Simon Britten to stand in Christchurch’s Papanui Ward
Simon Britten to stand as a Community Board candidate in Christchurch’s Papanui Ward at the 2019 local body elections
Founder and curator of Think Papanui Simon
Britten has today announced that he will be a Community
Board candidate in the Papanui Ward at the 2019 local body
elections.
Earlier this year Simon announced that he
would be a Papanui Ward candidate, and he has now confirmed
his decision to stand for election to the
Waipapa/Papanui-Innes Community Board.
“What I
really value about Think Papanui is the focus on the local
community,” says Simon. “I’m standing as a Community
Board candidate so that I can continue to contribute at this
local level. I’m also involved in some really exciting
community projects in my employment at Te Ora Hou Ōtautahi,
and if I’m successful in being elected to the Community
Board, I’ll still have the capacity to see those projects
through to completion.”
Background:
In 2016
Simon founded the Think Papanui community engagement
initiative, and he is still involved on a daily basis. Think
Papanui’s aim is to share information on City Council
consultations, Community Board agenda items and decisions,
local projects in action, and generally what’s happening
in the community. “This has helped keep the community
informed,'' says Simon, “and has also helped me keep in
touch with local government and our
community”.
Simon has had the privilege of working
in a leadership role at Papanui-based youth and community
development organisation Te Ora Hou Ōtautahi since 2011.
For a large part of that time he has been involved with the
school attendance service, supporting children,
whānau/families, and schools. He has also worked in areas
including youth employment and alternative
education.
Previously Simon worked for Tait
Communications in marketing management, and has volunteered
with the Papanui Youth Development Trust. He has served on
boards including the Papanui Baptist Freedom Trust, Pillars
- the charity working nationally with children of prisoners,
and the Casebrook Intermediate School Board of Trustees. He
is a previous Vodafone Foundation World of Difference
recipient, and has completed two Canterbury University
postgraduate courses for leaders in the community
sector.