Ararat Rural City Council passed the 10-year draft financial plan during its October 26 council meeting.

The document, which needed to be passed by October 31, was available for public consultation from October 15 to October 25.

No submissions were made.

Ararat Rural City Council chief executive Tim Harrison said the long-term strategy was important for the council's future financial planning.

"For us it's pretty important, the highlights of it are that is a 10-year strategy," he said.

"We have taken the planning process seriously around this document."

The Financial Plan 2021-2031 will provide a financially sustainable projection to effectively support implementation of the Council Plan, and to achieve the Community Vision.

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The plan outlines the assumptions, policy and decisions of council used to determine the allocation and management of council resources over the next 10 years.

This framework guides Ararat Rural City Council in identifying community needs and aspirations over the long term (Community Vision), medium term (Council Plan) and short term (Annual Budget) and then holding itself accountable (Annual Report).

Mr Harrison said it was important to keep the document alive.

"We need to keep this alive as a living document as we move through," he said

"Each budget process we need to go back and review this document.

"It really is a key indictor of how we will be performing in terms of financial sustainability."

Ararat Council will be operating in a surplus for the next 10 years.

"This is a very good outcome for a small rural council," Mr Harrison said.

He said the budget work over the last few years was reflected in the plan.

"If we stick to our current strategies of efficiency and return those efficiencies to the ratepayer, we'll be kept in standing moving forward," he said.

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