When Barwon Heads resident Daniel Vella's dog Ricky went missing, strangers joined searches to bring him home. Volunteers shared sightings through social media, and some spent hours looking. Groups such as PAWSAFE connect volunteers through suburb-based group chats, so they can respond quickly to roaming dogs. The not-for-profit relies on donations to cover petrol and rescue equipment. Milly's Search, Trap and Reunite also works with volunteers in the region, with founder Sherri Johnston saying the community is what finds the dog.
Volunteer emergency services across the Bellarine Peninsula, Surf Coast and Geelong will share in $31 million from the state government. Torquay's services receive the largest allocations, including $543,000 for the CFA brigade's vehicles and appliances. Queenscliff Coast Guard will receive $80,000 for a heavy-duty rigid inflatable boat. Member for Bellarine Alison Marchant said she was proud to support local volunteers and the work they do to keep communities safe.
Doherty Building Group has won the 2026 Master Builders Victoria Residential Regional Builder of the Year award for its Sandcastle project in Connewarre. The luxury three-bedroom home was also named the state's best custom home in the $2 million to $4 million category. Its meditation room features a funnel-shaped ceiling with an operable skylight, which took three months to build. Managing director Tyson Doherty said the team had to make up some of the construction details as they went. He said the award reflected the quality of building across Geelong, the Bellarine Peninsula and Surf Coast.
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Graham Mulroney has been awarded the Melvin Jones Diamond Lapel Pin for 53 years of community support in Barwon Heads and Ocean Grove. The Lions Club of Ocean Grove and Barwon Heads member and former president said the honour was a big surprise. He credited the achievements to teams working together. Mr Mulroney joined Lions in 1974 and took part in many community projects, including bushfire relief after the 2009 Victorian bushfires, which earned him an Australian Government Award.
Cyclists across the Geelong region are being asked to rate their local roads and paths during the October Biketober campaign. Participants can log rides and earn prize entries, and this year they can also rate how comfortable their routes feel. The push comes as Surf Coast Shire and the City of Greater Geelong seek state funding for a separated cycling link between Torquay and Geelong, estimated to cost $13 million. The shire is also seeking an extra $2.8 million for the highest risk section between Blackgate Road and Lower Duneed Road.
Barwon Heads will field a vastly different cricket team this season, with only one player from last year's premiership side remaining. Jacko Mallett is the sole premiership player listed and has taken over as coach. The Seagulls have lost key players like Angus Mackie and Darcy Hewitt but retain hard-hitting opener Lewy Hyland and star spinner Sam Schaller. Mallett sees the youthful squad as a chance to refresh while still contending. Barrabool has strengthened with the inclusion of Tom Scott, while Armstrong Creek has added prolific runmaker Clay Mulgrew.
Two Greater Geelong fire brigades held Get Fire Ready open days on Sunday, as the Country Fire Authority urges Victorians to prepare for a high-risk fire season. More than 175 brigades in the South West region will host open days across October and November. Community members can discuss local fire risks, create fire plans, and prepare properties with CFA volunteers.
New nursing labs have opened at The Gordon's Geelong City Campus, giving 416 Diploma of Nursing students hands-on clinical training in simulated hospital wards. The Gordon chief executive Joe Ormeno said the facilities include assistive technology for deaf and hard-of-hearing students, wheelchair access, adjustable furniture and low-stimulation spaces. Deputy premier Gabrielle Williams said the labs are the first stage of The Gordon's TAFE Centre of Excellence in Disability Inclusion. Work on the remaining stages is underway, with the centre due for completion next year.
Victoria will add 11 AI-powered cameras to its bushfire detection network, covering more than 1.4 million hectares before the 2027-28 fire season. The $3.8 million project is jointly funded by the Victorian Government, Hancock Victorian Plantations and Green Triangle Fire Alliance. The cameras will scan landscapes around the clock for smoke and fire, flagging possible incidents for investigation. Installations are scheduled across western and eastern Victoria by November 2027. Officials say the network will give firefighters more time to respond. Most of the monitored area is non-plantation land.
A Geelong-region state MP has claimed more than $60,000 in taxpayer-funded allowances for a second Melbourne home since early 2024, despite appearing to miss 70 per cent of parliamentary sitting days. South Barwon MP Darren Cheeseman was expelled from the Labor Party in April 2024 after allegations of persistent, inappropriate behaviour towards staff, and has sat as an independent since. The allowance helps regional MPs living more than 80 kilometres from Melbourne. Mr Cheeseman declined to respond to questions from the ABC. Victoria has no public record of MP attendance, and the Greens and former premiers support introducing one.
A recent news item highlights a program that has broadened job aspirations among young people in the Colac district. Three local young people took part and were exposed to the variety of career paths across the agricultural sector. The same listing page also features items on heifer prices recovering, a Probus club celebration, and an upcoming historic flower show. The provided text offers no detail on the program's organisers, its duration, or how many young people overall have taken part, so those specifics remain unstated.
A community group has questioned the Victorian government’s transparency after the Planning Minister failed to respond to a request for information about changes to a planning permit. Save Our Seat sought details about changes to the Arthurs Seat Eagle’s luge permit conditions, which were reportedly modified before final approval. The group claims the government is withholding information about the process, raising concerns about accountability. The state government declined to comment on the lack of response.
