Just briefly...

DJA Dja Wurrung Clans Aboriginal Corporation is advocating for a "yes" vote in the Voice to Parliament referendum.

Dja Dja Wurrung Group CEO Rodney Carter said Djaara (Dja Dja Wurrung people) were strong believers in "for Djaara, by Djaara" when it came to issues that affected them. "In the past, we were left out of many conversations directly related to our wellbeing. The Voice to Parliament will bring attention to matters that are important to us - and to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People - at a federal level."

A motion regarding the Voice to Parliament has not yet been formally considered at a Hepburn Shire Council meeting, however councillors are being briefed on the matter in the coming weeks.

Mayor Cr Brian Hood said a formal statement would be made after that. "Hepburn Shire Council passed a unanimous motion to support the Uluru Statement from the Heart in August 2022. Council is strongly committed to reconciliation and recognition, and has worked closely with local First Nations People and the community through a range of projects including the award-winning Manna Gums Frontier Wars Memorial, introducing Indigenous language back to the landscape, videos such as We're getting our voice back, along with activities during NAIDOC Week and Reconciliation Week."

Hepburn Shire Council will host an expo for members of the community aged 55+ to create connections and expand their knowledge of positive ageing.

The theme of the expo is ‘Getting to know each other’ and it will feature guest speakers, information displays, networking and demonstrations. The expo will be held at the Trentham Sportsground Reserve Pavilion on Thursday, July 27 from noon to 3pm. Register: 5348 2306 or www.hepburn.vic.gov.au/ageing-expo

Clunes Neighbourhood House, Attitude - Ageing Well in Clunes, and Central Highlands Rural Health have formed a pioneering partnership, backed by the Western Victoria Primary Health Network, to launch a Living and Ageing Well in Hepburn project.

The initiative aims to empower people entering the next stage of their lives in a healthy and fulfilling manner. It will create a suite of programs that will enhance the lives of people aged 50 and over, or 45 years or older First Nations people in the community. The strategies include developing a Clunes 'healthy ageing hub' prototype, and focusing on establishing information and connections in Daylesford, Trentham and Creswick. Link: www.ageingwithattitude.org

Hepburn Shire Council is holding a community drop-in session for the creation of the Draft Glenlyon Recreation Reserve Masterplan.

The session will be held at the reserve on Saturday, July 22 from 10am to 11.30am. Feedback can also be done online by July 25 at www,participate.hepburn. vic.gov.au/glenlyon-recreation-reserve-masterplan

Ensemble Pompadour with Laura Vaughan - viola da gamba and Simon Rickard - baroque musette will be performed at Christ Church Daylesford on Saturday, July 29 at 2.30pm.

Laura Vaughan and Simon Rickard are two of Australia’s leading exponents of baroque music. They share a particular love for the French baroque, and for weird and wonderful historical instruments - the more exotic the better.

Bookings: www.trybooking.com/events/landing/1040691

A new online booking system for events at Hepburn Shire Council venues will be simple and easy to use, Mayor Brian Hood says.

“Community groups and individuals wanting to make a venue booking will have the benefit of seeing images of the venue before booking, along with available dates and costs. This will eliminate the disappointment that may come with accidental double bookings.” Some of the venues that will be available to book online are: Clunes community Centre; Creswick Hub Meeting room; Clunes Town Hall; Clunes Warehouse (Esmond Gallery); Clunes Warehouse (Ulumbarra Room); Creswick Town Hall; Doug Lindsay Reserve Pavilion; Daylesford Town Hall; Daylesford Senior Citizens; Hepburn Spring Mineral Spring Reserve; Lake Daylesford; Victoria Park Daylesford; and Wombat Hill Gardens.

