PALAVER MEDIA RELEASE
11 March 2010

Groundbreaking Social Services Meeting In Wairarapa

In a new approach to supporting communities, the Families Commission joined with the NZ Council of Christian Social Services this week to bring together a cross-section of social service providers in the Wairarapa – many of whom had never met before – to share their experience and knowledge.

“It would probably be assumed that everyone in the social service community gets to know each other and the work they do, but that isn’t always the case,” said Trevor McGlinchey, Executive Officer of the NZ Council of Christian Social Services (NZCCSS).

Participants Jodi Hart and Dany Haira, of Wairarapa Parents as First Teachers, agreed. Jodi: “This week’s meeting really opened my eyes to what else is out there. I didn’t know half of what was out there, and now I’m more aware I can refer things on to other people”. Dany: “I’ve been with PAFT for about eight or nine years but this is about the first opportunity that I’ve seen where we get to know what’s available through the churches for our families”.

One of two focal points for the meeting, attended by more than 50 representatives of Church parishes and social agencies in the Wairarapa, was for everyone present to share details about the social service priorities that the different organisations have in common in working with families hit hardest by the recession.

The second focal point was an opportunity for the people present to put forward issues for families in the Wairarapa that they wanted the Families Commission – represented by Engagement Manager Charlie Moore – and the NZ Council of Christian Social Services to take back to the decision-makers in Wellington and nationwide networks.

Amongst the issues raised were: the rising cost barriers faced by unwell families in need of healthcare and related support; the importance of youth workers and an increased need for emergency housing for youth, especially young men; isolation of families, and concerns about parental supply of alcohol and cannabis to children and family members.

An observation was made by a Wairarapa church leader that an active “suspicion and paranoia” towards receiving outside help prevails in some families, to the extent that they “fly under the radar as long as they can, until the cops show up and it all goes to hell”. In many instances, it was observed, grandparents are left to “pick up the pieces”.

Coupled with a call for better awareness of community-led strategies, there was a general agreement that more “streamlining”, is needed among the many services engaging with families to make them more efficient and to avoid situations where “the left hand doesn’t know what the right hand is doing”.

It was suggested that the Wairarapa would benefit from having a one-stop-shop approach for family services and community development, using facilities such as the Wairarapa REAP as a “central connector”.

The Families Commission will be continuing to talk to people in the Wairarapa to gather more feedback on the ways that family services are provided. Engagement Manager Charlie Moore: “We want to know what makes a difference through family eyes. The first hand experience and view of the world here in the Wairarapa is very important to feed into the work that we’re doing, and is of extreme interest to our Social Development Minister, Paula Bennett”.

The work of the NZ Council of Christian Social Services will be continuing under a project called Manaaki Hapori – Supporting Communities, coordinated by researcher Betsan Martin.

Betsan: “Part of the project is to identify where Churches are involved in community engaging activities, particularly in a community development mode, or where groups of people might be seeking to more active in that way. We’re giving visibility to those stories on our website, through a Facebook page and through seeking to improve access to information and resources. Another part of our work is to bring together people in communities as we have this week in the Wairarapa, particularly to create the opportunity for people who may not normally meet each other or be professionally involved with each other”.

• This meeting was held on Wednesday 10 March 2010, at Wairarapa REAP in Masterton.

• For further information contact Trevor McGlinchey or Betsan Martin, NZ Council of Christian Social Services – (04) 473-2627 or (021) 388 337, or either of Trevor@nzccsss.org.nz and betsan@nzccss.org.nz

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•
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