PALMERSTON NORTH CITY COUNCIL
Memorandum
TO: Community
Development Committee
MEETING DATE: 1
April 2019
TITLE: Representative
Options for Māori Community Engagement
DATE: 13
March 2019
PRESENTED
BY:
Todd Taiepa, Principal Maori Advisor, Strategy and Planning
APPROVED
BY:
Sheryl Bryant, General Manager - Strategy & Planning
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RECOMMENDATION
TO COMMITTEE
1. That the
memorandum dated 13 March 2019 and titled ‘Representative Options for
Māori Community Engagement’ be received.
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1. issue
1.1 A
Council resolution on 24 October 2017 was adopted stating that “The Chief
Executive be instructed to report back on options for improved engagement and
participation of Māori with Council”. This report draws on the 2017 Local
Government New Zealand (LGNZ) Report “Council-Māori participation
arrangements.” The LGNZ Report outlines five broad categories which
provide a useful framework from which to view local government sector practice.
This report gives a summary of what activities each of these categories covers,
and then looks at the Palmerston North City Council response to date. Finally,
opportunities for improving Māori engagement in the future are
considered.
2. Background
2.1 The
2017 Local Government New Zealand (LGNZ) Report “Council-Māori participation
arrangements” has been referenced at councillor workshops and Council
meetings as part of the background context for issues around Māori wards
and constituencies, as regards co-management/co-governance initiatives (in
particular Te Motu o Poutoa), and Rangitāne aspirations of representation
on Council committees. A key theme from the Report is that many of the
mechanisms outlined have now become a common feature of the local government
landscape. The LGNZ report notes that as of its release in June 2017, there
were already 23% of councils that had co-governance or joint management
agreements in place with iwi, and this would have increased in the interim.
2.2 The
mechanisms outlined in the LGNZ report are notable in that they are all
targeted at Māori specifically, rather than the reframing of an existing
mechanism. The Council has considered or is currently progressing, many of
these as outlined below. This reflects the Council’s commitment to being
responsive to the Māori community and that our organisation has and
continues to be, looking for ways to enhance our engagement with tangata
whenua.
2.3 Finally,
it’s important to distinguish between the related but distinctive status
of Māori and iwi. Māori engagement is about a broader status of
Māori as tangata whenua, or indigenous people. As a constituency
Māori might share collectively interests such as the recognition of te reo
and provision of Māori medium education in local schools, access to
culturally appropriate healthcare, and a desire for Māori representation
in key local institutions. While iwi will have a perspective on these
matters it will be through the lens of a strong connection to that place and
its history, and where the health of the environment relates to kaitiakitanga
responsibilities to protect and manaakitanga responsibilities to provide
sustenance for their people and those they are entrusted to sustain. This is
particularly pertinent in environmental focused legislation.
3. LEGAL
REQUIREMENTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT
3.1 There are a number of key legislative imperatives that
refer specifically to Māori participation,
and these provide the broader foundations for Māori responsiveness across
the local government sector. In particular the Local Government Act 2002 (LGA),
the Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA), and the Local Electoral Act 2001 (LEA),
all contain a number of provisions that relate specifically to Māori, and
recognise the Crown’s obligations under the Treaty of Waitangi by placing
some specific obligations on councils.
The
LGA requires all councils to:
· Establish, maintain and improve opportunities for
Māori to contribute to local government decision-making processes.
· Ensure processes are in place for consulting with
Māori.
· Consider ways to foster Māori contribution to local
government decision-making processes.
· Provide relevant information to Māori.
3.2 Taken as a whole, these requirements are an obligation to
consider what steps the Council can reasonably take to encourage and assist
Māori to participate in local affairs. The Act’s requirements apply
to the general activities and decisions of councils; they do not over-ride the
requirements on councils specified under other statutes.
3.3 The RMA requires all persons exercising functions and
powers under the Act to recognise and provide for matters of national
importance including the relationship of Māori and their culture and
traditions with their ancestral lands, water, sites, waahi tapu, and other
taonga. Section 7 further requires Councils 'have particular regard to a number
of matters including kaitiakitanga’ (customary
guardianship), and section 8 requires that the Principles of the Treaty of
Waitangi be taken into account. There are specific requirements for
consultation with iwi authorities and more specific references such as
requiring Section 32 evaluation reports to summarise all advice reviewed
from iwi authorities on the proposal, and how the proposal responds to that
advice.
