Message From the Mayor

I am pleased to provide this message as the introduction of a new Clarence Valley Council initiative and mechanism, through which we will strive to improve and increase engagement and information flow to our community.

Late last year, during the Council election campaign, candidates acknowledged that the Council could and should do much better in informing the community on the variety of matters of importance to you. We have each received complaints of a lack of communication and response times to your letters and emails. We are committed to continuous improvement in this regard. If you have experienced issues, I encourage you to contact me or your local councillor.

My elected colleagues and I do understand the vitality of effective community consultation and engagement. We have embraced a number of new approaches and will continue to do so.

Early this year Councillors met with community members over a “cuppa” and visited about a dozen communities while consulting over the 2022-23 Council Operational Plan and Budget. When elected, I instigated regular Mayoral radio interviews on each of our three local radio stations and immediately after each monthly Council meeting, I speak to Council decisions on radio. The Council has supported a Mayoral Minute to reconstitute the former “Councillor Listening Tours” which, when I was previously the mayor, provided excellent opportunities to meet with and listen, particularly in the more remote villages and localities in the Council area. Planning for such tours is well advanced and will recommence probably in October 2022. There are in excess of 30 hard to reach communities. The plan at this stage is to visit usually three communities each month. On that basis, or unless we can increase the frequency of visits it will take at least a year to come to all Clarence communities. With senior Council staff, for the past several weeks I have been visiting elders, First Nation communities, Traditional Owners groups with the primary objective of re-establishing, direct contact with Council on their issues of concern. A report thereon will soon come to Council. It is likely that several different means of connection and engagement will be appropriate. I conclude by reiterating that Council and the governing body is committed to continuing improvement in the way we communicate with you. This magazine is another mechanism to achieve this goal. Ian Tiley

Cr Ian Tiley Mayor

We acknowledge the Bundjalung, Gumbaynggirr and Yaegl people as the Traditional Owners of the land on which we live and work. We honour the First Nations peoples culture and connection to land, sea and community. We pay our respects to their Elders past, present and emerging.