Contact Us
Jo Anne Kelly
Executive Director
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Marjorie Kelly
Office Manager
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Sue Seager
Data & Community Research Officer
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Robert Silva
Strategic Compliance Lead
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The Backbone Team is the team on the ground, working with the community. It comprises ten staff members who have been specifically employed to deliver the initiative, working independently from all levels of government.
Get in touch
Executive Director
Office Manager
Data & Community Research Officer
Strategic Compliance Lead
Community Connector - Justice
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Community Connector
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Community Connector
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Communications and Media Officer
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Assistant Projects Officer
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Executive Support
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A dedicated group of local service, health, education, and government leaders providing guidance and support to shape and drive community-focused initiatives.
The Community Reference Table oversees the Learning the Macleay Backbone Team and comprises representatives from local service providers, Aboriginal community controlled organisations, non-government agencies, education and local government.
This team provides support and guidance to the Backbone Team and reports back to their individual organisations with recommendations from community that their organisations have influence over.
/learning-the-macleay/images/Debbie-Swanson.jpg "Debbie Swanson")
Director of Dalaigur & Scribbly Gum Dalai
Debbie has lived in the Macleay Valley all her life, raising her family in this wonderful community. An Early Childhood Educator since the 1990s, she holds a Bachelor of Teaching and a Graduate Diploma in Inclusive Education.
She joined Dalaigur Pre-School in 2014 and became Managing Director of Dalaigur and Scribbly Gum Dalai in 2020, supporting both services to achieve strong Aboriginal Early Education outcomes across NSW.
Deeply connected to community, Debbie is committed to advocating for early education that supports Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children to grow strong in culture and reach their full potential.
Business Development Operations Manager, Aboriginal Employment Strategy Ltd
Ricky is a proud Dunghutti man, born and raised in Kempsey. His passion is supporting community, especially in terms of finding meaningful employment and the positive impacts this creates across the entire community.
The Cross Sector Group consists of representatives from Local, State and Federal Government, as well as Philanthropy and non-government agencies.
The inaugural Cross Sector Group meeting took place at the Macleay Vocational College in March 2024.
The Cross Sector Group consists of representatives from Local, State and Federal Government, as well as Philanthropy and non-government agencies.
Its role is to provide support and advice on the delivery of the Learning the Macleay initiative and to ensure that the government agencies delivering services in the local community are meeting local needs.
Our work is made possible by the generous support of our funding partners, driving positive change in our community.
Just Reinvest NSW (JR NSW) supports Aboriginal communities to develop their own solutions for change, making them safer and more just. Their goal is to reduce Aboriginal People’s interactions with the criminal justice system.
Just Reinvest NSW is working with Learning the Macleay team to establish systems change priorities in a Stronger Places, Stronger People partnership.
justreinvest.org.au
The Dusseldorp Forum is supporting the Learning the Macleay team to sustain community-led solutions and to build community agency, wellbeing and system reform capacity.
The training provided to the Learning the Macleay Media Team was funded by the Dusseldorp Foundation.
dusseldorp.org.au
The Department of Social Services oversees and funds the Learning the Macleay Initiative under the Stronger Places, Stronger People programme in a joint partnership between the Federal and State Governments.
dss.gov.au
The Department of Regional New South Wales oversees and funds the Learning the Macleay Initiative under the Stronger Places, Stronger People programme in a joint partnership between the Federal and State Governments.
nsw.gov.au
Explore our range of publications and resources, designed to provide deeper insights into our initiatives and offer valuable tools for community engagement.
In 2023 thirty people gathered to discuss the findings from Learning the Macleay early stage mapping process.
Download the Learning Circle Action Plan
In 2021 a meeting was held with local 28 Aboriginal organisations and Leon Donovan, manager of National Indigenous Australians Agency (NIAA).The community members wanted to discuss youth unrest, racism, violence, anti-social behaviour, and drug use in Kempsey. They were concerned that a number of mainstream organisations receive funding based on data about First Nations people, but the organisations are not culturally safe.In 2023 a Cultural Safety Summit was held in Kempsey and this report is the outcome of that summit.
Download the Cultural Safety Summit Report
Gallery
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