3.4 Mana Whakahono a Rohe (Iwi Participation Arrangements)
provide a specific mechanism for councils and iwi to reach an agreement on ways tangata whenua may
participate in RMA decision making and to assist local authorities to comply
with their statutory duties under the RMA. Both councils and iwi authorities can initiate the process to form
a Mana Whakahono a Rohe.
3.5 Finally,
the provisions of the Local Electoral Act for
representation arrangements include the option for councils and their
communities to decide to introduce designated Māori representation by
establishing Māori wards or constituencies. The process for establishing and retaining
Māori wards/constituencies mirrors that for changing the electoral system.
It is also based on the precedent set by the Bay of Plenty Regional Council,
which promoted its own local legislation requiring designated Māori
representation for that region given the low Māori representation on the
council in relation to the Māori population.
4. THE
FIVE THEMES OF COUNCIL–MĀORI PARTICIPATORY ARRANGEMENTS
Engagement and consultation processes
4.1 These
are key mechanisms to support the relationships between Māori and local
authorities and are in common use across New Zealand. In many cases they are
required by legislation. Essentially, they reflect
that Māori have a distinctive recognition, as indigenous peoples with a
culture and worldview that the Crown wishes to see protected under its Treaty
of Waitangi obligations. These obligations are translated into guiding
principles and in some cases specific actions that councils must demonstrate
they are being responsive to.
4.2 In
the case of Palmerston North this has been
one of the key focus areas, and has seen a dramatic shift in the nature and
scale of engagement.
4.3 At
a Māori community level our increased focus on key networks has been very
positively received. In particular the significant work with the Te Tihi
Whānau Ora Collective, an alliance of regional iwi and Māori health
and wellbeing providers, has become the basis for very strong collaboration and assisted in aligning the
investment of government agencies in a way that maximises outcomes for
whānau. The Council benefits, as much of the engagement and relationship
building has already been advanced, and whānau aspirations are already
understood so that the contribution of Council can have a greater impact than
it would if invested in isolation.
4.4 Engaging
with collectives such as kōhanga reo or the Rangitāne Māori
Cultural Arts Society enables the ability to connect
participating whānau with wider opportunities and services.
4.5 Council’s
work with Rangitāne utilises innovative and empowering models of
engagement to strengthen their participation
as a partner with Council as outlined below.
4.6 The
partners have utilised a Bimonthly Forum for 15 years to ensure the Iwi are
informed of a broad range of Council matters. The forum brings together both
managers and operational staff to provide feedback and
oversight for the many projects and programmes where Rangitāne have a key
role. Since the inception of the Forum new collaborative working models have
grown that often encompass the larger projects that are more complex and have a
longer time frame than day-to-day business.
4.7 For
example, Rangitāne have had membership on a number of key project teams
including: The Wastewater Best Practicable Project Steering Group; the He Ara
Kōtahi Steering Group; the CET Wildbase Recovery Centre Steering Group;
the CET Arena Masterplan Steering Group; and the Safety Advisory Board.
4.8 The
Council worked very closely with iwi leaders to engage actively on the major
strategy review in 2017 to integrate iwi imperatives right across the suite of
strategies and plans. Councillors and iwi have also expressed a desire to
identify ways of working more closely together in the future on the development
of the 10 Year Plan.
Relationship agreements/memoranda of understanding
4.9 Relationship
agreements are very common across the country and local government use them in
a number of ways including as:
· a way of stating
areas of priority for iwi and councils and an intention to explore these
deliberately together;
· a set of guiding
principles or ‘bridge’ between the two where they may be struggling
to actualise their relationships on the ground;
· a marker for a certain
threshold being reached in a relationship, and a way of solidifying this as a
foundation for taking the next steps.
