2023-2024 Message from the Mayor and CEO

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Message from the Mayor

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I commend to you our Darebin Annual Report for 2023/2024, that covers all the incredible work that the Darebin team does to support our community day in and day out.  

It has been an honour to continue work toward delivering our Community Vision of a Darebin that is equitable, vibrant and connected. This annual report is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our council, staff, and the community we serve. 

Looking back at the previous financial year is a time to not only reflect and feel a sense of pride in our achievements, but also to take stock and look at what’s ahead with sense of purpose and optimism. 

We know our community continues to face difficulties, with cost-of-living pressures as rents, mortgages, bills and food costs rise, as well as the escalating impacts of the climate, housing and inequality crises.  

The heart of Darebin is our people, and our focus remains firmly on creating a community where everyone feels valued, supported, and empowered.  

This year, we have taken significant steps towards this goal by improving the way we communicate and the processes we follow to engage you as well as advocating on important issues important to our community including more affordable housing and investment in infrastructure to support our growing population.  

That’s why I was so pleased to see new residents move into the 'Preston project’, which saw a council-owned carpark transformed into high quality housing. This means there are now 39 new one and two-bedroom social housing apartments in the heart of Preston for people to call home. 

Our community helps to inform everything we do and that’s why it was important for us to develop our Darebin Families, Youth and Children Strategy this year. By investing in early childhood education, youth programs, and family support services, we are building strong foundations for our community’s future. 

Reaffirming our commitment to creating an inclusive and welcoming community for everyone, we finalised documentation and progressed towards our Rainbow Tick accreditation for several sites and services. It was also wonderful this year to see the largest ever contingent of Darebin staff and Councillors I've seen march at the Midsumma Pride March. 

Environmental sustainability remains a top priority for Darebin and my highest priority. One of the projects I am most proud of is the opening of Northcote Aquatic and Recreation Centre. For me, building intergenerational infrastructure like NARC is such a special part of being a Councillor. As a “6 Star Green Star” building, NARC shows what addressing the climate emergency looks like through practical actions. As Australia's first 6 Star Green Star indoor-outdoor aquatic centre, it sets the standard for future aquatic centres. Every detail of the facility has been carefully thought through to bring to life a sustainable and truly inclusive space where the whole community can feel embraced, safe and welcome, including my toddler Bryn who loves the waterslide! 

We continued work on our Climate Emergency Plan 2024-30 which included consultation with more than 1,500 members of the Darebin community, climate experts, Traditional Owners and Custodians and Council advisory groups. We also completed a $4 million wetland and water harvesting project at Dole Reserve which has a myriad of environmental benefits including increased storm water quality, improved wildlife habitat and greater climate change resilience. These initiatives, combined with our ongoing efforts to address the escalating impacts of the climate crisis, position Darebin as a leader in sustainable urban development. 

Our commitment to creating a vibrant and inclusive Darebin was again showcased this year through the FUSE festival, a celebration of diversity and creativity that brought our community together. It was also a highlight to be a part of the Eighty-Six Festival and Northcote Rise Festival to further celebrate our thriving arts and business community.  I’m so proud of the team at Bundoora Homestead Art Centre who took out the highly commended honour for their Truth Telling Permanent History Display in the First Nations Project of the Year category in the 2023 Victorian Museums and Galleries Awards.   

We also held our inaugural Cultural Diversity Oration with George Megalogenis, who introduced us to his concept of Australia as a 'family tree' with First Nations people as the roots, the trunk representing 'old Australia' (here for 3 generations or more) and the leaves 'New Australia' (born overseas or with one parent born overseas) and related it back to the Darebin story.  

As we look to the future, I am optimistic about the opportunities that lie ahead, but say this with caution. We are facing the escalating impacts of the climate crisis and the inequality crisis, challenges that require bold and innovative solutions. I am confident that by working together, we can build a more equitable, vibrant and connected Darebin. 

This annual report provides a comprehensive overview of our achievements over the past year. It is a document that celebrates our successes, acknowledges our challenges, and outlines our vision for the future. I encourage you to explore its pages and discover the many ways in which we are working to build a better Darebin for everyone. 

I would like to thank our dedicated Councillors, staff, community partners and volunteers for their hard work, invaluable contributions and commitment to serving our community. It has been a pleasure to work with you all as Mayor and I look forward to continuing our work in the new financial year. 

Together, we can create a brighter future for Darebin for today, tomorrow and seven generations ahead. 

Cr Susanne Newton 

Mayor

Message from the CEO

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Looking back on the 2023-2024 financial year, it’s clear to me that despite another fiscally challenging year, our dedicated team at Darebin has demonstrated unwavering commitment to our community’s needs. 

