Clarence Valley Council has won the Excellence in Communications category for Councils with populations between 30,000 and 70,000 at the Local Government Awards (LGNSW); for the way it managed recovery communications following the 2019 bushfires.

General Manager Ashley Lindsay said, “The last 12 months have not only been incredibly challenging for our communities in the Clarence Valley, they have also been incredibly tough on Council staff.

“Our communications team were key players in our ability to effectively connect with bushfire impacted villages and keep the broader community updated throughout what were rapidly changing events.”

“I am extremely proud to see the team receive this accolade for their hard work and innovation in supporting the leadership team and our operational teams during this time,” said Mr Lindsay.

“The judges said that our response was a fantastic example of how to implement a community led disaster recovery engagement plan within existing resources and an amazing example of innovative and responsive best practice.”

“Recovery for our communities is a long process and is ongoing, and Council will continue to support them. We recently created a Recovery & Resilience team who will be working closely with our communities to strengthen the local preparedness to disasters, including bushfires and flooding.” added Mr Lindsay.

LGNSW is the peak organisation that represents the interests of NSW general and special purpose councils.