Why we’re a great place to work

Children and young people engage with Council in a variety of ways, whether it be through child-specific programs and services such as childcare or youth programs, by accessing community services such as libraries, leisure and community centres, by participating in community events, or by enjoying our parks and open spaces.

Penrith City Council is committed to being a child safe organisation by embedding the 10 Child Safe Standards across our organisation's culture and practices.  Our commitment to being a child safe organisation is demonstrated by our policies, procedures, training and overall culture. We strive to create an environment where children and young people feel safe, heard and valued.

You can learn more about Council’s commitment to being a Child Safe Organisation

At Penrith City Council, we believe we’re better together.

Our organisation is committed to attracting and retaining a diverse workforce by providing all employees equal access to opportunities including training, development and progression.

In 2018, 13% of the Penrith City population — that’s around 25,800 people — were identified as living with some form of disability. Our Council has a Disability Inclusion Action Plan 2022–26 (DIAP) which was adopted by Council in June 2022 and details how access and inclusion will be embedded into our core business and is an essential part of building a community in which everyone shares in our positive future. We support the employment of person/s with a disability, and can offer a range of reasonable adjustments to both job applicants during our recruitment processes, and to our employees.

Today, our Penrith community comes from more than 110 countries, speaks more than 80 languages and practices many different faiths and cultural traditions, and our Council is committed to building a welcoming, inclusive and cohesive community where cultural diversity is valued and people of all cultures and faiths can belong and thrive.

At Penrith City Council, we are committed to working towards increasing the representation of women in local government, both as elected members and senior managers and professionals by undertaking ongoing reviews of policies and practices to remove barriers to women’s participation and to provide safe, supportive working and decision-making environments.

Our employee Gender Equity Project Team plan and implement a calendar of events, forums and presentations to support women in the organisation, including financial future seminars, work life balance workshops and International Women’s Day guest speakers.

Our values are embedded into the Council business we undertake each day; they add meaning to the work we do and provide a basis for consistent planning and decision making across the organisation.

Respect

• Be responsive to others’ diverse experiences, perspectives, values and beliefs
• Listen to others' individual viewpoints
• Be open to the inputs of others
• Work to understand the perspectives of others

Accountable

• Behave in an honest, ethical and professional way
• Identify and follow legislation, rules, policies, guidelines and codes of conduct
• Speak out against misconduct, illegal and inappropriate behaviour
• Work and lead by example

Innovation

• Be open to new ideas and change
• Offer own opinion, ask questions and make suggestions
• Adapt well to new situations
• Do not give up easily when problems arise

We have several initiatives in place to improve the sustainability of our Council and our city, working towards achieving a more sustainable Penrith.

Penrith City Council is a recognised leader in sustainable waste management, particularly our household organic waste recycling service, and is committed to actively supporting our community to reduce waste sent to landfill through reducing, reusing, recycling and generally disposing of waste responsibly.

Working at Penrith City Council means working for an award-winning organisation and knowing that you are truly part of a business who are proud of the work they do:

• Australian HR Awards 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 – Excellence Awardee
• UDIA NSW & Blacktown City Council Glennys James Council Innovator Leadership Awards for Excellence 2023 – Winner
• 2023 Sustainable Cities Awards for Sustainable Cities – Winner
• 2023 Sustainable Cities Awards for Circular Economy – Winner
• AILA 2023 Landscape Architecture Awards NSW for Small Projects – Winner
• 2023 PIA National Awards for Planning Excellence for Climate Change and Resilience – Winner
• 2023 Local Government Professionals Excellence Awards, People Workplace & Wellbeing for Capability Framework– Highly Commended
• 2022 Local Government Professionals Excellence Awards for Risk Management – Winner
• 2020 Local Government Professionals Excellence Awards, Excellence in People and Culture – Winner