Sir Alan Sydenham Cooley, (17 September 1920 – 13 April 1997) was a senior

Australian Public Service The Australian Public Service (APS) is the federal civil service of the Commonwealth of Australia responsible for the public administration, public policy, and public services of the departments and executive and statutory agencies of the ...

official and policymaker.

Life and career

Alan Cooley was born in 1920. He began his Commonwealth Public Service career in the

Department of Supply The Department of Supply was an Australian government The Australian Government, also known as the Commonwealth Government, is the national government of Australia, a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. Like other Westminst ...

, rising up the ranks to become

Secretary A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or personal assistant is a ...

of that department in 1966. He transferred the department headquarters to Canberra in January 1968. Between 1971 and 1977, Cooley was Chairman of the Public Service Board. In 1977, he was appointed to be Secretary of the new Department of Productivity.

Awards

Cooley was made a

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

in January 1972. He was appointed a

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised orders of chivalry; it is a part of the British honours system. Knights Bachelor are t ...

in June 1976. In 2011, a street in the Canberra suburb of

Casey Casey may refer to: Places Antarctica *Casey Station *Casey Range Australia * Casey, Australian Capital Territory * City of Casey, Melbourne * Division of Casey, electoral district for the House of Representatives Canada * Casey, Ontario * Ca ...

was named Cooley Crescent in Alan Cooley's honour.

References

1920 births 1997 deaths Australian public servants Australian Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Australian Knights Bachelor {{Australia-gov-bio-stub