Gunnedah Community Resilience Program from Gunnedah Shire Council wins state award

The council took out the local government category of the NSW Resilient Australia Awards, which was held at Parliament House on Tuesday.

The $3.2 million program was made possible through council funding, as well as state and federal government funds.

It funded 20 projects for 16 different community groups, including the water bubblers located around town, a water tank at Kelvin Hall, work done in the shire by the Farmer Army, and much more.

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Gunnedah mayor Jamie Chaffey said the work for this program wasn't done "for recognition", but that it was still "awesome to be recognised in the local government category as a worthy winner".

"This award is justification of the approach of our entire community to band together, to keep busy, and deliver infrastructure and projects that will make Gunnedah more resilient in the years to come," Cr Chaffey said.

Cr Chaffey congratulated many in the community, including members of the council's departments, the state and federal government, community groups, as well as everyone who participated to bring the projects to life such as trades people and business owners.

The CRP came to fruition in October 2019, to support locals through the ongoing drought.

"We're still not 100 per cent through with the drought but we wanted to support the community the best way we could through stimulating the economy ... and giving some confidence to our community through some very challenging times," Cr Chaffey said.

The council may now be selected as a finalist in the National Resilient Australia Awards later this year.