Group photo from left: Matthew Blackborough, Deputy Premier & Industrial Relations Minister Kyam Maher, SafeWork SA Executive Director Glenn Farrell, Governor of South Australia, Her Excellency the Honourable Frances Adamson AC, Attorney General’s Department Chief Executive Caroline Mealor, Kristy Noakes and Bindi Burnell.
Two South Australian projects aimed at making workplaces safer for women and young workers have received a combined $40,000 through this year’s Augusta Zadow Awards.
The funding will support initiatives tackling two very different workplace challenges — access to specialist training for workers in regional and remote areas, and aggression and harassment faced by women in customer-facing council roles.
Transform Training’s Matthew Blackborough has received $25,000 for SMART Facilitator – Specialist Mentoring and Remote Training.
The project will trial a remote mentoring model connecting workers and onsite supervisors with specialist trainers in real time.
It is designed particularly for industries involving mobile plant and machinery, giving young and less-experienced workers greater access to specialist advice even when they are working in regional or remote locations.
The project is also expected to support women entering industries that have traditionally been male dominated.
A further $15,000 has been awarded to Bindi Burnell and Kristy Noakes from the City of Charles Sturt for the Empowered & Safe project.
The initiative will develop and test a personal safety framework for women working in customer-facing local government roles, with a focus on aggression, harassment and other psychosocial hazards.
Training, risk assessment tools and support resources will be developed to help workers recognise risks, improve de-escalation skills and respond more confidently to difficult situations.
The framework has been designed with the potential to be rolled out across South Australia’s 68 councils.
SafeWork SA Executive Director Glenn Farrell said the two projects addressed emerging workplace safety challenges.
“This year’s winning projects tackle important challenges, including access to specialist training in regional areas and the management of psychosocial risks faced by customer-facing workers,” he said.
The Augusta Zadow Awards are presented annually during National Safe Work Month and support projects, research and education focused on improving workplace health and safety for women and young people.
First presented in 2005, the awards are named after Augusta Zadow, South Australia’s first female factory inspector and an early advocate for safer workplace conditions.
The 2026 recipients were presented with their awards by South Australian Governor Frances Adamson at Government House.
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