Internal Management & Support

Internal management refers to the processes, systems and strategies that underpin public lighting management within council. Councils with good internal management coordinate the public lighting actions taken by different staff members and critically assess their current public lighting management structure.

In addition to good internal management, strong internal support is essential for achieving sustainable public lighting outcomes and can be generated through:

• Educating council staff via reports
• Clarifying roles and responsibilities
• Involving all relevant staff, since different people will have different areas of expertise. In a lamp trial, for example, an environment officer may understand the greenhouse implications, a finance manager the contract options, an elected member the community aspirations, and an infrastructure officer the lighting performance implications.
• Sharing a common language and understanding how the pieces fit together.
• Actively promoting sustainable public lighting amongst senior management, councillors and staff with public lighting responsibilities.
• Capitalising on existing support. All CCP councils have politically endorsed greenhouse reduction goals and action plans, which often include sustainable public lighting. Use this avenue to implement lighting policies, trials and other initiatives and/or to participate in state/territory actions.

For further ideas about how to ensure internal support, go back to the main Taking action page.

Based on the success of the City of Melbourne’s Greenhouse Steering Committee for ensuring whole-of-council involvement in local action planning, Council is applying the same approach to the development and implementation of its SPLAP.

A SPL Steering Committee – comprising representatives from Engineering, Design, Environment, Parks, Community Services and Place Management – has been created to improve whole-of council knowledge and management of public lighting.

The Committee is responsible for the regular review of SPLAP strategy and actions, and will ensure Council gains the appropriate support for SPLAP initiatives. The Committee will also determine the level of capacity building required within Council as well as build effective working relationships to deliver to their SPLAP goals.

For more information contact the Greenhouse Projects Coordinator at the City of Melbourne, through their switchboard +61 (0)3 9658 9658.

1. Incorporate public lighting into councils’ policy and reporting system
2. Develop a sustainable public lighting policy and/or strategy
3. Incorporate sustainable public lighting into the corporate planning policy (or equivalent), corporate plan and/or asset management plan
4. Brief senior managers and councillors on sustainable public lighting
5. Establish regular monitoring and review process for public lighting management.
6. Put overall public lighting management into a senior manager’s role; the work plan of one council unit; or form a public lighting management team.
7. Make sustainable public lighting a key focus for your council’s energy management team (or other appropriate body, such as energy component of executive team meetings).
8. Strengthen requests for staff allocation to public lighting management.