Grounded. Credible. Community-led.
Recovery is not a checklist — it is a long‑term, people‑centred journey. At The Six C’s, we work alongside communities and councils to navigate the complexity of recovery with care, clarity and confidence.
Mat and Sue bring more than 40 years of on‑the‑ground disaster recovery experience, working shoulder‑to‑shoulder with communities after some of Australia’s most devastating events. They are recognised leaders in community‑led recovery, known for turning uncertainty into coordinated action and helping communities regain strength, connection and hope.
Mat was awarded a National Emergency Medal and Sue a Letter of Commendation following their work with communities after Black Saturday in 2009 and both received a National Emergency Medal for their sustained effort during the 2019/2020 bushfires. In 2018 they were awarded a Highly Commended Certificate from the Australian Resilient Awards for their successful recovery strategy “Vantastic” following the South West fires.
Our experience working with communities, local governments, federal governments, and NGOs is unparalleled. Our strategies succeed by placing the community at the centre; they are flexible and responsive, ensuring that engagement fosters collaboration and builds social capital.
Our recovery approach:
We place the community at the centre of recovery.
Our approach is:
- Community‑led: local knowledge, strengths and priorities drive decisions
- Flexible and responsive: recovery evolves — plans and systems must too
- Collaborative: building trust between councils, agencies and communities
- Capacity‑building: leaving councils and communities stronger for the future
This approach builds social capital, restores confidence, and supports sustainable recovery outcomes — not just short‑term fixes.
Recovery services:
We support councils and communities across the full recovery continuum, including:
- Advising local government on the transition to recovery
- Recovery planning, implementation and evaluation
- Development and implementation of recovery structures, processes and systems
- Recovery records management
- Empowering and supporting staff working in recovery
- Training MERO’s, MRM’s and recovery support staff by using best practice techniques and lived experiences
- Development of community-led strategies to engage with affected communities that build social capital
- Activation and administration of funding mechanisms including the DRFA
Why The Six C’s
We understand the operational pressures councils face — and the human impact communities live with long after the headlines fade.
Our role is to reduce the load, provide practical guidance, and walk beside councils and communities as they rebuild — with compassion, credibility and care.
Vantastic – award winning recovery model
Vantastic was an award winning community led outreach recovery model that designed to put the community at its centre post the South West Fires.
Vantastic or “The Van” as it was commonly referred to was mobile and it came to the affected communities. The van operated on the side of the road , in four separate locations, over 40 weeks across two local government areas and two fire sites. The van had over 750 visits from the community and built resilience and social capital.
Learn more about Vantastic the award winning recovery model designed by Mat and Sue
The Six C's 