A big thank you to everyone who came along to the Drought Information Night in Quirindi.
The event, hosted at Quirindi Rugby Club, welcomed around 160 primary producers from Quirindi and the surrounding areas.
Speakers kicked off the evening with talks on mental health and well being and financial services and support available to primary producers in our area.
The first speaker to take the floor was Sarah Green from the Rural Adversity Mental Health Program at HNE Health. Sarah encouraged the audience to open up conversation around mental health. She had some great ways of broaching the topic and beginning a conversation with someone who insists ‘they’ll be right’. Sarah’s talk was positive yet to the point, stressing the importance of wellbeing and highlighting the subtle signs induced by prolonged periods stress which can often go unnoticed or, in times gone by, were not recognised as signposts for a larger problem.
Next up was Sarah Goulden from the Rural Financial Counselling Service and Allan Bleechmoore from Centrelink. Both discussed the financial subsidies available to producers in the area and went into detail about the criteria that applies. You can find all the relevant information on the drought fund assistance subsidies and guidelines on the Rural Assistance Authority’s website, www.raa.nsw.gov.au. You can also download the applications handed out at the drought information night or apply online here at www.raa.nsw.gov.au/assistance/emergency-drought-relief. If you prefer to speak to someone, you can reach the Rural Assistance Authority on 1800 678 593.
The talks were concluded by Jackie Barker from the Local Land Services. She discussed the subsidised services available to primary producers in our area. These services include, water testing, feed sampling and much more. You can contact the Ag extension team at the Local Land Services on 1300 795 299 or you can find all your local contacts in the North West Area at https://northwest.lls.nsw.gov.au/our-region/contact-us.
A wonderful dinner and drinks followed the evenings’ discussions, allowing those in attendance to discuss and digest all the facts they had taken on board throughout the evening.
Thank you again to everyone involved in the evening. A special thank you to Quirindi Rugby Club, who provided the drinks for the entire evening, to Quirindi IGA who provided additional catering materials and to everyone who came along to the evening.
Please find below contact details and useful links:
Sarah Green – Rural Adversity Mental Health Program, HNE Health – 0438 296 015
Sarah Goulden – Rural Financial Counselling Service – 0427 924 798
Allan Bleechmore – Centrelink – 0477 767 389
02 6763 8203
Jackie Barker – Local Land Services – 0427 058 976
Rural Assistance Authority – Transport Subsidy application forms –https://www.raa.nsw.gov.au/assistance/emergency-drought-relief
Local Land Services – Drought Response Resources – https://www.lls.nsw.gov.au/emergency/drought
Rural Assistance Advisory Committee – https://www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/climate-and-emergencies/droughthub/information-and-resources/raac
Department of Primary Industries – Drought Hub – https://www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/climate-and-emergencies/droughthub