Councils in Victoria’s Loddon Campaspe region have been awarded $50,000 in funding by the state government to pilot a shared services model.

The pilot, which will focus on shared service initiatives relating to cybersecurity, procurement and legal services, will also receive financial support from The Loddon Campaspe Group of Councils.

The Loddon Campaspe Group of Councils includes the City of Greater Bendigo, Buloke, Campaspe, Central Goldfields, Gannawarra, Hepburn, Loddon, Macedon Ranges and Mount Alexander Shire Councils.

The effort will be led by the City of Greater Bendigo, which will also conduct an evaluation of the effectiveness of the pilot.

“Where councils collaborate, communities benefit. This pilot will provide more efficient service delivery for the Loddon Campaspe region,” said the state member for Bendigo East, Jacinta Allan.

Depending upon the success of the project, the shared services program may be extended to other local government areas.

“Supporting the sustainability of rural councils is a key priority to support councils that play a vital role in country Victoria — and this pilot will explore avenues to improve the capacity of Loddon Campaspe councils to meet the service and infrastructure needs of their local communities,” said the Minister for Local Government, Melissa Horne.