4.10 Rangitāne
and the Executive Leadership Team have been in discussion and negotiation in
the past year about how they can enhance their work together as partners. A
Partnership Funding Agreement has been negotiated. The focus has been on more
effective engagement and appropriate
resourcing to ensure the Iwi are able to participate fully. This is critical as
the City is embracing the application of cultural principles in much of its
work, and this means an increasing draw on the time and knowledge of local iwi
representatives.
Representation and advisory
structures
4.11 A number
of local authorities provide for Māori representation on committees while
some local authorities have formal constituencies.
In other cases, councils have in place Māori advisory committees of
structures. Committees can exist of both elected and appointed members.
4.12 Many
councils have standing committees with Māori representation. Māori
can be full members with voting rights, or be observers, who generally have the
right to speak but not vote.
4.13 As
acknowledged at the start of this report Rangitāne o Manawatū have
already expressed a desire for the Council to look at having
Rangitāne participation on Council committees in the future. This occurs
in many councils and is a matter that will continue to be discussed by elected
members and iwi representatives.
4.14 The Local
Electoral Act allows councils to establish Māori wards (in the case of a
local authority) or constituencies (in the case of a regional council) for
which eligible voters must be enrolled on the Māori roll. A council can
establish a ward through passing a simple resolution to that effect or as a
result of a binding poll. Polls can also reverse a council decision.
4.15 The
Palmerston North Council had adopted Māori wards in October of 2017, with
a public referendum in May of 2018 subsequently overturning the decision. While
the Council cannot reconsider having a Māori ward or wards until the 2024
review, it was a strong public statement of how important the Council
considered Māori representation.
4.16 Earlier in
2018 year the Council conducted its representation review. Before the Council
developed its initial proposal for the 2019 local elections, it sought views
from the community about aspects of the Council’s representation arrangements. Included was the question,
’How can Council increase Māori participation?’ This report is
the first opportunity to consider those responses.
4.17 In
contrast to the high-profile Māori wards issue, there was less response to
the question on Māori participation. Overall, most submitters did have a
view on Māori participation, with all
but three of the 32 submissions responding to the question. Overall the
submissions were very positive about Māori participation, with many seeing
this as an important issue for them and that Council should take steps to
ensure Māori were represented within the Council.
4.18 Five
submissions remained strongly supportive of at least one guaranteed seat for
Māori on the Council, despite the referendum results three months earlier
rejecting the Māori ward option. There were suggestions including co-opting or seconding Maori
representation onto committees if this was possible. One creative suggestion
was that if there were a return to wards each ward could have a dedicated
Māori representative, and this group could also assemble collectively to
provide a Māori committee.
4.19 A further
15 submissions were supportive of actively promoting and encouraging Māori
representation and did not mention guaranteed representation. Over half of
these talked about how a return to general wards would
reduce the cost of running for a candidate and make it easier to build on those
with an existing community profile. Similarly, local community boards could
have a role in increasing Māori participation. Better communication and
engagement with Māori was another very strongly supported theme, with some
submissions suggesting that Council could better promote participation through
institutions like marae, and hubs of health, education and sport. It was also
suggested that Council could hold public meetings on marae.
4.20 Other
matters raised were that Council more
actively seek out Māori candidates, including existing leaders,
encouraging them to stand or provide mentoring. Local iwi were also
acknowledged as being key partners in promoting wider Māori participation.
4.21 Nine
submissions were not supportive of having a requirement for Māori
representation and the opportunity was already there, and it would not be
equitable to treat them as a ‘special’ case.
4.22 Subsequently,
the Council developed its initial proposal for representation, for which the
public were again consulted. The proposal was that
the Council should be elected on a citywide basis, that it should comprise 15
councillors together with a mayor, and that no community boards should be
established in the City. One of the recommendations was that the issue of
Māori participation should be separately considered and hence the
inclusion in this report.
4.23 In summary
then, as with the earlier consultation feedback around Māori wards, the
majority of submitters agreed that it is important
for Māori participation to occur and that there is a role for local
government in reducing barriers to participation including greater promotion
and encouragement, particularly about voting and standing as candidates for
elections.
