The mayor of Singleton and staff members at Newcastle and Lake Macquarie councils have been recognised in a state-wide awards program for women in local government.
The women were recipients in the 2024 Ministers' Awards for Women in Local Government, which were announced at Parliament House this week.
Singleton mayor Sue Moore won the elected representative award - regional/rural category.
Newcastle council chief information officer Alicia Lopez won the alternative pathways award - metro while her City of Newcastle colleague Jazmin Webber won the young achiever's award - metro for her work as an apprentice carpenter.
Lake Macquarie council's director built and natural assets David Hughes won the champion of change award - regional/rural.
The champion of change category is awarded to both a female and male general manager or senior manager who has supported and encouraged women's participation at their council, in recognition of gender equity being "not a women's only issue".
The awards, now in their 17th year, were announced by Local Government Minister Ron Hoenig and Minister for Women Jodie Harrison.
"These awards are a chance to recognise the invaluable contribution women make to councils across NSW every day and I'd like to congratulate all the winners for their hard work and dedication," Mr Hoenig said.
"With the local government elections just around the corner, the awards are a timely reminder of the important role women play in our councils and communities both as workers and elected officials."
Ms Harrison said the awards were a way to highlight what's possible and inspire the next generation of women into local government.
"Congratulations to the finalists and winners of the Women in Local Government Awards," she said. "There are so many talented and remarkable women working and serving in local government and we want to encourage them to continue to strive for excellence in their careers as they achieve great outcomes for their communities.
"It's vital that we have gender diversity at all levels of government to ensure we reflect the communities we serve.
