Home » How do the National Awards for Local Government Work?

How do the National Awards for Local Government Work?

The National Awards for Local Government have been conducted for the last 21 years. The Awards were set up to highlight the excellent and innovative work being undertaken across Australia to improve business practice within Councils and service delivery to communities. The Awards recognise ingenuity, resourcefulness and self reliance, and then promote the Councils who are finding new ways of delivering services and developing local solutions to complex and challenging problems.

The Awards are presented in categories chosen by Australian Government sponsoring agencies. For example, the Department of Health and Ageing sponsors the category Planning for an Ageing Community.

The Awards are run annually on a calendar year basis. There is a call for nominations in April and projects can be submitted over a six week period. There are a range of Award categories and projects in each category are judged in June and July by a panel of experts, including representatives of sponsoring agencies. In August or September, the Awards program funds travel by category winning project officers to come to Canberra for assessment by a national judging panel which decides the national winners. (See the adjacent list of this year’s category winning Councils).

The Minister for Local Government, Territories and Roads, the Hon Jim Lloyd MP will announce the 2007 national winners and presents trophies at a special gala dinner that culminates the Awards process – to be held in Canberra in October. The Awards program funds the winning project officers to attend the dinner. The Awards program funds the national winning Councils to present their projects at the Australian Local Government Association and Local Government Managers Australia congresses – and when requested, to speak at the Leading Practice Seminars

If you would like to know more about the National Awards for Local Government – visit the website at www.dotars.gov.au/local/awards, or phone 1 800 065 113 or email awards@dotars.gov.au.

 

Leading Practice Seminars

The National Awards for Local Government recognise and promote the innovative ideas, projects and leading practices of Local Government across Australia. The Leading Practice Seminars are designed to take these winning projects and promote the sharing of ideas and leading practice between Local Governments across Australia.

Who can host a Leading Practice Seminar?

If a Council or an Area Consultative Committee, a Regional Organisation of Councils or a Local Government Association needs help with local issues or problems that other Councils are dealing with, then we can work with you to host a Seminar on those issues. We bring the Councils you want, who are dealing with the same type of problems you have, face to face with you – to discuss what they did and how they did it.

Benefits of hosting a Leading Practice Seminar

The benefits of hosting a Leading Practice Seminar include developing national or regional networks, sharing information and inspiring staff members on possible ways forward with problem issues. It is an opportunity to hear about projects undertaken by other bodies, including what worked for their project, what didn’t work and the lessons they learnt.

What we can do to help you

  • we will contribute towards the cost of hosting a Seminar
  • we will contact your selected Awards entrants to seek their availability to participate in the Seminar
  • we will pay their travel and accommodation costs to attend your Seminar (up to a maximum of four presenters.)

If you are interested, please contact the Awards Team on 1800 065 113 or email Awards@dotars.gov.au

Category Winners

Asset Management
Willoughby City Council, NSW
Flinders Council, TAS

Community Participation and Partnership
Launceston City Council, TAS

Community Water Grants – Water Saving
Randwick City Council, NSW

Efficiency Improvement
Redland Shire Council, QLD
Narrandera Shire Council, NSW

Health and Wellbeing
City of Playford, SA
Cox Peninsula Community Government Council, NT

Increasing Women’s Participation
Townsville City Council, QLD

Information Technology
Mandurah City Council, WA
Liverpool Plains Shire Council, NSW

Innovation in Regional Development
City of Salisbury, SA
Sarina Shire Council, QLD
Circular Head Council, TAS

Local Greenhouse Action
Randwick City Council, NSW

Natural Resource Management
Eastern Metropolitan Regional Council, WA

Planning for an Ageing Community
Duaringa Shire Council, QLD

Strengthening Indigenous Communities
City of Casey, VIC
Muswellbrook Shire Council, NSW

Universal Design for Public Amenities
Hobart City Council, TAS
City of Albany, WA

Valuing and Promoting Quality Child Care
Swan Hill Rural City Council, VIC
Huon Valley Council, TAS

Youth Engagement
Pine Rivers Shire Council, QLD
City of Joondalup, WA
Serpentine Jarrahdale Shire Council, WA

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