From mechanics and plant operations to parks and gardens and workplace health and safety, our apprentices and trainees are gaining practical experience while helping deliver essential services for our community.
These opportunities are not only building careers, they are helping secure the skilled workforce our region will need for years to come.
The five young people pictured represent just some of the talent currently developing within council.
Apprentice mechanic Landon Daggett, workplace health and safety trainee Ella Hensley and plant operator trainee Cayden Hawley are all participants in the NSW Government's Fresh Start Program, which supports education, training and employment opportunities within local government.
Alongside them are parks and gardens apprentices Danny Hall and Nicholas Palmer, who are developing valuable skills while helping maintain the public spaces our community enjoys every day.
Council's apprentice and trainee cohort also includes apprentice mechanic Aaron De Zilwa.
Landon's journey is a great example of the opportunities council can help create.
After completing a brief work experience stint with council in Year 10, and later undertaking a school-based traineeship while at Deniliquin High School, he is now progressing through his apprenticeship as a mechanic.
His story shows how local training opportunities can grow into long-term careers right here in the Edward River region.
For regional communities, apprenticeships and traineeships are about more than filling jobs.
They create pathways for local people to build rewarding careers close to home while ensuring important skills remain in our community.
By investing in skills development today, council is helping build a stronger workforce and a stronger future for the Edward River region.