THE City of Swan’s Swan Valley Visitor Centre (SVVC) has been awarded gold for the visitor information services category at the recent 2024 Perth Airport WA Tourism Awards.

The prestigious award recognises tourism businesses who deliver unwaveringly dedicated and exceptional service to visitors of Western Australia.

Up against the likes of Mandurah Visitor Centre and Fremantle Visitor Centre, the SVVC was acknowledged as a beacon of excellence in Australian tourism and the gateway to WA’s oldest wine region.

The Perth Hills Tourism Alliance, which is supported by the city won gold in the excellence in local government award for tourism.

In the same week at the Planning Institute of Australia’s state awards for planning excellence the City of Swan received a commendation for its tree protection and management approach.

The city’s approach uses forward thinking, cutting-edge technology and proactive community engagement to deliver a tree protection and management policy that will support tree retention in the Swan region.

It also involved the launch of the city’s ‘branching out’ program – a comprehensive community engagement campaign that shifts public perception about the value of urban trees.

City of Swan Mayor Tanya Richardson said the city was thrilled to have been recognised for its work across multiple industries.

“The city has been a strong supporter of tourism for many years, and we are proud to provide one of the state’s best visitor centres,” she said.

“This is the seventh time we’ve received this prestigious award and it’s truly a testament to the efforts of the amazing staff.

“We’re also incredibly proud of being recognised for our innovative tree protection and management approach which addresses current and future tree canopy retention.

“We know our community values their green spaces and we are focused on delivering initiatives that preserve and improve them.”