About the Awards

The CITIZEN, SENIOR CITIZEN and YOUNG CITIZEN categories reward and recognise individuals who have made a noteworthy contribution during the past year, while having regard to their previous achievements and ongoing contribution over and above normal employment duties. Outstanding contribution and community service includes areas such as education, health, fundraising, charitable and voluntary service, business, sport, arts, the environment, or any other area that contributes to the advancement and wellbeing of the community.

The COMMUNITY SERVICE categories recognise residents who have given outstanding service to a single organisation or field of endeavour above normal employment duties.

Eligibility Criteria –Please read carefully

Nominees must be:

• Nominees must be Australian citizens and must be residents of Whyalla.
  (Unless there are exceptional circumstances).
• Current Council Members and employees of Whyalla Council are ineligible for nomination.
• Previous winners are excluded from being re-nominated for 12 months.
• Nominees cannot be self-nominated or nominated by family members and/or Council employees.
• Nominees for Senior Citizen must be aged 60 years or over on 26 January 2027.
• Nominees for Young Citizen must be aged over 16 years and under 30 years of age on 26 January 2027.

Important Information – please read carefully

• Unsuccessful nominees from a previous year, may be re-nominated.
• Nominees should live, work or be active within the Whyalla Local Government area.
• Nominations may be submitted by groups (e.g. committees, associations, etc.) or individuals, with or without the knowledge of the person being nominated.
• The nature of individual awards place emphasis on what the person has done for the community, rather than achievements in their own personal development or ambitions.
• If the professional employment of a nominee is interwoven within the nomination, it is essential that sufficient information is provided to show a clear separation of voluntary work, compared to that undertaken as part of their employment, or employment related work that is “above and beyond” the normal expectation of the job.
• Nominations should endeavour to include as much concise detail of the person’s involvement as possible.  
  For example, instead of stating “chairperson from 2018 to 2026,” it is preferable to outline how their leadership benefited the organisation, or if a committee person, indicate examples of their commitment/achievements.
• Nominations with insufficient information or are illegible may be returned to the nominee for further information or may not be accepted.

Guidance and Criteria – please read carefully

In choosing the recipients of the Australia Day Awards, consideration is given to the nominee’s achievements in the year immediately prior to receiving the award, as well as their past achievements and ongoing contribution to the community.

Individuals can only be nominated in one category. (An individual should not be nominated in multiple categories with a view of improving their potential of an award.) The Judging Panel reserves the right to transfer nominations between categories, if deemed appropriate.

Specific Selection Criteria that must be addressed includes:

For CITIZEN, SENIOR CITIZEN and YOUNG CITIZEN awards:

• Significant contribution to the City of Whyalla.
• An inspirational role model for both the Whyalla and Australian communities.
• The scope of impact the individual’s contribution has on Whyalla.

For COMMUNITY SERVICE awards:

• Voluntary commitment to the Whyalla community and/or sporting club/s
• An inspirational role model for the Whyalla community and/or sporting club/s
• The scope of impact the individual’s contribution has on Whyalla and/or sporting club/s

Other Selection Criteria

The Judging Panel will also consider the following (in all categories), in assessing and comparing nominations against the above criteria:

• Personal, academic and professional achievements.
• Contribution in the relevant field (how has the nominee ‘put back’ into their field to benefit others).
• Demonstrated leadership, innovation and creativity.
• Contribution to development of regional community and/or economy.
• Previous awards and recognition.
• Voluntary work beyond paid employment.
• Nature and length of activity or service.
• Achievements as an individual or as part of a group or organisation.

The Nomination

• Nominations may contain up to 1,000 words.
• The emphasis of nominations should be placed on the quality of factual content, rather than elaborate layout, or lengthy descriptive words.
• A maximum of three additional pages of supportive photos, newspaper clippings, etc may be attached.
• Inadequate information provided may see the nomination returned for further information or rejected.

How to Nominate

CLICK HERE TO COMPLETE THE NOMINATION FORM