Hume council will look to set up Community Clean-Up Corps through Work for the Dole and community work programs to tackle illegal dumping and graffiti across the city.
Cr Naim Kurt successfully moved a notice of motion at the 23 February council meeting to express council’s interest in pursuing funding and partnership opportunities for employment and community participation work programs to improve local amenity across Hume.
As part of the motion, officers will write to the federal employment minister and state corrections minister to express council’s interest, and officers will also report on the feasibility of the amenity-focused employment initiatives.
Cr Kurt said “Dumped rubbish, graffiti and declining public amenity are some of the most frequent complaints we hear right across the city of Hume.”
“Residents are frustrated and they ask us a simple question and we’ve heard it all in social media groups is ‘why are the people who make the mess not made to clean it up?’”
Cr Kurt said there needs to be tough consequences for illegal dumpers.
“If you litter, if you vandalise, if you deface our streets and you are convicted, you should be held accountable and you should be made to clean it up locally,” he said.
Cr Kurt said the Community Clean-Up Corps won’t replace the work of council staff, but would supplement council efforts and focus on low-risk supervised tasks including graffiti removal, litter collection, gardening and general clean-ups, which he said are all permitted under Work for the Dole or corrections programs.
“Hume is one of the few councils not actively leveraging community work orders or Work for the Dole style programs to support amenity outcomes,” he said.
“Other levels of government already run and fund these programs. The framework exists. The participants exist. The need certainly exists. It’s up to us to start that partnership.”
Officers indicated in the agenda that negotiations have been undertaken with the Department of Justice and Community Services for a partnership opportunity for a graffiti removal program.
They also said the Memorandum of Understanding would include a provision for a litter collection component as an optional inclusion.
Budget for the graffiti component is included in the 2026/27 proposed budget, officers said, but should council wish to utilise the litter collection service through the agreement, extra funds would need to be allocated.
