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Consultation has concluded
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander residents in the Armidale Regional Council area are being consulted on the future structure of the Council’s Aboriginal Advisory Committee.
The structure of the Aboriginal Advisory Committee is being reviewed to incorporate representation of communities in the former Guyra Shire Council area, following the merger of the Armidale Dumaresq Council and Guyra Shire Council.
We want to hear from all interested people to ensure the group best represents Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities throughout the shire.
Council received fantastic feedback during an initial round of community engagement between February and April this year. From that input, a new advisory community structure was recommended and endorsed by Council.
The community is now invited to provide feedback on that structure, to confirm it supports the recommendation and provide input on details of the committee.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander residents in the Armidale Regional Council area are being consulted on the future structure of the Council’s Aboriginal Advisory Committee.
The structure of the Aboriginal Advisory Committee is being reviewed to incorporate representation of communities in the former Guyra Shire Council area, following the merger of the Armidale Dumaresq Council and Guyra Shire Council.
We want to hear from all interested people to ensure the group best represents Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities throughout the shire.
Council received fantastic feedback during an initial round of community engagement between February and April this year. From that input, a new advisory community structure was recommended and endorsed by Council.
The community is now invited to provide feedback on that structure, to confirm it supports the recommendation and provide input on details of the committee.
The Gayinyaga Aboriginal Advisory Committee’s structure is being reviewed to incorporate representation of communities in the former Guyra Shire Council area, following the merger of the Armidale Dumaresq Council and Guyra Shire Council.
To determine a new committee structure that best represents the interests of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities throughout the shire, Council is working closely with the existing Gayinyaga members and the broader community.
Council received fantastic feedback during an initial round of community engagement between February and April this year. From that input, a new advisory community structure was recommended and endorsed by Council.
The community is now invited to provide feedback on that structure, to confirm it supports the recommendation and provide input on details of the committee.
Click here to see feedback received at community forums in Armidale, Tingha and Guyra on 25 and 26 September.
Thank you also to everyone who completed the online feedback form during the first round of engagement. The form is still available to view, so you can see the options put to the community.
Consultation has concluded
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Submission on the Aboriginal Advisory Committee
I’ve been an observer at Gayinyaga meetings (representing Armidale ANTaR) for nearly 10 years, and would respectfully like to make some observations and recommendations about the structure of the new Aboriginal Advisory Committee.
1. Two tiered committee structure
Nearly all the discussion at Gayinyaga meetings has been about local issues, such as (most recently) traffic calming on Cookes Road, the Armidale Cemetery memorial and the renaming of MacDonald Park. It is likely that the local subcommittees in Guyra and Tingha will discuss similar issues relevant to their local areas. It would be cumbersome and a waste of time if the recommendations of subcommittees have to be approved by the larger ARC Advisory Committee.
Recommendation:
Proposals, decisions or recommendations of subcommittees that affect only the area covered by the subcommittee (i.e. Guyra, Tingha or Armidale) should go straight to Council. They should not have to be approved by the larger Advisory Committee. Only proposals, decisions or recommendations that are relevant to people in the whole shire should be put before the larger Advisory Committee.
2. Meetings
Attendance at Gayinyaga meetings has always been a problem. Many meetings do not have a quorum and are unable to proceed. Requiring members of subcommittees to travel to other towns for meetings in alternate months will make attendance even more difficult. This seems also seems counterproductive in light of the comments in (1) above.
Recommendation:
A meeting of the larger Advisory Committee should be scheduled for only one time a year. But if there is business affecting people in the entire shire and not just in the area of a particular subcommittee, then an extraordinary meeting of the Advisory Committee can be called. This would mean that the larger Advisory Committee would normally meet once a year, and the subcommittees would meet monthly in their own towns unless an extraordinary meeting is called.
Submission on the Aboriginal Advisory Committee
I’ve been an observer at Gayinyaga meetings (representing Armidale ANTaR) for nearly 10 years, and would respectfully like to make some observations and recommendations about the structure of the new Aboriginal Advisory Committee.
1. Two tiered committee structure
Nearly all the discussion at Gayinyaga meetings has been about local issues, such as (most recently) traffic calming on Cookes Road, the Armidale Cemetery memorial and the renaming of MacDonald Park. It is likely that the local subcommittees in Guyra and Tingha will discuss similar issues relevant to their local areas. It would be cumbersome and a waste of time if the recommendations of subcommittees have to be approved by the larger ARC Advisory Committee.
Recommendation:
Proposals, decisions or recommendations of subcommittees that affect only the area covered by the subcommittee (i.e. Guyra, Tingha or Armidale) should go straight to Council. They should not have to be approved by the larger Advisory Committee. Only proposals, decisions or recommendations that are relevant to people in the whole shire should be put before the larger Advisory Committee.
2. Meetings
Attendance at Gayinyaga meetings has always been a problem. Many meetings do not have a quorum and are unable to proceed. Requiring members of subcommittees to travel to other towns for meetings in alternate months will make attendance even more difficult. This seems also seems counterproductive in light of the comments in (1) above.
Recommendation:
A meeting of the larger Advisory Committee should be scheduled for only one time a year. But if there is business affecting people in the entire shire and not just in the area of a particular subcommittee, then an extraordinary meeting of the Advisory Committee can be called. This would mean that the larger Advisory Committee would normally meet once a year, and the subcommittees would meet monthly in their own towns unless an extraordinary meeting is called.
Jeff Siegel
Armidale ANTaR