Policies & strategies

Aims to shape Yarra Ranges as a creatively vibrant place where participation in the cultural life of our communities is sustained as a seamless and deeply meaningful experience encountered in the street, our open spaces, our businesses and industry, our civic places, our schools and in our homes.

Outlines our policy for managing, preserving and providing access to cultural collections

Council is proud to acknowledge the Wurundjeri as the first peoples of our shared land and their rich cultural heritage and deep spiritual connection to this Country for time beyond counting.

To move forward as a healthy and connected community, we first need to look back into the past to understand and respect the history, culture and heritage that informs both who we are and where we have come from.

This Policy acknowledges that the history of Yarra Ranges includes many different cultural groups and that the number of residents from diverse cultural backgrounds continues to grow.

 

Our promise

Yarra Ranges Council will deliver exceptional customer service that caters to our community’s needs by being responsive to all enquiries and requests, consistently accountable to our promises and helpful by looking for solutions and proactively assisting where we can.

Accountable

• We take ownership for resolving customer requests.
• We provide clear timeframes for action and make ourselves accountable to meet them.
• We are honest and give straight answers.
• We own our decisions and are clear as to why.
• We will use feedback so we can do better next time.

Helpful

• We are considerate of customer's unique circumstances and have genuine care for our community.
• We look for solutions and focus on 'how we can' and not 'why we can't'.
• We are easy to work with and make things simpler for our customers.
• We support our customers through our processes.
• We give our customers the freedom to choose how they do business with us.
• We make sure our communication style suits customers' needs.

Responsive

• We respond to customer enquiries as soon as we can.
• We let our customers know what to expect, when they will hear from us and how things are tracking.
• If we can't solve your issue within the specified time, we’ll let you know when you can expect a response.

Response times

Please note all time frames refer to business days. We endeavour to meet these response times each time, however some enquiries are more complex and may require more time. We will keep you updated if we need more time to respond.

Contact method	Response time
Phone	Resolved at first point of contact, or a call back within 1 day to resolve your enquiry or advise how we are managing your enquiry.
Email	Response within 2 days for enquiries, or 10 days for complex matters. We will notify you if the matter is considered complex.
Online	Processed within 1 day.
Post	Response within 10 days.
Social media	Response within 1 day.
Escalated complaints	Response within 15 days. Refer to our Complaint and Unreasonable Behaviour Policy for more information.

Contact us

You can Contact us online, in person or on the phone. 

Contacting your Councillor

To get your Councillor’s contact details, please visit yarraranges.vic.gov.au/councillors

Complaints and Unreasonable Behaviour Policy

To read our complaints charter, please visit yarraranges.vic.gov.au/customercomplaints

 

TTY (for hearing or speech impaired)

133 677 National Relay Services (NRS) for callers who have a hearing, speech or communication impairment and for Text Telephone (TTY) or modem callers.

1300 555 727 National Relay Service (NRS) for callers using Speak and Listen Relay.

TIS

131 450 Translating & Interpreting Services (TIS) National. An interpreting service is available if required.

Chinese Simplified

如需要，可拨打全国翻译服务处（TIS）的电话 131 450 提供口译服务。

Chinese Traditional

如需要，可撥打全國翻譯服務處（TIS）的電話 131 450 提供傳譯服務。

Chin Hakha

Holhlet na herh ah cun Translating and Interpreting Services (TIS) kha 131450 ah chawnh in hlohleh rian tuawn nak kha hman khawh a si.

Dutch

Indien nodig kunt u onze tolken- en vertaaldienst Translating and Interpreting Services (TIS) bellen op 131 450 om met een tolk te spreken.

Italian

Un servizio di interpretariato è disponibile, se richiesto, contattando i Servizi di traduzione e interpretariato nazionali (TIS) al numero 131 450.

 

Personal information protection

Yarra Ranges Council is committed to the protection of personal information provided by our customers, in accordance with the requirements of the Privacy and Data Protection Act 2014 and the Freedom of Information Act 1982.

Please note: Telephone numbers of in-coming calls to Council may be collected on Council’s telephone system.

We value our customers and are known for delivering great customer experiences.