4.24 Council
does take these opportunities seriously. For example, for the 2017 national
elections the Council partnered with Te Tihi and the Electoral Commission to
target Māori voters with the primary initiative being the UP2 social media
campaign. Using local talent, a Te Tihi working group developed a series of
connected stories following a young Māori person through the process of
understanding and participating in the national election process. This was the
first of what is intended to be ongoing campaigns targeting a Māori
community audience.
4.25 It is
hoped that these types of innovative approaches, aided by an extended mandate
for the Electoral Commission to now actively promote political participation
beyond just the three-yearly voting cycle, will start to reach and motivate
younger whānau members. The 2017 elections were characterised nationally
by more diverse and innovative promotion of Māori participation. However,
as outlined at the beginning of this report, more effort could be made to
ensure Council’s promotional focus is
also targeting Māori and other groups who are typically less engaged in
matters around how they are represented in decision-making roles in the City,
region and beyond. A key message is that there needs to be a focus on the
relevance of the Council to Māori.
Formal agreements and joint entities
4.26 Related to
the previous section is a move towards more formalised agreements and entities
which provide a mechanism for a particular area of decision-making. These types
of agreements give firmer commitments relating to specific statutory processes
and decision-making, for example an agreement between Tuwharetoa and Taupo
District Council provides for councillors and accredited iwi appointees to
participate in a joint process to make decisions on certain consents in
relation to activities that are seen to have an impact on the water quality of
Lake Taupo.
4.27 There can
also be joint entities and the Tipua Maunga Authority is an example of this in
Auckland, where six councillors and six iwi
members provide governance for a number of significant volcanic cones.
4.28 The
Council has just affirmed the first co-management agreement in the City with
Rangitāne over the Te Motu o Poutoa (ANZAC Park) site. This is a very
significant step and the joint management structure and processes agreed mark a
relationship where the Iwi has more power to influence the vision and
development of the ancient Pa site. The agreement establishes a new Council
committee which would lead key
decision-making over the nature of any future development of the site. Cultural
imperatives and iwi aspirations are a high priority as is maintaining the
access of the public. As with much of the work with Rangitāne in the wider
River environment, aspirations for Te Motu o Poutoa are likely to also provide
increased amenity and be valued by the wider Manawatū community.
4.29 Council
also formally signed up to the Te Tihi Whānau Ora Kotahitanga Alliance in
2017 to provide a formal basis for working closely with iwi Māori
organisations and Crown agencies, particularly for the Kainga Ora project. This
project has subsequently received
significant funding from central government and now covers over 150 households
in the City. There is a proposal for an expansion of this programme which
delivers wrap-around services from multiple agencies based on a
‘collective impact’ model.
4.30 Subsequently
this has evolved into numerous projects but one of the primary ones is the
Housing Alliance, which aims to expand the partners out to key community and
commercial stakeholders, inclusive of public and private partners. Such
opportunities would not be possible were the Council to approach such complex
issues in isolation.
Council tools and practices to improve engagement
4.31 This final
theme acknowledges that there are many formal and informal practices, tools and
processes that emerge in relation to the diverse range of relationships and
matters that arise in a tangata whenua/local government context. While meeting
statutory obligations there is significant flexibility to create
fit-for-purpose tools that are very contextual. These include information
sharing hui, hosting meetings at marae that
may have in the past been in the Council, working with iwi to train staff and
build mutual capacity, Māori and iwi liaison staff and teams, and training
and development to improve responsiveness of staff, managers and elected
members.
4.32 To improve
internal responsiveness of staff the Poutama programme was developed with the
Human Resources Team to identify key
competencies and provide a pathway for staff development to grow their skills
and confidence. More recently discussions have taken place to develop workshops
that will be run by Rangitāne for Council staff, particular those with key
leadership roles on matters that are a priority for the Iwi.
4.33 The
Council maintains staffing positions that have a focus on iwi Māori and
identifies key Māori competencies that are important for other key roles.
4.34 Innovative
engagement and outcome frameworks are also being developed. A programme to
develop an overarching monitoring framework for the City’s water ways for
example will include cultural assessment. Having iwi
priorities built into our systems up front enables more proactive and
empowering outcomes for Māori.