Got some news to share? Email news@tlnews.com.au

Message From The Mayor

Community satisfaction survey - this survey is commissioned each year by the State Government to assess the opinion of the local community about the operations of Council with a random sample of 400 community members surveyed quarterly. The survey is one of many tools that aim to inform future planning and programs of work and support continuous improvement in service delivery. It is pleasing to report that Hepburn Shire recorded improved results in a number of key areas, going against the trend of decreases in rural councils and the state-wide average. Hepburn’s best performing areas in terms of improvement from the previous survey were customer service, waste management and overall Council direction. Unsurprisingly, satisfaction fell in relation to the condition of sealed local roads. Due to the repeated extreme weather events experienced over the past few years we recognise our roads are adversely impacted. We are continuing to make prioritised investments in our road network (1,400+ kms) and have allocated $2.73 million to renewing, resealing and re-sheeting roads in our 2023/24 budget, as well as continuing our multi-million-dollar storm recovery works, with over $4.7 million spent since October 2022. Council does not recover all of the unbudgeted millions spent on recovery works through disaster relief funding. This financial impact, and the significant stretch on human resources, understandably has a flow-on effect to other Council services.

We will be closely analysing the survey results and will use the data to devise ways to continue to improve the way we work. We acknowledge there is much more work to be done, not just on roads but across the board. The survey results are on our website.

NAIDOC week – thank you to community members who attended and supported our flag raising ceremony and the informative session on language and connection to Dja Dja Wurrung Country held by Professor Barry Golding and Harley DunollyLee. Congratulations to Chrissy Austin and the team at Creswick Neighbourhood Centre on their initiative to rename their facility using Indigenous language.

Trentham Community Hub - Members of the Project Advisory Group (PAG) recently met to receive a detailed project update and an up-close look at progress on site (see photo below). Following some early delays with delivery of materials there has been significant progress in recent months. The steel framing for the new section of the facility has reached the stage where the timber floor framing can be installed. Together with the steel columns, this progress gave the PAG members a real appreciation of the different spaces in the facility and a sense of excitement for what the facility will deliver for the Trentham and district communities.

Cr Brian Hood, Mayor

Council Plan Focus Areas

Free Covid Tests

Council has free rapid antigen tests (RATs) available for our community. We encourage you to drop in to a Council library or hub (when you’re feeling well!) and collect free tests from our friendly customer service teams. Some of the tests have best before dates at the end of July and August, so this is a great opportunity to grab a test to help you know whether your next cold or flu is actually COVID. Free RATs are available from Council libraries and hubs at Daylesford, Creswick, Clunes and Trentham. The free tests are offered in partnership by Council and the Victorian Government.

Postive Ageing Expo

If you’re aged 55+, come along to our Positive Ageing Expo in Trentham. Along with building connections, you will learn about positive ageing through engaging guest speakers, information displays, networking and demonstrations. Bring your friends and meet new friends at this special event. The free expo will be held on Thursday 27 July from 12pm to 3pm at Trentham Sportsground Reserve Pavilion, 25 Falls Road, Trentham. Register at https://www.hepburn.vic.gov.au/ageing-expo or phone Council on (03) 5348 2306. Lunch will be provided.

Glenlyon Masterplan

Have you provided feedback on the draft Glenlyon Recreation Reserve masterplan? Take a look and have your say via Participate Hepburn at https://participate.hepburn.vic.gov.au. Feedback closes at midnight on Tuesday 25 July. Want to talk through your feedback with the team? Come along to a drop-in session on Saturday 22 July from 10am to 11.30am at the recreation reserve.

Cloth Nappy Workshop

Parents or carers are invited to join us for a Cloth Nappy Workshop to learn about how you can reduce your waste and save money by using fewer disposable nappies. This free workshop will be held on Thursday 20 July from 10.30am to 12pm at Daylesford Community Child Care Centre. Morning tea is provided. Register for the workshop via www.hepburn.vic.gov.au/nappy-workshop

Sustainability Committee

Are you passionate about the local environment? Are you connected to the community? We are looking for people to join an advisory committee to help us to deliver our Sustainable Hepburn Strategy. Expressions of interest close on Monday 31 July. Find out more at Participate Hepburn.

Stay In Touch

Have you signed up to our enewsletter, Hepburn Life? It’s a great way to stay in touch with the latest news and information from Council. Sign up at https://mailchi.mp/hepburn/sign-up or use the QR code.

The Council Plan 2021-2025 describes how Council will strive towards our vision, where to focus efforts, and how to measure progress. Each Focus Area has a series of priority statements, with actions against each item.