By Sarah Artist
Director Performance & Capability
As Councils face significant cost pressures alongside legislative constraints on raising own-source revenue, rate increases (SRVs) are often the only viable pathway to achieving financial sustainability in the medium to long term.
The announcement of IPART’s SRV determinations this month for ten Councils across the State is the culmination of significant levels of analysis, planning and community engagement undertaken by each Council.
Each year, Councils applying for an SRV must submit an application to IPART in February, addressing — among other requirements — Criterion 5: productivity improvements and cost containment strategies.
What we are seeing across Councils
Across the sector, service reviews are being used by councils to identify efficiencies, optimise service delivery, and demonstrate productivity improvements and cost containment in line with IPART SRV assessment criteria.
Service reviews are crucial in addressing financial sustainability pressures, as they enable Councils to design, implement and demonstrate productivity improvements and cost containment strategies.
How Councils use SRVs to their benefit
A thorough assessment of the financial performance of a service can assist a Council in making decisions and planning improvements – with this information at hand, Councils can present better projections and cost estimates in both their service improvement plans and future SRV applications.
Centium Case Studies
Centium is proud to have worked with the following NSW councils and commend their efforts to achieve the productivity improvements and cost containment underpinning their successful SRV applications. Here are some brief notes about the approaches to service reviews that they used in their applications to gain approval:
Blacktown City Council has maintained a strong commitment to continuous improvement in business efficiency and service delivery. Over the past decade, its Better Practice Reviews program has assessed 23 service areas, with 15 now fully implemented. Each review produced recommendations across efficiency, effectiveness and long-term sustainability, supported by implementation plans with defined actions, timeframes and reporting to the Executive, ARIC and Council.
Glen Innes Severn Council has strengthened productivity and efficiency through service reviews, procurement reform, depreciation reviews and improved pricing strategies for waste, water and sewer services. A structured business improvement program is being implemented to identify efficiencies, reduce duplication and streamline processes across directorates, with a focus on process mapping, customer workflows, procurement and asset maintenance scheduling.
Ku-ring-gai Council is committed to delivering high-quality, efficient and responsive services. Its Service Improvement Review Program systematically assesses services against best practice and peer councils to identify inefficiencies, streamline processes and better allocate resources as part of broader cost containment efforts.
North Sydney Council has implemented organisation-wide productivity and cost-containment reforms ahead of its SRV application. Since 2023, a formal Productivity and Improvement Plan — embedded within the Long-Term Financial Plan — has delivered measurable efficiency gains and structural reform. Initiatives include workforce realignment, service reviews, process redesign and automation, strengthened procurement and contract management, and governance improvements informed by internal audit.
WHY CENTIUM?
Centium offers robust and proven service reviews specifically tailored to NSW local government. We work in partnership with our Council clients to build internal capacity and engagement with our process and outcomes.
Please reach out if you would like to talk to us about our Service Reviews capability and experience– we can assist you to analyse your service, find efficiencies and new revenue, improve your systems and processes, and maximise your service delivery outcomes.
We offer Councils the following unique blend of skills, solutions and assurance:
To find out how Centium can help you, go to centium.com.au or ring us on 1300 237 810
