Step change approved to help homeless people

At the Community, Sport and Recreation Committee meeting, Councillors approved contract funding (from 1 July 2015) totalling over $1million for 16 organisations who deliver community and social services throughout Wellington. The funding includes contracts for organisations tackling homelessness in the City, including a joint proposal for $282,000 for delivery against Te Mahana – our community driven strategy to end homelessness in the City.

Councillors were pleased with increased collaboration in the sector, including the application from ‘Te Roopu Piriti’, a partnership between Ngati Kahungunu ki Poneke Community Services, Downtown Community Ministry and the Suzanne Aubert Compassion Centre. Local providers will work closely with Central Government agencies.

Mayor Celia Wade-Brown says the new joined-up approach to end homelessness was the result of a review undertaken in 2013.

“We are committed to ending homelessness in the Capital”, says Mayor Wade-Brown. “It became evident from the review that to make a real difference for people sleeping rough, and without the security of a place to live, that it’s essential to have a collaborative approach to service delivery”.

Community, Sport and Recreation Committee Chair Paul Eagle says he welcomed the new and innovative practice model of Te Roopu Piriti.

“Maori are disproportionately represented in homelessness and Te Roopu Piriti represented a culturally responsive approach that we haven’t had before” says Cr Eagle.

Te Mahana is a community driven strategy to end homelessness in Wellington and was endorsed by the Wellington City Council in April 2014. The strategy identifies outcomes and key actions for a collaborative and co-ordinated approach to ending homelessness in Wellington.

As part of a funding review in 2013, three priority areas were identified, namely, co-ordination of street outreach, strengths based case co-ordination to improve the health, wellbeing and housing of those accessing the service and strengths based tenancy support.

Other organisations who will also deliver on Te Mahana and have received funding - $95,000 for the Wellington Night Shelter Trust, $20,000 for the Salvation Army’s Youth Services team and $32,000 for Evolve – Te Whanganui-a-Tara Youth Development Trust.

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