Published on Tuesday, 12 November 2024 at 12:33:06 PM
The Shire has struggled to come to terms with several critical issues raised in the 2018 Local Government Enquiry. In more recent years, a change to the Shire’s integrated enterprise software during 2019/20 resulted in two years when the Office of the Auditor General could not complete an audit because the financial report was submitted by the Shire without complete and accurate underlying records. For the 2022/23 year, the Office of the Auditor General issued a qualified audit opinion because of the issue of comparing the 2022/23 figures with the figures of the previous year.
Shire staff continue to work with the enterprise software which still does not provide the appropriate routine financial reports for consideration by Council.
A review of compliance by the recently appointed CEO, Mr Aaron Bowman, has highlighted a number of additional matters that need urgent attention, and has indicated the need for some operational improvements. Shire President Mick McKeown has said “The recent unanimous Council resolution confirms that we are confident that these issues are now being identified and investigated and will be addressed one by one by the CEO working closely with Shire staff”.
In recent weeks the Shire had been faced with the prospect of informing residents that the Shire swimming pool would be required to close immediately. The potential closure was due to a number of legacy issues inherited from the previous contractor operator. The issues were discovered by the CEO during routine investigations. Since construction, the Shire recreation and aquatic facility was previously managed by the external contractor who had withdrawn from their contract about six months early. The Shire President has said “It is now very clear that the community was not getting the best operational outcome, and the Shire now has a plan for addressing these issues”.
To provide the attention and focus on resolving the continuing outstanding financial issues, Council resolved to split the current Executive Manager Corporate and Community Services role to create a fourth position. This in effect returned the Shire to the structure that was in place before, changed by Council in 2020.
The Executive Manager positions are contract positions with defined time tenure and are not permanent positions. The Shire recently advertised all four of its Executive Manager positions. Shire CEO Aaron Bowman said, “Getting the correct structure in place is the first step and then we can start building the blocks for a strong foundation to ensure an effective and efficient Shire of Toodyay for our residents”.
Within its power, Council is committed to ensuring the best outcomes for the residents and ratepayers of Toodyay. There is always a lot to do, and many issues to address. Council is committed to working with the CEO and the Shire staff and we acknowledge there are some important decisions to be made in the next six months.
ENDS
Cr Mick McKeown
Shire President
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