02 6499 2222 council@begavalley.nsw.gov.au
Bega Valley Commemorative Civic Centre South East Centre for Contemporary Art (SECCA) Bega Valley Shire Library Sapphire Aquatic Centre Sapphire Coast Tourism
Have your say

Role of a Mayor and Councillors

Contact details for all Councillors, Mayor and Deputy Mayor and information on their role.

Bega Valley Shire Council is governed by nine elected Councillors. The Councillors are elected every four years with the next election due to be held in September 2024.

Councillors provide leadership and establish policy and strategic direction for the organisation and the future of the Shire.

There are no wards or ridings in the Bega Valley Shire so the Councillors are elected by the people to represent the interests of all ratepayers and residents. The mayor and deputy mayor are elected by the Councillors in September of each year.

Role of Mayor, Deputy Mayor and Councillor


  • To exercise, in cases of necessity, the policy-making functions of the governing body of the council between meetings of the council
  • To exercise such other functions of the council as the council determines
  • To preside at meetings of the council
  • To carry out the civic and ceremonial functions of the mayoral office

  • The councillors may elect a person from among their number to be the deputy mayor.
  • The person may be elected for the mayoral term or a shorter term.
  • The deputy mayor may exercise any function of the mayor at the request of the mayor or if the mayor is prevented by illness, absence or otherwise from exercising the function or if there is a casual vacancy in the office of mayor.
  • The councillors may elect a person from among their number to act as deputy mayor if the deputy mayor is prevented by illness, absence or otherwise from exercising a function under this section, or if no deputy mayor has been elected.

Councillors are elected for a four-year term. 

The role of a councillor:

  1. As a member of the governing body of the Council is:
    • to provide a civic leadership role in guiding the development of the community strategic plan for the area and to be responsible for monitoring the implementation of the council’s delivery program
    • to direct and control the affairs of the council in accordance with this Act
    • to participate in the optimum allocation of the council’s resources for the benefit of the area
    • to play a key role in the creation and review of the council’s policies and objectives and criteria relating to the exercise of the council’s regulatory functions
    • to review the performance of the council and its delivery of services, and the delivery program and revenue policies of the council.
  2. As an elected person is:
    • to represent the interests of the residents and ratepayers
    • to provide leadership and guidance to the community
    • to facilitate communication between the community and the council

How to contact a Councillor

Councillors can be contacted by phone, email or post, visit Meet your Councillors and Mayor for contact details.  Councillors can respond to any correspondence sent directly to them.

Correspondence requiring an official response will be responded to by staff and should be addressed to:

The Cief Executive Officer
Address: Bega Valley Shire Council, PO Box 492, BEGA   NSW   2550
Email: council@begavalley.nsw.gov.au
Fax: 6499 2200

If you would like any or all of the Councillors to have copies of any official correspondence, you can ask Council staff to provide a copy of your correspondence to them.  Alternatively you can forward copies of your correspondence to Councillors yourself using the contact details above.

Councillors' charter

Vision

  • We work together as short term custodians of the Bega Valley Shire.
  • We commit to a long term vision to achieve the best outcomes with and for the community.

Mission

Respect:

  • give and receive constructive feedback.
  • value and understand people’s differences
  • we are courteous and considerate
  • acknowledge our mistakes
  • promote a safe and healthy work culture
  • abide by Chatham House rules

Integrity:

  • lead by example
  • set a productive culture
  • do things that we commit to do
  • act with honesty and integrity in all our dealings
  • we are trustworthy

Communication:

  • actively listen
  • foster a professional and warm work environment
  • address the issue not the person
  • ensure all views are heard
  • go to the source

Professionalism:

  • consider a shire wide context in decisions
  • start with the broad strategic issues
  • explore and deliver innovative and creative solutions
  • aim for a cooperative team based approach

 

 

© Bega Valley Shire Council 2025

Our council websites

Contact Us

Follow us

Sign up for newsletters