City culture
30 years of Clarence Jazz Festival
The 2026 Clarence Jazz Festival (CJF30) marked a defining milestone, celebrating its 30th anniversary with a bold, full-scale program at Rosny Farm across four days.
Bringing together leading local, national and international artists, the festival delivered a dynamic mix of new commissions, collaborations and performances that reflected both its legacy and its future direction. The program spanned five stages and a wide range of formats — from family-friendly sessions to late-night events — positioning the festival as a major cultural highlight for Tasmania. Overall, CJF30 attracted over 4,500 patrons and is estimated to have generated approximately $1.4 million in total economic activity.
Image credit Cassie Sullivan
Cultural precinct gains major grant funding
City of Clarence welcomed $1.67 million in funding from the Australian Government’s Urban Precincts and Partnerships Program in November 2025, supporting the next major step towards delivering an arts and cultural precinct at Rosny Farm – see news here.
The funding enables the development of a detailed business case and master plan for the transformation of the Rosny Farm site, aligning it with the recently endorsed City Heart Plan.
The City Heart Plan identifies the Rosny Park–Kangaroo Bay area as the future cultural heart of Clarence. The proposed precinct would build on the existing Rosny Farm site to create a vibrant hub for creative industries, cultural expression, events, public life and youth activity and represents an opportunity to support creative industry growth, cultural tourism and community vitality, while creating new opportunities for people to connect, participate and enjoy the arts.
Pooch Perfect annual art prize
October 2025 saw Rosny Farm again filled with canine-inspired artwork for the 12th annual Poochibald™ Art Prize.
This much-loved community exhibition celebrated the special connection between people and their fur-friends, showcasing more than 250 artworks across painting, drawing, sculpture and mixed media.
Artists of all ages, stages and abilities took part with the 2025 Poochibald™ marking the fifth consecutive year of record-breaking entry numbers.
Winners were recognised in Junior Child, Senior Child and Adult categories, along with the Rangers Prizes.
Image credit Nina Hamilton
Rosny Farm and Dark Mofo partnership
City of Clarence partnered with Dark Mofo to present Abdul-Rahman Abdullah: The Dogs in The Barn at Rosny Farm (10–21 June 2026), transforming The Barn into a major contemporary art installation exploring themes of fear, belonging, exclusion and power. The opening event attracted approximately 300 attendees.
The exhibition attracted approximately 9,400 visitors across its eight-day season and generated strong local, interstate and national attention, achieving 23 media and social mentions with an estimated potential reach of 36.3 million people, while also driving substantial organic web traffic and growth in Rosny Farm’s audience database.
Planned, installed and delivered entirely by the Rosny Farm team, the exhibition received strong praise from the artist, Dark Mofo and the wider arts sector, reinforcing Rosny Farm’s growing reputation as a leading venue for ambitious contemporary arts experiences.
Clarence Community Volunteer Service
The Clarence Community Volunteer Service supported 79 clients during the year, with a 20% increase in new volunteers and greater diversity among those volunteers joining the program.
A new marketing strategy was developed and has been rolled out to further strengthen volunteer recruitment and service capacity. The Clarence Community Volunteer Service is actively working to help residents of Clarence stay in their homes longer, continue to enjoy the community live in and contribute to that community life.
Community bus makes it easier to stay connected
The purchase of a new 12-seater community bus in 2025 aims to make it easier for Clarence residents to stay connected. This small and accessible bus supports the delivery of a wide range of community programs across the city and provides opportunities for people to get involved as volunteer drivers.
By making transport more flexible, the new bus supports groups and clubs to get out and about bringing people experiencing barriers to participation together.
Community engagement
The City of Clarence sees community engagement as integral to project and policy development, and to decision-making.
Meaningful engagement allows us to hear from a diverse range of voices, including people who may not otherwise have the opportunity to be heard, and those who will be most directly affected by a project or policy. It helps ensure that decisions are informed not only by those who are well-resourced, well-connected or most confident in speaking up, but also by the broader community and the people with lived experience of the issues being considered.
