Multiculturalism

Every local government area is made up of people from different races, cultures and backgrounds, and it’s this diversity that adds to the vibrancy of our communities.

Local Government NSW supports member councils throughout NSW to undertake a range of activities that foster multicultural communities and promote social cohesion.

Some of these activities include:

• Assisting culturally and linguistically diverse groups to participate in their community
• Refugee resettlement services for newly arrived migrants
• The promotion of Harmony Day
• Holding citizenship ceremonies and cultural events, and
• Facilitating peer support for council staff working with multicultural communities.

LGNSW works with local, state and federal governments and the not-for-profit sector by:

• Examining best practice models/frameworks to promote social cohesion and inclusion
• Exploring pragmatic responses to social cohesion challenges in our diverse communities, and
• Showcasing key strategies used in the local government sector

LGNSW also represents the local government sector on various steering committees.

LGNSW is a member of the NSW Government’s Joint Partnership Working Group on Refugee Resettlement, which aims to identify ways to strengthen the service system for refugees in response to issues identified by the wider stakeholder group.

LGNSW also participates in Multicultural NSW’s Community Resilience and Response Plan (COMPLAN) Committee. The purpose of the COMPLAN Committee is to provide a single coordination point for identifying, assessing and responding to issues impacting on community harmony in NSW.

Councils are encouraged to contact LGNSW with any feedback or issues they would like raised at these meetings.