A five-bedroom character home in Drumcondra, near Geelong's foreshore, has sold for $2.3 million after barely three weeks on the market. The buyers, who are moving from the Mornington Peninsula to be closer to family, had previously lived in the suburb. Agent Malinda Leonard of Jellis Craig Geelong said the property drew two potential buyers during the campaign. The home was originally built in 1914 and combines its period features with a modern extension and a solar-heated pool. It last sold for $1.08 million in 2010.
Aireys Inlet Primary School will host its annual Aireys Fair on 31 October, running from 9am to 3pm. The fair, which has run for more than a decade, is organised by a committee of parents with help from grandparents, relatives and the wider community. It will be held alongside the Aireys Inlet Market, with rides and activities on the oval overlooking the ocean. A community-run bookstore will also operate, with all profits going back to the school.
Paid parking will start at Rosebud Hospital and The Mornington Centre from 27 October. Bayside Health says the fees will cover rising operational and maintenance costs. Staff will pay $4.50 per eight-hour shift, matching other Peninsula Care Group sites. Nepean MP Anthony Marsh opposes the changes, calling them tone-deaf during a cost-of-living crisis. Parking will remain free for visits under 30 minutes.
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The Community Broadcasting Association of Australia has concluded its annual conference in Geelong. Around 400 volunteers, staff and board members from across the sector attended. The conference explored the future of community broadcasting and its role in connecting communities and giving a voice to underrepresented groups. Among the attendees was Lizzie Wait from Nambucca Valley Radio in Tewinga, south of Coffs Harbour, who was attending for the first time.
The Greek Community of Geelong has marked 70 years since it was founded in April 1956 by a small group of Greek immigrants. Those first members met on Swanston Street to elect a board, and the community later built a church and a Greek school. Today it has around 300 to 400 families. President Andrew Alexander says the community is now focused on engaging young people and planning its next 25 years. He credits the sacrifices of the first immigrants for the community's achievements.
Premier Ben Carroll has promised to cut emergency department wait times by 20 per cent if Labor is re-elected. Speaking at University Hospital Geelong, he said 12 hospital emergency departments would be expanded by 25 per cent. The plan also includes 1500 new health workers, among them 750 nurses, and 250 more beds. Health Minister Ingrid Stitt said the changes would allow more than 210,000 patients to be treated each year. The state average emergency department wait is currently 15 minutes, though some patients wait more than two hours.
Police are appealing for witnesses after the body of a 60-year-old man was found in the waters off Avalon on Saturday. The discovery followed an unoccupied kayak found near Limeburners Bay in Corio at about 1.30pm. Water Police want to speak with the group of kayakers who found the vessel, and anyone else who may have seen anything in the area. The man's death is not being treated as suspicious, and a report will be prepared for the coroner. Anyone with information can contact Crime Stoppers.
A Geelong woman has shared her three decades of gambling on poker machines during Gambling Harm Awareness Week, which runs from 24 to 31 October. Punters lost more than $152 million in the City of Greater Geelong and Borough of Queenscliffe in 2025-26, the highest amount recorded locally. Jan, a recovering gambler, said she hopes her story will show others that recovery is possible. After reaching out to Meli's Gambler's Help, she said she regained control of her life.
The Victoria State Rose Garden at Werribee Park will mark its 40th anniversary on 9 November. A volunteer group saved the garden from being bulldozed in the early 1990s, when the state government agreed to continue work only if enough volunteers could maintain it. The supporters group was registered in 1993 and now has about 80 members, with more than 50 helping regularly. The garden holds more than 2000 rose varieties. A celebration is planned for Sunday 8 November, and entry is free.
Residents of the Borough of Queenscliffe will soon be able to borrow and return library items at any time, day or night. An 18-locker system is being installed at Queenscliff Library, funded with $28,660 from the Victorian Government. Holders of a free Geelong Regional Libraries membership can reserve items for delivery to a locker. Member for Bellarine Alison Marchant announced the funding at the library, alongside local council and library leaders. Council will share further updates as the project progresses.
A renovated home at 21 Lascelles Avenue, Manifold Heights, is on the market for $2 million to $2.2 million. McGrath agent Georgie Shaw says the outdoor space is a key drawcard, including a playground, swimming pool, covered deck with a built-in barbecue and outdoor fireplace. The red clinker brick home has a renovated kitchen, bathrooms and plantation shutters. A former games room has been enclosed to create a multipurpose pool house or extra living space. Shaw says the vendors, who are moving to acreage, have added extras that make it a ready-to-move-in home.
Home building approvals in Geelong have risen 34 per cent over the past year to August, close to levels last seen in the 2022 Covid boom, according to KPMG analysis of Australian Bureau of Statistics figures. The pipeline now sits at around 4000 new homes. KPMG urban economist Terry Rawnsley said the rise shows growing confidence in the city's long-term growth, but stressed that approved projects must now move through to construction. Lara has overtaken Armstrong Creek as the region's top approval area, with the activity shifting north.
