Wingecarribee Shire Council was among the top 20 most complained about councils in 2017/18.
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A total of 823 complaints were received by the Office of Local Government about NSW councils in 2017/18 from ratepayers and residents, compared to 811 lodged the previous year.
Kempsey Shire Council was the most complained about council in 2017-18 with 35 complaints, followed by Central Coast council (33 complaints), Blue Mountains council (31), Northern Beaches council (31), and City of Sydney council (25).
Wingecarribee Shire Council had 15 complaints, while nearby Shoalhaven City Council made the top 20 list with 13 complaints.
Matters that were subject for complaint in 2017/18 included customer service, financial management and councils’ enforcement and regulatory powers.
The nature of complaints for specific councils was not available.
Local Government Minister Gabrielle Upton said this highlighted the need for the new codes of conduct released earlier this year.
“The community rightfully expects their local council to be meeting their expectations and these complaint statistics highlight where councils are potentially letting down their residents,” Ms Upton said.
“The Office of Local Government assesses each complaint, uses the information to help improve the performance of councils, and where necessary takes other appropriate regulatory action.”
