The Kilcoy Sentinel is an independently owned free weekly (Thursday) community newspaper with 12,000 circulation in the Somerset Region and the western Moreton Bay Region.

Established in 1985, the paper has been under its current independent ownership for over 20 years, which has grown the paper from a 1,500 circulation in 1999 to the 12,000 circulation it has become today.

Being a community newspaper the Sentinel covers a variety of news and events including local schools, country shows, festivals (eg. Woodford Folk Festival), council (Moreton Bay & Somerset Regions), political (state & federal), business and industry, farming and agriculture, entertainment, trades & services as well as local businesses, clubs & organisations.

Weekly features include “Hinterland Farmer” as well as sections for Health & Fitness, Real Estate & Finance, Motoring, Education, Sports and Racing.

The paper is well established with 5,800 postal distribution and 6,200 bulk drops from Fernvale and Lowood in the southern end of the Somerset Regional Council area through to Jimna in the north with Esk, Toogoolawah and Kilcoy as principal towns in the Brisbane Valley region.

The postal circulation extends east along the D’Aguilar Highway to the Moreton Bay Shire towns of Woodford, D’Aguilar and Delaneys Creek with bulk drops in Wamuran, Caboolture and Morayfield.

The circulation area covers the towns and districts of:

Kilcoy, Glenfern, Gregors Creek, Hazeldean, Jimna, Marysmokes Creek, Mt Archer, Mt Kilcoy, Royston, Sandy Creek, Sheepstation Creek, Villeneuve, Westvale, Winya, Woolmar, Fernvale, Lowood, Coominya, Esk, Toogoolawah, Somerset Dam, Colinton, Harlin, Moore, Linville, Blackbutt, Woodford, Bellthorpe, Cedarton, Commissioners Flat, Neurum, Stanmore, Stoney Creek, D’;Aguilar, Delaneys Creek, Wamuran, Caboolture, Morayfield, Burpengary, Narangba, Maleny and Peachester.

The area is a major food production region, with one of Australia’s largest meatworks at Kilcoy (Global Foods – 2,000 employees and contractors), Searles Garden Products (also based in Kilcoy), grazing (primarily beef), horticulture, agriculture, timber as well as a major state prison at Woodford.

The area includes the major dam water supply for the greater Brisbane area and Toowoomba (Somerset & Wivenhoe Dams), with surrounding National Parks which is developing a growing tourism industry being within 1.5 to 2 hours drive of Brisbane suburbia and the Sunshine Coast.

Population growth, especially of younger families, from the east (Woodford / Wamuran / Caboolture / Morayfield / Burpengary / Narangba) and south (Fernvale / Lowood) on the back of growing local and adjacent industries creates a growing audience for information and advertising.