The Mount Barker Courier

Virtual fence trial shows promise

The Adelaide Hills Council has installed virtual fencing along a stretch of Greenhill Road, as part of the second stage of a project aimed at reducing wildlife injuries. The virtual fencing project trials a new electronic protection system designed...

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Fin Dunford

Wetland weed spread stopped

Mt Barker Council staff have stopped a declared weed from spreading in the Laratinga Wetlands, after two Italian buckthorn saplings were dumped in the area. The weeds, along with a small pile of garden waste, were dumped near a path on June 10 and...

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Emergency department staffing below recommendation

The Mt Barker emergency department has just over half the recommended number of doctors present on any one shift, as latest data estimates that patients are still not being seen within target time-frames. But the Barossa, Hills and Fleurieu Local...

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Elisa Rose

Event brings home car crash consequences

The Mt Barker community is being invited to participate in an “eye-opening” session about driver safety, presented by a firefighter and a road crash survivor. SA MFS station officer Doug MacDonald-Taylor, who has seen the devastation car crashes...

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Cool photo wins award

Mt Barker Courier journalist Scott Murphy’s photo of a young farmer keeping cool amid a heatwave has been recognised in the 2025 Australia Council of Agricultural Journalists (ACAJ) awards. The photo of 14-year-old Oscar Kowald in a tub at his...

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Discovery of Biblical proportions

A Bible once owned by a prominent Hills settler and businessman has found its way to the SA Parliamentary library after it was uncovered in an op shop at Mt Barker. The religious text was anonymously donated to the Gawler Street Red Cross Shop...

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Parents and teachers fed up with ‘inaction’ on school violence

Parents and a former teacher say students and staff at Echunga Primary School are experiencing violent and disruptive behavior so regularly it has become normalised, with little communication to families about incidents. A Department for Education...

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News

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Emergency department staffing below recommendation

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Elisa Rose

Cool photo wins award

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Discovery of Biblical proportions

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Parents and teachers fed up with ‘inaction’ on school violence

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Council & Politics

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Virtual fence trial shows promise

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Fin Dunford

Wetland weed spread stopped

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Market gets five-year go-ahead

The Adelaide Hills Council has renewed the Stirling Market’s road closure permit for another five years. The market is held on the fourth Sunday of every month on Druid Avenue. The market had been granted a five-year road closure permit, which was...

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Fin Dunford

Police

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Police

High steaks offender

There was a “high steaks pursuit” at Dawesley last week, after a cow was spotted with a bucket on its head. In a social media post last week, SA Police said a patrol responded to reports of a “cow acting suspiciously” alongside Old Princes...

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Elisa Rose

26 Mar 2025

Fire sparks complacency warning

The CFS is warning residents not to be complacent in the wake of a fire that burned through 3ha of scrub at Birdwood last week. The blaze was sparked by a fallen powerline at about 2.20am on Wednesday, March 19, at a rural property near the...

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Joseph Moore

26 Mar 2025

Police

Fire damages century-old barn

A century-old barn at Nairne has been “significantly damaged” after catching fire last weekend. At about 9.50pm on March 1, five CFS trucks with about 25 firefighters responded to reports of a structure fire at Jeffery Street. On arrival...

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05 Mar 2025

Not-guilty plea in Littlehampton axe case

A former Hills woman who is charged with attempting to kill her ex-husband in a Littlehampton garage has pleaded not guilty. Lisa Lines and co-accused Zacharia Bruckner both pleaded not guilty this week to one count each of attempted murder, one...

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05 Mar 2025

Community

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Aldgate firefighter deploys to Canada

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Event brings home car crash consequences

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Kicking goals: local school chosen for football investment

Students at Aldgate Primary School will be kicking goals in the coming weeks after being chosen to receive new AFL goal posts for their school oval. The junior-sized goal posts will be delivered as part of a joint SANFL, AFL and State Government...

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King’s honor: Hills resident honored for contribution to medicine

A Hills neurosurgeon who chaired committees to improve patient outcomes and educate and train new surgeons has been made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM). Aldgate resident Dr Glenn McCulloch, pictured, was inspired to pursue a career in...

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11 Jun 2025

Sport

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Dogs Day Out

Onkaparinga Valley Bulldogs celebrated their first win for season 2025, holding off a determined Blackwood side to record a 20-point victory at the Kennel. At a sunbathed Balhannah Oval, the young Bulldogs led from start to finish in a consistent...

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Torrens Valley Table Tennis Finals

The Torrens Valley Table Tennis Tournament for 2025 has been run with some familiar names making the headlines and some young guns stealing the limelight. In the Men’s Open semi-final Ollie Hughes pushed Darren Stanbury to five sets. Hughes was up...

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Adelaide Hills Hotel Darts Finals

The 2025 Adelaide Hills Hotel Darts League (AHHDL) Summer season came to an end on Tuesday June 10, with three grand final matches. The A, B and C-grade played at the newly renovated Bridgewater Sports and Social Club. With about 30 players and just...

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Oakbank motorsport prodigy

Adelaide Hills motorsport prodigy Jensen Marold continues to set a fast pace which belies his teenage years. Although just turning 15 at the end of May, the Oakbank resident is quickly turning wise heads on a national scale with his performances in...

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Jeff Pistola

Wyld weather for 250th

It was Rob Wyld’s 250th A-grade game as an umpire having been involved in the HFL for more than 50 years as a premiership player, coach and life member of Hahndorf and now umpiring

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AFL Debut for Liddy

Another former Hills Football League junior product has fulfilled his lifelong ambition by making his AFL debut last weekend. Kersbrook junior Mani Liddy debuted for Port Adelaide against the Melbourne Demons on Sunday, less than three weeks after...

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Making a Splash

Four residents from the Adelaide Hills represented South Australia at the Australian Youth Water Polo Championships. The best Junior Water polo prospects from all over the country met in Perth for the fifth edition of the Championships, which took...

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Battle in the Hills Round 3

Boxing in the region will again come under the spotlight with a third high-profile tournament coming to the Adelaide Hills. Saturday, June 21, will feature ‘Battle in the Hills (3)’ to be held at the Mt Barker High School gym, featuring a card...

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11 Jun 2025

Editorial

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Editorial

Classroom chaos

It’s very concerning to see the extent of behavioral issues occurring at least two Hills public primary schools. Reports from parents at both Echunga and Blackwood primary schools demonstrate that there is a broader issue within the education...

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Editorial

Wheels turning

It’s good to see that the Adelaide Hills Council has decided to re-instate funding for the 2026 Tour Down Under (TDU) in its budget. It’s understandable that the council is looking to employ cost-cutting measures to decrease it’s $4.86m...

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Editorial

Failure to respond

The State Government’s response to the Mt Barker Council’s ballooning debt is baffling. The council is being forced to shoulder tens of millions of dollars of debt to provide basic services to a growing community that, just 30km away in suburban...

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