Nyirripi News

On Wednesday 14 July the Community Safety Patrol (CSP) successfully recommenced with a full CSP crew in Nyirripi. Nyirripi has lacked a CSP team for about 18 months and Central Desert Regional Council (CDRC) has been working with the community to encourage job applications, and have now employed a full team of four, two women and two men. They are Maxie Pollard, Antonia Wilson, Christine Curtis and Lance Turner. 

They plan to work six nights a week, splitting each night in to male and female shifts, with the women working the earlier part of the evening, meeting the men halfway through the night to let them know what’s been happening around community, and the men working the remainder.

The Central Desert Regional Council (CDRC) People and Culture Recruitment Team have been busy over April and May running recruitment training in communities. This was the first time the team had been to most communities so it was a great opportunity for them to get to know more of the staff.

The training was aligned to the Recruitment and Selection Standard Operating Procedure with an aim to increase the accuracy and compliance of recruitment paperwork received as well as compliance to the procedure, policy and Local Government Act requirements.

On 23 and 24 June, Aged Care staff from all of the Central Desert Regional Council (CDRC) Aged Care Centres - Anmatjere, Atitjere, Engawala, Lajamanu, Laramba, Nyirripi, Wilora, Willowra and Yuelamu came together in Alice Springs for two days of training with Culturally Directed Care Solutions (CDCS). CDCS assists remote aged care services to be more efficient, meet compliance standards and provide quality care to their target group.

CDRC is dedicated to training its staff to create the best possible outcomes for its residents.

Photo: The CDRC Aged Care staff.

Central Desert Regional Council (CDRC) Aged Care workers are now being vaccinated with the Pfizer vaccine. In Engawala, all staff and clients have been fully vaccinated, having received two shots. The staff were a little unsure at first but after Traditional Owner Kevin Bloomfield volunteered to go first the staff followed.

In other communities the staff have had only one shot, and in others still they are waiting for the next round of vaccines to arrive.

Photo: Wayne Porter, Aged Care Coordinator in Nyirripi, receiving his first Pfizer vaccine shot.

Nyirripi, Engawala and Laramba now have mobile phone coverage.

Central Desert Regional Council (CDRC) has had 4GX-lite Satellite Small Cells installed in the communities with funding assistance from the Federal Government.

The Small Cells, installed and maintained by Telstra, will give residents access to email and basic data and voice calls and text with a phone, tablet or other compatible device.  

Reconciliation Week runs from 27 May until 3 June every year. These dates commemorate the 27 May 1967 referendum and the 3 June 1992 High Court Mabo decision. Reconciliation Week is a time for all Australians to learn about our shared histories, cultures, and achievements, and to explore how each of us can contribute to achieving reconciliation in Australia.

 To commemorate this Reconciliation Week, after four years after it came out, here is the ‘Uluru Statement from the Heart’ as spoken by Pat Anderson, Stan Grant, Adam Goodes, Ursula Yovich and Troy Cassar-Daley, with music by Midnight Oil.

A bit of extra colour has been grown in Nyirripi thanks to a flower garden outside the local store. Last year it was planted by Central Desert Regional Council (CDRC) Field Officer Chris Michaels with the help of some school kids. Unfortunately, after they bloomed a few months later, the local cows came into town and ate most of them. The community was quite disappointed at the cows as they had all taken to watering the flowers with the shop’s hose.

This year some more flowers were planted between Council, CDP and the store. They have now started to bloom and a larger cow proof fence has been installed. Nyirripi residents continue to enjoy looking at the flowers and watering them when they visit the store.

Seven solar lights have been installed in the Central Desert Regional Council (CDRC) community of Nyirripi over the past three months as part of a Local Authority (LA) project. The new CDRC Works team put them up.

The lights will help to keep Nyirripi safer at night and provide areas that can be used for night time activities.

Team members involved were Tristan Brown, Sandy Campbell, Chris Michaels, Gabriel Wilson, Ben Gallagher, Cedric Giles and Peter Campbell.

Main photo: Gabriel Wilson, Chris Michaels, Tristan Brown, Cedric Giles and Peter Campbell concreting a base for a solar light.

 The April 2021 edition of the Central Desert News is out now! You can view it by opening the attachment below.

In this edition:

- Nyirripi Childcare centre reopens

- It's raining training at CDRC!

- A lot of actual rain

- Imparja Cup

- 2020/21 Year planner

• and much more!

These are the premier Central Desert Regional Council (CDRC) awards, now in their third running. The value of the awards has been increased as the standard has increased. The awards were formally acknowledged at the last All Staff meeting in March, where winners received a certificate, $200 voucher and a mug commemorating the value the winner is demonstrating.

Congratulations to all the winners, well done on demonstrating the values and your strong contribution to Council.