8 October 2013

Major step forward for Council building consent processes

Proposed changes to the structure of the Council’s building control functions are designed to meet demand for building consents and see the Council regain and retain IANZ accreditation.

Today the Crown Manager Doug Martin has announced the release of a consultation document on proposed structural changes. Mr Martin says the changes proposed are a big step forward and outlines actions for significant, positive and sustainable change to the Council’s building control functions.

“It was clear in the terms of reference for the Action Plan on Building Control Functions that change was needed to improve systems at the Council. If accepted the proposed structure allows that to happen and will go a long way to putting the Council’s building consent systems back on the right track. That is what the community deserves and the rebuild demands.”

The consultation document proposes to organise building consent functions around commercial and residential building consents. A new role, General Manager Building Control and Rebuild proposes a single point of accountability and leadership for building functions.

Six new unit manager positions reflect the end-to-end building consent process with responsibility in the following areas: Allocation and Vetting; Residential Consents; Commercial Consents; Building Compliance; Operational Policy and Quality Improvement; Customer and Business Services. A Rebuild Liaison Manager role would also be created to represent the Council on a range of rebuild related matters and to develop and maintain a strong working relationship with a range of agencies.

Advisors and teams reporting to the unit managers would be grouped together according to common competencies, building control functions and skills, and team sizes would be manageable.

Mr Martin says he appreciates the high level of staff participation in the consultation which included 12 workshops with staff, one-to-one meetings with managers, and the opportunity to feedback on a discussion paper on structural changes.

“I have been confident since day one that staff had the expertise and competency to find a solution. I made it clear at the outset that fast and significant change was needed. They stepped up producing a huge amount of information in a short period of time. In particular there was an overwhelming preference for consents to be organised around residential and commercial consents.

“Staff have helped put in place a proposal which will not only meet the demands of the rebuild but transform the Council into a leading Building Consent Authority, an exemplar.”

Acting Chief Executive Jane Parfitt says “it was obvious that change was necessary. We have highly skilled staff and we need to focus our resources in the right area to ensure efficiency.

“The proposed structure offers our staff the opportunity to make the most of their expertise and knowledge, increase their work satisfaction and bring about the changes that are needed for the community and the rebuild.

“They won’t be in the trenches, they will be on the front foot as the influx of building consent applications heads towards us.

If the proposal is accepted new positions will be advertised externally and internally. Under the proposal there is a net increase of twelve new positions – 32 positions would be established while 20 would be disestablished.

A recruitment drive in New Zealand and in the United Kingdom which starts soon aims to source at least a further 20 Building Control Officers. This will be complemented by contracting a number of Building Consent Authorities (BCAs) to process a target of 150 to 200 building consent applications per week. Discussions are currently underway with 18 BCAs around New Zealand.

The Crown Manager says there is no one fix.

“For the next few months it is reasonable for customers to expect that there will continue to be delays in processing consents as we experience a tsunami of building consent applications. There is no one fix, we need a package. But should the proposed structural changes be accepted improved systems will certainly lead the way.”

Staff have been given an opportunity to provide feedback on the consultation document next week and a decision is expected in late October.

ENDS

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