Privacy & Information Officer (V25/9874)

Position Number: P00999

Directorate: Office of the CEO

Service: Governance and Compliance

Location: Katoomba

Date

Created/Updated

October 2025

RBF Band 9

POSITION PURPOSE/OBJECTIVE

This role delivers the organisational governance and compliance frameworks for Council.

The primary focus of this role is the management and determination of applications for

council-held government and personal information. The role also conducts policy,

delegations, compliance and legal management functions for the Council. The role leads

business improvement initiatives in relation to privacy policy, and compliance

management. The role is responsible for ensuring Council operates in accordance with

best practice in governance, privacy protection, and access to information ensuring

legislative compliance and reporting within strict legislative timeframes. The role is

responsible for the implementation of councils privacy compliance and external reporting

requirements. This role will be sought to provide internal advice on the privacy and

disclosure of information requirements on council to ensure information is protected

correctly and in accordance with legislation and council policy positioning. The role is

involved within the organisational policy management including through the preparation,

review, and implementation of policies and procedures through comprehensive research

and benchmarking. This role also provides service delivery more broadly by playing a key

role in responding to internal and external enquiries, and by supporting the management

of the legal services panel. The role is also responsible for delivering positive customer

engagement with internal and external stakeholders by providing advice, instruction, and

training programs.

RELATIONSHIPS

Reports to (title): Program Leader Governance

Reports to (position number): P00909

Staff Responsibility: 0

Key Internal Relationships: Service Managers and Leaders, Directors and

the CEO

Council employees

Key External Relationships: Government agencies for example, Office of

Local Government, Information Privacy

Commisssioner, NSW Ombudsman

Date last reviewed: Page 2

Solicitors

Customers/residents

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

1. To contribute to help Council deliver its sustainability goals.

2. To manage and implement the requirements of the Government Information Public

Access (GIPA) Act and access to council information, including to receive and assess

applications for access or review, conduct comprehensive research, interpret

legislation, and make decisions under the provision of the Act.

1. To manage Privacy and Personal Information Protection Act (PPIPA) compliance and

processes, including processing applications for personal information, facilitating

internal and external review(s) and reporting obligations, system development, training

and maintenance, and to provide advice on transparency and privacy protections for

council.

1. To develop and implement complaint handling processes, including complaint

management system development, monitoring and maintenance, analysis and

reporting, and to provide support, training, reporting, and advice.

1. To deliver the organisational policy and compliance management framework, including

to develop and advise internally on legislative compliance oversight processes, legal

referral and expenditure processes, delegated authority, policy drafting, review and

implementation, and compliance matters across the breadth of council functions.

1. To facilitate internal review processes and administration, including conduct

comprehensive research, understand legislation and policy, analyse information or

data, prepare complex correspondence and maintain strict confidentiality

requirements.

1. To undertake internal and external research, including with respect to council records,

legislation, standards, government circulars, industry guidelines and model policies in

the preparation and review of projects, compliance, policy and procedures.

1. To undertake other duties as required, including varied administrative and research

functions for legal support, committee governance, complaint and complainant

management functions, public register reporting, responding to a wide range of

internal and external enquiries, special project facilitation and/or involvement with

preparing and implementing training programs.

Guiding Principles

• We act as one organisation responding to the changing needs of our LGA and

community

• We are strategy led, driven by our Community Strategic Plan with clear priorities and

focus

• We are service focused, we continuously improve service provision and provide

excellent customer service

• We collaborate and work together to achieve our outcomes

• We ensure safety and well-being is at the centre of our organisation, operations and

culture

• We are a financially sustainable organisation, living within our means, ensuring best

value resource allocation

These Guidelines complement the Council's adopted Values of: Work Together; Work

Safe Home safe; Service Excellence; Value for Money; Trust and Respect; and,

Supporting Community

Date last reviewed: Page 3

Workplace Health & Safety

Ensure compliance with WHS obligations and responsibilities as outlined in Councils

policies and procedures and under the relevant WHS legislation. These include but are

not limited to: identifying potentially unsafe situations or work practices and notifying your

Supervisor or Manager (or the Health, Safety Manager/Area Safety Representative);

never performing a task that you believe is dangerous or for which you do not have the

experience, or have not received appropriate instructions and training or where the correct

equipment to carry out the task safely is not available; always work in a safe manner and

in accordance with safety instructions, where applicable; use the work equipment supplied

for the job, in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions), and any personal

protective equipment, which the Council deems necessary and has provided; be safety

aware and report any actions to your line manager which will assist the Council to meet

its legal workplace health and safety obligations.

You have the right to cease or direct cessation of unsafe work. In addition, you are required

at all times to comply with Councils Asbestos Management Plan and Policy.

