The Exchange Business Activator program to continue with three-year funds from council

Narrabri Shire Council will continue to support the award-winning The Exchange Business Activator (TEBA) program after councillors agreed to an ongoing $20,000 annual contribution for the next three years.

TEBA was established in 2022, through a collaborative initiative between council, The Exchange Narrabri, and the University of New England SMART Region Incubator (UNE SRI).

Since its inception, 105 events have been held with almost 1600 participants in total.

Council received the 2025 Excellence in Economic Development Silver Award from the International Economic Development Council (IEDC) for the TEBA program. It has also been recognised through the NSW Local Government Week Awards.

Councillor Jocellin Jansson acknowledged the success of the program at the recent meeting of council, praising small business liaison officer Gillian Goddard who has been one of the driving forces behind the initiative.

Cr Jansson said council’s contribution was a modest investment for strong community return.

“I think for $20,000, it’s a very small investment that council is making on behalf of all of our ratepayers in the future capacity and skills availability in our shire,” Cr Jansson said.

“I’ve seen firsthand on multiple occasions how it ignites conversations and collaborations that extend outside of that one or two hour education session.

“I think it demonstrates that … we’re open for business – whether it’s development, learning or capacity building amongst our business community.”

Cr Jansson queried where the $20,000 would be sourced from. General manager Eloise Chaplain confirmed the costs are sourced from council’s general fund.

Cr Brett Dickinson queried if council is still seeking grant funding to offset the program’s costs. Ms Chaplain confirmed that council will continue to seek external funding and co-investment opportunities for TEBA.

The motion to endorse the funding, and to acknowledge the success of the program, was moved by Cr Brett Nolan and seconded by Cr Dickinson.