Snowy Valleys Council

The Snowy Valleys Council is a local government area located in the South West Slopes region of New South Wales, Australia. This area was formed on 12 May 2016 from the merger of the Tumut Shire and Tumbarumba Shire councils.^[3]

Snowy Valleys Council New South Wales
Location in New South Wales
Coordinates	35°37′S 148°5′E
Population	14,395 (2016 census)[1] 14,532 (2018 est.)[2]
• Density	1.6066/km2 (4.1610/sq mi)
Established	12 May 2016 (2016-05-12)
Area	8,960 km2 (3,459.5 sq mi)[3]
Mayor	Ian Chaffey
Region	South West Slopes
State electorate(s)	Albury, Wagga Wagga
Federal division(s)	Eden-Monaro
Website	Snowy Valleys Council
LGAs around Snowy Valleys Council: Wagga Wagga Cootamundra-Gundagai Yass Valley Greater Hume Snowy Valleys Council Snowy Monaro, ACT Towong (VIC) Towong (VIC) Snowy Monaro

The council area comprises 8,960 square kilometres (3,460 sq mi) and covers the western side of the southernmost parts of the Great Dividing Range and foothills in New South Wales. Large sections of the local government area are contained in national parks. At the time of its establishment, the population of the council area was estimated to be 14,953.^[3]

The Mayor of Snowy Valleys Council is Councillor Julia Ham, who won the most recent election in 2024.

Main towns and villages

In addition to the towns of Adelong, Batlow, Tumbarumba and Tumut, localities in the area include Brindabella, Brungle, Cabramurra, Gilmore, Grahamstown, Greg Greg, Gocup, Jingellic, Khancoban, Killimicat, Little River, Maragle, Rosewood, Talbingo, Tooma, Wondalga and Yarrangobilly.

Heritage listings

The Snowy Valleys Council has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:

• Mount Kosciuszko to Eden: Bundian Way^[4]
• Tumut, Adelong Falls Gold Workings^[5]
• Tumut, Cootamundra-Tumut railway: Tumut railway station^[6]
• Tumut, 46 Russell Street: Montreal Community Theatre^[7]
• Tumut, Tumut Plains Road: Junction Bridge, Tumut^[8]

Demographics

At the 2021 census, there were 14,891 people in the Snowy Valleys local government area; of these 50.4% were male and 49.6% were female. The median age of people in Snowy Valleys Council was 45 years; the national median is 38 years.^[9]

At the 2021 census, 42.0% of residents stated their ancestry as Australian. 65%^[a] nominated a religious affiliation with Christianity, which was significantly higher than the national average of 47.1%. 87.2% of households only speak English at home, higher than the national average of 72%.^[9]

Selected historical census data for Snowy Valleys local government area
Census year			2016[10]	2021[9]
Population		Estimated residents on census night	14,395	14,891
		LGA rank in terms of population size within New South Wales	77th	76th
		% of New South Wales population	0.19%	0.18%
		% of Australian population	0.06%	0.06%
Cultural and language diversity
Ancestry, top responses		Australian[b]	45.5%	42.0%
		English	38.9%	40.0%
		Irish	11.7%	11.6%
		Scottish	9.4%	9.7%
		German	4.6%	n/c
		Australian Aboriginal	0.7%	6.1%
Language, used at home (other than English)		Afrikaans	0.4%	0.6%
		Mandarin	0.4%	0.3%
		Filipino	0.2%	0.2%
		German	0.2%	n/c
		Thai	n/c	0.3%
		Wiradjuri	n/c	0.2%
Religious affiliation
Religious affiliation, top responses		Anglican	29.3%	23.8%
		Catholic	26.2%	23.5%
		No religion, so described[c]	18.8%	29.3%
		Not stated	12.1%	9.9%
		Presbyterian and Reformed	3.5%	2.8%
Median weekly incomes
Personal income		Median weekly personal income	A$	A$
		% of Australian median income	%	%
Family income		Median weekly family income	A$	A$
		% of Australian median income	%	%
Household income		Median weekly household income	A$	A$
		% of Australian median income	%	%

Council

Snowy Valleys Council consists of nine councillors elected proportionally as a single ward.

Current composition

Party		Councillors
	Independents	8
	Independent Labor
	Independent Liberal
	Libertarian	1
	Total	9

The current Council, elected in 2024, is:

Councillor		Party	Notes
	James Hayes	Independent
	Trina Thomson	Independent
	Grant Hardwick	Independent
	Julia Ham	Independent	Mayor
	John Larter	Libertarian
	Andrew Wortes	Independent
	David Sheldon	Independent
	Michael Inglis	Independent
	Hugh Packard	Independent	Deputy Mayor

Election results

2024

This section is an excerpt from Results of the 2024 New South Wales local elections in Riverina § Snowy Valleys results.[edit]

2024 New South Wales local elections: Snowy Valleys^[11][12][13]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	1. Michael Inglis 2. Barney Hyams (Ind. Nat) 3. Max Gordon-Hall
	Independent	Hugh Packard
	Independent	Andrew Wortes
	Independent Labor	Michael Ivill
	Libertarian	John Larter
	Independent Liberal	Julia Ham
	Independent	David Sheldon
	Independent	James Hayes
	Independent	Sam Hughes
	Independent	Grant Hardwick
	Independent	Trina Thomson
	Independent	Johanna Armour
Total formal votes
Informal votes
Turnout

See also

• New South Wales portal

• Local government areas of New South Wales

Notes

1. Excludes not stated responses.
2. The Australian Bureau of Statistics has stated that most who nominate "Australian" as their ancestry are part of the Anglo-Celtic group.
3. In accordance with the Australian Bureau of Statistics source, 'No Religion, so described' does not include those who reported Secular and Other Spiritual Beliefs such as Atheism, Agnosticism and Own Spiritual Beliefs.