Volunteer bushfire fighters are undoubtedly among the most vital, yet high-risk roles within local governments across Western Australia. The dedication and service they provide is invaluable to our communities, which makes working together to ensure they come home safely a top priority for everyone in the sector.
As the festive season approaches, it’s a time for celebration, team bonding, and recognising everyone’s hard work throughout the year. For many local governments across Western Australia, the annual Christmas party is a highlight on the calendar.
Bushfires, cyclones, fatalities, cyber breaches and CCC investigations are all examples of incidents that may send your local government into crisis. If this happens, our team of experts are standing by ready to comprehensively support you through turmoil and disruption.
Every week there’s an e-rideable accident and e-scooters seem to be a regular culprit. In 2025 there have been a number of high-profile incidents and cases which have led to serious safety concerns surrounding their use in public areas. Incidents including injury and death, as well as public nuisance have given rise to strong opinion. In some ways addressing reputational risks can be more challenging to deal with as they ultimately hinge on public perception and community trust.
September 2025 is the time to ramp up the activity – walk, jump, swim, skip, ride, hop or even do some gardening! Every bit of movement counts in this statewide, local government versus local government challenge. LGIS’ Health and Wellbeing initiative for the entire local government sector, the Great West Aussie Adventure, is back in September 2025 encouraging everyone from Kununurra to Ravensthorpe and Leonora to Gosnells to get moving.
Research from the BMC Public Health Journal conducted in 2024 indicated that 61.75% of truck drivers develop some form of musculoskeletal disorder (MSD) during their career. This alarming statistic will almost certainly be applicable to the wide range of roles undertaken by the local government sector throughout WA.
It’s that time of year when members consider their protection requirements for the upcoming year. A recent issue has been valuations and making sure that assets are detailed on the register.
It’s raised challenges for some members when making a claim.
On 6 December 2024, Western Australia’s Privacy and Responsible Information Sharing Act 2024 (PRIS Act) was given Royal Assent. The PRIS Act is a significant step towards improving the handling of personal information and setting up a control and enforcement
regime for public sector agencies.
Bush fire responsibilities for local government is a hot topic with members at the moment. Risk Matters sat down with LGIS legal advisor, Cameron Maclean, Partner at DLA Piper to explore member’s recurrent questions and scenarios. We take a deep dive to look at
member’s duties and obligations along with the associated liability implications across a variety of common situations.
In February 2022, a shire worker drowned after entering a soak (body of water) on a rural property while pumping water to a water cart for road work maintenance. The worker had received training and was experienced in the task of pumping water from the soak
to the water cart.
