Lucy Wicks (Robertson, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Gosford Men's Shed do some fantastic work in our community. Recently I visited them to see the nesting boxes they have built to donate to Australian wildlife rescue organisations. With so much of our natural environment damaged in recent bushfires, these boxes will assist our native Australian animals by providing a place for nesting, breeding and shelter. The hand crafted boxes are being distributed to people across New South Wales who are caring for animals injured or orphaned during bushfire. Ray Crawley from the New South Wales branch of the Australian Men's Shed Association said that the project was a mammoth effort, with over 150 boxes constructed in just three weeks. WIRES will receive over 540 nesting boxes from six men's sheds across the Central Coast and Newcastle region, including 85 from Terrigal Men's Shed and 50 from Erina Men's Shed. Ray said that a number of other sheds are keen to be involved and they can't wait for the next order from WIRES.

I want to particularly thank Ray, and also Larry Lloyd from Gosford Men's Shed, for their leadership of this initiative and for their genuine care for our environment. Projects like this are so important, and that's why I would encourage local community organisations across the Central Coast to apply for the Bushfire Recovery for Wildlife and Habitat Community Grants Program. This initiative offers grants from $5,000 to $150,000 to deliver recovery activities for native flora and fauna, which I know will benefit not only my community but many around Australia.