Greater Shepparton Cultural Heritage Awards

The Greater Shepparton City Council, in association with the Greater Shepparton Heritage Advisory Committee, is proud to present the biennial Greater Shepparton Cultural Heritage Awards 2025.

About the Awards

The Awards recognise outstanding contributions to cultural heritage conservation, research, education, promotion, interpretation, training and awareness-raising within the Municipality.

2017 Greater Shepparton Cultural Heritage Awards recipient Les Young talks about his historic property and his experiences entering the Awards.

The Awards aim to honour individuals and organisations whose work has promoted and conserved the Municipality’s diverse cultural heritage. They also serve to promote the benefits of cultural heritage conservation by promoting examples of good conservation practice and guidance, as well as offering the owners or guardians of our cultural heritage recognition of their invaluable work.

Cultural heritage includes both tangible cultural heritage (such as buildings, monuments, landscapes, books, works of art and artefacts) and intangible cultural heritage (such as folklore, traditions, language and knowledge). Places of cultural heritage significance can include a ‘site, area, land, landscape, building or other work, group of buildings or other works, and may include components, contents, spaces and views’ (Burra Charter, 2013: 2).

Nominations for the 2025 Cultural Heritage Awards are now open.

View the guidelines below to learn how you can nominate.

The closing date for nominations is 5pm on Friday 6 December 2024.

Residents, owners, interested parties and stakeholders are invited to nominate places, conservation or other works, groups, individuals, and craftspeople and tradespeople that have made an outstanding contribution to the conservation, education or promotion of cultural heritage within the Municipality.

A nomination form can be downloaded in either PDF or Word format using the links below. Nominations can be submitted to Council:

  • in hard-copy at Council’s front desk at 90 Welsford Street, Shepparton; 
  • via email to council@shepparton.vic.gov.au; or 
  • via our online nomination form below.

Nomination form

Online Nomination Form

Award categories

Award nominations can be made in the following categories:

  1. Reuse of a Heritage Place –This award recognises adaptive reuse of a place. Adaptive reuse is a process that changes the use or function of a derelict or redundant place, such as a place of worship, dwelling, factory, farm building, hall, shop or landscaped parkland, to a different use or function that does not impact upon the place’s significance.
  2. Restoration of a Heritage Place –This award recognises best practice conservation work that maintains the cultural heritage significance of a place. Conservation includes the processes of maintenance, reconstruction, restoration and preservation.
  3. Maintenance of a Heritage Place –This award recognises places of cultural heritage significance that are preserved and maintained to very high standards by their owners or guardians. The winner and finalists must have demonstrated a thorough application of the principles within the Burra Charter.
  4. Best Research Publication or Manuscript –This award recognises and acknowledges a substantial research publication - for example, a book, heritage or conservation study, monograph - related to interpretation, recording, research, promotion and awareness-raising of cultural heritage within the Municipality.
  5. Other Publication –This award recognises and acknowledges a significant publication - for example, a booklet, pamphlet, brochure, memoir, software application - related to interpretation, recording, research, promotion and awareness-raising of cultural heritage within the Municipality.
  6. Student/Youth –This award, for students at primary or secondary level, and those undertaking a tertiary or other course, recognises the contribution of an individual or group whose project or efforts make a demonstrable contribution to the interpretation, understanding, preservation or conservation of cultural heritage.
  7. Interpretive Signage –This award recognises the interpretation of a place of cultural heritage significance in a text – written, electronic or other – which serves as a communication tool for the understanding of the place and as a tangible reminder of its cultural heritage significance.
  8. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultural Heritage – This award recognises and acknowledges both tangible and intangible initiatives that celebrate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural heritage.
  9. Community and Multicultural Events and Tourism – This award recognises events – for example walks and heritage-related days – that disseminate the cultural heritage significance of the peoples that reside in our Municipality.
  10. Other Contribution –This award recognises the potential for contributions to cultural heritage conservation, research, education, promotion, interpretation, training and awareness-raising within the Municipality not included in any of the categories outlined above.

Short-listing

Nominations for the Greater Shepparton Cultural Heritage Awards 2025 are now open and will close at 5pm on Friday 6 December 2024.

Cultural Heritage Award Assessment Criteria and Conditions

The short-listed nominations will be assessed by a Judging Panel using the assessment criteria and conditions contained within the Greater Shepparton Cultural Heritage Awards Guidelines 2024 to determine successful entries.

Short-listed properties must be available for inspection by the Judging Panel during 11-18 December 2024. Owners of short-listed properties will be contacted Tuesday 10 December 2024 by phone or e-mail to arrange a suitable inspection time.

Awards Ceremony

The highest-scoring nomination in each category, provided that it achieves a score of at least 75 per cent, will be honoured with an Award at the Cultural Heritage Awards ceremony.

The 2025 Awards Ceremony will be to be held on Saturday 10 May 2025, at GV Hotel, 223 High Street, Shepparton.

For more information, please refer to the Greater Shepparton Cultural Heritage Awards Guidelines 2024 below or contact Council's Building, Planning and Compliance Department on (03) 5832 9730 or at council@shepparton.vic.gov.au.

  • The Burra Charter
    The Burra Charter and the associated series of Practice Notes provide a best practice standard for managing cultural heritage places in Australia. Visit the link above for more info.

Further information and past winners