ABC Illawarra

03/12/2025

A big HAPPY BIRTHDAY the Country Hour 🎂🎉🤠
Australia's longest-running radio show is celebrating 80 years on air.
Tune in to your local ABC or on the ABC Listen App for the celebrations from midday.

Australia's longest-running radio show is celebrating 80 years on air, and while so much has changed in farming and broadcasting, the core of The Country Hour remains the same.

02/12/2025

A Southern Highlands community has condemned the New South Wales Department of Education's decision to mothball its public school from the end of the current school term.

It follows up to three months of consultation between the school community, which currently has six students, and the department due to declining enrolments.

The Department announced late last month the school's site will be placed into recess from December 19, with all current and prospective students told to find alternative arrangements.

Penrose P&C Secretary Ellie Egan said its not enough notice.

"So it really doesn't give parents and students much time to transition to different schools or to homeschooling which is what parents are considering simply because there is no public transport from Penrose to allow us to get to other schools," she said.

Ms Egan's group has called on NSW Premier Chris Minns to the Department's consultation process.

She said it failed to address respond in a timely manner and with useful information.

"We sent two detailed letters requesting information from the department and they responded at the last minute, months after the letters were sent and the response did not address the questions asked," Ms Egan said.

The Premier has been contacted for comment.

The Department said in a statement, a school only moves to recess after extensive consultation with parents, carers, stakeholders and the local community.

02/12/2025

Australian aerobatic pilot and champion Paul Bennett has taken over the event formerly known as Airshows Downunder Shellharbour, relaunching it as Wings Over Shellharbour.

It comes after the national AMDA Foundation confirmed in August it was pulling out as event organiser and looking for another operator.

Speaking at Shellharbour Airport today, Mr Bennett said he was honoured to be approached by both Council and AMDA to take over the event.

He said he's got exciting future plans.

"On the ground we plan to have carnival rides, food trucks, defence activations, the HARS museum and tours," Mr Bennett said.

"And that's what we plan to do too is work closely together so that hopefully we can do a great job of bringing as many people to town as possible."

Mr Bennett said it was important to continue the airshow's legacy at Shellharbour Airport.

"I like the venue, and I like the fact that its a big open space with a big runway which allows us to bring some bigger aircraft and some jets," he said.

"You can't take the jets to Scone the runway isn't bigger enough for example so we are looking forward to making this a really great event for Australia and also NSW."

Shellharbour Mayor Chris Homer said he's pleased the event will continue in collaboration with the previous organisers.

"They'll all on board with this right now. There's a collaborative relationship," he said.

"That gives us great confidence that 2026 in May its going to be showcased as one of the southern hemisphere's best aviation performances."

02/12/2025

Major charity Need for Feed has been rocked by mass resignations over a pay dispute.

A Lions Club member who ordered an investigation into how Need for Feed subsidised volunteer drivers is speaking out after recommendations to improve transparency were not implemented.

02/12/2025

Investigators allege the fishing trawler Maria Louise K was deliberately dumped only a few miles off Ulladulla.

Read on... https://bit.ly/3MzBy9x

02/12/2025

Work by dozens of female artists from a prominent Australian art dynasty are being given pride of place at an exhibition on the NSW south coast.

The Bundanon art museum is showcasing the female relatives of late acclaimed Australian painter Arthur Boyd to shine a light on the talented women behind the Boyd name.

01/12/2025

Here's the latest on a proposed plastic recycling facility in Moss Vale...

01/12/2025

A coronial inquest into the fatal police shooting of a patient at a medical centre foyer has heard he took a fake gun to say goodbye to his doctor with the intention of being killed by police.

Warning: This story contains details that some readers may find distressing.

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An inquest into a 2024 police shooting in Nowra on the NSW South Coast hears police gunned down a man who was carrying a fake gun with the intention of being killed.

01/12/2025

Summer is looking a tad frosty ☃️❄️

Nearly 15 centimetres of snow has fallen at Perisher Resort as of 3:30pm today.

30/11/2025

⚠️ Picton Road is under contraflow conditions near the Hume Motorway in Wilton due to an earlier truck roll over.

⏰ Recovery and cleanup is expected to take some time so plan ahead and exercise caution while emergency services are on site.

30/11/2025

Public school parents in New South Wales have been advised school closures may occur on days of elevated fire danger.

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Public school parents in New South Wales have been advised school closures may occur on days of elevated fire danger.

28/11/2025

James and Joanne Winsor, who participated in the Edible Garden Trail last weekend, discovered the Mangosteen fruit in a garden in Austinmer.

As keen fruit growers they were keen to discover more about it, but despite the large crowd that quickly gathered, no one knew what do with it.

The tropical plant, with edible fruit, has white flowers with a sweet fragrant scent.

At this stage, the fruit is green and hard like a ball.

Do you know how to eat a mangosteen fruit?

Listen this morning to the compost heap between 9-10am on 97.3FM ABC Illawarra