In another huge coup for our little Valley, the recent collaborative sculpture and art project for the new Macksville Hospital has today been named as a finalist in the NSW Premier's Awards for 2020.
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The awards recognise excellence in innovation in the public sector.
The 'Arts in health infrastructure at Macksville Hospital' project is one of six named as finalists in the 'Well Connected Communities with Quality Local Environments' category.
"Darruyay yilaaming maam wurruunda ngalanambaygam-gundiya. (Welcome to this house of healing). The Arts in Health Strategy within the new Macksville Hospital used arts as an engagement tool to relocate a community from one established hospital site to the new greenfield site providing a sense of familiarity. Art provides a deep-seeded cultural safety for the Gumbaynggirr people in seeking care," the citation reads.
"Five art initiatives were delivered and it was the creation of the works of art with three schools in Bowraville, Macksville and Nambucca supported by twelve organisations, that sets a new benchmark for NSW Health working across three river communities to deliver shared social infrastructure for improved generational health benefit."
Read more about the project here
Fifteen different community organisations and groups were involved in the collaborative effort - an achievement in itself.
The other finalists include: Transport for NSW Maritime for their inter-agency work in dealing with an environmental shipping incident off the coast from Woolongong; The Corrective Services Industries' Demountables Business Unit which skills inmates in refurbishing demountables; Transport for NSW who constructed a safe bridge crossing for the people in the Cummeragunja reserve; the Aboriginal Housing Office who trialled the installation of hydro panels in remote Western NSW townships to provide clean drinking water in times of drought; and the DPIE for their Streets as Shared Spaces pilot program which aims to create more public spaces and street access while allowing people to observe social distancing.
Winners will be announced on November 4 from 4-5pm.
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Mel Leigh Dee
Mel is a journalist at the Guardian News and is based in Macksville.
Mel is a journalist at the Guardian News and is based in Macksville.
