Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People

Armidale Regional Council prides itself on its strong, positive relationship with the local Aboriginal Community. 

Aboriginal Advisory Committee

The Armidale Regional Aboriginal Advisory Committee has been restructured to extend its community representation to the Guyra and Tingha districts.

Previously known as the Gayinyaga Aboriginal Community Consultative Committee, the restructured group comprises three subcommittees - one each for Armidale, Guyra and Tingha – to consider local issues and feed recommendations to a regional committee.

The regional body will comprise delegates from each subcommittee.

Each subcommittee meets every second month, with the regional committee to convene in the months in between.

The revised advisory committee was formed following community engagement in 2018, to look at a restructure of the Gayinyaga committee to represent the whole Armidale region.

The advisory committee is the key forum to enable Aboriginal community members to liaise directly with Armidale Regional Council.

See this page for future meeting dates, agenda, minutes and other advisory group information.

The Gayinyaga committee has a long history with Council and is one of the longest-standing Aboriginal advisory committees for a council in NSW.

Aboriginal Community Liaison Officer Cyril Green facilitates Council's Aboriginal Action Plan 2015-2019 (PDF 821.8KB), as well as coordinating the local Aboriginal Interagency meetings, annual NAIDOC Week activities and other Aboriginal community events.  Lisa can be contacted on (02) 6770 3936 or emailed at cgreen@armidale.nsw.gov.au

As part of the Aboriginal Action Plan a feasibility study was undertaken in 2013 to research the possibility of an Aboriginal Monument being created in Armidale. The Armidale Aboriginal Monument Feasibility Study  (PDF 3.1MB)can be read here.

NAIDOC Weeks Awards

The theme for NAIDOC Week in 2019 is Voice. Treaty. Truth., recognising the three three key elements to reform set out in the Uluru Statement from the Heart. The Statement outlines the path forward for recognising Indigenous Australians in the nation's constitution.

This year's NAIDOC Week celebrations in the Armidale region, A Day in the Dale, will be held at the Aboriginal Cultural Centre & Keeping Place on Friday 6 September at 11am to 2.30pm.

Traditional games, a free barbecue and live music by local indigenous band Terra Firma are also part of local festivities at the cultural centre.

The 2018 theme, Because of Her, We Can, recognised strong women who have enriched the lives and opened up opportunities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

As part of the theme, Council held a morning tea in July and presented awards to 26 individuals and organisations achieving great things in the community.