Kawerau’s Seamless Boundaries initiative has won a Local Government NZ (LGNZ) excellence award.

The project was named a winner in the MartinJenkins Excellence award for best practice contribution to local economic development category at a dinner held last night as part of the annual LGNZ conference.

Seamless Boundaries is a collaborative project between Kawerau and Matamata-Piako District Councils and the Mayors’ Taskforce for Jobs that connects local people struggling to find work with jobs at Silver Fern Farms.

Mayor Malcolm Campbell is delighted at the win. “Everyone involved in this initiative has worked really hard to make it a success. It’s made a big difference to a lot of Kawerau families and we’re proud to have the project recognised on a national stage. Thanks to all involved for the sterling efforts.”

Malcolm and Matamata-Piako mayor Jan Barnes attended the dinner, along with Kawerau district councillor Faylene Tunui, who has been one of the key drivers of the initiative.

A short video in which Malcolm and Jan talk about the project can be viewed on Kawerau District Council’s Facebook page.

The LGNZ awards showcase council projects, programmes and people who have made an impact in local communities. This is the second year running Kawerau District Council has been nominated for an award; last year it was named runner-up in the community impact category for its Neighbourhoods of Healthy Homes project.