Public involvement at meetings
We consult our communities regularly to seek the opinions of residents, business owners and other interested parties to ensure they play a role in the decision-making process.
For further information on contacting a Council Member, see Your current council.
The City of Adelaide Council and committee meetings, and meetings of the Kadaltilla / Park Lands Authority are open to everyone.
These meetings are conducted in a formal manner ensuring compliance with legislative requirements and in accordance with the Code of Practice for Meeting Procedures.
Please note: Under the Local Government Act 1999 (SA), the public may be excluded from part of a meeting if it is necessary to receive, discuss or consider a matter in confidence. Confidential items will be identified on the meeting agenda and the meeting must formally resolve to exclude the public from the meeting. All members of the public and staff not directly involved with the matter will be asked to leave the meeting room. The meeting Live Stream will be suspended for the duration of the item.
Become involved and have your say
There are several ways you can become involved at meetings.
You can:
- watch the proceedings from the public gallery of the meeting room or live stream the meeting.
- request to speak at a meeting of the Council or Kadaltilla / Park Lands Authority
- present a Petition to a Council meeting.
The Council Chamber and Colonel Light Room are wheelchair accessible, and any additional accessibility needs can be discussed with the Council Governance Team by phone on 8203 7565 or via email.
Rules and procedures may apply to these options. Read on to find out which option suits you best.
Members of the public are welcome to attend scheduled meetings and watch them from the public gallery. There is seating provided in the public gallery of both the Council Chamber and the Colonel Light Room.
Meetings of Council and The Committee are generally held on alternate Tuesday nights in the Adelaide Town Hall. Refer to the meeting calendar for full details.
The meetings can also be live streamed.
You can request to speak via a deputation at a scheduled meeting of the Council or the Kadaltilla / Park Lands Authority. It must be on matters that are the subject of deliberation at the meeting, or which the Council or the Kadaltilla / Park Lands Authority has a direct interest or responsibility.
If you wish to appear as a deputation at a scheduled meeting you must register. Ideally this will be done online. Alternatively, you can download and complete the Request to Speak to Council form and deliver to the Council's Customer Centre at 25 Pirie Street, by 12:00 pm on the Monday prior to the scheduled meeting.
All requests are reviewed by the Presiding Member and you will be notified if the deputation has been accepted or refused.
Deputations are scheduled on the agenda as close as possible to the start of the meeting and a speaker has a maximum of five minutes.
The Minutes of the Meeting will identify the individual(s) heard and the subject matter raised.
A petition is defined as a formal written request, typically one signed by many people, appealing to authority in respect of a particular cause.
So it can be presented to Council, the petition needs to:
- be legibly written or typed or printed
- clearly set out the request or submission of the petitioners
- include the name and address of each person who signed or endorsed the petition
- have the ‘prayer’ at the top of each page (to evidence that the signatories knew what they were attesting to)
- use temperate language and must not contain content that may objectively be regarded as defamatory
- be addressed to Council and delivered to the principal office of Council.
To help you, we’ve prepared a suggested format for your petition.
If a petition is received, the Chief Executive Officer must ensure the petition is placed on the agenda for the next ordinary meeting of Council. At this time a report identifying the number of signatories and purpose of the petition will be presented.
The petition itself will be distributed to the Lord Mayor and Members of Council separately. Members of the public may seek a copy of the full petition upon written request to the Chief Executive Officer.
Remember, in addition to the above, you can always provide comment or feedback:
- to the Customer Centre in person, or
- by e-mail or correspondence to the Lord Mayor and or Councillors.
Need more information?
If you have any questions regarding public involvement at meetings, please contact the Council Governance Team: