A year on from the dawn of the COVID-19 health and economic crisis, City of Newcastle reflects on its pandemic response and its pivotal role in supporting the community through the single-largest social and economic crisis since World War II.
As local governments mapped a way forward in unchartered waters, City of Newcastle was one of the first in the state to unveil a $5.5 million community and economic resilience package in the early days of the pandemic - two weeks before NSW went into lockdown - with a strong focus on immediate, targeted support for the most vulnerable members of our community.
Facing many unknowns, the council acted quickly and decisively at the height of the evolving crisis to help the community through these challenges by offering financial relief, business and community support, while adapting to new ways of working to respond in an agile manner.
An independent evaluation of the resilience package by the University of Newcastle's Hunter Research Foundation Centre, presented to council at Tuesday night's committee meeting, found the swiftness and well-roundedness of the city's response to be two of our greatest strengths in dealing with the impacts of COVID-19.
Dr Anthea Bill, HRF Centre lead economist and co-author of the report, said the city's two-pronged approach had proven effective: targeted support for those who needed it most, complemented by broad support for the Newcastle community more generally.
Dr Anthea Bill, HRF Centre lead economist, said the city's two-pronged approach had proven effective.
Immediate cashflow support was a key component of the early roll-out of the resilience package, including $1.25 million worth of payment plans put in place for City of Newcastle businesses and residents, as well as $732,000 in rent reductions over a six-month period for 60 city businesses and community groups.
A further $172,466 was unlocked in rapid response grants to mobilise city organisations providing urgently-needed food, care packages and counselling on the ground.
The Boost Our Community grants program provided more than half a million dollars to help community groups cope with increased demand for services.
The City of Newcastle played to its strengths, drawing on the Novocastrian spirit of banding together and pitching in during times of great need, launching the Lean in Newy app to engage the community in supporting their neighbours, businesses and charities.
Collaboration and leadership has emerged as a legacy of the community economic resilience package, with the formation of the city taskforce under which key stakeholders from 17 leading organisations and employers across the city united to provide joint advocacy for those sectors hardest hit by COVID-19 and chart a path to recovery.
Since adopting the initial support package, City of Newcastle has continued to invest significantly to aid the community's recovery, with an additional $2.5 million added to a second phase of the resilience package.
The council has pivoted a range of existing programs, grants and sponsorships to increase available funding, including $280,000 in event sponsorship, $70,000 in economic development grants and $60,000 in community placemaking grants.
Events such as the inaugural flagship arts and cultural festival, New Annual, in which the council invested $1 million, provided much-needed support for the creative arts sector, which was one of the hardest-hit by COVID-19, sent reeling by the loss of the gig economy overnight.
This crisis is far from over, and the impacts of the pandemic will be felt for years to come.
As the City of Newcastle positions itself for recovery, there is a strong undercurrent of ongoing community support, both direct and indirect, in the medium and long-term, with $33.8 million invested in 2020-21 in projects sustaining local economic growth and jobs; the hallmark of which is an historic expanded capital works program.
This support also guided the development of the council's new economic development strategy, which includes initiatives to attract and retain new talent to the city and will play a critical role in Newcastle's post-COVID-19 economic recovery.
Together, these pillars of support will leave a lasting legacy in the City of Newcastle's COVID-19 response and recovery.
