From the committee
By Paul Anderson and Russell Noakes
The EdNSW committee met on 13 September for its monthly meeting via Zoom, with four apologies.
Minutes of the August committee meeting were accepted and actions from previous meetings reviewed.
Written reports received included:
- Accreditation Board delegate
- branch financial report for the month ended 31 July 2022
- budget commentary with preliminary estimates to 31 August 2022
- draft speaker presentation schedule for 2023
- IPEd Board update
- member liaison
- mentoring
- networking
- news editor and CSSC delegate.
We are delighted to announce IPEd member Kirsty Arnold has joined the committee as our new Zoom support assistant. The committee looks forward to working with Kirsty. Thanks to those members who responded to our expression of interest for this role.
Our speaker presentation on 6 September proved very popular: 97 people registered for the Arts Law webinar presented by Aditya Vasudevan on “Defamation for editors”. Our next speaker presentation is on 4 October (and our last for 2022). David Seale is the Assistant Secretary Communication Branch at the Commonwealth Department of Education. He will present “Commonwealth Government departments’ use of editors”.
We are implementing the new IPEd professional development pricing structure announced in the September 2022 issue of Gatherings. Fees to attend speaker presentations we advertise from now on will be $15 for members and members of affiliated organisations, A$20 for non-members and A$10 for students.
One new IPEd associate member joined the branch in August.
Our next member networking lunch will be held on the Central Coast (date to be arranged).
The next committee meeting is scheduled for 11 October 2022.
Upcoming events
Many EdNSW events will continue to be held via Zoom.
Please check your email for the latest information on any event.
Please make bookings via the IPEd Events webpage.
As mentioned in the “From the committee” section, our last speaker presentation for 2022 will be held on 4 October.
Events for 2023 will be promoted in the coming months.
Commonwealth Government departments’ use of editors
Date: Tuesday 4 October 2022, 7.00 pm AEDT (Note: Daylight saving starts in NSW, ACT, VIC, TAS and SA on Sunday 2 October 2022).
Location: online via Zoom
Details: This presentation will provide insights into how Australian Public Service agencies strive to achieve a high editorial standard in their publications and communication products, and to tailor these to their audiences. David Seale will explain how editing works in-house, where agencies are mostly likely to engage external editors and why. He will share war stories about how well – or not – public servants adhere to the Australian Government Style manual and internal style guides, and the challenges communication practitioners face. In addition, he will provide some tips on how to get a foot in the door as an external editor.
Presenter: David Seale, A/g Assistant Secretary Communication, Australian Department of Education, Skills and Employment. David’s duties routinely include proofreading documents to ensure they are consistent with departmental and Australian Government style, including annual reports, corporate plans and publications, along with media products such as press releases, speeches and talking points.
He has worked across various media and communication roles in the Australian Public Service since 2005 when he joined the then Department of Immigration, Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs after leavingThe Canberra Times, where he worked as a reporter and subeditor for more than six years.
David has led up to 100 staff in an agency that handles more than 6,000 media requests and drafts several hundred press releases a year, along with supporting its most senior public servants in their many internal and external speaking engagements. He knows an editor’s eye for detail is crucial to the quality of any communication product. David has worked on many annual reports, glossy brochures and corporate plans, through to producing a coffee table book, website redevelopment and content refresh projects, and thousands of press releases.
Bookings: SOLD OUT.