Our community can bring perspectives, knowledge and observations that we may not otherwise have considered. Feedback from the community regularly highlights concerns that may not have been identified through other means and raises questions that may not otherwise have been asked. This is the value of meaningful engagement. It does not simply inform the community about decisions, it helps inform the decisions themselves.
Across thirteen engagements this financial year, our community contributed in a variety of ways, including:
- 1,825 online survey responses
- 366 pins dropped on interactive maps
- 103 written submissions
- 46 digital sticky notes with 714 total votes
- more than 400 conversations face-to-face at pop-up events and out in the community
- 47 young people involved in the design sessions for the Clarendon Vale Social Heart Park upgrade.
Throughout the year, we continued to look for ways to improve our internal processes and the way we present engagement opportunities to the community. We have been particularly focused on making our engagements more transparent by ensuring people have the information they need to participate meaningfully and by demonstrating how feedback will be used.
This includes:
- a minimum four-week engagement period for every project. Engagement periods are extended where they overlap with school holidays or where we are asking more of the community in terms of time, information or participation
- a published engagement report for every project, outlining how we engaged, who participated, the demographics of participants, and what we heard from the community
- standardised Your Say pages, so information is presented consistently and is easy to find. Each page clearly explains what we are asking the community about, what is outside the scope of the engagement, and what feedback we are seeking
- a named officer and phone number on every project page, giving community members the option to speak directly with a person if they have a question, rather than relying solely on a generic inbox
- a standard set of demographic questions across our engagements, allowing us to understand who is participating while an engagement is still open. This helps us identify gaps in participation and adjust our approach where needed to reach the people and communities most likely to be affected by a decision.
Together, these changes are helping us make engagement more consistent, transparent and accessible, while giving us better information about who we are hearing from and who we may still need to reach.
Community engagements 2025-26
Your Say Clarence year-on-year change from 2024-25 to 2025-26 (increase per cent)
*The first quarter of 2024–25 is unavailable because Your Say Clarence was hosted on an earlier platform. Follower numbers have been excluded because the move to the new Social Point platform resulted in migrated followers being recorded in a single quarter, rather than reflecting people who chose to follow individual projects.
Community and participation
First Reconciliation Action Plan for City of Clarence
On 29 September 2025, City of Clarence marked an important milestone in its reconciliation journey with a ceremony at Council Chambers to celebrate the formal endorsement of our first Reflect Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) by Reconciliation Australia. The event acknowledged the sovereign, unceded lands of the Mumirimina People of the Oyster Bay Nation, whose legacy can be seen in the physical expressions of the landscape that we know as present-day Clarence, and reflected on the devastating impacts that colonisation wrought on the Mumirimina, paying respect to the enduring connection and resilience of the Tasmanian Aboriginal People to their culture, lands, skies and waterway.
The RAP was developed through consultation with Reconciliation Tasmania, the RAP Working Group, city officers and members of the Tasmanian Aboriginal community. Through this process, Clarence has joined a national network of more than 3,000 organisations participating in Reconciliation Australia’s RAP program.
The RAP provides a framework for embedding reconciliation into everyday practice and reflects our ongoing commitment to reconciliation through learning and truth-telling, building stronger relationships with the Tasmanian Aboriginal community, and embedding culturally respectful practices across the organisation.
Crisis Contact Cards connect people with support
The City of Clarence Crisis Contact Cards were updated and reprinted during 2025-26. These free, pocket-sized guides contain contact details of supports and services available to people facing homelessness in Clarence and were distributed during National Homelessness Week, including throughout the council, supported by eight information sessions for city officers.
Designed for individuals, organisations or businesses to pass on to people in need, content is highly accessible, services are self-referral and where possible, available 24/7.
Fitness in the Park expanded across Clarence
Two improvements to the Fitness in the Park program were trialled in 2025–26 including an expanded summer program to two new locations and the introduction of a digital participant sign-in and reporting platform to streamline participant check-ins.
