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Starting a liquor accord

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If you are planning on starting an accord, the first step should be to contact the Liquor Accord Delivery Unit (LADU) on 02 9995 0312, who can then guide you through the process and answer any questions.

As the saying goes, 'you need to walk before you can run' and with accords you should apply the same principle.

Don’t try to do too many things at once. Time is needed for all members of the partnership to see results and trust that the accord can be beneficial – particularly if the accord was not requested by licensees but by another party in the process. Attendance at meetings should also grow with time. The main objective should be to get people communicating and identify your local problems.

Most accords generally meet quarterly, however, during the start-up process you may need to meet more regularly to keep the momentum going and get the accord established.

Invitations

The first goal should be to involve as many stakeholders as possible, including:

local licensees from all types of venues such as hotels, clubs, restaurants and bottle shops
Police
NSW Office of Liquor, Gaming and Racing (OLGR)
local government
Roads and Traffic Authority (RTA)
NSW Department of Health
local community groups.

The LADU can assist with compiling a list of these stakeholders.

You will then need to find a venue large enough to accommodate you. Some accords will rotate between venues and share around the meetings, others will have all the meetings at the one venue - generally a large hotel or club. Use of the venue is generally given in kind, without any cost to the accord members.

Once you have compiled a list of stakeholders and set a venue and time, you should send out an invitation letter for the first accord meeting. Download the PDF draft invitation letter.

You may also want to attach a fact sheet explaining the role that accords play.

PDF Download the Liquor accords fact sheet.

The first meeting

Good accords have meetings that maintain interest in the initiative and add value for the participants. It is important to get the meeting process right.

A simple, but often overlooked, first step in a conducting a meeting is an attendance sheet. This is important to not only keep records of who is participating, but to keep up to date contact information. By recording current email addresses, coordinators can communicate quickly and easily to all accord members for virtually no cost at all.

Download the attendance sheet template.

In addition to the attendance sheet, you should also have a register of members, which can be compiled from the completion of membership forms.

A membership form template is available here. You may want to attach fees to your membership, see Running an accord for more information.

It may be helpful to provide name tags for the first few meetings so that everyone gets to know each other. Consider devoting some time at the start of the meeting where everyone can stand up and introduce themselves.

Another good tool to help break the ice and improve communication is to invite members to stay after the meeting and socialise. You may want to provide some snacks and nibbles. Generally suppliers are happy to donate towards this.

Setting an executive

It is important to get good help. An executive committee or steering committee is responsible for managing the accord and is the driving force behind its success.

The executive does the groundwork for the accord, and ensures that the strategies agreed on by the accord are implemented and followed through.

Ideally the committee should be representative of all types of licensed venues; for example, hotels, clubs, nightclubs, bottle shops and restaurants.

Other stakeholders such as the police, council and RTA, can form part of the committee, or alternatively, may just attend committee meetings on an as-needed basis.

The committee should meet between two and four weeks prior to a general meeting, to discuss concerns, formulate strategies and then set an agenda.

Nominations and voting should be defined in the accord’s constitution, but generally nominations would be called for and voted on at the Annual General Meeting (AGM). Positions normally last for 12 months, unless resigned earlier.

The accord is generally comprised of the following positions, but these may vary depending on the needs and requirements of each accord.

Chairperson

The chairperson (referred to as coordinator in the legislation):

ensures that the correct people receive notice of the meeting
supervises preparation of the agenda
ensures that there is a quorum (the required minimum number of members that you set) at all times
formally declares the meeting open
confirms the accuracy of the minutes
becomes familiar with any correspondence and reports
welcomes and introduces members, guest speakers and visitors
becomes aware of meeting procedure and able to deal with points of order
ensures that the meeting is conducted impartially
ensures that every item of business on the agenda is dealt with or adjourned where appropriate
ensures the appointment of a returning officer and invites a declaration of the result in the case of elections
signs any document requiring identification for example, a new constitution
signs the minutes as a true record.

Vice-chairperson

The vice-chairperson:

assists the chairperson
acts as chair in their absence.

