Developing and reporting against Schedule 3s for NAPSWQ and NHT activities

This document outlines the process of developing and reporting against Schedule 3s for NAPSWQ and NHT activities. The Schedule 3 identifies the project milestones (key events or significant steps) and associated outputs (deliverables) for each six-month period. Reporting against this should provide the information the proponent and the JSC require to judge whether activities and performance are on track. Milestones Milestones are key events or significant steps in an activity and are important markers of performance and activity progress. Milestones can be project/program management activities or main events in your project that allow progress to be measured. Milestones within Schedule 3s should be set at six monthly intervals, and indicate the key events or significant points that are to be achieved for that period. Milestones are reported against every six months. Reporting against milestones will provide information for the proponent and the JSC to judge whether activities are on track. What makes a good milestone?  The milestone is a significant event or step in your project. You should be able to tell when you have completed it (i.e. the ‘champagne cork-popping moment’).  The milestones are appropriate within the context of the project (larger projects may require ‘higher level’ milestones).  You can clearly (and easily) measure your milestone.  The milestone is a step or activity that is within your control, as you will be contracted to complete it.  The milestone is not a proposed or continuing event; it is completed, and as such should be written in past tense.

Things to avoid in milestone descriptions:  Multiple activities within the one milestone (e.g. Increased knowledge of pests in the region and treatment of 300ha of targeted pest affected land) – this will make it difficult to report and manage, especially if only one part of the milestone has been achieved.  Repeating the milestone for each period in the project, unless the milestone included a measurable component, which showed progress had been made. For example: o Jan-Jun 07 – 2 devolved grants completed o Jul-Dec 07 – 2 (additional) devolved grants completed

Examples of milestone descriptions:  Three riparian zone protection devolved grants completed  Indigenous members, landholders and local community trained and involved in applying new fire management regimes  Regional Coastal Management Plan developed  Town Common and Nature Reserve plan to improve NRM outcomes developed  Five on-ground projects for non-WONS species identified, initiated and completed When is a milestone not a milestone? - When it’s an output (or maybe even an input!) An output, if it is significant enough, may also be a milestone. This will often depend on the individual activity and situation. For example:  ‘ Steering Committee Established’ may be a milestone for an Indigenous NRM Engagement project, as it may take many meetings, negotiations, community consultations to establish the steering committee and thus be a key event that is an important marker of performance.  This same item (‘Steering Committee Established’) may be considered an output (if negotiations were undertaken for cooperation or collaboration with new partners) and it was not a major event in the project’s progress  However, the same item (‘Steering Committee Established’) would not even be considered an output if the steering committee was formed from partners who are already in collaboration.

Reporting on milestones Performance reports, including progress against scheduled milestones, are required by the JSC every six months. For each milestone, you are required to indicate the status of the milestone - i.e. Complete, Incomplete or Closed (not complete, but no further action is to be taken against it). Comments or qualitative information should also be provided to support the milestone status reported, to explain significant variances and any corrective action proposed to fix the variances. Note: Incomplete milestones are required to be reported against at the next performance reporting period. Scheduled milestones that have been reported as incomplete for more than two periods (one year) will be reviewed and may trigger a variation to the contract.

 Milestones are the key events or markers that allow us to measure your progress.  Milestones can be project/program management activities or main events in your project that allow progress to be measured.  Milestones are used to measure project or program performance every six months.

Developing and reporting against Schedule 3s Page 2 of 5 Outputs Outputs are key deliverables from activities, programs or projects, including the delivery of products or services to clients and activities carried out (biophysical and non-biophysical). An output is a lasting product of your project – items or services that you could point to at the end of your project. Outputs within Schedule 3s should be mapped against milestones and indicate the key products or services that will be delivered for that period. Outputs are reported against every six months in conjunction with project milestones. Reporting against outputs will provide information for the proponent and the investor to report on achievement for investment and may be considered as evidence for achieving the milestone. Standard Outputs for NAPSWQ and NHT projects Projects and programs run under NAP and NHT funding require outputs to be categorised using Standard Output Codes (Attachment 1 – Standard output codes and titles 06-07).