The program provides City of Clarence residents with opportunities to exercise outdoors across summer and winter. Five locations hosted summer sessions—Bellerive, Kangaroo Bay, Lindisfarne, South Arm and Richmond, with winter sessions held at Bellerive, Lindisfarne and South Arm.
Since the digital platform was introduced in October 2025, 160 one-hour sessions have been recorded, attracting 3,792 participants.
Clarence Stands Together Against Racism
In September 2025, Clarence community leaders joined the southern Tasmanian councils’ We Stand Together Against Racism campaign, a regional initiative to reject racism, promote respect and celebrate cultural diversity.
Ambassadors from all six councils—Clarence, Brighton, Hobart, Glenorchy, Kingborough and Sorell—represented a diverse range of voices, including members of the Palawa and multicultural communities, artists, advocates and human rights leaders.
Clarence ambassadors included football identity Sam Siggins and community volunteer Tyson Montgomery, helping to raise awareness and promote respectful behaviour across workplaces, sporting fields and the wider community.
To extend the campaign’s reach and increase visibility, the campaign expanded to Metro bus advertising on behalf of all participating councils.
Targafest brings the excitement of Targa Tasmania to Clarence
On Saturday 15 November 2025, City of Clarence hosted Targafest, the official welcome function for Targa Tasmania, ahead of the rally’s return to Hobart for the first time in more than a decade.
Held on Bellerive Quay, the free community event featured around 60 competing vehicles displayed along Bellerive Quay and Cambridge Road, giving motorsport fans the opportunity to get up close to the cars before the rally got underway.
Bellerive Quay provided a spectacular backdrop for the event and further demonstrated its potential as a versatile location for community, cultural and major events, providing activation for local businesses and the wider community to enjoy.
The event also celebrated the long-standing relationship between the City of Clarence and Targa Tasmania, with the City having supported the event through access to local roads since its inaugural event in 1992.
Making the outdoors accessible for everyone
In 2025 Disability Voices of Tasmania (DVT) was engaged by council to audit a selection of tracks and trails in Clarence to help people with a disability prepare and plan their visits to our trails, and to support city officers with practical, inclusive tools when designing new trails and auditing existing ones.
Six tracks and trails were selected and over a period of three months DVT completed audits at the following sites:
- Clarence Foreshore Trail – Kangaroo Bay to Bellerive
- Clarence Foreshore Trail – Bellerive to Howrah
- Lauderdale Wetlands Track
- Natone Hill Circuit Track
- Rosny Hill Circuit Track
- Mortimer Bay Coastal Track.
A report Inclusive Trails: Creating Accessible Outdoor Experiences for All was prepared by DVT for City of Clarence, which made recommendations for how walking trails can be assessed, physical tracks improved, and information conveyed in ways that genuinely support inclusion and can assist a person with a disability to make informed choices when visiting our trails. This information is now being used in the design and development of new trails and to identify improvements to existing trails.
Clarence Celebrates with a Swinging Christmas
Swinging Christmas is a festive event hosted at Rosny Farm in early December that brings the community together for the Christmas season.
With a relaxed community atmosphere, Swinging Christmas has become a highlight on Clarence’s annual event calendar, welcoming people of all ages to enjoy an evening filled with swinging Christmas music and favourite seasonal songs.
Customer experience
Our aim is to provide an excellent customer experience with every service we provide to our community.
Council adopted a Customer Experience Strategy in September 2024, establishing a foundation for understanding community needs, improving services and embedding a customer-focused culture across the organisation. During 2025–26, this work moved into its implementation phase, with the appointment of a dedicated Lead Customer Experience role and the commencement of several key initiatives to put the strategy into practice.
Customer journey mapping was undertaken to accurately understand the experiences of our community when interacting with the City of Clarence. This work considered the broader experience of customers and helped to identify common themes and pain points. The work is now progressing towards service-specific journey mapping, which takes a more detailed, end-to-end view of an individual service, mapping key steps and processes with a view to identifying opportunities to simplify processes and improve a customer’s experience.