Secretary

The secretary:

prepares the agenda in consultation with the chairperson
sends out the notices of the meeting to those entitled to attend
circulates minutes, ensuring they are ready for confirmation before to the next meeting
takes accurate minutes of the meeting (see Running an accord for more information and a template
has all correspondence since the previous meeting available for consideration (this should be discussed with the chairperson before the meeting, sorted and grouped in a logical order)
writes letters as may be required by the organisation
keeps proper records so that previous minutes, correspondence and reports can be found quickly and efficiently.

Treasurer

The treasurer:

collects money on behalf of the accord; for example, membership fees
keeps the funds safe and separate from other funds
deals with the funds in a manner that the accord authorises
accounts for the funds - this requires a proper system of books, computer or otherwise, with a regular statement of income and expenditure, together with a balance sheet showing assets and liabilities at the conclusion of the financial year.

Other committee members

Two to four other committee members:

act as representatives of the various stakeholders
work collectively with other members of the executive committee to give direction to, and ensure the smooth running of, all aspects of the accord
undertake duties as and when necessary by request of the general meeting and executive committee.

Accord constitution

The constitution is an important document for the accord and needs to be given careful consideration. Accords have a lot of relevance and influence. It is vital to have a document which clearly defines an accord's objectives and rules.

The constitution should be tailored to meet the accords specific needs and, as the Liquor Act 1982 provides for a number of eligible parties to an accord, particular attention should be paid to voting rights and the decision-making process.

It may take a few meetings to consider all the aspects of the constitution and before it can finally be adopted.

PDF A draft constitution can be downloaded, and may be altered to meet your specific needs.

Identifying problems and setting strategies

The first step is to do some research to define what are the real and perceived problems of the accord area are.

Talk to all the stakeholders. Police statistics and council complaints are a good source of information to get factual data on local problems. Community groups are normally formed in response to a problem and will have some pretty strong views on the local problems.

Once you have done the research, compile a list of all the problems facing your accord area.

Pick the top two or three, try to find out their causes, and then look at ways that you can reduce or eliminate them. Don’t try to tackle everything at once. Prioritise.

One example might be large occurrences of drink driving and malicious damage in the area. This may indicate transportation problems in the areas. You would then need to research why there are transportation problems. Is there little or no public transport available - or are people not aware of it? Do taxis have safety concerns in coming to the area?

Once you have defined the cause of the problem you can examine appropriate strategies. For example, using the above scenario, you may adopt a taxi voucher scheme, facilitate a secure taxi rank, or fund a courtesy bus.

Strategies are dealt with in more depth in Running an accord.

Launch

Once you have your felt your way through your first meeting/s and set some objectives and strategies, you should organise an official launch for the accord. This a great means of making the community aware of the accord and its objectives, and creating some positive media for your industry. You should invite your local member, mayor, other important public figures and the local media.

The LADU can assist by putting you in touch with the OLGR Public Affairs Manager, who can assist in writing media releases and involving the media at large.

The fine print

The Director General and the Commissioner of Police need to approve the establishment of an accord before it starts legally running. The LADU will facilitate this process. You will need to forward the contact details of the accord coordinator, the accord area and all members of the accord for approval.

Checklist

Following is a guide to establishing an effective liquor accord. In many cases it will not be possible to achieve everything during the first meeting or even first few meetings. As long as you are making progress during each meeting by making decisions and acting on those decisions, and effectively communicating with all stakeholders, then you are well on the way to running a successful accord.

contact LADU on 02 9995 0312 or accords@communities.nsw.gov.au for information and advice
compile a list of stakeholders
set date, time and venue for the first meeting
send out invite letters
hold the first meeting – remember to have an attendance sheet and membership form ready!
get good help – ask for nominations for the executive committee
review and tailor the accord constitution
research common local problems, and try to identify the cause
workshop strategies in response to the specific problems -prioritise
have a launch – invite special guests and the media, and create some good publicity for your accord

Flowchart

View the Turning your idea into a liquor accord flowchart.