EXPRESS The
Wednesday, November 11, 2015
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Glamour, excitement and emotion at Cooktown Races The Cooktown Amateur Turf Club held their annual racing weekend last Saturday. Hundreds turned out to enjoy a great day of country racing at the second oldest turf club in Queensland. It was an emotive day on and off the track for a variety of reasons. Pictured are Tiahna Caltabiano, Kymberlee Cockrem and Jessica Miller who travelled to Cooktown and took part in the ‘Visting Ladies’ section of ‘Fashions on the Field’. For complete coverage of the day, turn to Pages 11 and 27. Photo by Peter Roy
Staff recognised By Justin Fris
S
TAFF members from the Tablelands Regional Council have achieved state success in the Local Government Managers Australia ‘2015 Queensland Rural Management Challenge’, which was recently held in Innisfail. While councillors at the TRC continue to polarise ratepayer discussion throughout the community, there is little discussion required in terms of staff quality within the council; they are exceptional. Chris Dando, Carah Taylor, Chris Marsh and Dalitta Wright joined their mentor Dean David-
son (TRC GM – Community and Regional Planning) in completing a series of challenges relating to local government. At last Thursday morning’s meeting, the team were formally acknowledged by the councillors in attendance; and outlined how they achieved their success. For the several ratepayers in the gallery, it was a refreshing glimpse to see their local council recognised for a positive reason. Mr Davidson was naturally proud of the team and outlined the three phases that were required for successful completion. The first task was completed in the months
leading up to the event, where the team addressed several key criteria in terms of functioning as a competent team. Secondly, the team was required to attend the conference and complete 10 simulated challenges that typically could arise in local government. And finally, the team receive feedback and guidance from their experience and are to work with Mr Davidson and TRC CEO Ian Church on how they can maximise re-integrating themselves back into working life. “The team did exceptionally well and achieved an above average score,” Mr Davidson said. “As a mentor, I thoroughly enjoyed working with the
team. “And even though they were up against some councils three or four times their size – they achieved their goal of taking out the top prize.” He added: “They worked through a number of simulated situations and tested their problem solving skills.” Mr Dando said the simulated problems were extremely relevant to life at the TRC and the council would benefit from the experience. Additionally, Mr Marsh placed importance on the pre-task component of the challenge.
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