An organisation-wide review of customer requests also commenced. Customer requests may relate to council services, facilities, infrastructure or community needs and in 2025-26, council received 22,655. The review is examining how requests are received, managed and progressed to identify opportunities to streamline processes, improve information and create a more seamless customer experience. A more rigorous customer complaints process has also been established as part of this work.
Weekly and monthly reporting on customer requests and phone contact identifies trends, emerging issues and service pressure points. This data continues to be refined to provide greater insight into customer needs and support the organisation to identify further opportunities for service improvement.
Digital self-service offers customers the ability to access information, complete transactions or submit requests online. Throughout the year, our digital self-service continued to evolve with the introduction of AI-powered search on the City of Clarence website to help customers find information more easily, and digital document improvements, enabling documents to be provided in accessible digital formats alongside downloadable PDFs, supporting greater transparency, accessibility and ease of use for the community.
Customer data for 2025-26
6,155
Phone calls
22,655
Requests lodged
352,000
Website visits
Environment
New FOGO service moves forward
A community engagement held between April and May 2026 was a key preliminary step in our journey towards the introduction of FOGO (Food Organics Garden Organics) for Clarence.
FOGO is a kerbside service that collects food scraps and garden waste separately so it can be processed into compost instead of going to landfill.
The engagement found that litter and dumped rubbish are a genuine community concern, with almost 3 in 4 people worried about it in their suburb and close to 200 dumped rubbish and litter-spots identified. The introduction of FOGO aligns with the environmental and sustainable focus in the Strategic Plan 2025-35.
Waverley Flora Park Reserve Management Plan adopted
A long-term plan to protect the unique natural values of Waverley Flora Park and Carbeen Street Reserve was adopted by Council in March 2026.
The plan was informed by individual and group discussions, survey responses, and written submissions from all corners of the community and aims to uphold the unique natural values of Waverley Flora Park and Carbeen Street Reserve, whilst also improving how people experience and care for them.
Home to 190 native plant species and a wide variety of mammals, reptiles, and birds, including the vulnerable tailed spider-orchid, the endangered eastern barred bandicoot, and rare lowland grassy woodlands, the Waverly Flora Park Reserve Management Plan is guided by sustainable practices and evidence-based decision-making, and aims to keep the reserves healthy, resilient, and biodiverse.
Glebe Hill Bushland Reserve Management Plan
In July 2025, Council endorsed the updated Glebe Hill Bushland Reserve Management Plan, replacing the 2014 version.
The plan provides a strategic framework to guide the protection, management and enhancement of the reserve’s biodiversity and community values.
Key updates include a stronger emphasis on conserving native flora and fauna, revised priorities for track management and fire mitigation, changes to domestic animal management and improved opportunities for community education and involvement.
The plan also integrates current environmental data and local input to ensure the reserve remains a valued natural asset for future generations.
Grants and sponsorship
General Grants Program
Council’s bi-annual and on-demand Community and Cultural and Creative Grant programs distributed over $116,000 to 111 recipients in 2025-26.
More than $91,000 in cash and in-kind support was distributed to nine recipients for events or programs that strengthened neighbourhood resilience and community wellbeing through the Community Grants program, and five recipients for projects that activated art and cultural pursuits in the community through the Cultural and Creative Grants program.
97 Quick Response Grants totalling over $24,942 were distributed to 85 young people to represent the state in their chosen sport or field including surfing, diving, Tournament of the Minds, water polo, touch football, rugby, AFL, futsal, volleyball, gymnastics, hockey, basketball, cheerleading, maths, netball, athletics, soccer, cricket and swimming.
12 community groups were funded to provide small events, programs or activities that enhanced community resilience and wellbeing and included Cremorne Bowling Club’s Christmas event, South Arm Winter Festival, Salvation Army’s Paddler’s Against Poverty, Rosny College’s Springboard Taiko inclusion performances, UN Youth Tasmania Conference, Hobart Bangladesh Community’s table-tennis event, Montagu Bay Primary School Parents and Friend’s Association’s Festival by the Bridge, Shepherd Centre’s re-launch event, Clifton Surf Lifesaving Club Kamana workshop, Pipe Clay Coast Care’s Cremorne quiz, Rotary Club of Howrah’s peace and social cohesion activity, and Warrane-Mornington Neighbourhood Centre with additional temporary signage..
