There were 2 motions and a variety of questions.
I had a motion which was withdrawn:
That the General Manager report the number of those DA’s that exceed the average time.
Cr Beazley withdrew his motion on the floor of Council.
The resolution of Mick’s motion was:
(Moved Cr M Graham/Seconded Cr A Tickle)
That the General Manager ensures that all future Capital Works projects reports give the community a transparent, uniform report and be based across all business units, noting that Council is already moving towards updating reports next year.
For: Cr C Pontin, Cr J Miller, Cr P Beazley, Cr M Graham, Cr J Irving, Cr T O’Keefe, Cr A Tickle, Cr N Turnbull and Cr D Wilson
Against: Nil
Absent, did not vote: Cr P Howard and Cr M McKenzie
Miller had 2 Dorothy Dixer questions:
Question 1
Can the General Manager inform the Council of any awards, commendations, conference speech invitations and other external recognitions of excellence that the staff have received in the past two
years?
Question 2
Can the General Manager inform the Council of any work experience, traineeship and apprenticeship opportunities that have been offered to local young people between 1 July 2024 and 30 June 2025?
Response by the General Manager
Response to Question 1
MidCoast Council has many staff who are leaders in their field, and who are dedicated to delivering results to the communities we serve. Staff & teams have been recognised for the following achievements over the 2024/2025 period:
• 2023 IPWEA NSW & ACT Engineering Excellence Awards:
Winner for Excellence in Water Supply & Wastewater category – Switchboard Replacement Project.
• 2024 IPWEA NSW & ACT Engineering Excellence Awards:
Winner of the Innovations in Water Supply & Wastewater category for MidCoast’s Integrated Water Cycle Management Strategy – Our Water Our Future. Developed in recognition for the need strengthen the MidCoast Region’s water security and infrastructure resilience following the drought, bushfires, flooding and impacts of the COVID pandemic between 2019 and 2022.
• 2025 IPWEA NSW & ACT Engineering Excellence Awards:
Highly Commended for Excellence in Road Safety for the Caravan Towing Safety Workshops initiative (a collaborative project with Port Stephens, Cessnock City, and Maitland City Councils).
• 2024 Ministers Award for Women in Local Government – Alternate Pathways Award:
Celebrating a staff member who is inspiring change and delivering positive outcomes in a field wherein women are often underrepresented.
• 2025 NSW Food Authority’s Food Regulation Partnership Champion Award:
Noting the achievements and outstanding performance of Council’s Food Safety team in winning the Country category.
• 2025 IPWEA NSW & ACT Awards – Female Leader in the Industry:
Recognising Council’s Executive Manager of Transport and Engineering for her contributions to the sector and achievements in leadership.
• 2024 NSW Tourism Awards:
Granted a silver award recognising Vistor Information Services and staff who consistently deliver high quality, face to face visitor information services; and a silver award for the Whatever it Takes campaign, celebrating creativity and innovation within the sector.
• 2025 Green Destinations Top 100 Story Awards – Top 100 Story Awards:
Celebrating sustainable tourism initiatives from destinations around the globe.
• 2025 Barrington Coast ECO Destination Certification:
In February 2025, MidCoast Council became the fifth destination in NSW to be recognised for our commitment to sustainable tourism and environmental stewardship.
• 2024 North Coast Tourism Awards:
Barrington Coast was awarded silver in 2024, recognising growth, entrepreneurship, and celebrating the success of tourism businesses across the LGA.
• 2024 Parks and Leisure Australia (NSW/ACT) Awards:
In June 2024, MidCoast Council received an award in the Strategic and Master Planning category for our Open Space and Recreation Strategy portfolio.
• 2025 NSW Water Industry Operations Association Conference
▪ Operator of the Year – Awarded to Bootawa’s Senior Process Controller in recognition of his outstanding performance, initiative and unwavering commitment to his role, highlighted during the May flood when he remained isolated at the Bootawa Water Treatment Plant for three days to ensure uninterrupted water supply to the community.
▪ Watermain Tapping Competition Winner & National Finalist– our Water Operations Team completed the fastest live connection to a water main from other NSW teams, qualifying for the national finals.
• 2025 National Team of the Year by the Water Industry Operations Association of
Australia:
Recognising Council’s Water and System Team for their coordinated response to the flood event in May 2025, and noting the Team’s work around the clock to minimise the impacts of the flood on water and sewer services.
• 2025 NSW Water Industry’s Operator of the Year:
Recognising Council’s Senior Process Controller for their dedication and work undertaken in their field. In addition to the above awards, MidCoast Council staff have been recognised as leaders in their field and invited to speak to peers and industry at the following events:
• Council’s Manager of Finance was invited to speak at the Local Government Finance Conference, noting the work undertaken, efficiencies implemented, and lessons learned from the 2023 NSW Audit Office Performance Audit
• Council’s Recreation and Open Space Planner was invited to speak at the Parks and Leisure State and National Conferences over the last two years as well as the National Sports Convention.
