Tweed Shire Council Wins State Award For Humanising Local Government Staff
Tweed Shire Council has been recognised on the state stage for its innovative efforts to improve workplace wellbeing. In addition, it has tackled growing levels of abuse directed at local government staff.
The Council was awarded the People, Workplace and Wellbeing Award at the 2026 Local Government Excellence Awards for its “Part of your everyday” campaign. This initiative was designed to humanise Council employees and encourage greater respect from the community.
Presented by Local Government Professionals NSW, the awards celebrate excellence, innovation and leadership across local government throughout the state.
The award-winning campaign was developed by Council staff in response to increasing incidents of antisocial behaviour. Council describes this trend as the normalisation of “council bashing”, particularly affecting frontline employees and those in public-facing roles.
Tweed Shire Council General Manager Troy Green said the recognition was a significant achievement for the organisation. Additionally, he said it reflected the passion and commitment of staff who initiated the project.
“I’m so very proud of our team at Tweed,” Mr Green said.
“The need for a campaign targeting incivility was incepted by our staff at a grassroots level. They wanted to highlight that Council staff are members of our community who have lives outside of their uniformed roles.
Innovative campaign tackling abuse and incivility recognised at NSW excellence awards
“They are proud to serve the Tweed community and should not be subject to incivility or abuse when doing so.”
The campaign featured real Council employees from across the organisation, including outdoor maintenance crews, customer service officers and office-based staff. These staff shared personal stories and highlighted the important services they provide to the community every day.
Rather than focusing on negative behaviour, the initiative used positive storytelling to show the people behind road maintenance, parks, libraries and waste services. It also covered development assessments and community programs.
One of the campaign participants, Water Meter Reader Mickey Coleman, said he had noticed a genuine change in public interactions since appearing in the campaign.
“Before the campaign, I always felt I was treated well when I was out in the community without my uniform on, but something could change when I put the uniform on,” Mr Coleman said.
“Now, people recognise me when I’m out reading water meters. They’re much friendlier, they stop for a chat and say they’ve seen the campaign.”
Manager People and Culture Aimee Austin said authenticity had been key to the campaign’s success.
“This campaign works because it is real. It is our staff, telling our story, in a way that invites the community in,” Ms Austin said.
The initiative forms part of Council’s broader Psychosocial Safety Framework. This framework aims to create a system-wide approach to preventing and responding to harmful workplace behaviours.
Developed by a small staff-led project team with support from leaders and frontline workers, the campaign was recognised by judges as an innovative and repeatable model. Accordingly, it is seen as improving workplace wellbeing and strengthening community relationships.
Council congratulated the other finalists and award winners while thanking Local Government Professionals NSW for recognising the people, projects and partnerships helping shape stronger local communities.
From The Northern Rivers Times News Desk
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