Kaikōura Councillor Steps Back To Focus On Wellbeing

Thursday, 14 August 2025, 4:51 pm
Article: David Hill - Local Democracy Reporter

Six years ago he stood to be Kaikōura's mayor, now Robby Roche is stepping away from local politics.

Mr Roche has served two terms on the council, supporting his ‘‘old mate’’ Craig Mackle, who beat him for the mayoralty. 

‘‘We even turned up in the same car to a campaign meeting in Kēkerengū (north of Kaikōura). 

‘‘Pretty quickly I realised Craig was the mayor I wanted and I decided I would support him if he ran again.’’ 

He admits the last three years has been ‘‘a bit of a slog’’. 

Mr Roche is leaving politics to devote his time to working in the mental health sector, a journey which started in the aftermath of the 7.8 magnitude earthquake in 2016. 

He trained under Nelson-based clinician Dr Victor McGill, and worked as a wellbeing advisor for the North Canterbury Transport Infrastructure Recovery (NCTIR) alliance during the rebuild. 

Now he works as a RISE clinician and Hikitia! community mobiliser - a family violence prevention service operating in Nelson, Tasman, Marlborough, West Coast and Kaikōura. Like many politicians, Mr Roche said he had faced some personal pressures.

‘‘I’m glad I’m in a reasonably stable place at the moment. ‘‘One thing I learnt is it’s not hard to be kind and it’s a message we need to pick up on.’’ Mr Roche moved to Kaikōura 30 years ago from Waikato.

‘‘I’ve managed to keep the faith in my beloved Chiefs. I love the banter. I have a really good bunch of friends, so I know they’ve got my back, even though we disagree on rugby teams.’’ 

When he first moved to Kaikōura he worked for former mayor Danny Smith at Kaikōura ITM as a delivery driver. 

He later worked as a youth supervisor at Innovative Waste Kaikōura (IWK), in a role similar to the Mayors’ Taskforce for Jobs (MTFJ) programme. 

Young people were employed on an organics horizontal composting unit, focusing on diverting waste from landfill. 

He married local woman Jenny Bolton in 1999 and the couple have raised five children and now have nine grandchildren. 

After running his own business, Mr Roche returned to IWK for his ‘‘dream job’’ as manager, a position he held for six years. 

‘‘And then the earthquake happened. We held the three waters contract at IWK, so there was a lot of stress. 

‘‘But I’m very proud of how the three waters and waste crews banded together to look after locals and tourists after the earthquake.’’ Mr Roche said he struggled with his own mental health and left IWK at Easter 2017, before being recruited by NCTIR. 

There were 1700 staff who came to Kaikōura during the rebuild, he said. 

‘‘It was fairly unique and I was so blessed to be a part of it.’’ 

After NCTIR wound down, Mr Roche worked as a driving instructor for the Kaikōura MTFJ programme alongside his council role and boosting his mental health credentials. 

Politics seems to run in the blood, as Mr Roche’s sister Denise Roche is a former Green MP. 

‘‘I saw her maintain her integrity in her role. 

‘‘In waste, we were very much aligned, but there were areas where we differed, but my respect for her is massive.’’ 

-LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.

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