The Regional Development, Regional Programs, Regional Recovery, and Inclusive Infrastructure and Experience teams work to enhance the economic and social wellbeing of regional NSW communities.
The Regional Development team works with local government, businesses, industry and communities to boost jobs, attract workers, identify and enable investment, and improve social outcomes for people in regional NSW.
The Regional Programs team facilitates and delivers sector excellence and leadership in grants design, administration, evaluation and program assurance to support grant funding programs that fosters economic growth and enhanced community wellbeing in regional NSW.
Leading the delivery of programs and initiatives in support of regions impacted by disasters to aid recovery and build resilience is the focus of the Regional Recovery team.
The Inclusive Infrastructure and Experience team works to enhance accessibility and inclusion in regional communities.
Find out more about these teams below.
Regional Development
What we do
The Regional Development team works with communities, industry, businesses, and state and local government to deliver programs that improve the economic and social wellbeing of people living and working in regional NSW.
The team works to:
- improve regional NSW liveability via regional investment and place-based solutions
- drive regional economic development by working with businesses and industries to expand, transition and recover from the impacts of disaster
- deliver programs and projects that increase jobs and workforce attraction, particularly for Aboriginal and young people
- provide on the ground leadership and governance
Aboriginal Partnership Programs
The Aboriginal Partnership program team collaborates with local Aboriginal community representatives. They use relevant NSW Government programs and co-design solutions for Aboriginal people in regional NSW to:
- increase economic participation
- grow employment
- improve skills and employability
- enhance services.
Aboriginal Partnership Coordinators are based in each region. See the Regional Aboriginal Partnerships Program for more information.
Contacts
| Location | Email address |
|---|---|
| Office of the Executive Director | regional.development@regional.nsw.gov.au |
| North Coast | regional.northcoast@regional.nsw.gov.au |
| New England North West | regional.nenw@regional.nsw.gov.au |
| Hunter and Central Coast | regional.huntercentralcoast@regional.nsw.gov.au |
| Orana Far West | regional.western@regional.nsw.gov.au |
| Central West | regional.centralwest@regional.nsw.gov.au |
| Illawarra Shoalhaven | regional.illawarrashoalhaven@regional.nsw.gov.au |
| Riverina Murray | regional.riverinamurray@regional.nsw.gov.au |
| South East | regional.southeast@regional.nsw.gov.au |
Regional Programs
What we do
The Regional Programs team oversee the delivery of programs that:
- support growing regional centres
- activate local economies
- improve community services and infrastructure.
Regional Programs takes an informed, innovative and solutions-focused approach to grants administration and governance when delivering tailored grant funding programs to communities and businesses across regional NSW.
The branch leads DRNSW programs and services:
- deliver key programs – liveability, economic, community and job creation
- grant, financial and data management and reporting
- best practice grant management including WoG platforms
- strategy and policy to create new funding streams to address regional needs
- build capability of communities to maximise benefits from funding streams.
Grants Management
The Grants Management team facilitates the administration of grants programs, including:
- coordination and execution of grant payments
- financial management
- project monitoring and compliance
- Whole of Government Grant Management System.
Program Insights and Evaluation
To ensure each grants program is transparent and effective, the Program Insights and Evaluation team coordinates:
- cross-branch strategy, policy and continuous business improvement
- program evaluation
- data and reporting.
Aboriginal Outcomes
What we do
The Aboriginal Outcomes team’s vision is to provide better outcomes for Aboriginal people, communities and businesses across regional NSW.
We deliver on embedding Aboriginal inclusion as core business, enabling
each group in our cluster to systematically, strategically and operationally deliver on our vision.
Key enablers of this vision are the following inaugural documents:
- Aboriginal Outcomes Strategy 2022-2025 (PDF 5.14MB)
- Aboriginal Employment Strategy,
- Aboriginal Procurement Participation Commitment
- Outcome and Business Plan
Our key domains of work include:
- central office function
- place and strength based projects
- economic investment, attraction and participation
- governance and capability in Aboriginal entities
- workforce enrichment
- evidence-based know-how
- cultural sustainability
- Aboriginal procurement
- digital connectivity.
A key priority of the Department is to ensure Aboriginal inclusion is featured throughout the organisation’s activities and to enable each business unit to deliver on the intent of the Aboriginal Outcomes Strategy.
