Mayor Nikki Williams was one of the locals who farewelled Andy and Scrubby. Photo: Leigh Watson. Andy and Scrubby take the first of many steps. Photo: Leigh Watson. Andy’s trailer emblazoned with statistics that drive home the reality of Australia’s gambling harm. Photo: Leigh Watson. ANTI-GAMBLING activist Andy Hope has reached Camden Haven on foot […]
St Joesph’s littlest learners celebrate 100 days of learning
Staff and students of St Joesph’s celebrating 100 years of learning. Photo: supplied. Olive celebrating 100 days of big school. Lincoln celebrating 100 days of learning. SCHOOLS across the state have experienced a peculiar phenomenon in recent weeks, reporting an unusual influx of walking canes, knitted cardigans, and grey wigs. The occurrence appears to coincide […]

Camden Haven High School inspiring the next generation of STEM leaders
CHHS educator Jane Gallagher and Alison Penfold, Federal Member for Lyne. Photo: Kim Ambrose/SaltyFoxFotography. Tim Polo from Port Macquarie Engineering. Photo: Kim Ambrose/SaltyFoxFotography. Curtis Gibson from AE Gibson and Sons. Photo: Kim Ambrose/SaltyFoxFotography. James Langley from CHHS. Photo: Kim Ambrose/SaltyFoxFotography. Alison Penfold MP with Trinity Perry. Photo: Kim Ambrose/SaltyFoxFotography. CLASSROOMS across Camden Haven turned into […]

Camden Haven students take win in robot soccer competition
Gem Fowley and Trinity Perry, winners of the Open Division of the Hunter Regional RoboCup Championships. Photo: Kim Ambrose/SaltyFoxFotography. Members of the CHHS Robotics Team at work. Photo: Kim Ambrose/SaltyFoxFotography. GEM Fowley and Trinity Perry, two talented Year 7 students from Camden Haven High School (CHHS), have broken boundaries in the competitive world of robotics. […]
Rate cuts welcomed, but cost of living still looms over regional Australia
THE Reserve Bank’s decision to cut interest rates by 0.25 percent on Tuesday 13 August, has been welcomed as a positive step for households across the nation, particularly the three million families managing mortgages. The reduction equates to a saving of $74 per month on a $500,000 mortgage. Member for Cowper Pat Conaghan, who is […]
Volunteers plant 300 trees on National Tree Day
Volunteers from Hastings Landcare. Over 300 trees were planted by the volunteers More than 20 volunteers joined Hastings Landcare and local landholders on National Tree Day, planting over 300 native trees to restore habitat, boost biodiversity and create a vital wildlife corridor. The planting took place on private land that was once a cleared paddock […]

Wauchope fundraiser to support flooded farmers and businesses
The Port Macquarie-Hastings region’s farmers and businesses are still recovering from May’s floods. Photos: Wauchope SES. The Port Macquarie-Hastings region’s farmers and businesses are still recovering from May’s floods. Photos: Wauchope SES. RAISING vital funds for flood-affected farmers and agricultural businesses across the Port Macquarie-Hastings region, the “Hastings + Hinterland Town and […]
Breakthrough for rural landowners as NSW inquiry launched
John Ruddick MLC, Cr Mark Hornshaw and Libertarian Party President Ross Cameron. Comboyne residents Tony and Josie Makin with daughters Adelle and Sofia, son-in-law John, and granddaughter Catherine. OWNERS of rural properties across NSW are celebrating a major breakthrough with the establishment of an Upper House inquiry to simplify the rules around building second dwellings […]
MPs call for new disaster declaration
THE Members for Lyne, Myall Lakes and Upper Hunter are calling on the state and federal governments to declare last weekend’s flooding across the region as an additional disaster event, enabling affected landholders and primary producers to access further support. With farms and paddocks across the Hunter and Mid North Coast regions once again inundated, […]

Port Macquarie family’s 300km walk in honour of former INXS manager Chris M Murphy OAM
“MY DAD was an absolute whirlwind,” said Jeri Wambeek, the proud daughter of former INXS manager Chris M. Murphy OAM. “He was ‘go, go, go’. Determined, bold, brave, and often ruthless. But always with a heart for dreaming big.” On 14 October, however, it will be Jeri and her brother Jack, along with her sons […]