Our advocacy service

It is generally accurate to say that all council activities and services are authorised by legislation, but it is not fair to say they are all required (mandated) by it. Local government is established by Parliament and operates under a legislative framework—primarily the Local Government Act 2002—meaning councils may only do what the law authorises them to do.

There are services that council must provide by law:-

• Building and resource consent processing.
• Environmental health and food safety monitoring.
• Dog control and animal management.
• Infrastructure management (roads, water supply, sewage, stormwater).
• Rubbish collection and recycling. 

Then there are discretionary services that are authorised by legislation but not compulsory: -

• Libraries, museums, and art galleries.
• Parks, playgrounds, and swimming pools.
• Community centres and community housing.
• Event hosting and community funding/grants. 
  
  

The complexities involved with these mandatory and discretionary services, how they are delivered by council representatives and the behaviour expectation of those representatives in respect of their community position can, and often do, cause misunderstanding leading to conflicting opinions and engagement.

This is where we believe we can be of assistance, helping residents and ratepayers to navigate these complexities in a clear, concise manner.

Contact us

Phone us on 027 397 6249

Email us:

advocatesforchangecentralotago@gmail.com

 or message us through our contact form below.