Marlborough District Council earns Te Korowai ‘Active’ mark - LGNZ

Marlborough District Council has received a positive evaluation by LGNZ’s Te Korowai local government continuous improvement programme, with the council’s earning marks for their financial health, integrated planning and emergency planning capability.

LGNZ’s Te Korowai supports councils through independent performance evaluation, prioritising, decision making and action planning every three years. The programme provides councils with insights and tools to strengthen governance, leadership, decision-making, transparency, and engagement with the community.  

Te Korowai’s Independent Evaluation Panel has awarded Marlborough District Council with a Mauri Tū or 'Active' development benchmark in its evaluation report.

The report recognised the council as covering a large provincial area with a wide range of environmental and economic challenges, driven by a successful economy largely based around use of natural resources.

The district has been increasingly impacted by frequent and intense storms that have affected transport networks, flood protection schemes and communities, with the council highly regarded by the public for their response to the recent emergencies.

“The report confirms Council is performing well in core areas with clear opportunities to build on its current strengths in strategy, iwi partnership, organisational capability and enhanced risk management,” Marlborough Mayor Nadine Taylor said.

“Some of these areas we have already addressed ourselves and, as a result, we are well underway working towards improvement. This includes the appointment of a strategically focussed Chief Executive in John Boswell who has already implemented a range of initiatives to guide Council’s strategic direction and enhance Council’s decision making,” she said.

Te Korowai Chair Toby Stevenson says the report shows several standout achievements for Marlborough District, alongside areas they can continue to improve on.

“Marlborough District Council is generally performing soundly across a very broad range of functions and is in a strong financial position. Its environmental management plan leads the way in New Zealand in terms of having one integrated plan for the region, and the council has developed some very effective partnerships across most key sectors,” says Toby Stevenson.

“Elected members work well together, understand and manage their finances prudently and make well informed decisions effectively. They’re also capable of making tough decisions, such as the recent decision to create a water CCO, and are willing to consider lowering levels of service in some areas where they’re no longer affordable.

“This assessment also suggests some improvements, such as a need to develop a more strategy-driven approach. This is especially critical given the recent decision to move three-waters into a CCO, which means that with roads, port, and other functions out-sourced, there is an opportunity to re-think the role of the Council.

“To the council’s immense credit they have fully engaged with the findings of this report, they have a new CEO in place who is strategically-focussed, and Mayor Nadine enters her second term in a solid position. We look forward to seeing this council continue to build on their successes over the next three years.”

>> View Marlborough District Council’s Te Korowai Evaluation Report