• CNA Executive Officer Ros Rice
• CNA Members’ Hui 2020
• Meet the Members – WestREAP – Westland Rural Educational Activites Programme
• Locally-Led Solutions at the Centre of New Community Resilience Fund
• PHA Calls for the Minister of Health To Intervene
• Survey Highlights Impact of Covid-19 on the Community and Voluntary Sector
• Communal Cuppas
• Help Your Community Get Ready To Vote
• Community Networks Aotearoa Online 2020 AGM
• Independent Children’s Monitor 2nd Report Released
• 9 Webinars through August
• How A Rainbow Community Collaboration is Changing Mental Health Practice in Aotearoa
• Discriminatory Law Repealed 
• Residential Tenancies Amendment Bill Passes 
• Managed Isolation Bill Passes 
• ComVoices Blogs
• About Community Networks Aotearoa

CNA Executive Officer Ros Rice

Kia ora my friends,

Ros

As always, remember we’re here to help. If you’re a member of CNA and have a problem or issue, or just need some information, please don’t hesitate to contact me on (04) 472 3364 or eo@communitynetworksaotearoa.org.nz

Meet the Members –
WestREAP

Westland Rural Educational Activites Programme

There are 13 REAP’s in New Zealand, 8 in the North Island and 5 in the South. Two on the West Coast – WestREAP and Buller REAP. Between 1979 and 1982 the government of the day established REAPs with the over-arching goal of facilitating lifelong learning opportunities for communities in rural and isolated area.  REAPs connect learners with learning with a focus on the areas of Early Childhood, Schools and Youth, Adult and Community Education and Community Led Development. 

WestREAP has been in in operation for nearly 40 years providing educational pathways for communities in the Grey and Westland districts from Barrytown way down south to Haast, up the Grey valley, east to Otira and including Hokitika and Greymouth.  The main WestREAP office is in Hokitika with a smaller office and learning hub in Greymouth.
WestREAP had a change of Chief Executive in late 2019 and a restructure which has seen the organization flourish and allowed them the resilience to move smoothly through COVID-19 and the various lock-down levels.

WestREAP staff number around 20 and are all mostly part-time.  They live in a range of locations including Hokitika, Kumara, Greymouth, Ross and Okarito.  The WestREAP Board reside from Whataroa to Greymouth.

Our learners come from our many and varied communities.  Children under 6 and their parents and whānau can participate in a range of early childhood education initiatives such as Melody Makers Music and Movement sessions, SPACE (Supporting Children Alongside Children’s Education, Greymouth Playgroup, Pipsqueaks Playgroup in Hokitika, Incredible Years Parenting Programme, Early Reading Together, Early Learning Support in the home, Rural Playdays, Transition to School and bringing shows to the West Coast such as Craig Smith’s Wonky Donkey, Sharon and Alan Holt’s Te Reo Singalongs, delivering The Power of Words with Shane Stevenson and delivering He Mapuna te Tamaiti training and other professional development to Early Childhood educators.  Neuroscience educator and child development expert Nathan Mikaere Wallis has also just visited us in Hokitika delivering at Arahura Marae. A small, highly experienced and dedicated team of seven staff make all this happen and more.

In our WestREAP rohe we have 27 schools including Primary, Secondary and Area levels.  Our Schools Team work with them all to help deliver CACTUS (Combined Adolescent Challenge Training Unit and Support, Leadership Camps for Years 6-8, helping to facilitate Te Hui Ahurei o nga kura o te Tai Poutini (West Coast Schools Kapa Haka Festival), Clued Up Kids and presentations such as Angela Barnett’s Pretty Smart and Steven Sextons Science Workshops.

WestREAP also work extensively in the area of Youth with their extremely successful DriveWEST Learners Licence programme in Westland.  Not specifically for youth but well received by 16 year olds wanting their learners licence and with a high pass rate.   WestREAP also hold the Ministry of Social contracts for NEETS (Not in Education Employment or Training) and Youth payment and Young Parent payment.  The small team of 3 work hard in this space with the youth in our communities with these contracts.
ACE (Adult and Community Education) has a part-time organizer and a range of qualified and quality tutors.  Currently we run weekly Te Reo classes in both Greymouth and Hokitika with levels for beginner and more advanced.  Kapa Haka Community groups run weekly in both towns also as well as Art4Me Art and Learn to Play Bridge Groups.  Creative Writing runs weekly in Hokitika and an ESOL group is being established there too.  Computing options are made to fit according to learner need with a resident WestREAP I T Tutor.  New Zealand Sign Language is offered each term somewhere on the Coast.  Ukulele/Waiata has just started in Term 3 in both Greymouth and Hokitika.
The WestREAP focus now and into the future is meeting community need and we are happy to talk to anyone who has an idea around this.  Staff are long-term locals in their communities, knowledgeable about the Coast and committed to education and this makes it easy for us to identify needs and network with many and varied communities and learners.
Technology such as Zoom allows us to deliver into isolated areas which are often hard to reach geographically.  COVID-109 lock-down certainly gave us all a learning experience in the technology but were a lifesaver during lockdown with weekly full staff meetings to stay connected.  Individual teams met weekly also with a number of Early Childhood initiatives offered online.
WestREAP (and Buller REAP) are the Local Donation Funding Manager for the Tindall Foundation and they were kept busy during lockdown with the distribution of additional Tindall funding for organisations affected by COVID-19.
WestREAP also hold the contract for the West Coast Disability Resource Service and the team of 3 met weekly to catch up and identify need during lock-down.
The real success story of lockdown for our orgnaisation was our Art4Me groups in Greymouth and Hokitika with the Art Tutor starting a website, blog and newsletter to keep the groups engaged and learning.  Some of the best art-work we have seen from these groups came out of lock-down and for some of our most vulnerable learners this approach was their lifeline for their mental and artistic health. This has been built on since lock-down with the introduction of more technology to the groups with tablets to assist their learning.

Jane Wellard
To visit their website CLICK HERE
To visit and like their Facebook CLICK HERE

Locally-Led Solutions at the Centre of
New Community Resilience Fund

Community groups around New Zealand can apply to a $36 million fund established to encourage locally-led solutions as communities rebuild and recover from COVID-19, announced Minister for Social Development Carmel Sepuloni and Minister for Community and Voluntary Sector Poto Williams.
To read more CLICK HERE

PHA Calls for the Minister of Health To Intervene