Like all local councils in NSW, we are required to develop, consult and deliver on a range of plans and strategies that determine the forward direction of our region.
These plans and strategies are developed under a framework which aims to form a genuine reflection of the needs, aspirations and ambitions of the various communities within our local government area and help us create a roadmap to achieve them.
How it works
Integrated planning and reporting (IPR) is a framework that guides local governments in establishing their overarching priorities, and then helps them to achieve their set goals by converting them into a series of actions.
This framework works under the principle that our forward-looking plans must be aligned with our short-term plans, and our learnings while we work to achieve them must be recorded used as a basis to adapt our approach. Because of this, it’s suitably named the Integrated planning and reporting (IPR) framework.

We use this framework to ensure the work that we do is holistic in nature and driven by you, our community.
At its core, this framework provides us with a process to:
- build organisational capability to meet community needs
- emphasise performance monitoring so that we can adapt and respond to changes in community needs
- update long term objectives, guided by balanced and measured input
- identify what resourcing is required to deliver long-term objectives
- clearly communicate our plans for change, growth, investments, and activities to our community.
Looking forwards to our desired place in 10 years
Our Community Strategic Plan sets out the shared vision we work towards each day. Set by you, in collaboration with us and many stakeholders, we create this plan to capture the community’s main priorities and aspirations for the future of our area.
The Port Macquarie Hastings Community Strategic Plan is titled Imagine2050.
Read Imagine2050
We are coordinating our business, activities, funding priorities, and services to achieve our shared vision by the year 2050. Under that vision, we have six key focus areas which support our progress. Those six themes are:

The ideas, goals, and priorities set out in this plan are then filtered down into a range of sub-plans, which define the strategic actions we’ll take to achieve them.
When creating this plan, we also create a 10-year Resourcing strategy, to ensure we have the means deliver on these plans. The resourcing strategy includes:
- a long-term financial plan to forecast our budgets and manage our community’s money responsibly.
- an asset management strategy to set out principles which guide us in maintaining the places, facilities, and services you rely on, even while we plan for new ones.
- a workforce management strategy to make certain that our staff are equipped, knowledgeable, accessible and reliable so that you can have confidence in our services.
Taking steps towards achieving our vision over 4 years
Once our 10-year plan is set, the guiding principles from this plan are translated into achievable short-terms goals that aim to lead us along the path towards our shared vision.
In this program, we plan our projected spend over the four-year period which are allocated to projects and investments that look to create the community you want, as set out in the CSP.
This includes the ongoing operational costs to continue delivering reliable services, as well as money invested in our Capital Works Program. Capital Works projects are big ticket items, outside of our everyday deliverables. This includes upgrades and construction works, new facilities and expansions, and one-off commitments.
To support our Delivery Program, we set out:
- Our fees & Charges – the set rates for our services for the current financial year. We collect these fees so we can provide and maintain services and facilities for our community.
- A revenue policy – which governs the fair setting of our fees & charges.
Our Delivery Program was adopted at the Ordinary Council meeting, in July 2022.
Read the Delivery Program

Our set actions for visible change over a financial year
Each year we create an operational plan, which plans our activities to achieve the short-term goals that are mapped out in our delivery program.
The actions in our operational plan are fluid and are reviewed annually to build on our progress or reassess the areas we need to focus on to achieve our goals after four years, when we’ll set a new Delivery Program to keep us moving forward.
We report on our progress quarterly, but at the end of each financial year, we publish an annual report to illustrate our overall progress.
This structured timeline for reassessing our progress and outcomes ensures the goals from our Delivery Program and the actions from our Operational Plans are still relevant and constructive towards meeting our shared community vision.
Read our Operational Plan
In 2022/23, we have proposed to spend over $143 million delivering our Capital Works Program - which includes all of the projects to upgrade, improve or build new infrastructure, streets, systems, facilities, and public spaces.
As well as funding our day-to-day operations, investing in infrastructure and capital is key in future-proofing our services. Our capital works program makes up 45% of our next annual spend and looks to capture the areas that matter to you in creating a liveable region.
This chart shows the split of our focus areas within the capital works program:
