Lord Mayor honoured with prestigious award

City of Melbourne Lord Mayor Sally Capp says she’s “surprised and humbled” to have been appointed an Officer in the Order of Australia (AO) in this year’s King’s Birthday honours. 

Ms Capp, who is Melbourne’s third female Lord Mayor since being elected in 2018, received her prestigious award in recognition of her “distinguished service to the people of Melbourne, to local government, to business, and to the community through various organisations”.

The AO honour is a “distinguished service of a high degree to Australia or humanity at large”, recognising “people whose actions have made a significant impact in our society”. 

Ms Capp’s long list of contributions to the community include being a spokeswoman on homelessness since 2019, being the current chair of the Council of Capital City Lord Mayors, and the first woman to serve as a board member at Collingwood Football Club. 

In other roles, she is a member of the Local Government Ministerial Advisory Panel, chair of the M9 collaboration of nine inner metropolitan councils, as well as a member and City of Melbourne representative for the Metropolitan Transport Forum.

Ms Capp said her AO award “represents the combined efforts of the brilliant people I have worked with and their dedication to positive outcomes in our society”.

“It is a privilege to serve the people of Melbourne, and I thank them for the opportunity to work alongside them through past challenging circumstances and now as we shape the future of our city together,” she said. •