Northern Beaches Council has snared a top gong for its Resilience Strategy in the recent Local Government Excellence Awards.

Council was the winner in the Innovative Leadership Award category for a population over 150,000 for the Strategy Withstand, Adapt, Thrive. 

Council also received highly commended citations for its Forestville Library 24/7 initiative and for the redevelopment of the Mona Vale Surf Life Saving Club.

Mayor Sue Heins congratulated everyone involved in achieving the awards.

“I know our staff are very committed to achieving better outcomes for our community and these awards acknowledge that.

“It’s great that we came best in the field for our Resilience Strategy, which helps our community prepare for current and future challenges.

“The recent storms and floods, together with the bush fire emergency of 2019-20 and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic have shown the need for a cohesive, comprehensive strategy to withstand, adapt and thrive.

“Also, both the redevelopment of the Mona Vale Surf Club and the Forestville Library 24/7 initiative were outstanding projects and it’s great to see them get high recognition." Mayor Heins said.

The Mona Vale Surf Club was completed last year and is a purpose-built clubhouse designed to withstand the harsh coastal environment, and has solar panels and rainwater tanks to minimise its environmental footprint.

The build took just over 12 months to complete but was the result of more than ten years of planning.

In February this year, following a successful trial period, the Forestville 24/7 opened on a permanent basis.

Forestville Library is accessible 24 hours, 7 days a week to library members.

It provides a state-of-the-art, modern, flexible workspace for everyone from entrepreneurs, small business owners, and students when they need it, outside normal business hours.

Minister for Local Government, Ron Hoenig said: "The winners and all the nominees clearly demonstrate the excellent work being done on the frontline by close to 50,000 staff working across our state's 128 councils. I congratulate them all on their achievements."