A man who held a champion female surfer under the water until she went limp has been found guilty of assault.

Alex Ross-King died of an MDMA overdose during a music festival in January. Now her mother is calling for changes to ensure no-one else dies.

A magistrate who found a Nimbin Mardi Grass festival worker not guilty of drug driving has blasted the NSW Government's advice to motorists, saying it "lulls them into a false sense of security".

We are all doing the right thing putting our compost and garden waste in the green bin, right? Well, yes, but that is only the start of a story that can end in disaster.

The magistrate who sentenced a man over the assault of a champion surfer says she took into account the public scolding he's received when deciding his punishment.

Dramatic footage from the NSW Rural Fire Service shows the treacherous conditions firefighters are dealing with at Shark Creek, which remains under emergency alert.

At least 11 homes had already been destroyed at Binna Burra.

Flames fanned by strong winds caused extensive damage to the resort site, destroying the heritage-listed wooden lodge building that had stood since the 1930s.

For nine long months, the main road into Byron Bay was adorned by one of Australia's most controversial pieces of public art. Until last night.

As ferocious blazes tore through Rappville last week, many of the community's young people displayed extraordinary bravery, rescuing their neighbours and animals while fighting tooth and nail to save homes.

Many parents across the country are helping their children learn from home for the first time ever, but one man who has been home educating for years warns some parents might not like what they see.

What started out as a routine walk of the neighbourhood has ended in a viral video when Mike Cook's golden retriever Elsie "wasn't in the mood for walking".

The residents of short-term accommodation in Cairns West may struggle to find affordable housing after the complex they call home is shut down next month.

Australian Medical Association of Queensland warns its members against signing new contracts to perform elective surgeries under the public-private partnership model.

Colombian student Angelo Romero, unable to fly home due to coronavirus, is receiving emergency treatment in a Brisbane hospital for a shock leukaemia diagnosis, concerned his private health policy won't cover it.

Words like 'iso' and 'sanny' are slipping into every day vocabulary, as COVID-19 slang goes viral like, well, "the 'rona'. Experts say its creating a sense of community.

Eighteen-year-old Tayla Slater has a broken vertebrae after falling from her horse when it was startled by a driver revving his engine.

Despite a staged re-opening of classes from Monday, May 11, no clear guidance has been given for boarding students, with many independent schools opening limited classes and boarding accommodation for selected year levels.

Tara June Winch has won three major prizes at the NSW Premier's Literary Awards for her novel of love, family, history and language, The Yield.

Public figures have posted heartfelt and supportive messages for teachers on Twitter as Term 2 begins in NSW.

Australia's COVID-19 death toll rises to 88 after four more fatalities at a western Sydney aged care facility, bringing the total number of coronavirus fatalities at the centre to 11.

Tributes flow from across the political divide after Ian Causley, one of the NSW North Coast's longest serving members of Parliament, dies aged 79.

Anglicare Sydney, which operates the facility, says the past 24 hours had been "tragic", following the announcement of four deaths yesterday.

Historians often argue about the nature and extent of Aboriginal resistance to European settlement but one person who is clearly linked to that resistance is Pemulwuy.

The number of coronavirus fatalities at the Newmarch House aged care home in Western Sydney continues to climb, as the NSW Premier asks the Federal Government to intervene in the "horrific" situation.

After soaking rains in February, for the first time in three years farmers have a real opportunity to sow a crop, but they must first face international importation issues and supply shortages of agricultural chemicals and fertiliser.

Ms Berejiklian says there needs to be better communication between aged care facilities and relatives after a 13th person has died from coronavirus at the Newmarch House.

A man is jailed for circling a family in his car and hurling anti-Islamic abuse at them on the New South Wales south coast last year.

Newmarch House records another death as cases there continue to climb, while more than 7,200 people were tested in NSW yesterday, the highest testing on a Saturday so far.

Last week the ABC published the story behind a tiny 66-year-old handprint found in a garden shed. After seeing the story, family and friends have now filled in the details about the life, and tragic death of Ian Redman.

A 76-year-old woman died in Nepean hospital yesterday after contracting the virus.

The number of coronavirus related fatalities at the Newmarch House aged care facility in Western Sydney rises again, putting the death toll at 15.

Sydney arts centre Carriageworks says the coronavirus pandemic has caused an "irreparable loss of income" after six months of events were cancelled or postponed.

MORNING BRIEFING: The multi-arts venue hosts Vivid, Sydney Writers' Festival and Fashion Week, but a new proposal would see the Sydney Opera House take control.

While hygiene and handwashing are on people's minds at present, there's hope that water conservation is right up there with it as parts of Australia come out of drought.

Jim Hamilton from Lake Macquarie was a passenger aboard the Ruby Princess, now the subject of a special commission of inquiry led by Brett Walker SC. A NSW Health epidemiologist Kelly-Anne Ressler agreed it was unsatisfactory that more people on the ship were tested for influenza than for COVID-19.

The family of missing backpacker Theo Hayez criticises Belgian media for claiming DNA on a cap found near Cape Byron Lighthouse suggested it was owned by the teen, who has not been seen for almost a year.

When police launched a youth outreach program in Dubbo six months ago, they would have been happy to see charge rates drop by 10 per cent. But Project Walwaay has wildly exceeded expectations.

Youth taking part in the Down The Track initiative can learn how to shear sheep, get a certificate in agriculture and can learn hospitality skills for at least another 12 months.

Arbitrage segues smoothly into a psychological thriller, seamlessly weaving the financial finagling into the slow decline and fall of Robert Miller's moral universe.