March 31, 2022 The month of March has zoomed by with Gunnedah’s Weeks of Speed. The collaborative festival wrapped on the weekend after many successful events, including drag racing, the Tractor Trek, Multicultural Markets, Show and Shine, greyhound racing, motorcycle racing, and the Mount Porcupine Hill Climb. For the first time, the Australian Whip Cracking Titles and World Bullock Whip Titles were part of the program and the local Wicks family was well-represented. Weeks of…

March 30, 2022 Youth Week 2022 kicked off a little early today with Gunnedah Youth Expo introducing students to a world of possibilities. The event was the first in a whole program that includes a colour run, skate workshop, outdoor cinema and the opening of the PCYC Youth Hub. Gunnedah Shire Council Manager Customer and Community Relations Charlotte Hoddle said NSW Youth Week, which officially runs from April 4 to April 14, was the perfect…

March 29, 2022 A whole world of possibilities will be laid out for Gunnedah Shire youth tomorrow at the 2022 Gunnedah Youth Expo. More than 20 exhibitors will be at the Expo, including universities and TAFE, Gunnedah-based businesses and service providers. The Gunnedah Youth Expo, a joint initiative of Gunnedah Shire Council, Gunnedah Youth Interagency and NSW Youth Week, was visited by more than 250 students last year. Gunnedah Shire Council Manager of Customer and…

March 29, 2022 Community and sporting groups can realise their goals by applying for up to $5,000 through Gunnedah Shire Council’s Section 356 Community and Sports Small Grants Program. For 18 years, the program has funded the launch of new initiatives, much-needed equipment and infrastructure changes for countless groups, and Gunnedah Shire Mayor Jamie Chaffey urged community organisations and sporting clubs to make the most of the opportunity. “With so many fundraising opportunities and activities…

Businesses in NSW will be banned from supplying single-use plastic items to customers in the next six months. The supply of lightweight shopping bags will be banned from June 1, 2022, and the supply of single-use plastic straws, stirrers, cutlery, bowls, and plates and expanded polystyrene food service items will be banned from November 1, 2022. The supply of single-use plastic cotton buds and microbeads in rinse-off personal care products will also be banned. This…

Artists from the New England North West and Central West can now join locals in submitting works for the upcoming Gunnybalds exhibition. A new medium, digital works, will be included this year, and digital artists are invited to showcase their works. The Gunnybalds is our tribute to the famous Archibald Prize for portraiture and is returning to the Gunnedah Bicentennial Creative Arts Gallery after many years. Gunnedah Shire Council’s Cultural Precinct Team Leader Lauren Mackley…

March 24, 2022 A film director and three producers will introduce their award-winning short film, featuring Gunnedah Saleyards, at Gunnedah’s Flickerfest’s opening night on Thursday. The short film, Giants, also shot in Narrabri, shines a spotlight on the recent drought and won Best Australian Short Film and Best Original Music at the recent Bondi festival competition. The director, Eddy Bell, and producers Steven Rees, Nonny Klaile and Luke Mulquiney, filmed over an 18-month period in the…

21 March, 2022 Gunnedah Shire will once again commemorate ANZAC Day in the true Anzac spirit, with services around the Shire. Gunnedah Shire Mayor Jamie Chaffey said the community had always turned out in large numbers to pay tribute to those who have served. “ANZAC Day is an important day in the Australian calendar, and has always had a special place in Gunnedah Shire’s heart,” Cr Chaffey said. “Our Shire should be proud of the…

March 17, 2022 NSW Councillors to receive superannuation Gunnedah Shire Councillors will receive superannuation payments following legislative changes that take effect from July 1, 2022.A report to the March Council Meeting noted it was Local Government New South Wales’ (LGNSW) long-held view that payments made to councillors in NSW did not fairly and adequately compensate them for the work they performed, and the ongoing growth in their roles and accountabilities. LGNSW contributed to the Local…

18 March, 2022 Gunnedah Shire Council is supporting proposed NSW Government changes to the state planning system that will allow more Gunnedah farmers to open farm-stay and farm-gate operations. At the March meeting yesterday, Council endorsed a recommendation to advise the NSW Department of Planning and Environment to include the proposed Farm Stay Accommodation and Farm Gate Premise Clauses, into the Gunnedah Local Environmental Plan 2012. This will allow “agritourism”, “farm experience” and “farm gate…