Shellharbour City Council’s Aboriginal interpretive play space, Yirran muru, wins two awards at the recent 30th annual National Trust Heritage Awards 2024.

The annual awards ceremony celebrates outstanding practice and excellence in conservation of Aboriginal built, natural and cultural heritage.

On 17 May, the play space won the Education and Interpretation Category, and Highly Commended in the Aboriginal Heritage Category.

It is another milestone for Yirran muru, securing first place in a non-Aboriginal award category and seeking state recognition for its contribution to education and interpretation.

With the addition of these two news awards, Yirran muru has received a total of four awards since it officially opened in April 2023.

The Dharawal Language Wheel. Photo credit: Shellharbour Civic Centre.

In April, the play space received the Diversity and Inclusion Award at the Institute of Public Works Engineering Australasia (IPWEA) Excellence Awards. It has also won the 2023 Landscape Excellence Awards.

“The Aboriginal interpretive play space is an incredible addition to our city. To be recognised with four prestigious awards is absolutely wonderful,” says Shellharbour Mayor Chris Homer.

“It is an amazing achievement and a credit to the collaboration between our local Aboriginal community and Council staff.”

Yirran muru, which means ‘many pathways’ in Dharawal, is an authentic Aboriginal interpretive play space, which shares local Dharawal culture through Aboriginal methods of learning. It is located in the native gardens behind the Shellharbour Civic Centre.

Encompassing landscapes from high in the escarpment to the sandy beaches of the Illawarra, it is designed to take people on a cultural journey following the historical seasonal movements of local Aboriginal people.

“Yirran muru is a celebration of Dharawal culture, a unique space in which local Aboriginal culture is shared with the community through play and nature,” Mayor Homer says.

“It’s a beautiful space. If you haven’t yet visited Yirran muru, please go and check it out.”