A surprising number of people plan to take photos, the teddy bear and the favourite pet’s ashes with them in their ‘go bag’ when natural disaster strikes according to recent disaster survey research. The authors note that when asked what was important one participant wrote: “My childhood bear. He is going to the grave with me. Apart from that, nothing matters much’.  But people are generally strikingly underprepared for disasters. A worrying thought as a potentially hot summer shimmers into view. In case you’ve forgotten, Daylesford is in a bushfire prone area with the Wombat Forest right next door. So far we’ve been fortunate. Daylesford and Hepburn Springs...

A loophole in Victorian law that allows untested private prosecutions to effectively shut down local councils has been closed by Parliament. Under changes now before the Victorian Parliament to the Local Government Act, a councillor will only be automatically stood down where criminal proceedings are commenced by, or on behalf of, a law-enforcement agency. Earlier this year, local businessman David Penman brought charges against five of Hepburn Shire Council's seven councillors—Mayor Tony Clark, Don Henderson, Shirley Cornish, Pat Hockey, and Lesley Hewitt—as well as Chief Executive Bradley Thomas. The charges related to allegations that the CEO and Councillors has misused public money and that the Hepburn...

Hepburn Shire's outstanding rates and charges reached $5.7 million at 30 June 2026, about 20 per cent of council's annual rate income. Arrears grew by $670,000 during 2025/26 alone. Unpaid rates have gone up five fold over the past decade. It's one of the main reasons Council finances are in trouble. Council officers point to two causes: cost-of-living pressure on households and council's decision not to take anyone to court over unpaid rates, even when other attempts to get payment had failed. According to the first stage of an independent review of Hepburn Shire's Long Term Financial Plan tabled at this weeks council meeting Hepburn Shire Council...

Pam Gleeson is a highly regarded Australian artist whose creative practice has evolved through a distinguished career in both photography and painting. After graduating...

Pam Gleeson is a highly regarded Australian artist whose creative practice has evolved through a distinguished career in both photography and painting. After graduating...