A Sydney council has responded to public debate over its crest featuring Captain James Cook.
The Sutherland Shire Council, in Sydney’s South, met on Monday to vote on a resolution over its branding which was split between the Captain Cook crest and a more contemporary “wave” logo.
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Sutherland Shire divided over Captain Cook logo
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Despite media reports in the lead up to the meeting, the council wasn’t voting on whether to remove Captain Cook from the logo but instead the how prominent the crest would be used. The crest had fallen out of use across the council, such as in email signatures, following a branding decision in July.
That confusion led to a heated council meeting on Monday night between maintaining the earlier decision or for an overhaul to allow for the crest to be used more widely.
The motion concluded with councilors voting unanimously for the Captain Cook crest to be given a more prominent place in the council.
Council minutes said the option “provides broader and more prominent use of the crest while maintaining a clear and practical visual identity framework, which can be accommodated within existing operational budgets and staff resources”.
The Sutherland Shire Council has voted unanimously to make their crest featuring Captain James Cook more prominently used across the council. Credit: 7NEWS
“The crest featuring Captain James Cook dates to Council’s formation in 1906 and has served has Council’s principal institutional symbol and the basis of the Council seal,” the minutes read.
Confusion began to creep in after the council introduced the wave logo in 2017 in order to “refresh its visual identity”.
“Over time, the wave became the prominent identifier across many Council touchpoints,” the minutes read.
“The 2026 Brand Strategy and Framework sought to formalise a clear and consistent hierarchy, with no intention to remove the Captain Cook crest.
“It retained the image as Council’s official crest on high-value civic, ceremonial and corporate communications, while positioning the wave as Council’s primary operational and lifestyle identifier.”
A prior decision saw the Captain Cook crest become less used across the council, in favour of a more contemporary ‘wave’ logo. Credit: AAP
Monday’s motion will also shift the term “logo” in favour of calling it instead a “brand mark”.
“These terms more accurately reflect the purpose, significance and appropriate application of each visual element,” the minutes read.