4.35 Iwi
representatives have been a part of key civic engagement processes for many
years however the increased emphasis around partnership has seen the
Rangitāne role in Council matters grow significantly. For example, iwi
representation was considered a critical element of the successful Council
visit to its Sister City Missoula in Montana in 2018 and now indigenous
representatives from that community have come over to support their contingent
for the national Sister Cities Conference in March.
5. opportunities
for improving engagement
5.1 The
Council continues to prioritise iwi Māori engagement. In many ways the
tone set by central government has been quite supportive of this work as the
Crown and its agencies look to work in more responsive and cohesive ways with
iwi, hapū, marae and whānau, while recognising the importance of local government and the wider community.
5.2 Treaty
settlements have also provided an injection of resources as well as an
expansion in the number of unique and innovative ways to respond to Māori
aspirations and increased the acceptance of kaupapa Māori in New Zealand
society. The uptake and advancement of the use of te reo Māori is a key
example, and it means the significant Council investment in bilingual signage
or in publications for example is celebrated
by the community, with almost no negative feedback in recent years. On a
different theme the co-management agreement being advanced by Rangitāne
and Council for Te Motu o Poutoa (ANZAC Park) has not required a Treaty
settlement or active involvement by the Crown. The environment then is becoming
more conducive to localised solutions.
5.3 In
the last decade a focus on engaging in alliancing and collective impact
approaches when working with Māori has been a key disruptor of
conventional thinking and practice. This has enabled Council, agencies and the community to work together in more coordinated and
mutually beneficial ways.
5.4 The
Te Tihi Whānau Ora collective has spearheaded a powerful collaborative
model whereby government agencies, iwi Māori and communities are able to
come together to identify agreed outcomes and leverage
their collective resources, resulting in far more benefits then could be
achieved in isolation. What initially began as a focus across the health sector
has now expanded to involve a much wider network of interests that contribute
to whānau wellbeing.
5.5 These
approaches have resulted in the Council working much more closely with agencies
who are providing direct services and
responsiveness to Māori whānau and iwi. The approach means our
resources and those of many other partner agencies are now working in a much
more aligned way. Being part of the Whānau Ora alliance puts us inside a
cohesive network that is providing transformational change at a city, regional
and national level. There are many challenges that will be very difficult to
overcome without a collective approach and a change in broader systems and
mindsets.
5.6 An
example is Māori participation in democratic processes and a concerted
drive from various levels of government to try to increase the number of
Māori people actively participating in electoral processes. There will
always be opportunities for the Council to improve its promotion of these
processes however a more joined up approach with agencies that also are charged
with encouraging Māori participation is
critical. A very positive example of this was the regional UP2 programme, led
by Whānau Ora with co-sponsors that included the Council and the regional
office of the Electoral Commissions.
5.7 Similarly,
The Welcoming Communities programme is an excellent example of how the Council
and community groups have reframed the
approach to put Rangitāne representation at the centre of the initiative
so they can now frame their aspirations around working with the entire
settlement network, with a significant reduction in fragmented iwi engagement,
enabling a strong expression of manaakitanga to our newest citizens. This is
very different from the earlier Settlement Support programme and reflects an
increased capacity with iwi. Importantly iwi leadership often promotes
improvements in Māori community engagement and responsiveness.
5.8 Some
of Council’s approaches will be unique and specific, where we reframe a
current service in a way that is more responsive to the Māori community.
However, most improvements to Māori participation in the City in the near
future will either be the primary responsibility of another agency or our
involvement will be as a member of a collective.
5.9 The
Council is in a strong position in its relationships with Government and
community to both provide leadership or support the leadership
of others. It will be critical that the recognition of Māori aspirations
is a foundation for a ‘Driven and Enabling Council’, if the Council
wishes to continue to be a strong and effective partner and advocate for
Māori development in the City and region.
6. CONCLUSION
6.1 There
are a number of ways the Palmerston North City Council can enhance its
engagement with Māori. Importantly many of the most effective
opportunities will come from collaborating with other key partner agencies,
channelling our collective influence, skills and resources to achieve common
outcomes. The Council is recognised as being a valuable partner for both
collaboration on specific projects as well as alliancing relationships that are
broader in scope like the Kotahitanga Whānau Ora Alliance, from which
discrete projects often emerge. Ensuring that reputation is maintained, and
identifying new partners or ways of working should therefore be encouraged.
