Profile: Robyn Seymour

LOCAL PROFILE: ROBYN SEYMOUR, CEO – SURF COAST SHIRE Settling in on the Surf Coast

By Moreen Dainty Victoria was hit by wild weather on Friday 29 October, just as the state was preparing to come out of another period of extended lockdown.

Traders were getting ready for the Melbourne Cup weekend when wind gusts of over 100 kmh caused property damage across Victoria. Homes were damaged up and down the Surf Coast and uprooted trees and branches caused power outages. It was the last thing anyone needed. I was scheduled to interview Robyn Seymour, the Surf Coast Shire’s new CEO, that afternoon. When she appeared on my Zoom screen, we agreed it had been ‘quite a day’. Robyn had woken up to trees swaying dangerously in the garden of her home in Anglesea. She had quickly abandoned any idea of an early morning walk and set off early to the Shire offices in Torquay. ‘My heart sank as I drove past some of the local shops. They were without power. I just hoped that it would come back on quickly so they wouldn’t lose their stock ahead of the anticipated bumper Cup weekend.’ By midday, the Shire Council had fielded over 130 calls from the community, mostly from Anglesea to Torquay. There were more than 120 jobs to be done to clear local roads. In the west of the state, some 180,000 Powercorp customers were without power.

Robyn took on the role of CEO in early July. I was keen to find out a bit more about her and how she was finding the transition into local government. When she applied for the job, she was really excited about the possibility of the role, but wasn’t sure she would get it. As she talked me through her career to date, however, it was easy to see why others felt this slightly built, personable woman would be up to the task of heading up one of Victoria’s largest and fastest growing Shire Councils.

Robyn grew up on a small country property near Warrandyte. Her father is a forester working for Melbourne Parks and Waterways and her mum is a medical scientist.

‘We often went camping, visiting the most scenic parts of Victoria and New South Wales. Dad would teach me about the wildlife and the rich diverse plant life.

Robyn Seymour was appointed CEO of Surf Coast Shire last July.

‘I learnt the importance of connecting with the natural world around me – something that influences me to this day.’ Another lifelong passion has been what she calls ‘people watching’, trying to understand what motivates people, how to get the best out of them and why people behave in very different ways. She was drawn to the social sciences, studying psychology at university. When she graduated she went into the community sector working in ‘community facing jobs’. ‘Feeling like I am contributing and making a difference to people's lives is fundamental to any role that I do.’

The early part of her career was spent in trauma counselling, and then road trauma counselling and coordinating the provision of an after-hours emergency respite service for the frail, aged and people with disabilities. She then spent several years with the RACV working on a number of initiatives to improve road safety for drivers and other road users in different age groups. From there she moved to VicRoads where she worked on a number of support programs, including the development and delivery of the flagship L2P - learner driver mentor program. The largest youth mentoring program in Victoria, it provides trained volunteers to help young people who face significant barriers completing the 120 hours of on-road driving experience required to gain a licence. 'A program like this is about much more than someone just getting a licence. There is a lot of social benefit in having vulnerable young people spending a significant amount of time with trained volunteer mentors from their local community who are helping them achieve something they really want. ‘The program helps break the cycle of disadvantage because of the really strong relationships young people forge with their mentors. At any time it is helping over 1800 young Victorians.’ Other jobs within VicRoads followed and Robyn steadily worked her way up to the position of Chief Executive. From there she moved to head up Road Safety Victoria and Deputy Secretary for Network Planning at the Department of Transport, responsible for all transport planning in Victoria. Robyn and her partner Adam have been regular visitors to the Surf Coast for the past 10 years. ‘I reckon we’ve rented just about every dog-friendly house from Aireys to Moggs Creek,’ she said. They had been looking for an opportunity to move here for some time.

She is genuinely excited about her new role. ‘It’s such an honour and a responsibility.’ It gives her the opportunity to work with people, contribute to the community and be in an environment she can help care for and enjoy. For now, Robyn lives in Anglesea, which she describes as ‘a wonderful discovery’.

‘Being able to walk to the beach, walk along the heathlands, see the carpets of wildflowers which change from one weekend to the next during Spring. It’s been incredible.’ Robyn has joined the Surf Coast Shire Council at an important point in time. After months of extensive community consultation and in-depth engagement, the 2021–2025 Council Plan was released in September. ‘It’s an important and foundational document that sets the priorities and direction for all the things that we do. It contains some ambitious aspirations. We need to hold ourselves accountable to progressing and achieving these,’ said Robyn. ‘We have an amazingly talented and able community on the Surf Coast. People have strong views and expectations about what we should and shouldn't be doing, but are also very willing to participate, assist and contribute. ‘And so when I ponder some of the challenges we have regarding our financial position in Council and how we balance and meet all our needs, I realise that if we can keep people actively involved we can really extend our capacity to get things done.’