Valor y utilidad

It is evident also from interviews that council case studies are seeking ways to maintain service delivery levels, while acknowledging the need for a shift in their role towards better community engagement and greater involvement in social and economic development. However, as C3 elected representative pointed out, local government has not yet balanced this role between essential economic development strategies and community/social development components that were seen to be emerging as equally important for the growth and sustainability of their municipal areas. This elected representative went on to say:

… that's perhaps that's something that can be introduced, but ... social values ... ah ... from local government, are going to be much harder for us to balance when we come to do budgets, going forward with just the complexities now of balancing with revenue you know and expenses ... but I, I think it's riding, riding a wave now that people are starting to take on board.

C3 elected representative also acknowledged that councils need to demonstrate a willingness to work with social enterprises and said it was necessary to have:

… good engaging outcomes together. [And] we are starting to generate a bit of an income for our business … job creation … that’s what we’re trying to do … we’re starting to create some pride, we’re starting to get some outcomes … and more importantly a social enterprise is able to operate by itself … [but] if it wasn’t for some support from local government … it wouldn’t have happened.

However, C3 elected representative also emphasised with this explanation that social enterprises are a hard sell, and went on to say:

So, the ones that I've seen that really work well, have, have had a bit of help from all those tiers [of government] ... but there's gotta [sic] be also a buy-in from the business community ... and it's gotta [sic] be a buy-in also from if possible, and that's even happening out here now ... through philanthropic people, you know people of a philanthropic type of view. Social enterprises are now seen as a new way forward ... So, we could co-op social enterprises ... it is really something that we can get underway very very quickly ... but, there's a, a lack of doing it, because councils are reluctant to put money in when they won't see return for 2, 3, 4, or 5 years. Social enterprises do not get money ... well social enterprise may not be in there to make a profit ... right? A social enterprise may not be showing a return for 3, 4 or 5 years ...

Each case study council was asked whether they had any policies that use social clauses (particularly social inclusion) that encourage collaborative relationships with social enterprises. And if not, should they be developed and what would they look like? These questions were “glossed” over by case study council respondents, and it is evident from interviews that very few case study councils had developed such social policies.

C3 senior council officer affirmed the existence of social policies for this council. However, an online review of all case study council policies identified there are no existing policies or social clauses relating to social enterprises. Nevertheless, questions around social policies, in particular social procurement and social inclusion, did generate some interest in possible policy development. In this context, C1 senior council officer commented:

… there is a whole range of areas where it probably pops up ... but I guess, the first thing I guess where we probably need to design or develop is a social policy as such,

and I guess that then would inform other policies as it needed to, to give us a bit of policy advice about where were we are at and summarise what we do and those sort of things. So, I will be interested out of your work, what you find there and if you find any good examples of that ... I would be surprised if anyone has got one in Tasmania ...

However, C4 council officer commented about such clause statements within Strategic Community Plans relating to social inclusion as being ‘motherhood statements’, and said:

... as far as policies, I don't know that we have got any formal policies ... I can’t think of any and whilst I guess you know sort of … when we give our Strategic Plan, these sorts of things come up, but (laughter) … talking about social inclusion and all of that, it becomes as with all of those things, motherhood statements ….

Similarly, C2 elected representative stated that:

… someone said to me once – strategic planning is backwards, because it actually … because you do this planning and then everything’s related to how things should have been … and that is a snapshot in time as opposed to instead of thinking about where things are meant to go to.

However, C3 council officer discussed council social planning research to develop its Community and/or Strategic Plans. Similarly, C1 elected representative also explained changes around its council table:

… we've had changes around the table and there is greater understanding of ... that we've got to have all our community there for us to move forward ... you know and have us all participating in and not have a sector of our community that doesn't fit the case ... but, there's lots that we can do socially and I think through [C1 program to tackle entrenched social challenges such as long-term unemployment], that will enable us to maybe have some evidence to back up some social policies ... we need to do a bit of research …

It is evident from the case studies that councils have not considered policies that use social clauses to encourage collaborative relations or relationships with social enterprises. However, in the context of service delivery and strategic planning, C1 senior council officer presented a view that local social enterprises have a role to play, but at a cost, and in this context commented that:

... I think that we would have to think long and hard ... number one ... it's what social enterprises would be able to play in this space anyway, and ... what is the cost to council and therefore the ratepayers of going down that track, because they will think there is a cost ... there will be a cost.

This section highlights collaborations or relationships between case study councils and case study social enterprises. And despite the considerable amount of data explaining these relationships, the author has observed from the findings however, that many case study council respondents are not aware of the extent, nature and purpose of their council’s relationship with social enterprises, or of the actual or potential benefits of these relationships.