Port Harmony ensemble. Photo: Port Harmony.
THE spirit of generosity, community and music was on full display on Sunday 7 December, as Port Stephens locals and friends gathered at Soldiers Point Bowling Club for a special fundraising concert in support of Ovarian Cancer Australia (OCA). The concert, titled Peace, Joy and Harmony, drew an enthusiastic crowd of around 200 people, filling […]
Jet skis are part of a safety crackdown. Photo: Sis Higgins.
THE message from maritime authorities this summer was clear: slow down, stay alert and respect the rules as a statewide compliance crackdown puts jet ski safety firmly in the spotlight. Operation Cool Your Jets, a week-long joint campaign led by NSW Maritime and NSW Police Marine Area Command, aimed at reducing risky behaviour and keeping […]
THIS is my 50th year in Port Stephens and I still feel like I am scratching the surface. Being a Fingal Bay resident for all those years I know every rock on the land and in the water. Fishing in my tinny everywhere from the Outer Light south to Rocky Point for all those years, […]
Restoration work is underway at Kiddies Corner, Fingal Bay Beach. Photo: supplied.
THE Fingal Bay Community Association has been putting a Port Stephens Council environmental grant to good use. The group is completing important restoration works along the foreshore at Kiddies Corner, which is located at the southern end of Fingal Bay beach. The project is focused on improving the health and resilience of the coastal environment […]
THE Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine (ACRRM) says extreme weather across Australia is increasing health risks for rural, remote and First Nations communities and placing growing pressure on local health services. ACRRM President Dr Rod Martin says prolonged and severe weather events are affecting the health of rural communities and will continue to […]
Member for Port Stephens and Families and Communities MP Kate Washington.
FOR the first time in more than two decades, foster and kinship carers across NSW have received a 20 percent increase to their care allowance. The increase aims to ease cost-of-living pressures and strengthen support for vulnerable children in out-of-home care. The tax-free increase took effect from 1 January 2026 and applies to authorised carers […]
THE NSW Government has launched an intensive pilot program for women leaving prison, which provides accommodation and employment in the Hunter. Funded with a donation from the Ian and Shirley Norman Foundation, the new residential facility will provide wrap-around support for women leaving custody. Member for Port Stephens Kate Washington MP said, “This is an […]
Pasture dieback can start in small patches. Photo: DPI.
Pasture dieback can start in small patches. Photo: DPI. Pasture dieback can start in small patches. Photo: DPI. THE region’s producers are being urged to report any sign of pasture dieback this Summer to the Department of Primary Industries, following detections in the North Coast and Hunter. Pasture dieback is a destructive condition that targets […]
PALLIATIVE Care Australia (PCA), the peak body for palliative care in Australia, has suggested ideas on how to relieve “bed block” in public hospitals in its 2026 Federal Budget submission. PCA CEO Camilla Rowland said palliative care is a practical, compassionate way to free up hospital beds while giving people the care they need at […]
LEGAL Aid NSW is urging anyone impacted by the recent bushfires in the Central Coast, Mid North Coast, Upper Hunter and Central West NSW to seek free legal help early. The Legal Aid NSW Disaster Response Legal Service (DRLS) can advise people about issues relating to insurance claims, tenancy rights, accessing disaster grants and payments, […]
