Westbourne congratulates Andrew Houston on the award of a Medal of the Order of Australia in this year’s Australia Day Honours. A member of the Class of 1988, Andrew’s award is in recognition of the huge contribution he has made to the world of music since leaving school.

The manager of the Western Region Concert Band since 1995 and its musical director since 2000, Andrew’s love of music was fostered when he was a student at Westbourne where, he recalls, he spent many happy hours in the music department. Passionate about encouraging participation in music, Andrew’s dedicated service has seen him providing performance opportunities for musicians and singers not only in the concert band, but also in SingWest – the choir of which he is co-founder and since 2011, the musical director. The recipient of the Phil Thorn Award on seven occasions, Andrew is also a qualified welfare worker and disability support worker.