• Local Government Water Management Conference (Director Infrastructure & Engineering Services)
▪ 2023 – Drought Response to Water Resilience: A Journey of Mindset Shift
▪ 2024 – MidCoast Council’s Journey Towards Net Zero: A Regional Roadmap to 2040
• Water Industry Operations Association NSW Conference
▪ 2025 – Membrane Filtration Chemical Cleaning Performance Improvements (Water Management & Treatment Process Engineer)
▪ 2025 – When the Manning River Rose, Water Levels Dropped and the MidCoast team stepped up (Director Infrastructure & Engineering Services/Manager Water Operations)
▪ 2024 – Implementation of Field App – Won best presentation by an operator (Mechanical and Civil Co-ordinator Water Operations)
• Australian Water Association – Ozwater 2024 – National Water Conference
▪ MidCoast Council’s Journey Towards Net Zero: A Regional Roadmap to 2040 (Director Infrastructure & Engineering Services/Manager Water Management & Treatment)
• 2024 Australia Water Association NSW Conference (Senior Water & Sewer Planning Engineer)
▪ 2024 – Won Top Paper – Pooling Resources: Uniting and Collaborating with the Regional Water Sector through the Regional Champions Initiative – (co-authored with AWA Regional Champions)
▪ 2024 – Won Top Paper – Navigating the Waters to a Sustainable Future (co-authored with AECOM)
• NSW IPWEA State Conference
▪ 2024 – From drought response to water resilience: A journey of mindset shift (Director Infrastructure & Engineering Services)
▪ 2025 – The MidCoast Road Strategy – Joining the Dots Along the Centreline (Director Infrastructure & Engineering Services)
• 2025 Water Industry Operators Association – Executive Operations Group Quarterly
Meetings – (Director Infrastructure & Engineering Services)
▪ August – When the Manning River Rose, Water Levels Dropped and the MidCoast team stepped up
▪ November (upcoming) – MidCoast Council’s Journey Towards Net Zero: A Regional Roadmap to 2040
• 2025 IPWEA Australasia – International Public Works Conference
▪ MidCoast Council’s Journey Towards Net Zero: A Regional Roadmap to 2040 (Director Infrastructure & Engineering Services)
▪ The MidCoast Road Strategy – Joining the Dots Along the Centreline (Director
Infrastructure & Engineering Services)
▪ Unlocking Regional Freight Efficiency – A Risk Based Approach to Upgrading The Bucketts Way (Director Infrastructure & Engineering Services)
• 2025 Local Government Engineering Association/Institute of Public Works
Engineering Association – Mid North Coast Chapter meeting
▪ MidCoast Inflow and Infiltration Reduction Program (Principal Water and Planning Assets Engineer)
Response by The General Manager
Response to Question 2
Council has 56 established Employment Based Training Strategy (EBTS) positions, which equates to 6.2% of Council’s total full-time equivalent workforce. Our established EBTS positions consist of student planners, pathway positions (water operations), graduate positions, cadet positions, apprenticeships, and traineeships.
Between the period 1 July 2024 – 30 June 2025, Council also provided 16 young people with the opportunity to carry out work experience / student placement with Council.
It should be noted that the number of established EBTS positions has increased significantly since the first Employment Based Training Strategy was developed back in March 2019, where established EBTS positions equated to 1.3% of Council’s total full-time equivalent workforce.
Mal had 3 questions:
Question 1
That the General Manager please advise how many unfilled staff positions there are as at 31/10/2025?
Question 2
That the General Manager please advise Council how many contracted, full-time and part-time employees Council has at 31/10/2025?
Question 3
I ask that the Director of Roads please provide the mapping and description list of all road faults in the MCC LGA and dates recorded.
Response by the General Manager
Response to Question 1
There were 70 Fixed Term/Permanent vacancies out of a workforce of 951 staff as at 31 October 2025. This figure includes some long-term vacancies currently not being recruited for operational need reasons.
In addition to the above and for completeness, Council’s staff turnover rate for the 2021-22 to the 2024-2025 financial years is set out below:
• 2021-22 – 16.22%
• 2022-23 – 18.76% Note: In this year LGNSW reported that industry-wide turnover was 18%
• 2023-24 – 13.04% Note: In this year LGNSW reported that industry-wide turnover was 15.73%
• 2024-25 – 10.03%
Response by The General Manager
Response to Question 2
Head count – 951 of which:
• 750 are Permanent full time
• 83 are Permanent part time
• 40 are Fixed term
• 12 are Apprenticeships
• 14 Trainee
• 52 Casual
Response by Director Infrastructure & Engineering Services
Response to Question 3
Council has condition information on all roads across the road network from 2023 as well as the defect data accumulating and changing within the Asset AI platform. Both datasets are extensive, particularly the Asset AI data as it is being updated and superseded daily with new data.
The road condition data could be made available through the mapping tool as it has been summarised at the road segment level. The Asset AI data isn’t currently available for release. In the long term it will be integrated into Council’s customer portal so that customers can see the information we already have on a defect before completing a request. The implementation has not progressed to this point yet.
Providing specific datasets will require the allocation of resources against the other operational priorities and if this is desired it would be appropriate for a notice of motion.