Margery Phair volunteering as a Guide leader. Simeon Beckett SC, Governor-General Sam Mostyn, Margery’s granddaughter Alison Phair and Margery in Canberra. MARGERY Phair has lived a life dedicated to community service. Born in 1936, she turns 90 on 23 April. Since the age of eleven Margery has enjoyed a long association with the Guiding movement […]

WHEN Ronda Teece and her team turned up on 26 March to open up the Gloucester Charities bookshop, they were greeted with a shock. The store had suffered significant vandalism, with two doors, drawers, cupboards and a filing cabinet badly damaged. A laptop was stolen, as were cash and gift cards intended for distribution to […]

HAVE you ever wondered who the first astronomers were? What an interesting question. Astronomy is the oldest science, but it’s also the newest. Everything we know about the night sky has been passed down through history, and we find the oldest continuous culture on Earth, the Australian Aboriginal people, were very likely the world’s first […]

MIDCOAST Council is calling on residents, community groups, and business owners to attend the next round of “Community Conversations”. A series of open forums have been scheduled, designed to give locals a chance to hear from and talk to councillors and senior council staff in person. These upcoming sessions provide an opportunity for the community […]

MIDCOAST Council is asking residents to make life easier for its staff by maintaining clear access to water meters. According to Council, meter readers have been encountering a variety of obstacles across the region as they undertake their quarterly readings, with the most common hindrances being water meters enclosed behind fences or overgrown by plants […]

AMID soaring fuel prices which are prompting Australians to explore alternative transport options, a new study highlights the health benefits of walkable neighbourhoods. New research shows that regional residents living in walkable towns and centres walk 75 minutes more each week, prompting calls for Governments to invest more in well-connected, safe footpaths to boost community […]

The walking group was led by John Watts. The Andrew Laurie lookout – which has magnificent views to the north-east towards Copeland Tops and the Buckets. ELEVEN members of the Gloucester Environment Group enjoyed a wonderful Autumn day walking around the Gloucester Tops on Sunday, 15 March. Led by John Watts, walkers combined several of […]

THE future of the Gloucester Business Chamber seems no clearer after a recent public meeting. As previously reported in NOTA (11 March 2026), after 99 years the Chamber is facing likely closure. It was standing room only at the meeting on 26 March, which was organised to discuss the Chamber’s future, and to give members […]

MIDCOAST Council is calling for nominees to join its Arts and Creative Industries Reference Group. The Reference Group was established to provide strategic advice to Council on the planning, development and delivery of services to support the arts and creative industries in the MidCoast region. “The Reference Group members play an important role in guiding […]