Sponsorship
City of Clarence sponsorships support events and activities that contribute to a thriving local economy, attract visitors and strengthen community wellbeing. Through this support, we help local organisations create opportunities for participation, celebrate Clarence’s diversity and deliver benefits for residents and businesses.
In 2025–26, Council provided sponsorship to 13 recipients across sport and recreation, arts and music, multicultural celebrations, heritage, business recognition and employment initiatives. Support also included summer lifeguard services at Clifton Beach, helping residents and visitors enjoy our beach safely.
Together, these sponsorships help people connect, celebrate local talent and culture, and take part in community life across Clarence.
New community assets
New Cambridge dog park
Clarence’s new $1.2 million, fully-fenced, off-lead dog park opened in June 2026.
The Cambridge dog park is the first completed project of the Cambridge Oval Master Plan which aims to transform the area into a major community, sports and recreation precinct. The park turns an underused site into a vibrant public asset giving residents a good reason to get outdoors, connect with others, and enjoy an active lifestyle.
Community engagement played an important role in shaping the design, with feedback highlighting a need for fencing, different activity areas, shade, and accessibility.
Divided into two separate fenced areas, including a quiet zone for timid, older or injured dogs, the park features an accessible looped-footpath, grassy open spaces, and play features such as logs and rocks for climbing and exploration.
Glebe Hill Community Battery
Tasmania’s first community battery was launched during September 2025.
Located in Glebe Hill, Howrah, the battery will store excess solar energy generated by local households and release it during peak periods, strengthening the power grid, supporting more rooftop solar installations and electric devices and reducing reliance on traditional energy sources.
Fully funded under the Australian Government’s Community Batteries for Household Solar Program, the City provided land and coordinated an artwork by local artist George Kennedy, which covers the structure. The location in Glebe Hill was identified by TasNetworks through analysis that looked at infrastructure, demand, land use and solar uptake in the area.
Cambridge Primary School redevelopment
During 2025–26, City of Clarence, in partnership with the Department for Education, Children and Young People (DECYP), progressed planning and design for the next stage of the Cambridge Primary School redevelopment.
The project will deliver a state-of-the-art gymnasium, upgraded car parking, and significant improvements to Cambridge Memorial Oval, creating a modern precinct that supports students, families, and the wider community.
The City is contributing land, funding for oval upgrades, and joint investment in parking infrastructure. The new gymnasium will be managed by the school and made available for community use outside school hours.
The redevelopment complements the Cambridge Oval Master Plan, which sets out a long-term vision for enhanced sporting facilities, improved lighting, upgraded amenities, pedestrian access, an off-lead dog park and landscaping to create a vibrant community hub.
Our people
Our people are central to delivering the services, infrastructure, and outcomes valued by our community. Our aim is to ensure City of Clarence remains an employer of choice and is well positioned to meet current and future community needs.
People and culture
Throughout 2025-26, we continued to strengthen our organisational capability through workforce development, leadership investment, enterprise agreement negotiations, and a strong focus on employee wellbeing and safety.
Workforce Plan
Key initiatives from the Workforce Plan during 2025-26 included improvements to people systems and processes, workforce planning to identify future capability requirements, and targeted development opportunities for leaders and employees. Work also progressed to address identified skills gaps and strengthen succession planning across key service areas.
The development of a contemporary eRecruitment module within the OneCouncil system progressed and this project has an anticipated implementation date of December 2026.
Our payroll team continued to enhance system configuration and controls to support the implementation of enterprise agreement provisions and legislative requirements. Enhanced payroll reporting was implemented, improving access to workforce and payroll information to support compliance, reporting and informed business decisions.
Enterprise agreements
Enterprise agreement negotiations were successfully finalised during 2025-26 for both the Clarence City Council Enterprise Agreement and the Rosny Early Learning Enterprise Agreement.
