June 2014

President’s Message

Thank You

The Shire has been the recipient of a pallet of bottled water as a donation from BGC Quarries to help our bushfire fighters undertake their role and stay hydrated. Ironically, with the water used to fight fires there is not always a good source of potable drinking water available for the volunteers. This donation is greatly appreciated.

Community Grants
The Shire has a number of Community Grant opportunities to help support smaller groups in their community efforts. The applications are currently open and most close on 30th June so if you are looking for support funding, please have a look at our Website northam.wa.gov.au or phone 9622 6100 for further information.

NBN Rollout
I understand that the “fibre to the node” option, which was intended to be delivered to Northam in the very near future, will now be deferred with Fixed Wireless for the outer areas of the town and Grass Valley being the initial focus. The rationale is that service to those areas is currently poor so that needs to be fixed before enhancing the areas of town currently served reasonably well by ADSL broadband. Fixed Wireless and Satellite are the methods for delivering NBN services to the lesser populated and more remote areas. Fixed Wireless is a dedicated service to set users in an area with no “mobile”, portable or transient access possible.

Road Network Condition
I am again aware of concerns raised by Shire residents about the poor state of various unsealed roads across the Shire. I am working on trying to find additional funding opportunities through our budget to be used in resolving as many of those concerns as possible.

Avon River Festival Street Parade		Squaring the Wheel
Get Colourful~ Get Creative Get your Float Ready for the 2014 Avon River Festival Street Parade. Entries close on July 20th. Please click here to download the Application. For more info contact Stacey on 08 9622 8309 or email [email protected]		Squaring The Wheel Squaring the Wheel combines circus, clown, strange mechanisms and contraptions, puppetry, magic and music into an unusual, thingamabobbish theatre extravaganza. Unpredictable, funny, touching, highly visual and occasionally out of control, it is a clever theatre adventure for the whole family in thinking out of the box. This family show is suitable for ages + 5. Winner of the Adelaide Fringe Award 2013, Best Presentation for Children.

Wundowie Students Jump on Board

With planning well underway for the extension of the Wundowie Skate Park, there was no shortage of enthusiasm from the Wundowie Primary School students to jump on a skateboard and learn the basics of skateboarding. The sessions, delivered by Skateboarding Australia (SBA) and coordinated in liaison with the Shire of Northam, were held during school hours to provide all students from Years 1 to 7 the opportunity to try the sport.
All equipment was provided by SBA, and once all the helmets were securely fastened the students were encouraged and guided by two trained coaches. While for some students it was not the first time on a board, for many this was their first attempt at skating, with the majority learning very quickly.
Skateboarding is a great activity for the physical and social development of young people, and recent research by the University of Western Australia suggests that skateparks are the ideal setting for young people to learn the art of cooperation, negotiation and compromise. And learning early means skills are developed quickly; despite some parental concerns about their children’s safety, skateboarding results in less injuries than many traditional sports such as football and rugby.
The Clinic at the Wundowie School also provided the students the opportunity to discuss the plans for the Wundowie Skate Park with the experienced coaches. The students later had the opportunity to complete a survey and comment on the plans. The feedback from the children and the wider community about the skatepark plans, which have been made available on the Shire website and the Wundowie Post Officer, have been extremely positive with the children unanimous in their opinion that the facility will be extremely well utilised.

Crime Prevention – Your Timely Reporting is Crucial

The Shire of Northam has established a Community Safety Committee with the aim of enhancing community safety. At its recent meeting, the Committee was advised that through WA Police Strategic Crime Prevention funding, the Shire of Northam has installed additional CCTV cameras in the Northam CBD. All of Northam’s CCTV cameras are linked to the Northam Police Station, where the cameras can be monitored in real time on large screens and the footage stored for future reference.
However, it is not always possible for the Police to consistently monitor the CCTV live, as Officers can be called upon to attend to other Police matters. It is therefore imperative that any acts of anti-social behaviour or property damage, such as vandalism or graffiti, are reported to the Northam Police as soon as possible. With timely reporting, the likely time that the incident occurred can be better estimated so that the footage can be retrieved to assist Police in their investigations.
Members of the community are also encouraged to notify the Shire of any damage to Council property; this again will assist in identifying the offenders and enable timely repairs. Successful prosecutions for unlawful behaviour will act as a deterrent for potential re-offenders and others, and the more timely the reporting the more likely that a prosecution will occur. Please contact Northam Police on 9622 4260 or the Shire of Northam on 9622 6100 to report property damage.