Toowoomba Regional Council (TRC) has approved the restructure of its Planning and Development Group.
TRC Planning and Development Committee Chair Cr Megan O’Hara-Sullivan said, “We wanted to look at how we could increase collaboration and efficiency for staff to provide quality services to the community and how this could also result in the most user-friendly experience possible for our residents.”
The restructure, which included the renaming of internal branch names and lines of reporting, has been made to help better meet the needs of the community.
“Most importantly, the restructure was driven by consultation with staff to identify areas for opportunities and where they see their role best sits within the Group,” Cr O’Hara Sullivan said.
“As part of the process we’ve made sure there were no redundancies or job losses of permanent staff.
“One of the exciting changes is the creation of a new Special Projects team that will act as a conduit between Council and business. This team will help streamline economic development, bringing greater prosperity to our Region.
“The Special Projects team will work across Council to solve problems that are inhibiting progress, growth and achievement. It will help to further coordinate and deliver new investment in the Region.
“Following the adoption of this structure, we will implement all the changes and will soon be recruiting a new Manager, Planning and Manager, Economic Development.”
TRC Planning and Development Committee Portfolio Leader Cr Bill Cahill said the Group had established a new Economic Development Branch, which would have a stronger focus on economic development, including a new Special Projects team to lead the delivery of critical projects across Council.
“Any time you undertake a restructure like this, it can be challenging for staff, so I’d like to thank them for their patience and input as part of this process,” Cr Cahill said.
“Staff were engaged throughout the entire process and have helped lead the change for the other three Branch names to better reflect the nature of work they undertake.
“We’re also seeing our vacancy rates within the Group beginning to decrease as we’ve had great success attracting new employees to Council, including from outside the Region and from staff wishing to return.
“This restructure will continue to reinforce Council’s ‘One Team, People First’ culture where the wellbeing of our staff and the opportunity to create avenues for growth and success for our staff are a priority.”
The restructure was approved at the Ordinary Meeting of Council on 15 August 2023.