A core outcome of this strategy is to make the Department of Regional NSW an employer of choice for Aboriginal people. This will be achieved by:
- growing Aboriginal cultural knowledge and understanding within the Department,
- building Aboriginal cultural knowledge and understanding into the organisation’s processes and practices.
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Aboriginal Outcomes - On Country
Regional Recovery
What we do
Regional Recovery designs and delivers programs and initiatives to help regions of NSW to recover, rebuild and prosper following the unprecedented impacts of all natural disasters, including drought, bushfires, floods and COVID-19.
Regional Recovery Programs
The Regional Recovery Programs team design and deliver programs to aid regional NSW communities in their recovery following the impacts of drought, storms, bushfires, floods, and COVID-19.
The Regional Recovery Programs team supports social, economic and environmental recovery initiatives tailored for regions most impacted by disasters, to build more resilient communities and industries for the future.
The Regional Recovery team also supports the Minister for Youth and coordinates recovery efforts across regional NSW in cooperation with Local Land Services, Department of Primary Industries and Public Works.
Regional Youth
What we do
The Office of Regional Youth provide a coordinated, whole-of-government strategic approach to issues facing young people in regional NSW. The team ensures young people’s voices are heard and can influence regional youth initiatives.
Visit the Regional Youth pages for more information on programs, including the Regional Youth Taskforce and Youth Radio.
Other programs include the Regional Youth Community Coordinator initiative, which engages youth and community stakeholders to address challenges faced by young people in regional communities as part of natural disaster and COVID-19 recovery.
Key documents include the Regional NSW Youth Framework and the Regional NSW Youth Action Plan and the Regional Youth Insights Report.
Strategy and Economic Policy
What we do
The Strategy and Economic Policy team is a critical adviser to the Minister for Regional NSW and the Department’s Secretary on long-term opportunities and challenges for regional NSW. With its’ state-wide lens on regional NSW, the team takes a central role in partnering with other departments and levels of government to develop evidence-based solutions to complex issues affecting regional communities.
Key programs
Regional Economic Development Strategies
The team developed the NSW Government’s Regional Economic Development Strategies and supports councils, stakeholders and government agencies to apply them in decision-making.
Drought coordination
The team leads whole of government coordination for community and industry drought preparedness. This includes implementing the Regional Drought Resilience Planning Program in partnership with the Commonwealth and the local government sector.
Regional Housing Policy
What we do
The Regional Housing Policy team generates housing solutions for regional NSW. The team takes a place-based approach to planning and policy development and delivery. Some of its key focuses include:
- developing place-based responses to housing pressures
- advocating for a regional focus across government
- designing and delivering a range of programs and initiatives, and
- providing policy advice on regional housing issues across government.
Inclusive Infrastructure and Experience
What we do
The Inclusive Infrastructure and Experience team promotes best-practice accessibility, inclusion, and universal design principles.
The team looks for opportunities in:
- infrastructure
- place
- event experiences.
The team works with agencies across both the public and private sector on infrastructure, program planning, policy and design with the aim of ensuring that accessibility and inclusion planning and delivery initiatives:
- benchmark best practice, and
- go beyond compliance standards.
SUBPAC vest rollout at regional events
The Department of Regional NSW is making accessibility and inclusion a key priority at all public events.
SUBPAC vests accurately transfer radio-frequency into a multi-sensory tactile experience, providing users with the ability to physically feel the beat of music. SUBPAC vests can help improve the experience of live events for members of the d/Deaf, hard of hearing or DeafBlind community.
The Department of Regional NSW is the first government agency in Australia to formally partner with SUBPAC, and is now making SUBPAC vests available through events funded as part of the Regional Events Acceleration Fund (REAF). Two SUBPAC vests were trialled at the 2023 Tamworth Country Music Festival and have since been made available at all REAF funded events.
The SUBPAC vest rollout is part of a wider Government strategy to promote and support diversity and inclusion.
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SUBPAC vest trial at 2023 Tamworth Country Music Festival
For more information, contact:
Paul Nunnari
Director, Inclusive Infrastructure, Placemaking and Experience
Department of Regional NSW
E: paul.nunnari@regional.nsw.gov.au
Useful resources
When planning an event, you are legally required to provide access for people with disability. Below is a list of useful resources you can refer to when planning your event.
Premier's Department Event Starter Guide - Accessibility at events.
For more about the Department's strategy and programs see Regional NSW.
For more about the Department's role and functions see Department of Regional NSW.