By Gunnedah Shire Council mayor Colleen Fuller

I have plenty of good news to share this fortnight.

Applications have opened for the 2026 round of the Gunnedah Community Scholarship Fund. The schlolarships cover multiple disciplines, including agriculture, law, education and arts/theatre, and can offer practical help for outlays such as relocation costs, living expenses, tuition fees and textbooks.

More than 500 young people have received scholarships since the fund was established in 2003, and I think it’s fantastic that we can support our young people as they transition to the wider world. I look forward to meeting the successful recipients of the 2026 round.

If you, your business or community group would like to become a sponsor of the Gunnedah Community Scholarship Fund, contact council.

I have more welcome news – work is under way on council’s new Animal Impound Facility. The multi-million-dollar facility is being built at the current impound location on Quia Road, and we expect it will be completed by mid-2026.

The works include a modern shelter, veterinary treatment room, free-range exercise yards, office space, and a public reception area for people to collect their pets.

The project capital funding of $3 million incorporates numerous grants, including more than $1 million from the NSW National’s Stronger Country Communities Fund Round 5, more than $1 million from the Federal Government’s Local Roads and Community Infrastructure (LCRI) Program Phase 4, and almost $1 million from Gunnedah Shire Council.

The current facility is more than 20 years old and is often at capacity. The new, bigger facility will provide a more comfortable shelter for the companion animals who find themselves there.

It will also mean council’s regulatory services team is better equipped to assist in micro-chipping animals, delivering responsible pet ownership programs, and working with rescue organisations to provide more options for animal rehoming. In the 2024/25 financial year, the regulatory services team rehomed 80 dogs with the help of rescue organisations.

I was honoured to be invited as a guest to the 40th anniversary dinner of the Red Chief Local Aboriginal Land Council on Saturday night. Congratulations to chief executive officer Troy Ruttley and his team, to chair of the board Jean Hands, and the board for its ongoing and unwavering dedication and commitment to supporting, advocating and enhancing cultural, economic and social outcomes for our community.

Gunnedah Shire Council values its relationship with Red Chief and recognises the vital leadership role it plays in our shire and beyond.

We acknowledge with respect, the enormous body of work undertaken by the organisation and celebrate with you, the warriors and champions of change that have walked on the difficult and often painful journey towards self-determination, closing the gap, social justice and reconciliation, prior to, and over, the past 40 years.

Council continues its own reconciliation journey, with its organisational Reconciliation Action Plan nearing completion. We acknowledge we have work to do but remain committed to recognising the world’s oldest living culture and the enduring ancestral connections to Country.

The stories, languages, and customs of First Nations peoples in our shire are an important part of our cultural identity and shared history.

Congratulations on 40 years.