6.2 Staff
continue to explore and identify new approaches with the community, and also
pick up innovative practice models through the many professional networks
within the Council. These networks include librarians, planners and engineers.
Growing the organisational culture that supports best practice from a
professional leadership perspective, would add value to our current engagement
practices.
6.3 The
Council continues to build a meaningful partnership with Rangitāne. This
builds on significant good will and is beginning to create some more enduring
arrangements such as co-management and longer-term capacity-building arrangements.
Importantly the greater influence of iwi does often leverage outcomes that are
also aspirations shared by the wider Māori community, in areas like
health, housing and te reo Māori.
7. Compliance
and administration
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Does the Committee have
delegated authority to decide?
If Yes quote relevant clause(s)
from Delegations Manual <Enter
clause>
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No
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Are the decisions significant?
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No
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If they are significant do they
affect land or a body of water?
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No
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Can this decision only be made
through a 10 Year Plan?
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No
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Does this decision require
consultation through the Special Consultative procedure?
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No
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Is there funding in the current
Annual Plan for these actions?
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Yes
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Are the recommendations
inconsistent with any of Council’s policies or plans?
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No
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The recommendations contribute
to Goal 3: A Connected and Safe CommunityThe recommended option contributes
to the outcomes of the Connected Community Strategy
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The recommended option
contributes to the achievement of action/actions in the Community Support
Plan
The action is: Council has
collaborative relationships with its Māori and iwi partners to deliver
positive community development and whānau wellbeing initiatives to
improve Māori engagement and promote the achievement of the Whānau
Ora outcome goal ‘Toi te kupu, te mana, te ora – Māori
living longer, fuller and culturally rewarding lives’.
The recommended option
contributes to the achievement of action/actions in the Active Citizenship
Plan
The actions are:
Council will focus on ensuring
we understand and respond to the concerns of Māori
Collaboration with the Te Tihi
Whānau Ora Alliance, in particular around the Whānau Ora principle
of “Whanau fully participating in society.”
Council will establish more
formal; relationships with Rangitāne o Manawatū as mana whenua
Formal engagement structures and
processes with Rangitāne provide a meaningful express of a strengthening
partnership with Rangitāne
Council will hold regular
bimonthly engagements with Rangitāne o Manawatū
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Attachments
Nil
PALMERSTON NORTH CITY COUNCIL
Memorandum
TO: Community
Development Committee
MEETING DATE: 1
April 2019
TITLE: Welcoming
Communities Update
DATE: 13
March 2019
Presented By: Joann
Ransom, Community Development Manager, Community
APPROVED BY: Debbie
Duncan, General Manager - Community
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RECOMMENDATION(S) TO Council
1. That the
Welcoming Communities update be received.
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1. ISSUE
Update on the progress and early outcomes of the
Welcoming Communities pilot programme, which is now in the implementation
phase.
2. BACKGROUND
Welcoming Communities is an initiative of
Immigration New Zealand. Palmerston North is one of five pilot regions
(involving nine Councils in total). The current pilot period commenced in June
2017 and is due to end in June 2019.
The programme is part of an international movement
that recognises the social and economic benefits of a Council working together
with its community to be actively welcoming towards newcomers. The initiative
differs from previous settlement support programmes in that it shifts focus to
the receiving community, moving the narrative away from integration and towards
inclusion.
The programme is based around an outcomes-focused
standard which sets out what welcoming ‘looks like’ across eight
key areas. A national accreditation element is currently being developed, which
will allow Councils to receive formal recognition of their achievements towards
the standard.
Council’s Welcoming Communities Coordinator
works collaboratively with an Advisory Group, made up of internal and community
stakeholders, to deliver the pilot programme.
The first year of the pilot (2017/2018) involved
co-designing the national Welcoming Communities Standard, undertaking a
stocktake of our Council and community against the standard, and developing a
local Welcoming Plan for 2018/2019.
