The event was held at the Gunnedah Town Hall, with the shire's Australia Day ambassador surf lifesaver Doug Hawkins sharing his story as guest speaker.

Gunnedah's Citizen of the Year for 2020 is Dominic Goodwin-Hauck, who is a well-known volunteer in the Gunnedah shire.

He is a role model for young people, donating his time to many organisations including GoCo, the Gunnedah library and the Gunnedah Conservatorium, and is an active leader on the Gunnedah Youth Council.

Gunnedah's Young Citizen of the Year is Lucy Moore. Lucy, who was a vice-captain at Gunnedah High School, worked closely with her senior leaders to deliver fundraising targets and raise awareness about bullying.

She was also part of Lions Youth of the Year and Rotary's public speaking competitions, and received a number of awards at the end of Year 12 in 2019.

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Gunnedah mayor Jamie Chaffey said the awards were a "really special event in Gunnedah's calendar."

"It's a celebration where we recognise the outstanding contribution our citizens make to the shire, Cr Chaffey said.

"These nominees have given their time and their efforts to help make Gunnedah a better place, and we are proud to have them as part of our community."

Parkes MP Mark Coulton attended the dinner and congratulated the recipients.

Another highlight was the presentation of a chamber flag - a flag that has been hung on a parliamentary sitting day outside the chambers, with an accompanying certificate, to Gunnedah Rural Museum/Men's Shed by Australia Day committee chairman Cr Rob Hooke.

The certificate was signed by the Speaker of the House and includes the date it hung outside Parliament.

The full list of Gunnedah's Australia Day award recipients for 2020 are as follows. You can view their nomination spiel in the gallery above:

"Congratulations to all the recipients and to the nominees," Cr Chaffey said.

"We thank all the people who nominated those who are doing something really worthwhile."