Ahead of the 2025 Waste Innovation and Recycling Awards, Waste Management Review sits down with 2024 Community Engagement Success of the Year winner Bayside City Council.
It was 2023 when Bayside City Council, in Victoria’s south east, launched its Roving Repair Program, with the intention of hosting six standalone pop-up repair events across the municipality.
The program was created to bring together a community of people passionate about fixing and mending things, in order to keep them from being thrown away, while sharing skills and hobbies.
The council, representing more than 100,000 people, never envisioned that one year later it would win an award for the best program to engage and communicate with its community, all while resulting in a positive outcome for the waste industry.
The small team of four responsible for the program also never imagined the program would be seen as a role model for other councils to base their own repair initiatives.
Tim Cummins, Waste and Recycling Coordinator at City of Bayside, has been involved in the program and recent discussions with other councils.
He says that since the 2024 Waste Innovation and Recycling awards, the team has had several councils show interest in the program and in doing something similar across their local government area (LGA).
“We suspect these councils heard about the program from the awards night,” says Tim. “They very well might have already been aware of our program prior to the awards, but we believe winning gave them governance to reach out to us.
“These councils have asked us for advice on getting started with a similar program, and we have been happy to assist them where possible.
“It has been so rewarding to see the reach the program has had, more than we had ever hoped.”
In addition to positive feedback from neighbouring councils, Tim says the City of Bayside community has consistently praised the Roving Repair Program.
“These events have relied heavily on our local volunteers, and they have always provided crucial and valued feedback to the council,” he says.
“The feedback has been positive and consistent. As soon as we finish one, they’re asking when the next one will be.
“They are in high demand, which is very flattering.”
Image: stock.adobe.com/andranik123
The program
In 2023 and 2024, the council hosted a series of pop-up repair events across the LGA. Each event focused on a particular theme such as textiles and clothes, electronics and appliances, toys and small furniture, bicycles, and more.
So far five events have been held in 2025 with more planned.
“With the recognition from the award and positive feedback from our community, we have been encouraged to continue the program,” says Tim.
“In recent months we have continued to roll out more events and have many more in the pipeline.”
Reflecting on the win, Tim says the waste and recycling team, along with wider council staff, were ecstatic to be recognised.
“It was great to get positive feedback from an outside source, enforcing that what we’re doing is working and having a positive impact on our community,” he says.
“The volunteers were also equally as thrilled to hear about the win because it is something they have had a hand in.”
Tim says the awards are a great opportunity for everyone – individuals, teams and organisations – to learn about the comings and goings of others in the industry.
“The awards are a great opportunity to see what’s happening out in the waste, recycling and resource recovery sectors,” he says.
“There are so many different businesses, groups and people doing fantastic things that we are not aware of until the awards.
“They are a great opportunity for all to unite and celebrate the wins, while witnessing what other like-minded people are doing in a much-loved industry.”
The 2025 Waste Innovation and Recycling Awards will be held in Melbourne on 29 October.
Categories include: Outstanding WARR Project (Metro), Outstanding WARR Project (Regional/Rural), Operational Excellence, Innovation, Outstanding Facility, Young Professional of the Year (proudly sponsored by REMONDIS), Woman of Waste (proudly sponsored by Re.Group), Community Engagement (proudly sponsored by Visy), Workplace of the Year, and Leader of the Year.
For more information, visit: primecreative.eventsair.com
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