A record of 54 entries have been received in the 2024 LGFA Taituarā Local Government Excellence Awards®. The previous record was 45 in the 2018 competition.
This year’s entrants include 27 local authorities, two council-controlled organisations and, for the first time, a co-governance entity.
The full range of local government activity is on show.
“In a year with a continually shifting policy environment and what has been a particularly challenging LTP for many we are absolutely stoked with the take-up, said Taituarā chief adviser Raymond Horan.
“Modern local government is much more than a provider of utility services. This year’s entries tell stories about programmes and projects as diverse as collecting food scraps, to various park upgrade projects, to a coastal management plan in a community of around 1000 people.”
The competition for the Award for Excellence in Council-Community Relations (sponsored by the Department of Internal Affairs) will be particularly closely-fought, with 14 entries.
“The age of engaging in drafty halls on a midwinter’s night passed with the millennium said Raymond.
“These entries tell stories of local authorities working jointly with communities to identify an issue or problem and how to resolve it. These are all stories of local authorities working with communities, not because they have to, but because this makes for a better solution.”
Competition will also be tough in the Beca Award for Excellence in Placemaking, where a record 11 entries have been submitted.
“In a world where labour and capital are highly mobile communities and economies increasingly compete on the quality of place, said Raymond
“While network infrastructure might sustain life, community investment in place is what enriches life.”
A particularly pleasing aspect of this year’s batch of entries has been the large level of entries received from provincial New Zealand. Around 30 entries have come from outside the metropolitan sector and larger regions. This includes the first ever entries from Kawerau District Council and from South Wairarapa District Council.
“Excellence isn’t necessarily a product of size and scale. In the nine years we’ve run the awards in this format we’ve seen provincial New Zealand win the Supreme Award four times. Also, Ashburton, Thames-Coromandel, Taupō (twice), South Taranaki, Kaikoura, Wairoa, Grey and Stratford have all won category awards.”
The Awards would not be possible without the support of our suite of sponsors:
- The Local Government Funding Agency – sponsors of the Supreme Award
- Beca – sponsors of the Placemaking category
- BERL – sponsors of the Collaborating for Results category
- Buddle Findlay – sponsors of Te Tohu Waka Hourua (the award for council/Māori partnerships)
- Datacom – sponsors of the award for Excellence in Digital Local Government
- The Department of Internal Affairs – sponsors of the award for Excellence in Community Engagement and
- GHD Advisory – the sponsors of the award for Environmental Leadership.
The Awards are well-entrenched in the local government calendar as the night the sector celebrates excellence in local government management. As well as the awards themselves, the winners of the NZ leg of the Australasian Management Challenge, the winner of the Sheffield Emerging Leader of the Year, and four overseas manager exchanges (sponsored by AskYourTeam, Marsh and Civic Financial Services) will be announced.
Find out more about being part of this celebration of excellence here.
The following are the entries in the 2024 LGFA Taituarā Excellence Awards®:
- Ashburton District Council – Ng King Brothers Chinese Garden
- Auckland Council - Auckland Council Libraries Membership Benefits Campaign
- Auckland Council – Auckland Food Scraps Service Rollout
- Auckland Council – I am Auckland
- Auckland Council - Myers Park Upgrade
- Auckland Council – Puukaki Tapu
- Auckland Council and Beca – Regionwide Global Consent for the Fish Passage Remediation Programme
- Auckland Transport – Removing Pedestrian Level Crossings at Homai Station
- Bay of Plenty Regional Council - Collective Resilience: Collaborative Climate Adaptation at Waihi Beach
- Bay of Plenty Regional Council – Pāpāmoa Hills Revitalisation
- Christchurch City Council – Innovation Expo
- Christchurch City Council – Smartview
- Christchurch City Council – Tīrama Mai
- Gisborne District Council – Kaukauria ngā iwi o Kiwa
- Gisborne District Council – Tairāwhiti Civil Defence COP Intelligence Dashboard
- Gisborne District Council – Tairāwhiti Marae Resilience and Preparedness
- Gisborne District Council – Tairāwhiti Township Community Upgrades
- Great South – Muruhiku Southland Decarbonisation Workshop Series
- Greater Wellington Regional Council - Climate Resilience Programme: Broader Outcomes
- Hamilton City Council – A Vibrant Village Heart
- Hastings District Council - Waiaroha – Loving Water
- Horowhenua District Council – Kaitiaki Programme
- Horowhenua District Council – The Future of Levin Landfill
- Horowhenua District Council - Waitārere Beach Surf Life Saving Community Facility
- Horowhenua District Council – Youth Space
- Hurunui District Council – Amberley Beach Coastal Adaptation Project
- Hutt City Council - Maungaraki School and Community Library
- Kāpiti Coast District Council – How We Took Our Community on a Journey
- Kawerau District Council – Porritt Glade Lifestyle Village
- Manawatū District Council - What Matters, Manawatū?
- Marlborough District Council - Marlborough Sounds Future Access Study
- Napier City Council – BIM Modelling of Napier City Council Assets
- New Plymouth District Council – Vote 22
- Palmerston North City Council – Highbury Shopping Centre Revitalisation
- Rotorua Lakes Council – Rotorua Lakefront Redevelopment: creating a world class lakefront experience
- Rotorua Lakes Council – Sir Howard Morrison Centre Restoration
- South Wairarapa District Council - South Wairarapa District Council Dog Pound
- Taupō District Council – Taupō Town Centre Transformation
- Taupō District Council - Te Kapua Papa Tākaro
- Taupō District Council - Te Mataapuna
- Taupō District Council – Wairoa House
- Tauranga City Council - Earthquake and Tsunami Virtual Reality Simulation
- Tauranga City Council – Leadership Development Programme
- Tauranga City Council - Marine Parade Walkway
- Tauranga City Council - Te Rere o Omanawa - Omanawa Falls
- Tūpuna Maunga Authority – Whanau Atea
- Waikato District Council - Turangawaewae Cultural Values
- Waikato Regional Council – Kauri Pou Kaitiaki
- Waikato Regional Council – Kura Waiti
- Waipā District Council – Ahu Ake
- Wellington City Council – Long-term Plan Citizens Assembly
- Wellington City Council - Mā te mahi tahi, ka ora ai tatou - A transport network, delivering outcomes for our Māori economy
- Whakatāne District Council - Reimagining Work
- Whakatāne District Council – Te Toi Waka Whakarei