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Combining over 35 years of local government experience, Peter Russell, Lauren Edney and Mark Handby commenced in leadership roles at the Warrnambool City Council this month.
All three are familiar faces, with Peter and Lauren taking up new roles at Council while Mark is returning having previously worked for the organisation from 2009 to 2016.
Peter Russell is the Manager City Strengthening, Lauren Edney is the Manager Recreation and Culture and Mark Handby is the Manager City Safety.
Warrnambool City Council CEO Andrew Mason said that he was excited to welcome the trio to their new roles.
“These three positions cover such a wide range of council services for people at all ages and stages of life, from immunisations of babies and children to community care services for some of our oldest residents, as well as youth services, art, sport and even pets just to skim the surface,” he said.
“So they are all really important roles with a focus on services to the community, and I’m confident that Peter, Lauren and Mark will excel.
“All three positions were widely advertised and attracted strong fields of candidates.
“It’s great to see with Lauren and Peter, staff that have developed their skills across various roles within the organisation, and then combined everything they’ve learned to take on a new challenge.
“And with Mark, he’s worked at various other Councils and around the world and will bring all of that experience to his new position.”
Around the world and back again
As well as working at neighbouring Moyne and Corangamite shires since leaving the Warrnambool City Council in 2016, Mark’s career has taken him to four continents, working to improve public health.
“The last four years in particular I’ve worked in various countries, primarily in the Pacific, and I also went to Ukraine and Turkey,” he said.
“It was very diverse. In Fiji my main function was around two hospitals, a private/public partnership with the Fiji Government about uplifting those hospitals to international standards.
“The other roles were primarily around emergency response. With the Ukraine Russia conflict, it was particularly around water responses along the frontline. Primarily clean water sources, with a little bit of hygiene promotion and communicable disease prevention.
“It’s really good to come full circle. It’s been eight years and I’m really happy to be home with the family and excited about the new role and the new branch.”
As Manager City Safety, Mark will oversee local laws, emergency management, public health, immunisation and building services.
“It’s a compliance and enforcement role with a great opportunity to do a lot more proactive work for the benefit of Warrnambool,” he said.
“I’m particularly excited about some upcoming regional collaborations in the emergency management space so we can work closely with our neighbours to be more efficient and better respond to emergencies and disasters.”
Immersed in Warrnambool
After growing up in Warrnambool and then living in Melbourne and the UK for 15 years while working in events and management roles, Lauren jumped at the opportunity to return to her hometown in 2019 to take up the role of Service Manager Events and Promotions.
Since that time she’s worked on delivering award-winning events in Warrnambool before being appointed Manager Recreation and Culture after a stint as acting manager.
“Despite being away for so long, Warrnambool was always my favourite place. Obviously the beach and the facilities and everything are amazing, but it was the community I really missed the most,” she said.
“So working at Council, you live in the community that you serve. You’re immersed in it and that’s not something you get just anywhere.”
Lauren will oversee the Library and Learning Hub, AquaZone and the Warrnambool Stadium while also covering cultural development, sport and recreation.
“I’m really proud of our creative and cultural heritage, our love of sport and everything that Warrnambool has to offer,” she said.
“Looking at the area that Recreation and Culture spans, we’re working with some really vital institutions in the lives of thousands of people, so I am in a privileged position to work in this role for the community.”
From dipping his toe to diving in
Across his 18 year career at Council, Peter has worked at AquaZone, the Warrnambool Stadium, the infrastructure department and in the recreation team, before a short-term role at the Archie Graham Centre started him on a new path within the city wellbeing team.
His role as Manager City Strengthening encompasses departments including home and community care, meals on wheels, the Archie Graham Centre, carer respite, West Warrnambool Neighbourhood House, volunteering, youth services, mental health services, community planning and health promotion.
“It was at the end of COVID I was asked to come and do three months at the Archie Graham Centre just to help with some transition work over there,” he said.
“The work that I’d done previously in Council in my engagement with the community, progressing the learn to swim program, that just opened up a whole new world of being able to use those skills for a bigger audience and have a greater impact on the community.
“It’s a real privilege to work in an organisation that covers so many functional areas that interact with the community.
"Having the opportunity to dip your toe into one area for a few months and then also have the opportunity to progress your career in a completely different direction than you thought you were going to be doing 10 years ago, and realising how valuable and rewarding it is to do something different.
“It’s been a long journey and I’ve enjoyed almost every day I’ve been here, it's been great.”
To find out more about a career at the Warrnambool City Council, visit www.warrnambool.vic.gov.au/careers