The Welcoming Plan, which was developed by the
Advisory Group and refined through community consultation, was finalised in May
2018. The Plan sets out how Council and the community will work together to
strengthen and celebrate what we are currently doing well in the
‘welcoming’ space, and identifies further opportunities. The high-level
Welcoming Plan is also supported by a detail-focused Implementation Plan, which
splits activities into short, medium and long-term goals.
3. Discussion
Implementation began in June 2018, and some positive
early outcomes from our ‘short-term’ activities have been
identified, including the following:
Firstly, the Advisory Group has proven to be a
valuable tool. There are many benefits of having a regular meeting of
stakeholders who all work in the ‘welcoming’ space, from right
across the spectrum of newcomer ‘types’. This new network has
allowed useful relationships to be built across sectors, and enabled sharing of
ideas, collaborative problem solving and better understanding between
member-groups.
Secondly, one of our most successful ‘short
term for quick wins’ activities has been trialling City Welcome Sessions
for new migrants. The sessions include information from relevant community
groups, a short walking tour of the city, and time to connect with other
newcomers over morning tea. This is our first action towards our Welcoming Plan
activity 3.1: ‘Develop and trial a regular welcoming seminar, or similar,
as a method of better informing newcomers of local services, programmes and
activities. It directly relates to the Welcoming Communities standard outcome
3.1: ‘Council partners with local businesses, organisations and sectors
to identify and address barriers for newcomers to accessing services and
participating in the community’.
The first City Welcome Session was held in November
2018, a second occurred in January 2019 and another is planned for April 2019.
The target audience is migrants and other newcomers who wouldn’t
otherwise receive an orientation to the city (i.e. not international students
or former refugees, although they are welcome to attend). Advertising has
included airport screens, radio, social media, posters in places frequented by
newcomers, word of mouth, and emails to the HR departments of large employers
in the city, moving companies and real estate agents.
Thirdly, one of our longer-term welcoming activities
is a research project being led by Massey University together with the English
Teaching College. This has proved successful in providing valuable local-level
data around the ‘settling in’ experiences of migrants, former
refugees and international students. It has also gained national recognition,
as Palmerston North is one of few regional locations undertaking such research
into this critical area. The second phase of the research is now underway, and
the findings of the first phase (presented to stakeholders in July 2018) are
due to be published in mid-2019. This work has also contributed to PNCC’s
nomination for a Massey University Domestic Partnership Excellence Award this
year.
4. NEXT
STEPS
At the national level, all sites have been feeding
in to an independent evaluation process running parallel to the pilot
programme, which will inform a decision before June 2019 about how MBIE may
scale the programme up or out in future. Implementation of the current
Welcoming Plan will continue until June 2019. At the local level, we are also
continually evaluating the success of our welcoming activity implementation.
This data could be used inform a future Welcoming Plan or other similar
programme.
Compliance and administration
|
Does the Committee have
delegated authority to decide?
If Yes quote relevant clause(s)
from Delegations Manual <Enter
clause>
|
Yes
|
|
Are the decisions significant?
|
No
|
|
If they are significant do they
affect land or a body of water?
|
No
|
|
Can this decision only be made
through a 10 Year Plan?
|
No
|
|
Does this decision require
consultation through the Special Consultative procedure?
|
No
|
|
Is there funding in the current
Annual Plan for these actions?
|
No
|
|
Are the recommendations
inconsistent with any of Council’s policies or plans?
|
No
|
|
The recommendations contribute
to Goal 3: A Connected and Safe Community
|
|
The recommendations contribute
to the outcomes of the Connected Community Strategy
|
|
The recommendations contribute
to the achievement of action/actions in the Community Support Plan
The action is: Implement the
Welcoming Communities initiative.
|
|
Contribution to strategic
direction
|
The Welcoming Communities
initiative directly contributes towards the Connected Communities Strategy,
Priority 1: Develop, provide and advocate for services and facilities that
create a connected, welcoming and inclusive community.
|
|
|
|
Attachments
|
1.
|
6 Monthly Report on Welcoming Communities sent to MBIE. ⇩ 
|
|
