30 months ago I requested records from UTAS relating to the consultation process it undertook prior to the UTAS Council’s decision on 5 April 2019 to relocate its southern campus from Sandy Bay to the Hobart CBD. Thanks to the Ombudsman and his office, I have received a first batch of documents from UTAS, and UTAS has undertaken to provide a second batch of documents by 1 November 2024.
Rather than wait for the second batch of documents, or take time drafting an analysis, I have decided to publish the documents immediately. I will limit myself to some brief comments, for now.
First, it is clear that the consultation process was steered towards a predetermined outcome – a move to the Hobart CBD. As noted in Myriad Research’s report on focus groups (page 16):
“The consensus [among focus group participants] was that a decision has already been made, with the narrative (both within the exhibition and the workshop presentations) showing a clear bias to the City-Centric model and with recent actions supporting this model, eg. purchase of Forestry building.“
Second, from the documents provided, it is clear that the summary of feedback appended to the Southern Future Business Case, and the text on consultation included in the Southern Future Business Case itself, were further biased towards a move to the CBD.
- The Southern Future Business Case was the basis for the UTAS Council’s decision on 5 April 2019 to relocate UTAS’ southern campus to the CBD
Third, the NTEU’s report on its survey of members on the campus move, presented to VC Black on 22 March 2019, carries far more weight than any of UTAS’ ‘products’ on its biased consultation process. However, I have seen no evidence that the NTEU was provided to the UTAS Council for its 5 April 2019 meeting and VC Black publicly disparaged the report in an interview with Mel Bush on the ABC on 19 July 2022.
Fourth, UTAS’ manifestly flawed and biased consultation process forms part of larger picture, which also includes a shoddy and biased financial analysis of the options for its southern campus. The hard evidence overwhelmingly points to refurbishment of the Sandy Bay campus as UTAS’ best financial option.
Documents provided by UTAS
Here are links to the documents provided by UTAS in its first batch release, using UTAS’ descriptors and with a brief comment by me in some cases:
- Posters in the Southern Future exhibition room (Studio theatre on the Sandy Bay campus) – the bias is obvious
- Notes from tours of the exhibition room
- Tally of attendees on the tours
- Posters with amendments (7 March 2019)
- Sticky notes providing feedback in the exhibition room
- Summary of sticky notes
- Redacted emails – very interesting and worth reading
- Southern Future feedback (raw data)
- Southern Future website (archived)
- Assessment of Criteria 45 Responses as of 260219
- Progress Update Southern Future Staff Engagement 22 February 2019 – the bias is obvious
- Responses to feedback (for upload to site and screens)
- Myriad Research report on focus groups – recommended reading
- Focus group notes
The following excerpt from the summary of feedback appended to the Southern Future Business Case provides a useful outline of the consultation process and how the various elements fitted together.
