The initial market stall fundraiser.
The initial market stall fundraiser. Donated produce for the stall. IT WAS a dark day for Afghan women and girls when the Taliban poured into Kabul on 15 August 2021, with universities and high schools quickly closed to females in the aftermath of the government overthrow. More than 11,500 kilometres away, the […]
Funds raised at the trivia night being presented.
GLOUCESTER Masonic Lodge ran a Trivia Night on Saturday, 16 May to raise funds for the Bucketts Way Neighbourhood Group’s new kitchen. The Neighbourhood Group operates the Gloucester Meals on Wheels program and has long needed a dedicated kitchen to better support its efforts. “Meals on Wheels is a vital program, providing both food and […]
Victoria Street, Taree after the May 2025 flood event.
SMALL businesses and non-profits who have already successfully applied for the NSW Government’s initial $25,000 flood recovery grant have until 5 June to lodge additional claims. MidCoast Council Mayor Claire Pontin urged business owners and not-for-profits impacted by the May 2025 floods to lodge their applications before it’s too late. Last month Premier Chris Minns […]
NSW FARMERS is warning state and federal governments must urgently respond to an acute cost-of-production shock with new data showing spikes in fuel and fertiliser prices caused by global shortages have slashed confidence. The latest NSW Farmers Farm Business Sentiment Survey suggests 80 percent price increases for fuel and fertiliser have flowed through to freight […]
MEMBER for Lyne Alison Penfold has introduced a Private Member’s Bill to the Australian Parliament to amend the Sex Discrimination Act. Ms Penfold wants to reinstate the Act’s 1984 definitions of a man and woman, which were based on biological sex, not self-identification. In a statement, she said, “The Parliament has a responsibility to provide […]
THE Koala Friendly Carbon Initiative is keen to hear from local landholders interested in having koala habitat trees planted on their properties. The initiative is a collaboration between the World Wide Fund for Nature Australia (WWF-Australia) and carbon farming service provider, Climate Friendly, supported by the NSW Government and HP Inc. This first-of-its-kind carbon farming […]
An endangered Manning River Turtle being released into the Barrington River by Aussie Ark in February. Photo: Aussie Ark.
NEW research indicates Manning River turtles are being recorded at pre-flood numbers, 12 months after one of the region’s worst floods on record. Gloucester and its nearby waterways were battered in the floods of May 2025, with serious concerns held about the long-term effects on fish and animals living in the rivers, particularly on the […]
Vehicles queueing at the Bucketts Way/Pacific Highway intersection in early 2026.
A SERIOUS accident on Friday 15 May has brought safety issues at the Bucketts Way/Pacific Highway intersection into sharp focus once more. In April, News Of The Area reported on the strong concerns held by former Roads and Traffic Authority senior engineer Gordon Chirgwin about the dangerous state of the intersection. “I believe that the […]
NATIONALS Member for Lyne Alison Penfold has called the Labor Government’s Federal Budget a “bloodbath for regional Australia”. In her response to Labor’s Federal Budget, delivered by Treasurer Jim Chalmers on 12 May, Ms Penfold said regional and rural communities like those in Lyne had been left behind. “Budgets can make or break the ability […]
Sports Star of the Year Jim Grech with his Blind Bowls director/guide Rob Heininger.
Sports Star of the Year Jim Grech with his Blind Bowls director/guide Rob Heininger. Winning Junior Team: Gloucester Public School Hockey. Junior Winner Charlie Coombe with Alison Penfold MP. BOWLING sensation Jim Grech has been named Gloucester’s Sports Star of the Year for 2025. He was among the many athletes recognised for their sporting achievements […]
