Service Charter for the Community

Introduction

The Bureau of Meteorology is the National Meteorological Service for Australia. It was established by an Act of the Commonwealth Parliament in 1906 to provide essential meteorological services to all sectors of the Australian community. Its operation as a single integrated Commonwealth science agency reflects the pervasive influence of weather and climate on all our lives and the fact that the atmosphere recognises neither State nor national boundaries.

This Service Charter has been prepared in response to the Government's requirement that all government bodies that provide services to the public will develop individual charters. It is based on the Bureau's current official charter which elaborates its statutory responsibilities under the Meteorology Act 1955 in the light of Australia's contemporary national needs and international obligations. The following pages set down what the Bureau is and what it does, and records the commitment of the Bureau and its staff to provide the Australian community with the highest quality services that modern meteorological science and technology and available resources will permit.

The first issue of the Bureau Service Charter was published in June1998 and has been developed by Bureau staff and management, through consultation with a wide cross-section of those in the community who use its services. Later revisions have updated contact details and made minor changes as some services have changed. We in the Bureau want to make sure that the services we provide are what you need and are provided according to APS Values and the APS Code of Conduct. We also wish to ensure that services are provided to your satisfaction and that all our staff take pride in the contribution that their work makes to your safety, security and general well being, and to the economic, social and environmental benefit of Australia.

G. Love
(Director of Meteorology)

Who we are

• A Commonwealth statutory agency with offices in every State and Territory;
• The provider of essential weather, climate and related environmental services to the Australian community;
• The custodian of the official records of Australian weather and climate and
• The authority responsible for meeting Australia's international obligations under the Convention of the World Meteorological Organization and other multilateral treaty obligations to provide meteorological support for the safety of international shipping and aviation and the protection of the global atmosphere.

What we do

The Bureau contributes to the safety, security and general convenience and well being of the Australian community by:

Our services are aimed at helping people make better-informed decisions affecting their lives and their community and business activities, on a daily basis and in their long-term planning, and especially in dangerous or life-threatening weather situations. Our weather surveillance and forecasting and warning services operate 24 hours a day, every day of the year.

We interact regularly with major community groups who have particular needs for meteorological and related information, including emergency services, aviation, shipping, primary production, industry, trade, commerce, education and defence.

We support our services with:

The cost of operating the Bureau is about three cents a day for every person in Australia. In addition to its contribution to the safety of life and property, studies suggest this cost is repaid at least twenty-fold in overall economic benefit to the nation.

Our services to you

We provide the community with:

You can access our services through:

Special Telephone Weather Services:
See our Web site at http://www.bom.gov.au/catalogue/ or phone directory.

Most of our services are provided for the benefit of the general community, and are fully funded by government in the public interest. Some, including those to the aviation industry and the defence forces, carry a charge to cover the costs of their preparation and delivery. You can find information on service charges on our Web site, or by contacting staff at one of our offices. We also have a separate commercial Special Services Unit which provides a range of tailored services to Australian and international customers.

What you can expect from us

Quality - we will:

Responsiveness - we will endeavour to:

Accessibility - we will be available:

Service improvements - we aim to:

How we will be accountable

We undertake to:

How you can help us

We welcome your views and comments as a vital ingredient in helping us to monitor and improve the relevance and quality of our service to the community. We will consider all suggestions fully and promptly in our planning for service improvement and, wherever possible, we will respond immediately. We may occasionally seek your input to random surveys of how the community perceives our services and what services they need, including assessments of our performance after severe weather events.

To help us to give you the best possible service, we ask that, if you are not satisfied with our services, you:

We also ask that you understand that weather forecasting is a highly complex scientific problem and that the services you receive depend on the smooth operation of an integrated national and international meteorological services system. Although steady progress is being made, occasional significant forecast errors will still occur, as a result of inadequate data or the limitations that still exist in the international state of the art in meteorological science and technology.