Yarra Ranges Council is transforming the way we think, work and deliver. Through our Flexible Future Transformation Strategy we are working towards creating a high performing organisation that collaborates and innovates to deliver exceptional customer focused services.

This Customer Experience Strategy plays a significant role in our ability to meet this aspiration, through guiding our efforts to improve our customers’ experiences with Council. 

What is Customer Experience?

Customer Experience (CX) is the sum of all the interactions that a customer has with Council and the customer’s feelings, emotions, and perceptions of Council over the course of those interactions. 

Our goals

1. We understand our customers, their needs and what they value
2. Customer experience is central in the design of our services and processes
3. We make it easier for customers to connect with us, access services and complete their business
4. Our people value customers, are empathetic and responsive, and accountable for delivering positive customer experience
5. We measure customer experience and use data, feedback and insights to continually improve our services

Priority projects 

• Website Redevelopment 
  Redeveloping the website to ensure it is customer centric, user friendly and accessible, allowing our customers to easily find information and access Council services.

• SMS Updates
  Implementing SMS messages to update customers on a range of council services

• Customer Process Project
  Re-designing the organisation’s customer request processes to improve customer experience and satisfaction. The project will see the creation a standardised and more efficient approach to the management of the many customer request types and increase accountability, measurement and performance of customer request processes.

How will we keep this up to date?

We will regularly review the progress and outcomes of this strategy to assess how we are tracking. 

It is a living document and will be adjusted to ensure is remains contemporary and achieves our vision.

 

Our data is high quality, secure and informs the decisions we make.

Data is one of our most critical assets. The information we collect helps us connect our community. We take the responsibility of collecting, using and disposing of our data very seriously.

This charter is a public commitment from Yarra Ranges Council to its customers and to itself for this responsibility.

Goals

1. Our customers trust us with their data

Council needs to collect data about our customers to deliver services to the community. We place our customers at the centre of everything we do.

We will:

• Only collect the data that is required from our customers to successfully deliver our services.
• Protect and secure our data from unauthorised access and use.
• Ensure our data assets have owners who are accountable for managing their access and use.
• Ensure our staff are accountable for the use of data. Individual data use is recorded and auditable.
• Keep data for periods of time that suit our business needs. We will dispose of customer data responsibly and in line with Public Record Office Victoria policies.
• Be responsible in protecting customers’ credit card data used to process transactions as per the guidelines provided by the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI-DSS).

 

2. Our data empowers staff to make decisions

Our data is a strategic asset for council and is managed by considered policies, standards and procedures. Well managed data helps us make informed decisions to ensure the services we deliver are relevant, efficient and meet community needs.

We will:

• Ensure the quality of our data is everyone’s responsibility. When we see data that needs to be corrected we take action.
• Ensure authorised access to customer and asset data is a quick and painless process.
• Align our data risk management practices with our organisational risk framework.
• Invest in fit-for-purpose technologies to support all of our data management activities.

 

3. Our data inspires innovation

Mature data governance and management opens the door for council to take advantage of the opportunities that emerging technologies promise. We are fostering the spirit of innovation across the entire council, from leadership to field worker.

We will:

• Ensure data governance is fully supported and championed.
• Welcome ideas from all our staff, the public and our partners to improve data management. Innovation is part of our DNA.
• Ensure our staff have the skills to make the most of data. Our capabilities are continually evolving.

 

How will we live up to this charter?

The Data Governance Project is a strategic project and part of the Council's vision to ensure we are a high performing organisation. This charter is a commitment and we measure ourselves against its principles regularly. 

Yarra Ranges Council recognises that people are disabled by barriers in society, not by their impairment or difference. We are committed to doing everything we can to eliminate these barriers and to promote genuine inclusion in our community.

The Disability Action Plan identifies the actions we'll take to advance disability inclusion over the next 4 years while setting longer term goals.

Find out how we address the wellbeing of animals, manage compliance and education initiatives, provide community and council partnerships to tackle challenges with animals, and more.

Outlines our commitment to improving the health and well being through a range of sustainable economic development initiatives.

Learn more about the journey of this strategy by visiting our Shaping Yarra Ranges page.

Provides guidance to ensure compliance with the Act and facilitates the continuation of the ordinary business of the Council throughout the election period in a responsible and transparent manner.