The agreements remain an important mechanism for supporting fair and transparent employment conditions while ensuring we can continue to attract and retain a skilled and engaged workforce. Discussions throughout the year focused on achieving outcomes that support employees while maintaining council’s long-term financial sustainability and service delivery obligations.
Learning and development
Our approach to learning and development aligns with the objectives of the Workforce Plan and the emerging needs of the organisation.
Building on previous leadership development initiatives, additional leaders and employees participated in professional development programs designed to strengthen leadership skills, people management capability, and operational effectiveness.
Mandatory training requirements, licences, certifications, and compliance-based training were also undertaken to maintain those skills and qualifications city officers require to undertake their roles safely and effectively.
Work health and safety
City of Clarence takes a proactive approach to workplace health and safety, embedding risk management, worker participation and continuous improvement across our operations. This is supported by an ISO 45001:2018 certified Work Health and Safety Management System with a strong focus on identifying risks early, strengthening controls, supporting the wellbeing of our people and ensuring safety is embedded in the services we deliver to the community.
Council’s approach to work health and safety is supported by:
- executive oversight of WHS performance
- worker consultation and participation
- workplace inspections, audits and assurance activities
- an ISO 45001:2018 certified management system
- integrated risk management and continuous improvement processes.
WHS performance 2025–26
During 2025–26, council continued to strengthen its focus on proactive safety management, early intervention and effective injury prevention.
Key activities included:
- improved hazard reporting and corrective action processes
- strengthened psychosocial risk management
- initiatives focused on vehicle and plant safety
- maintaining ISO 45001:2018 certification
- supporting early intervention and structured return-to-work processes
- maintaining worker consultation across council’s service areas.
Safety and risk management
Council continued to monitor and manage key workplace safety risks, with a particular focus on roles and work environments where employees experience increased exposure to risk. Key areas of focus included:
- public-facing and challenging workplace interactions
- vehicle, plant and pedestrian interactions
- manual handling and ergonomic risks
- psychosocial health and wellbeing.
This work complements council’s broader approach to proactive risk management, prevention and maintaining safe work environments across our operations.
Injury management and recovery at work
Council continued to prioritise early intervention and effective recovery-at-work practices for employees experiencing workplace injury or illness. Most injuries resulted in minimal or no lost time, reflecting a focus on timely support, appropriate workplace adjustments and early return-to-work pathways that promote employee recovery and wellbeing.
Looking forward
Council will build on our workplace health and safety foundations to strengthen our safety culture through effective governance, meaningful worker engagement and a proactive approach to risk management.
Key priorities for 2026–2027 include:
- expanding data-informed WHS performance reporting
- reducing manual handling risks through improved work practices and task design
- enhancing vehicle, plant and pedestrian safety controls
- strengthening psychosocial risk assessment and management
- building on proactive hazard identification and prevention practices.
Through these priorities, council will further embed safety into everyday operations, strengthen preventative practices and support the health, safety and wellbeing of employees, contractors and the community.
Planning and development
The City Planning Group continued to progress its strategic program while ensuring statutory planning applications were assessed in a timely and effective manner.
Strategic planning highlights during the year included continued collaboration and contribution to planning reform through the review of the Southern Tasmanian Regional Land Use Strategy. The group also participated in the ongoing review and implementation of the State Planning Provisions, including Residential Standards and Medium Density Housing Guidelines, as well as a range of other state government-led planning consultations.
Work on the Droughty Peninsula Structure Plan continued, with community engagement planned for the coming financial year. The structure plan will provide a framework for future infrastructure provision and the staged release of land for residential development and open space, while considering the area’s constraints and the needs of the community.
Development of the Clarence Housing Strategy also commenced during the year and will continue into the coming financial year. The strategy will identify and respond to the current and future housing needs of the City of Clarence, considering population growth, housing supply and where and how future development can best accommodate the community.
The Clarence Housing Strategy, together with other strategic planning work—including a review of the Activity Centre Strategy, budgeted for 2026–27—will contribute to the future five-year review of the Tasmanian Planning Scheme – Clarence.
