Annual Council Budget (approx): $65 million

Cessnock is named after Cessnock Castle in Ayrshire, Scotland.   Located in the Hunter Valley, about 120 kilometres north of Sydney, the City of Cessnock is the commercial centre of the area now known as Hunter Valley Wine Country.

The Cessnock Local Government Area (LGA) covers approximately 1,950 square kilometres. A significant proportion of this area is dedicated state forest and national park. Most of the rural area is used for grazing, farming and viticulture.

Just over 49 per cent of the population of 46,208 (2010 Census) lives in the larger towns of Cessnock and Kurri Kurri.  

The remaining population is spread across the smaller villages and localities of Aberdare, Abermain, Abernethy, Allandale (part), Bellbird, Bellbird Heights, Big Yengo, Bishops Bridge (part), Black Hill, Branxton, Brunkerville, Buchanan, Bucketty (part), Buttai, Cedar Creek, Cliftleigh (part), Congewai, Corrabare, East Branxton, Ellalong, Elrington, Four Mile Creek, Greta, Greta Main, Heddon Greta, Kearsley, Keinbah, Kitchener, Laguna, Lochinvar, Lovedale, Loxford, Millfield, Moruben, Mount View, Mount Vincent, Mulbring, Neath, North Rothbury, Nulkaba, Olney, Paxton, Paynes Crossing, Pelaw Main, Pelton, Pokolbin, Quorrobolong, Richmond Vale, Rothbury, Sawyers Gully, Stanford Merthyr, Stockrington, Sweetmans Creek, Weston and Wollombi.

There are more than 1,010 kilometres of roads within the Cessnock LGA and that does not include roads in state forests or national parks. Council is the responsible authority for more than 900 kilometres of those roads. Almost 610 kilometres of roads in the LGA are sealed with the annual budget to maintain and reseal Council roads approximately $3 million.