"A total focus and commitment to improving the lives of people living in remote communities in the Central Desert region;" that's the primary aim of Central Desert Regional Council's recently published Family Wellbeing Strategy: It's Everyone's Responsibility, according to Council President Adrian Dixon.

"The Family Wellbeing Strategy is the culmination of months of discussions and planning and sets the standard for the Council's effort. This is a really important document, it provides us with a roadmap of where we want to go and clear directions on how to get there," Mr Dixon said.

Mr Dixon considers that too often, well meaning people or services make an effort without much thought for what else is going on in the community or in people's lives. "In our lives, everything is connected to everything else. It's like the ripple effect. It means that when services are being provided, it's important that thought is given to other things that are happening that affect our lives. That means working together and that's everyone's responsibility."

The Family Wellbeing Strategy has family and community at its heart, clearly setting out how the Council will work to improve the lives of people living in the Central Desert Region.

Chief Executive Officer, Cathryn Hutton, explained that the Strategy is built on five pillars; appropriate and accessible community services, positive environments for young people, safe communities, respect for tradition and culture, and community involvement.

"The Council is a whole of life organisation. We provide services from the cradle to the grave. These five pillars provide us with the foundation of our effort. Whether we are talking about our community, our children, our youth, our adults, our community leaders or our elders, the five outcome areas drive who we partner with, what we do, and when and how we do it," Ms Hutton said.

The Family Wellbeing Strategy not only defines the aspirations of the Council but clearly establishes the key measures by which the performance of the Council will be judged. It sets the benchmark for delivery of integrated service delivery as well as better communication, cooperation and accountability across the Council Region.

"This Strategy raises the bar on the way we work. It challenges our staff and our partners to work together with our residents, to be held publicly accountable for our effort, and to take pride in going that extra yard to make a difference in people's lives. It's everyone's responsibility," Ms Hutton said.

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For further information contact John Gaynor, Director Community Services, on 08 8958 9500 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

The Yuelamu Local Authority were relieved and pleased by Power and Water's announcement that a solution has been found for Yuelamu's ongoing water issues.  

At their meeting on Thursday 8 September Power and Water outlined their plans to install a dual reticulation system to all houses in Yuelamu.  This system will see a single tap in each home providing safe drinking water.

The installation of the new piping and taps means residents will no longer need to access drinking water using the temporary single outlet point in the community which was introduced after a naturally occurring toxic algae bloom was found in the dam.

Power and Water advised that funding of $1.2M from the Northern Territory Government has been confirmed, including work to install the new system to people's homes and drilling of a new bore to ensure reliability of the current water supply.

Yuelamu's drinking water will continue to come from the borefield and be treated by the advanced water treatment plant. 

"Community members have been working with Power and Water to look for alternative water sources.  Unfortunately no alternative acquifers have been found so the community will continue to use the existing borefield," President Adrian Dixon advised.  "Although this puts pressure on the existing borefield, community residents have been working with Power and Water to reduce water usage in the community".  

In May 2015 Power and Water installed ‘smart’ water meters on all lots in the community to identify leaks and abnormal increases in water use.   The smart water meters in the community will continue to be monitored in 2016-17. This has proven effective in reducing excessive water consumption in the community.

"We understand that Power and Water is still working through land access issues with the CLC", President Dixon said, "however, we are hopeful that Yuelamu residents will have drinking water to their homes very soon."