From a statutory perspective, activity continued to increase.
- 943 applications for planning permits were lodged for assessment, including no permit required certifications. This represents over a 17% increase from the 2024-25 financial year.
- Over $214 million worth of development was approved.
- 112 applications for ‘minor amendments’ to planning permits were lodged.
- 30 final plans of subdivision were sealed creating 98 new lots.
- 39 strata scheme applications were certified creating 86 strata lots.
- 1436 Preliminary planning assessments were undertaken and formal advice provided.
In addition to statutory assessments, the group provides planning advice in‑person over the counter, in writing and over the phone. A free heritage advisory service is also provided to potential developers and landowners of heritage properties or properties within heritage precincts.
Potential developers are advised to seek formal advice through a free preliminary assessment service, where draft plans are checked against the planning scheme before costly detailed plans are completed.
Programs for young people
Rosny Arvos create youth-friendly space
Rosny Arvos was a trial program designed for young people aged 12-24 years with the aim of testing and creating a safe, visible, youth‑friendly space in the Rosny CBD, in response to long‑standing concerns about antisocial behaviour in and around the Rosny bus interchange.
The program delivered 58 after‑school sessions across two school terms (Term 4, 2025, and Term 1, 2026), coordinated by our Community Development team and supported by youth service partners, including Mission Australia Youth Beat, Pulse Youth Health, headspace and Home Base.
Attendance totalled 963 visits, averaging 17 young people per day, with strong repeat visitation rates of 40 per cent by the end of the trial.
The Rosny Arvos trial demonstrated that a simple, persistent, place‑based presence can meaningfully improve young people’s experience of the Rosny CBD. The trial successfully established a trusted, youth‑friendly space, strengthened cross‑service collaboration, and delivered positive engagement outcomes.
While the program did not directly reduce antisocial behaviour, it provided a safer alternative for young people during peak after‑school hours and contributed positively to perceptions of safety among those who participated.
Young people get creative during Youth Week
Youth Week 2026 brought young people together through a diverse program of free events and activities held across Clarence, from Rokeby to Lindisfarne. The program of events included live music, creative workshops, games and community activities that encouraged participation, connection and self-expression.
The official opening of a new mural by Mayor Brendan Blomeley was a highlight. The Rokeby mural celebrates the creativity and contributions of local young people while enhancing a shared public space.
Youth Week strengthened community connections by providing young people with inclusive opportunities to participate, try something new and enjoy creative experiences together.
Voice for Homeless Young People
The annual Off the Couch event was held on 7 August 2025 as part of Homelessness Week as an opportunity to highlight the urgent need for coordinated action to address housing and homelessness.
2025 was the fourth Off the Couch event staged by City of Clarence and brought together young people, local service providers and the wider community for a day of connection, support and awareness. It featured interactive activities, including a skateboarding competition hosted by Jimmy’s Skate, access to support services and opportunities for young people to engage with local organisations.
To further raise awareness of homelessness and the challenges faced by people experiencing housing insecurity, Council Chambers and Richmond Bridge were illuminated in purple throughout Homelessness Week.
Delivered in partnership with Shelter Tas and local service providers, Off the Couch forms part of our broader commitment to supporting young people who are experiencing, or at risk of, homelessness and connecting them with the services and support they need.
Clarence Jazz Festival Scholarship recipients Austin Dickinson, Emil Robin and Xander Roberts
Clarence Jazz Festival scholarships support next generation of Tasmanian musicians
The Clarence Jazz Festival Scholarship Program recognises emerging Tasmanian musicians and is an important part of the annual jazz festival.
For more than two decades, the program has provided pathways for young Tasmanian musicians to learn, perform and develop their skills in a professional festival environment and in October 2025, three senior school students were again awarded scholarships.
Scholarship recipients have opportunities to perform, collaborate and receive tutoring and mentorship from some of Australia’s leading jazz musicians. The scholarship program represents our ongoing investment in supporting the next generation of local talent.
