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Building sector capability

Workforce planning and skills shortages remain key challenges for local government. Councils are facing difficulties in attracting and retaining staff.

Background

The 2022 Workforce Skills and Capability Survey Report, commissioned by the Australian Local Government Association (ALGA), revealed critical skills shortages across many council roles. To address these challenges, the Local Government Association of SA (LGA), in partnership with LG Professionals SA, launched the Building Sector Capability project.

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Project aims

The project tackles workforce challenges through two key initiatives:
  1. Careers in council campaign (on this page): Promoting local government careers through practical information, career profiles and pathways.
  2. Workforce resources (on this page): Identifying good practices within the sector which are addressing workforce challenges and developing resources, tools and case studies to support councils.

This project was initiated by LGA in collaboration with LG Professionals SA.

Careers in council campaign

The Building Sector Capability project has delivered a range of valuable resources for members in addressing workforce challenges. Central to this is a new campaign, which promotes careers in local government and supports councils to engage job seekers.

Access the careers campaign information and promotional materials below:

Promotional resources

A suite of promotional resources has been developed for councils. These can be used on social media or at events like career expos and school engagement opportunities.

Download the resources:

These include an option for co-branding to include your council.

Key messages

Councils can use the following key messages to support career awareness and recruitment initiatives:

Key messages for careers campaign (PDF 318.6 KB)

Website updates

To support the campaign, we’ve made exciting updates to the local councils careers website.

New sections and features introduce the opportunities and pathways available within councils, creating a deeper understanding of the benefits and experiences job-seekers can find.

Interactive career chatbot

Launching on Instagram, our career chatbot helps job seekers discover council careers matched to their skills and interests.

A short quiz guides users directly to job profiles, sparking interest in roles they may never have considered.

Workforce resources

The final phase of the project focuses on delivering workforce tools and resources, including:

  • Development of additional resources such as a work experience and career expo guides.
  • Ongoing collaboration with councils to gather and share workforce initiatives which address specific skills challenges.
  • Advocacy to state government for future sector development opportunities.

Case studies

View the workforce initiatives showing promising outcomes for councils. These case studies show what's working well for councils across SA.

  • Engaged sector in identifying approaches to bridge skills gaps.
  • Digital repository of workforce resources on the LGA website.
  • Careers platform success:
    • 152,000+ page views
    • 14,000 users
    • 521,000 interactions
  • National impact: Advocacy led to Public Skills Australia funding a national local government skills study.
  • Sustainable partnerships with education providers and workforce development groups.
Project snapshot
Project number: 2023.05
Start date: 03 Jul 2023
Completion date: 18 Jul 2025
Recipient: Local Government Association
Status: Complete
Funds approved: $150,000
Documentation & links
2023.05