

North Ringwood Community House is unique, since it is an accredited Registered Training Organisation and offers TAFE qualifications such as Certificates III and IV in areas such as Palliative Care, Aged Care and Disability Services.

As a member of the North Ringwood Community House Committee of Management, I was invited to a workshop with other committee members, tutors and staff to discuss its business plan to guide its direction over the next three years.

The workshop identified the vision for the House and helped outline objectives that we aim to achieve over the next three years. The need for a new location featured prominently and a feasibility study to determine a new location will commence, due to State and Local government funding.

The recent announcement from the State Government and its commitment to provide $25,000 for this study will ensure that it can commence. Maroondah City Council is contributing $5,000 and council staff will be working with the House to assist undertaking this work.

The outcomes from the workshop will frame the Community House’s business plan, which will later be considered by the Committee of Management for adoption. The House’s commitment to business planning demonstrates its emphasis on good governance and delivering a sustainable future within an accessible location.

A new location and premises will ensure that the House can continue to expand its services and meet the needs of the Ringwood North and Maroondah community.

North Ringwood Community House 2009 AGM

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This morning North Ringwood Community House held its Annual General Meeting to elect committee members for the next two years. The community house appoints a two-year term for its committee members to provide continuity, while still providing flexibility for new members to get involved.

I have been re-elected onto the Committee of Management so that I can continue to provide advice in regard to advancing the aims of the new Community House for Ringwood North.

While changes to the Local Government Act may unnecessarily complicate a councillor’s involvement in community organisations, I believe that my inclusion on the committee assists the house in being able to achieve its goal of new premises. The relocation of North Ringwood Community House will allow for the expansion of its services and to meet the growing needs of an increasingly diverse Ringwood North and Ringwood community. In particular it would provide for an accessible community house within a location that can be accessed by people residing in both Ringwood and Ringwood North.

I was also the guest speaker at the AGM and discussed the transformation of Ringwood as a designated Central Activity District and the need for community facilities to be at the forefront of this project.

Recent improvements to Ringwood include the construction of footpaths throughout the residential precinct, including Nelson Street, Bourke Street, Bond Street, Browns Avenue, Churchill Street, Montgomery Street, Sherbrook Avenue and Burwood Avenue. These footpaths were constructed through development contributions and will assist in creating an accessible environment that encourages sustainable forms of transport, such as walking.

The redevelopment of Eastland and the creation of a new town square for Ringwood is expected to begin at the start of next year and will restore a civic heart to Ringwood through delivering new public open space and a new library and community complex.

The creation of a forecourt and bus interchange for Ringwood Station is expected through State Government funding of $39 million. This work is expected to begin either late this year or early next year.

While this funding will improve the appearance of Ringwood Station and make it easier for pedestrians to access the transport interchange, it will not improve the accessibility of the station itself, meaning that further work is required to ensure that the standards meets the needs of people with disabilities.

It is imperative that State Government funding is received for these further works to create an accessible, safe and integrated transport interchange.

The major challenge facing both Ringwood and the North Ringwood Community House is the need to deliver new community services within Ringwood while still providing facilities for the Ringwood North community. In this regard a proposed location for the community house will need to retain its connection to Ringwood North while being accessible to the Ringwood community.

The feasibility study which is designed to identify potential sites will explore this criteria to ensure that the most suitable location is found.

I look forward to my continued involvement in the North Ringwood Community House as we advance the aims of providing a community focus for the Ringwood and Ringwood North communities.

For further information on North Ringwood Community House please visit www.nrchi.com.

Croydon Conservation Society 2009 AGM

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Tonight’s annual general meeting of the the Croydon Conservation Society marks its 45th year of community service.

The Croydon Conservation Society (CCS) was formed in 1964 by residents who acted to protect eucalyptus trees near Croydon Railway Station, which were going to be removed to make way for a service station.

The group began as the the Croydon Tree Preservation Society and later renamed itself to the Croydon Conservation Society to better encompass its aims as a broader environmental group.

Highlights over the past year include the construction of a new website, which enables the CCS to email latest news to its membership and the continuation of its annual film nights designed to both educate and entertain the community in regard to environmental issues.

I had served as Treasurer of the CCS over the past twelve months and was pleased to deliver a surplus over the course of the year. While costs such as insurance continue to rise, the CCS is in a healthy financial situation. In particular costs such as its newsletter production will reduce in future years due to the new website functionality.

Unfortunately due to changes in the Local Government Act I have been required to resign as Treasurer and therefore did not seek re-nomination at the AGM.

These legislative changes mean that if a Councillor is a committee member of an organisation they cannot vote or discuss issues of direct relevance to that organisation. Given that sustainability is a personal interest of mine, this could potentially jeopardise my ability to strengthen council’s approach to the environment.

It is a shame that these changes to the Local Government Act have the perverse implication of reducing a councillor’s involvement within the community. While I may no longer be a committee member of the CCS, I will certainly continue to attend their meetings and maintain my strong stance for improving the environmental sustainability of Maroondah.

The CCS faces a number of challenges as it enters its 45th year, primarily in developing new activities to engage the community. I trust that the CCS will continue to be a prominent voice within the community.

Maroondah Citizens Advice Bureau meeting

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The Maroondah Citizens’ Advice Bureau began in 1967, with the founding of the Ringwood Advisory Service, which was one of the first advisory services at the time. The organisation became known as the Maroondah Citizens’ Advice Bureau Inc. following council amalgamations in 1996.

The Maroondah Citizens’ Advice Bureau delivers crucial support for some of Maroondah’s most vulnerable residents through providing advice, food assistance and referral services. The organisation is largely volunteer driven and maintains offices in both Ringwood and Croydon.

The Committee of Management meets on a monthly basis to enact policies and discuss the direction of the organisation. I have been a committee member of the Citizens’ Advice Bureau since mid 2006.

North Ringwood Community House – 2008 End of Year Luncheon

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This afternoon North Ringwood Community House held its end of year function to acknowledge the contributions made by staff, tutors, committee members and volunteers.

In 2009 it is anticipated that planning work will begin in finding a new location for the community house. The community house will be applying for a State Government grant early in the new year to undertake a feasibility study to identify a suitable location and accommodate further growth for the house.

Community houses assist in creating inclusive communities by providing a range of courses in a friendly atmosphere. In addition North Ringwood Community House is the only community house in Maroondah that provided TAFE accredited courses in areas such as palliative care and disability services.

I am looking forward to assisting the house so that it can continue to serve our community in an accessible and inclusive environment.