As a Council we have made significant progress in improving how we deliver essential services, support our community, and lay the groundwork for the future. 

I want to thank our partners, our Advisory Committee members, volunteers and Council staff whose continued passion and dedication toward our community has meant that our focus is sharply on delivering essential and valued services that the people of our municipality rely upon. 

Over the last financial year, strong community engagement has remained at the heart of the work we do. This year we worked on our Community Engagement Improvement Plan to ensure our engagement practices are inclusive, trusted, and continually improving. We also consulted extensively with residents on a range of issues including a review of our waste services, Family Youth and Children Strategy, Climate Emergency Strategy, Lease and Licensing Policy, and the continuation of our Your Street, Your Say project and development of our Economic Framework. This collaborative approach has been invaluable in helping us develop key initiatives for Darebin. 

The engagement on the 2024/2025 Budget resulted in 116 budget submissions from community members. Again, hearing from our community has been instrumental in helping shape how we continue to prioritise what they want and need. 

There are many projects that have progressed throughout the year and achievements we are extremely proud of including:  

  • Continuing to respectfully engage with Traditional Owners through the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung Cultural Heritage Aboriginal Corporation and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in Darebin through the Darebin Aboriginal Advisory Committee. With advice from Traditional Owners, Council progressed the decolonisation of Bundoora Park and the opening of a Truth Telling display at Bundoora Homestead. 

  • Finalising Welcoming Cities accreditation documentation which were assessed at ‘Excelling’ level, recognising cultural diversity and inclusion policies and practices across the organisation and identify how further efforts could be directed.  

  • Completing three months of community engagement to develop the LGBTIQA+ Action Plan  

  • Providing $556,000 in funding and lease of properties to the Darebin Neighbourhood House Network which contributed to the seven Neighbourhood Houses delivering over $35 million in community value. 

  • Redesigning John Hall Reserve Pavilion.  

  • Designing a new wetland for the Wat Ganbo Park site to address flooding, improve water quality, biodiversity and social community connection. 

  • Investing almost $2 million to resurface roads in poor condition throughout the city. 

  • Advocating successfully for stronger planning controls to protect Preston Market in any future development of the site. 

  • Investing in CCTV technology to assist in the monitoring illegal dumping hotspots across the municipality. 

  • Developing Darebin’s first People Strategy to ensure that we equip and empower our workforce to deliver sector-leading services to the Darebin community. 

  • Implementing new external websites for Council’s corporate site as well as Arts and Libraries sites, providing improved content and usability for the community. 

  • Endorsing Darebin’s ICT and Digital Strategy to set the future direction of Council’s technology requirements, including funding for the implementation of a new Enterprise Resource Planning system to support improved business processes and efficiency across Council operations.  

A significant part of our progress this year has been the launch of our new Organisational Strategy, Leading Darebin. This comprehensive framework outlines our clear direction and focus for the next four years. Our leadership team have worked hard to develop a strategy that prioritises our community’s needs and aligns our resources accordingly. We understand the importance of careful planning and resource allocation, and this strategy ensures we are making the most of our time, effort, and investments. 

Another achievement was the successful introduction of the new Darebin City Council Enterprise Agreement 2022-2025. This agreement sets the foundation for a positive and productive workplace and acknowledges the efforts of our staff. I’d like to thank everyone involved in the negotiation process, including staff from across our organisation and union delegates.  

An exciting project developed during the year was ‘Your Digital Darebin.’  This project is a significant investment that will improve the way we work and how we interact with our community. Over the next four years we will invest $36.4 million in technology and processes to streamline the way we deliver our services. We are committed to continuously improving the customer experience for our community and this investment, along with the recent launch of our improved websites are just some of the ways we aim to improve in this area.  

While we celebrate our achievements, we are also mindful of the challenges ahead which are also faced by local governments across the country at a time when many in our community are struggling with the rising cost of living. The escalating costs of operations are placing significant pressures on our budget, requiring Council to make tough decisions. We are committed to being financially responsible and will be exploring opportunities to improve the utilisation of our assets and streamline operations to deliver savings while continuing to invest in the essential services that many in our community rely on. We are determined to navigate these complexities while maintaining our focus on delivering for our community. 

I would again like to thank our dedicated staff, Councillors, community partners and volunteers for their contributions to our shared vision for Darebin this year. It has been another year of adjustments, but I am proud of the Darebin team who continue to work tirelessly in delivering essential services and driving positive change for our vibrant and diverse community. 

Peter Smith
Chief Executive Officer

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