Being a council member
As a council member, you can help create a future that you and your community can be proud of and enjoy. If you are passionate about your local community, willing to work as part of a team, keen to learn and make a difference, you can nominate for a position on council.
Having diversity of people on councils is important so our communities are represented fairly. People who have historically had less input in council decisions are encouraged to nominate to be on council.
This includes people such as:
- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people
- people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds
- people with a disability
- women
- young people, aged 18 years and older.
Skills to be a good council member
To be an effective council member, you should be passionate about your local community, be keen to learn and willing to contribute to strategic decisions for your local area.
On a council, leadership skills are fundamental. You must be impartial, listen to other perspectives, and be well informed of the facts when advocating for the community.
Councillors do not make decisions on their own. Councils make decisions as a whole. This means you must work well with other councillors as part of a team.
As a council member, you don’t have to agree on everything. Just be prepared to build effective working relationships, influence others constructively, and engage in respectful debate on council.
You also don’t need to know everything from the start to be a councillor. You will complete a council induction and training program, and attend workshops to build your skills and your understanding of council.
Council members are required to complete mandatory training in their first twelve months after an election. The LGA Mandatory Training Standard outlines the training subjects.