Three years of planning has resulted in the opening of a community playground jointly funded by Jilkminggan Local Authority and Roper Gulf Regional Council, Northern Territory.
Local Authorities were formed in the Northern Territory to encourage the involvement of remote communities in the system of Local Government and Roper Gulf Regional Council has seen many benefits of the integration between Council and community members.
Local Authority meetings provide opportunities for residents to help shape decisions that affect their community directly.
These meetings also give local community members a chance to have input into Council activities such as service delivery plans, including infrastructure requirements for communities and to contribute to the development of Council’s Regional Plans.
Council’s commitment to ensuring community participation in decision-making at Local Authority meetings will be further strengthened in 2021, with six rounds of meetings scheduled to take place in all Roper Gulf communities.
The Jilkminggan Playground is a result of this integration and Council looks forward to continuing to work with Local Authorities on developing future projects in the Roper Gulf region.
Roper Gulf Regional Council Acting Chief Executive Officer, Marc Gardner, said, “Local Authorities, as a community representative forum of Council, are proving to be integral in the success of the Council achieving community priorities and creating valuable community infrastructure like the Jilkminggan Playground for our residents.
“We are proud that we are able to support our communities and develop playgrounds that meet the needs of our most valuable citizens – the children.”
It is great to see that after three years of planning, the playground is now fully operational and is being used by the younger community members in their school holidays.
