LIBERAL MLC Aileen MacDonald OAM has sponsored a petition to the NSW Legislative Council demanding the reinstatement of three-month and six-month NSW TrainLink Discovery Passes. The six-month Discovery Pass, previously available for $420, offered unlimited travel across NSW TrainLink’s regional train and coach network. The longer term passes have recently been paused by the state […]
RURAL Aid has launched the sixth annual Spirit of the Bush Photo Competition, inviting Upper Hunter residents to share striking images that capture the strength, resilience, and beauty of life on the land. Running from 14 July to 31 August 2025, the much-loved competition provides a powerful platform for rural and regional Australians to tell […]
Geese at the hobby farm. Tanya’s prize-winning Giant Dewlap Toulouse. Chinese Brown gander. TANYA Quant and her family have been quietly raising eyebrows, and geese, from their hobby farm in Brookfield for the past 25 years. Specialising in rare and heritage breeds, their feathered fascination has blossomed into national acclaim, with their flock dominating poultry […]
Elizabeth Maxwell. Photo: supplied. Spotty Quilt by Elizabeth Maxwell. Photo: supplied. THE Gloucester Gallery will host an exhibition titled “Collage In Cloth” featuring the quilts of Elizabeth Maxwell from July 16 to August 10. The exhibition is curated by her close friend and fellow artist Kylie Goldthorpe. Before retiring to Barrington, Elizabeth Maxwell worked as […]
AN additional 29 suburbs in the Hunter and Mid North Coast are now eligible for the East Coast Severe Weather Personal Hardship Assistance payment for people impacted by recent floods. In the Hunter this includes Balickera 2324, Brandy Hill 2324, Butterwick 2321, Duns Creek 2321 and Glen Oak 2320, and comes following further assessments by […]
DEAR News Of The Area, ON Sunday, 7 June, I attended a meeting at the Doug Walters Pavillion. It had been arranged by the Dungog Council, and was to keep all of us locals up to speed with what is going on with the planning for the future Housing and Infrastructure Master Plan, for our […]
Urgent care clinics provide walk-in, bulk-billed treatment for urgent but non-life-threatening emergencies.
AN expressions of interest (EOI) process to establish a Medicare Urgent Care Clinic (UCC) in Maitland closed on 15 July. The EOI was open to existing general practices, community health centres and Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services. Fifty new Medicare UCCs were announced in the 2025-26 Budget, set to provide walk-in, bulk-billed treatment for urgent […]
WINC volunteers help care for recovering wildlife like this feather-tailed glider.
AS any pet owner will tell you, with no government subsidies such as Medicare, treating injury and illness in companion animals can be an expensive prospect. What hope is there, then, when native animals are struck by cars, or traumatised by bushfires? That’s where the volunteers of Wildlife In Need Of Care (WINC) get involved. […]
CASH, cryptocurrency and even gold nuggets are among the alleged spoils of a long-running scheme to rig and inflate contracts for roadworks. A former department officer is believed to be in hiding, after a failed attempt to leave Australia on a US passport. The alleged rigging and inflation of contracts by Transport for NSW procurement […]