COMMUNICATION

• The Jobholder is required to make autonomous decisions as influenced by Council

policy, Council's operational plans and/or strategies and relevant legislative

framework(s).

• This job requires written communication skills which enable the job holder to write

detailed decisions and/or correspondence (including compiling key information to

create chronological outlines of matters), reports and submissions that require

original sentence and paragraph construction (in compliance with legislative

constraints).

• The jobholder is required to anticipate and pre-empt customer requirements and do

the utmost to meet the request of customers/ applicants while concurrently weighing

and upholding council policy and code implications and legislative responsibilities. In

addition, the jobholder is responsible for monitoring and evaluating the effectiveness

of customer service provided and provides researched advice on modifications to

improve service and to resolve disputes.

• Required to provide responsive service to internal customers as a regular

responsibility of the job. Service includes answering queries, providing access to

government information, sourcing and interpreting advice, referring queries to

appropriate personnel or external bodies, and working with legal representation in the

processing of information and/or customer/ applicant responses.

• Responsible for frequent coordination of and communication with other workers to

gain cooperation and improvement towards work production and service quality.

• Communication may be with other staff, the general public, staff of other

organisations, or with legal providers. This correspondence may require the jobholder

to provide information and explain/ interpret situations and advice, recommend,

mediate and/or resolve conflict. The jobholder will participate in regular team and

service meetings, including regular group-think discussions to resolve extensive

technical problems - often requiring legal interpretation and resolute decision-making

processes.

• The jobholder will be required to communicate with Councillors, Directors,

Managers/Team Leaders, other Council employees, members of the

public/residents/ratepayers, and other government departments, or consultants,

solicitors and other professionals. The jobholder will provide and obtain information,

provide an opinion e.g.. future action(s), advice, suggestions on a particular approach,

Date last reviewed: Page 4

and may be required to bring about a desired result which often incorporates an

element of compromise.

• The Jobholder may be responsible for training, development and implementation,

including team building and team development.

JUDGEMENT & PROBLEM SOLVING

• Problems are solved using research, analysis, and evaluation of information which

may not be readily available. Analytical judgement is important as there is often

no right or wrong solutions in some instances.

• The jobholder must evaluate a variety of issues in more complicated

situations. Considerable investigation and adaptive thinking will be

required. The jobholder must make judgements or recommendations

based on advanced analytical or creative thought and be willing to take

feedback from internal and/or external stakeholders to help guide a

decision-making process.

• Regular organisation and planning is required to ensure activities and resources

are coordinated for day-to-day work and for long-term decisions or projects that

are required to run on schedule. Ongoing planning is required to ensure strategic

outcomes for the coordination of resources covering multiple work cycles, or for

long term project completion.

• Understand the customers' priorities to enable anticipation of their needs and

demonstrate initiative in adapting team plans and goals to meet them.

• In addition, the job holder is responsible for monitoring and evaluating the

effectiveness of customer service provided and recommends modifications to

improve service and to protect customers' personal privacy.

AUTHORITY

• The jobholder may work away from Council premises and is required to make

autonomous decisions usually influenced by Council policy, Council's operational

plan, the situation and relevant legislative framework. Independent action is

required for this role.

• The jobholder may provide supervision of an employee or team of employees or

lead a team of professional or specialist staff on special projects and

assignments.

SKILL, EXPERIENCE, QUALIFICATIONS & BEHAVIOURAL COMPETENCIES

ESSENTIAL

1. The jobholder will have a functional position requiring a high degree of expert

knowledge in a major field of critical importance covering several separate disciplines.

Jobs at this level require a broad education, including technical proficiency in a

specialised area, University Bachelor degree (or equivalent) or extensive business

experience.

1. Demonstrated experience in document development, including engaging in extensive

research, writing, stakeholder consultation and interpreting complex matters for a

general audience.

1. Demonstrated experience in taking a lead role in dealing with customers and complex

complaints, including dispute resolution and negotiation.

Date last reviewed: Page 5

1. Demonstrated experience in administration, including the ability to manage a number

of overlapping, complex and time-critical tasks.

1. Demonstrated experience in research, interpreting legislative information and analysis

of data in the preparation of reports and correspondence requiring attention to detail

and accuracy on a time-critical basis.

1. Demonstrated experience and success in self-driven projects as well as team-work

and collaboration.

1. Demonstrated experience in applying the Government Information (Public Access) Act

2009 (NSW) and Privacy and Personal Information Protection Act 1998 (NSW).

DESIRABLE

1. Demonstrated experience interpreting and applying legislation.

1. Demonstrated experience in taking a lead role in delivery of outcomes that require

analysis of complex issues for a general audience.

1. Demonstrated experience in applying governance, policy and compliance processes

in a local government context.

Date last reviewed: Page 6