17.1 C
Byron Shire
July 2, 2026

State Government promises to support local TAFE colleges

Latest News

Women to the front: the female voices shaping the 2026 Byron Writers Festival

The 2026 Byron Writers Festival program puts women front and centre. Journalists, novelists, and an award-winning columnist bring an extraordinary breadth of stories to Bundjalung Country this August.

Other News

Councillor’s integrity

In last week’s Echo, there was a wonderful editorial, plus another article about the Station Street development for affordable...

Celebrating native foods this NAIDOC Week at Mullumbimby Farmers Market

NAIDOC Week is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate and learn from the world’s oldest living culture, and one of the easiest ways to do that is through Australia’s remarkable native foods.

Former Paralympian loses critical NDIS support

Public support is being sought to help wheelchair-bound former Paralympic athlete gold medalist Tracy Barrell with her living expenses after an alleged National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) decision reduced her ability to be fed and assisted.

Casino Suspension Bridge opens

Minister For Small Business, Recovery and North Coast Janelle Saffin joined Mayor Robert Mustow and Member for Page Kevin Hogan to officially opening the Casino Suspension Bridge today (Saturday).

Calls for more public transport

Public transport in the Northern Rivers currently consists of a few buses that run infrequently and have very few...

The John Mitchell Memorial Golf Even

On Sunday, 16 August, the Lennox Head Lions will be staging their annual Golf Tournament at the beautiful Byron...

The NSW Government has promised that TAFE will remain at the heart of vocational education and training in the Northern Rivers.

Minister for Skills, TAFE and Tertiary Education, Steve Whan said the NSW Government was focused on the work required to secure a resilient future for TAFE NSW in the region.

Flood water at the North Coast TAFE in Conway Street. Picture: Contributed Yokok Hendrix

‘I’m here in Lismore today to see for myself the impact the devastating floods of 2022 had on the TAFE NSW campus,’ Minister Whan said.

‘Floodwaters damaged every building on the site, and destroyed valuable specialist equipment like kilns, digital cameras, nursing equipment, hundreds of computers and the entire library collection.’

‘It’s a testament to the commitment of TAFE NSW employees, many of whom suffered personal property losses, that training services recommenced within three weeks of the floods using TAFE NSW facilities at Casino, Wollongbar, and Ballina, as well as Southern Cross University.

“Since then, TAFE NSW has been working on options to protect our assets from future harm, deliver on training needs for the local community, and ensure the community is part of that process.”

NSW Parliamentary Secretary for Disaster Recovery, and Member for Lismore, Janelle Saffin welcomed the NSW Labor Government’s commitment to restoring TAFE NSW in Lismore and across the region.

‘For generations, TAFE NSW Lismore has played a vital role in training our nurses, artists, and hospitality workers,’ Ms Saffin said.

‘The need for a strong, public training provider with the capacity to deliver on the skills Lismore and the Norther Rivers community need to actively participate in growing the economy has never been more important.’



For four decades The Echo has printed the stories some people loved, some people hated, and some pretended not to read. If you want us to keep telling the truth, the real truth, not the sugar-coated version. We’ll need your support to keep the presses rolling.

If you are a local business owner help us and in turn we help you. All The Echo asks for is advertising, not a free ride. It is every advert in The Echo and on www.echo.net.au, which creates the space for all the stories and coverage of community events, happenings and concerns.

If you are a reader you can become a sponsor of The Echo. Your support keeps the us independent.

Even a small one-off or regular donation from you will help keep the echo’s independent voice alive and strong.

Support Us

Become one of the supporters who helps keep independent, local journalism alive in the Byron Shire by contributing anything from as little as the cost of a coffee each month.

You're Wonderful, Thank you for supporting independent journalism in the Byron Shire

You’re supporting The Echo, thank you

Your contribution is keeping independent, local journalism alive in the Northern Rivers.

Because of supporters like you, we can keep every story free for everyone — no paywall, no exceptions. Your money goes directly to funding our newsroom of 40-odd local workers covering the stories that matter to this community.

Tell us what you think, give us your opinion

The Echo loves your letters and comments and is proud to provide a community forum on the issues that matter most to our readers and the people of the NSW north coast. So don’t be a passive reader, email us your epistles at editor@echo.net.au.

The letters deadline for The Echo is noon Friday. Letters longer than 200 words may be cut. The publication of letters is at the discretion of the letters editor. Please remember to include your full name, address and telephone number.

Online comments are no longer available.

Osher’s next act: transforming recovery into a toolkit

Byron Writers Festival talks with best-selling author Osher Günsberg whose new book, So What? Now What? is a mental health toolkit and a compelling follow-up to his critically-acclaimed 2018 memoir, Back, After The Break.

BaySounds opens the door for songwriters

Some songs arrive quickly. Others sit half-finished in notebooks, voice memos or guitar cases for years before somebody finally hears them.

Bay FM’s Mia Armitage heads to Germany

Northern Rivers journalist Mia Armitage has been selected for a prestigious international internship with Germany’s public broadcaster, Deutsche Welle.

Biosecurity strategy up for comment

Feedback is now open on the draft NSW Biosecurity Strategy that the government says will provide the focus for improvements to the state’s biosecurity framework over the next 10 years.