General News
6 April, 2026
DONUT’S DONORS
SOUTHERN Loddon communities have been caught in a postcode cocoon crediting one town as a major appeal fundraiser.
SOUTHERN Loddon communities have been caught in a postcode cocoon crediting one town as a major appeal fundraiser.
Tarnagulla has been heralded by organisers as among the state’s leading communities raising money for the Royal Children’s Hospital Good Friday Appeal.
But locals say the town with postcode 3551 has had donations lodged through a QR code platform reaping the praise that should be shared with Bendigo suburbs Maiden Gully, Strathfieldsaye, Huntly and Epsom and Cornella, more 100km away.
Loddon Shire ward councillor Nick Angelo said: “Around Tarnagulla and Newbridge, everyone pitched in to raise more than $1600 but the $45,000 credited to the town shows the postcode for our area may not be right. The current structure of the donut 3551 postcode around Bendigo is a throwback to the days when Bendigo was a city of no more than 35,000 and surrounded by a lot of little towns, some with declining population.”
“Linking our little towns with big Bendigo suburbs and towns a 90-minute drive away makes little sense in 2026. We need to learn whether the postcode is having an impact on crime ratings and insurance premiums in our Loddon communities.
“Our districts are very different to Epsom, Huntly, Maiden Gully and Strathfieldsaye. Council boundaries have changed in the last 60 years but not Australia Post.”
Australia Post has been contacted for comment.
Read More: Tarnagulla, Loddon Shire