There are four categories of standard outputs: 1. Resource Assessment (10 outputs) 2. Planning (8 outputs) 3. Capacity Building (16 outputs) 4. On-ground Works (56 outputs)

The outputs have standard units of measure which enables aggregation at a regional, state and national level to demonstrate achievements. Proponents are encouraged to adopt the standard output codes where relevant, however unique outputs may be suggested where standard outputs are not appropriate. Recording the relevant standard output codes in the Schedules (or work plans) will make it easier to report. Outputs versus inputs It can be easy to confuse inputs with outputs. An input is something you put into your project to get results. Inputs are sometimes part of project management actions (the steps that lead up to the products or “outputs”). A few common examples: Meetings  Holding a meeting to raise awareness of an issue with stakeholders may be an output, as it is a service delivered to clients which results in increased knowledge and understanding.  A meeting to plan or monitor your project is an input because it is only for the purpose of organising your project. It is not a long-lasting product of your project and therefore cannot be considered an output. Training  Training provided by regional body staff to landholders or other members of the public is considered an output as it is a service delivered to clients that has increased stakeholder capacity.  A training session provided for or attended by regional body staff would be considered an input because it is generally for the purpose of delivering on a project, and has not produced a lasting product. Reports  A report on a study undertaken as part of the project or a final project report may be considered an output as it is a lasting product of the project which can be used by clients.  Contractually required six-monthly performance reports are considered to be inputs as they are required for the management of the project as part of normal business processes.

Developing and reporting against Schedule 3s Page 3 of 5 Examples of outputs (and standard output codes):  Salinity field day (CB1.1)  Scientific assessment of targets and priorities (CB4.2)  Stakeholder database developed (CB4.4)  Best Management Practice guidelines for grader grass developed (P1.1)  10 property management plans developed (P3.2)  Water quality monitoring program established (RA1.2)  Report on study of water catchment (RA2.3)  300ha of wetland protected by fencing (OG2.2)  300ha of rubber vine control (OG8.1)  5 fish barriers removed/ modified (OG11.5)  50ha of quoll habitat protected by fencing (OG7.1)  2 off-stream water sites installed (OG11.3)

Reporting on outputs Performance reports, including achievement of outputs, are required by the JSC every six months. For each contracted output, you should indicate the actual number of units achieved in the reporting period, using the standard units of measure. Technically, failure to achieve contracted outputs constitutes a breach of contract! Consequently, it is being proposed that outputs be removed from the schedules and put into work plans. Please also report on outputs achieved that are not in your contract (Schedule 3) but may be in your project plans. This will give a more complete picture of achievement for investment. Comments or qualitative information can also be provided for each output, which may give more details about the activity or explain significant variances.

 Outputs are key deliverables from activities, programs or projects  Outputs are lasting products or services, not project management activities  Outputs are used to measure project or program performance and achievement for investment  Projects and programs run under NAP and NHT funding require outputs to be categorised using Standard Output Codes  Outputs are reported every six months

Developing and reporting against Schedule 3s Page 4 of 5 Other (non-mandatory) elements of the template

Theme/ Program Theme/ program line is used break up complex schedules, such as a Regional Investment Strategies, into Investment Packages or programs. This line is not compulsory for smaller, less complex contracts.

Project/ Activity Contracts or themes within a contract may have distinct projects or activities, and have separate objectives and outcomes. Projects/ activities may have several milestones for each period.

Key MATs and RCTs addressed This field will help link proposed and current projects back to regional NRM plans, and will assist in annual target reporting. This field is non-mandatory, as not all projects (especially statewide and cross-regional projects) will be directly linked to targets in regional NRM plans.

Objective/ Outcome The objective is what the project plans to achieve. The outcome is the eventual impacts of the project, for example on-ground change, community involvement, raised awareness, new skills and increased influence.

Developing and reporting against Schedule 3s Page 5 of 5