Sister City educational exchange
After a two-week educational exchange in Japan during September 2025, Rosny College and Rose Bay High School students returned with enhanced confidence, cultural understanding and independence.
The sister city relationship between City of Clarence and the City of Akkeshi has been in place since 1982 and provides opportunities that extend well beyond the classroom, strengthening international ties and positioning our young people as global ambassadors for Clarence.
Regulatory activity and enforcement
CONTENT TO COME
Services for children
Rosny Early Learning
Rosny Early Learning has continued to provide high-quality early childhood education and care to children and families across the community throughout the year.
A focus on cultural learning remains an important part of the program, with bi-monthly NITA Education excursions providing children with opportunities to learn from Tasmanian Aboriginal educators and build meaningful connections to Aboriginal culture and perspectives.
The centre also collaborated across council departments to participate in National Tree Day, encouraging children to connect with nature and take an active role in caring for their local environment and community.
A significant achievement for the year was successfully securing a $150,000 grant to upgrade the centre’s backyard environment, providing funding for new play equipment and updated fencing. A new Rainbow Serpent wall game installed in the outdoor space added a culturally meaningful element to the outdoor learning environment.
The backyard upgrades will be delivered alongside the centre’s current redevelopment project, which is at the design stage. Together, these improvements will help create an engaging, safe and inclusive environment for children to learn, play and grow.
Strategic and economic development
Setting Clarence’s direction for the next decade
The Strategic Plan 2025–2035 was formally adopted by the Council in March 2026, setting a long-term direction for a vibrant, prosperous, and sustainable future for Clarence.
The Strategic Plan will guide future planning and policy, ensuring we can adequately respond to emerging community needs and future challenges. Four priority areas — Strategy and Delivery, Sustainable Growth, Culture and Place, and Wellbeing and Belonging — will shape all work of the city, focusing on effective delivery, balanced growth, community connection, and environmental stewardship.
View the City of Clarence Strategic Plan.
A vibrant, connected and welcoming future for Clarence
The City Heart Plan is our long-term vision to shape the social, cultural, and economic centre of Clarence covering Rosny Park, Kangaroo Bay, Bellerive Village, Warrane and the Rosny Parklands — the City Heart.
Adopted by Council in September 2025, the City Heart Plan was developed with the community commencing in 2020 and refined through four rounds of consultation.
The plan encompasses eight interconnected precincts, each with its own vision and character, acknowledging the connection of the Tasmanian Aboriginal People to their Country, and sets out a bold yet practical roadmap for the next 20 years.
It identifies six key outcomes to realise this vision. These include recognising and celebrating Country, promoting sustainability and resilience, nurturing economic and cultural vibrancy, offering diverse and affordable housing, creating liveable and engaging public spaces, and improving connectivity through high-quality streets, pathways, and transport networks.
Policies and plans
During the 2025–26 financial year, Council adopted a range of policies, plans and strategies to guide the city’s work and support informed decision-making.
These documents provide a framework for responding to managing resources responsibly and delivering on our strategic priorities. Together, they help shape the future direction for Clarence and support effective, transparent and sustainable service delivery.
The following policies, plans and strategies were adopted during the financial year:
| Title | Date of Adoption |
|---|---|
| Glebe Hill Bushland Reservice Management Plan 2025-2035 | 7 July 2025 |
| Clarence Cycling Strategy | 7 July 2025 |
| Clarence City Heart Plan | 29 September 2025 |
| Little Howrah Beach Master Plan | 10 November 2025 |
| Coastal Access Strategy | 11 December 2025 |
| Waverly Flora Park Reserve Management Plan | 23 March 2026 |
| City of Clarence Strategic Plan 2025-2035 | 23 March 2026 |
| Coastal Hazards Policy | 9 June 2026 |
| Fees and Chargers (non-rates) Policy 2026 | 15 June 2026 |
| Rates and Charges Policy 2026 | 15 June 2026 |
| Richmond Village Master Plan | 29 June 2026 |
| Bushfire Hazard Management Areas on Council Land Policy 2026 | 29 June 2026 |
Policies, plans and strategies can be viewed on our website.