First NSW council library celebrates 75 years

The first council library in NSW is going strong after the better part of a century.

10 February, 2020

Australia enters era of ‘grab-and-go’ library

Yarra City Council has developed an Australia-first ‘grab-and-go’ library app.

20 January, 2020

Public library services must remain viable

There is a pressing need for a defined state government policy which provides a trigger for the construction of new libraries in new and expanding communities in the same way that there are policy provisions for schools and hospitals.

21 November, 2019

Vic libraries struggling to deliver

Local government is failing to ensure council libraries are delivering value for money.

14 November, 2019

Government arts spending drops

The federal government’s per capita expenditure on the arts has dropped over the last ten years.

1 October, 2019

Library hires full time social worker

A Melbourne library is getting a full-time social worker in a sign of the changing role of libraries.

2 September, 2019

WA State Library buys letter penned by rocker Bon Scott

The WA State Library has paid $14,000 at auction for a letter by AC/DC frontman Bon Scott.

29 March, 2019

NSW election ‘pivotal’ for local government

The NSW election will be a pivotal one for local government, the head of the state’s peak body for councils says.

11 March, 2019

Parramatta Council flags ‘grave concerns’ over Powerhouse

Recommendations not to move the Powerhouse Museum to western Sydney have alarmed the council at the centre of the stoush.

4 March, 2019

Saving history: museums take regional heritage online

A network of local museums is collaborating to preserve valuable heritage collections online as part of a national initiative.

7 September, 2018

Council museums in ‘precarious funding environment’

Local government has found itself responsible for Australia’s growing array of local museums and a new analysis highlights many are struggling with staffing and resourcing.

16 July, 2018

Libraries need to evolve digitally, says new report

Nearly 90 percent of Australia’s library users think online library services are important, but only 61 percent are satisfied with the online experience they are receiving from libraries. That compares with 85 percent of the users are happy with the physical experience of a library. The finding comes in a new report from the University […]

26 February, 2018

Heyfield named Australia’s strongest community

The Commercial Hotel in Heyfield The small Gippsland town of Heyfield, 200 km east of Melbourne, has been named Australia’s ‘Strongest and Most Resilient Community’. The award was given as part of the 2017 national Power to the People Conference, organised by the the Municipal Association of Victoria (MAV) and the Bank of I.D.E.A.S. “The […]

8 January, 2018

NSW councils underperforming on gender balance (and how to fix it)

NSW local government is performing well. In most areas. But it is lacking in its participation rate of females, particularly in management. This had potentially dangerous consequences for the future workforce capacity. Every private and public sector organisation should be asking itself whether its workforce is fit for the future. Many leaders are formulating more […]

27 November, 2017