A plan for managing the impacts of Christmas Day at Bronte
08 December 2025 | Council News
Waverley Council has devised a sweeping, multi-pronged strategy to manage the anticipated impacts of the non-sanctioned Christmas Day at Bronte Beach gathering.
For many years now, groups of predominantly international backpackers have descended on Bronte on 25 December for their Christmas celebrations.
However, the aftermath of last year’s unofficial event had a significant impact on the community, with excessive noise, anti-social behaviour and litter jeopardising both amenity and safety.
“What we saw last year, particularly the mess, was unacceptable,” Waverley Mayor Will Nemesh said.
“This is not an approved or managed Council event and while we strongly discourage crowds from attending, we cannot ban people from the beach. That said, we are committed to mitigating the impacts on the community as much as possible.”
A large section of Bronte Park is now closed due to the construction of the new Bronte Surf Club, which has limited available space for visitors. Revellers are being warned not to attend due to the extensive measures that are being taken by Council, and the lack of park available.
Following last year’s event, Council held a series of community engagement activities in April and May, which led to the development of a comprehensive management plan.
The key features of this strategy are:
- An increased police and security presence, including checkpoints with alcohol being confiscated.
- Additional cleaning services throughout the day and overnight, with the intention of clearing the park before sunrise on Boxing Day.
- Enhanced traffic management, with extra buses to reduce congestion on local streets.
- A dedicated emergency services area for quicker response times.
- More toilet facilities and water stations to enhance safety and protect amenity.
- Crowd management and supervision measures.
“From our consultation with residents and the broader community, as well as police, businesses and local groups, we know rubbish was a major concern last year,” Cr Nemesh said.
“Council has engaged professional event cleaning contractors to operate throughout the day and overnight, and the goal is for the park will be back to normal as quickly as possible.
“Additional measures informed by community feedback include more of an emphasis on medical, water stations, security and police, and traffic control. All of these have been addressed in the plan.
“We cannot stop people from gathering but Council expects this strategy will go a long way to mitigate concerns raised following the 2024 Christmas Day at Bronte Beach.
“Community safety and amenity are our main priorities and everyone visiting Waverley beaches, for whatever reason, should do so in a responsible, respectful and safe manner,” Cr Nemesh said.
“While this gathering is not authorised, Council will continue to work closely with police, transport operators, our Rangers and Parks staff, Lifeguards and surf clubs and other key stakeholders to ensure we have the most robust response in place to protect community safety, amenity and the environment.”
Waverley Council is investing more than $250,000 on these measures for Christmas Day without any assistance from the State Government.
The strategy and its success will be reviewed to ensure improvements can be taken on board. The community will have another opportunity next year to provide feedback.
To keep up to date on Bronte Beach Christmas Day, visit haveyoursay.waverley.nsw.gov.au/bronte-christmas-options
To receive further information or updates, subscribe to the Have Your Say page at haveyoursay.waverley.nsw.gov.au/register