Cessnock City Council's Australia Day ceremony will be closed to the public for the second year in a row, but a series of COVID-safe community events will be held next week.
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The festivities will kick off on Tuesday, January 25 with a performance by the Australian Army Band Newcastle at Cessnock Sportsground.
The gates will open at 6pm, with the show to start at 7pm, and entry is free.
The Australia Day ceremony will be held at Cessnock Performing Arts Centre on Wednesday, January 26, but will only be open to invited guests due to capacity limits.
Paralympic swimmer Prue Watt OAM will give an address as Cessnock's Australia Day ambassador for 2022.
The Australia Day ambassador program provides a special guest - from sportspeople to humanitarians to local heroes - to more than 100 towns around NSW, to deliver meaningful and uplifting addresses that capture the true spirit of our nation.
Ms Watt - who is visually impaired - won several medals across the Athens, Beijing and London Paralympic Games, including gold in the 100-metres breaststroke at the 2012 games in the British capital.
The ceremony will also include the induction of four new citizens and the presentation of Cessnock's Australia Day awards. Council will provide highlights of the event via its social media pages.
The celebrations will wrap up on Friday, January 28 when Cessnock Performing Arts Centre will host an Aussie Classics Film Festival.
Three iconic Australian films will be showcased on the day including The Sapphires (2pm), Babe (5pm) and Priscilla, Queen of the Desert at 7pm.
Residents are invited to come along to one session, or stay for all three.
All films will be free, but bookings are essential. Reserve your tickets at cessnockperformingartscentre.com.au or by calling the box office on 4993 4266.
Cessnock mayor Jay Suvaal said he is very much looking forward to the festivities and encourages the community to get involved.
"The citizenship ceremony and Australia Day awards will be my first official event as mayor of Cessnock City, and one I will be proud to preside over," Cr Suvaal said.
"I look forward to celebrating our newest Australian citizens and local award winners."
These events are being run under the current NSW Health guidelines and are subject to change.
For more information, visit cessnock.nsw.gov.au/events.
Krystal Sellars
Krystal Sellars is the Senior Journalist at the Cessnock Advertiser. Born and raised in Cessnock, she started her journalism career at the Advertiser in 2006 after completing a Bachelor of Communication at the University of Newcastle. Contact her on krystal.sellars@cessnockadvertiser.com.au.
Krystal Sellars is the Senior Journalist at the Cessnock Advertiser. Born and raised in Cessnock, she started her journalism career at the Advertiser in 2006 after completing a Bachelor of Communication at the University of Newcastle. Contact her on krystal.sellars@cessnockadvertiser.com.au.
