Community organisations get help to benefit from disaster support - Hawkesbury

A Community Development Worker has been funded in the Hawkesbury to assist community organisations with opportunities to build resilience and capacity to support their neighbourhoods face future disasters.

Following an EOI process Wentworth Healthcare, provider of the Nepean Blue Mountains Primary Health Network, has funded Hawkesbury City Council to engage the Disaster Recovery Community Development Worker. Hawkesbury City Council has played an integral role in assisting disaster affected and impacted individuals and will use this experience to support existing and emerging community groups with training, support and guidance.

Wentworth Healthcare CEO, Lizz Ready said the Community Development Worker roles were developed in response to extensive stakeholder consultation that revealed while there has been a significant amount of funding provided to communities, there are few people available to assist with leveraging these opportunities.

We have seen a huge amount of investment into our vulnerable communities that have been affected by drought, bushfires and floods which is fabulous, but it’s a lot of information for already stretched community organisations and members to navigate.

The Community Development Worker roles will develop strong links with communities, support community groups with building sustainable networks to enhance resilience and capacity, assist with skills training, and help them to identify what opportunities are available, which ones address their needs, what’s involved in the application process, and what they need to do once they actually get the funding.

A significant part of the role involves collaborating with existing disaster recovery organisations to ensure all impacted communities and groups can access this support.

Tracey Greenaway, Community Development Worker for Hawkesbury City Council, said that she is working alongside communities, supporting people to connect, belong, and be involved in community-led groups or activities in their area.

"I help draw together ideas from a community, bring together like-minded people and agencies, and guide people through the next steps, whether that is a grant application process, committee development, or leadership training, to create a sustainable outcome for the community."

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