Hawkesbury City Council has taken home the Leo Kelly OAM Arts and Culture Award at the 2026 Local Government NSW Awards, recognised for its Cultural Plan 2025–2029.
The award was handed out at a gala dinner on Thursday 6 August at Doltone House, Jones Bay Wharf, where councils from across the state gathered to mark standout work in local government.
The Hawkesbury’s plan grew out of eighteen months of community consultation, drawing on the input of more than 1,000 residents. Council built the document in-house, with guidance from JOC Consulting, and shaped it around the region’s particular pressures — a council area that is spread out, culturally diverse, and no stranger to floods and fire.
Three themes run through the plan: People, Place and Connection. Underneath those headings sit responses to problems locals flagged directly — feeling disconnected from each other, not knowing what local artists were even doing, and running into practical roadblocks when they tried to get involved in cultural life.
Rather than sitting on a shelf, the plan is already shaping how council spends money and delivers services, and it does so within the budget council already has, without asking for anything extra.
It’s the first cultural plan the Hawkesbury has had in close to two decades, which is part of why the win matters beyond the trophy. For the region’s artists and cultural organisations, it’s confirmation that the consultation process was heard and that the resulting programs are meant to be lived with, not just launched. The full plan is available through Hawkesbury City Council.