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Table of Contents
NGO Council information
NGO Council Chair’s Update – October 2014
Ministry of Health information
Healthy Families
Ministry of Health website:
Other government agencies
3DHB Quality Awards
Office for Disability Issues newsletter extra, 9 October 2014
Office for Disability Issues October Newsletter
NGO information
Women’s Health update – September edition
Ngā Kupu, Injury Prevention Aotearoa update
Places to find NGO information
Training, education, resources and conferences
Social justice in communities - What is it? How can we build it? How can we sustain it?
The NZ Telehealth Forum is holding a half day Workshop: What’s Holding Us Back? at the HINZ Conference
A Practical Guide to Working with Suicidal Youth: A New Zealand Perspective
The Role of Cooperatives, Mutuals and Trusts in Building Contemporary Sustainable Economies
Events included in previous updates
Other information
Unitec Graduate Diploma in Not for Profit Management courses – 2015 timetable
NGO Council information
NGO Council Chair’s Update – October 2014
Your NGO Council met on 1 October and finalised our 2014-15 Work Plan, together with our briefing to the incoming Health Minister, who was confirmed this week as the Hon. Dr Jonathan Coleman. Associate Health Ministers are Hon. Peseta Sam Lotu-Iiga and Hon. Peter Dunne.
While our central government elections are now behind us, elections for the NGO Council are about to get underway. Two of our current Council members, founding member Carole Maraku (Māori Health) and Clare Teague (Disability Support) are standing down and we thank them for their commitment during their tenures. Other members whose current two year term is up are re-standing, along with a number of new candidates in most categories.
Also during the election process, we will ask you to endorse our revised Terms of Reference, which will be circulated with your link for voting. The changes we have made relate to the tenure and attendance of NGO Council members. We have changed attendance requirements to a minimum of four meetings per year and have limited continuous membership of the NGO Council to two terms (4 years) to ensure fresh ideas and new representation on the NGO Council. If these changes are supported by the majority of voting members, they will take effect from 1 November 2014 and impact on the new Council members elected this month.
Child Protection Policies
A link has been sent out for you share your feedback on guidelines for developing Child Protection Policies (CPPs), which have become a requirement for many NGOs under the Vulnerable Children Act.
An interim Child Protection Policy template and development guidelines have been on our website for a couple of months, and now the cross-government group, which includes the Ministry of Health, has revised the guidelines and asked for our assistance in consulting on these.
As I’ve said before, the Vulnerable Children Actimpacts on many of us in the NGO sector – not only those providing services directly to children. If you have staff visiting clients in their homes where children are present, you need to be up to speed with the Act and requirements for CPPs and workforce vetting and screening. A CPP must cover matters related to the identification and reporting of child abuse and neglect (including physical, emotional or sexual harm, ill-treatment, neglect or deprivation). Please use this opportunity provided during the consultation process to share your views and identify support requirements.
IT as a useful tool
A highlight of our NGO Council October meeting was our discussion with Graeme Osborne, (Director, National Health IT Board, Ministry of Health) about cloud storage, reliable data, patient portals and connected referral systems.
Graeme’s enthusiasm to view IT as a useful tool to help achieve organisational goals and support community-led client care is encouraging. He emphasised the importance of innovation and the hope that NGOs, communities and individuals might lead development of APPs that will transform how patients access their health information and share this with those involved in their health care pathway. He also acknowledged the challenge of workforce training and the need to embrace a person-centred health system that gives clients control over their health information. Graeme is particularly keen to hear of specific examples where system barriers are excluding NGOs from the patient care pathway or of other IT obstacles to better integrated healthcare. Contact our NGO Secretariat if you need help accessing Graeme’s contact info.
We shared our challenges in dealing with a multiplicity of systems and of not knowing where to seek independent, unbiased advice on IT matters. Part of our discussion explored the concept of a network of IT specialists with knowledge of the community sector. Around the table, we knew of a few vital, wise heads who can talk in a language we understand, but we thought it might be useful to build on this and explore how we can make better use of these experts. If you know of any such IT people, please share their details with our NGO Secretariat so we can build a better picture of the support that is available.
Graeme told us the IT Board is starting work on a new five-year plan and offered to meet with us again in November to talk about some of the key themes that are emerging.
As I intend standing down as Chair of the NGO Council, this is likely to be my final Update to you, but I want to thank those of you who have provided feedback to me in this role and wish the new Chair well – whoever that may be.
Kathryn Jones
Chair, NGO Health & Disability Council
Ministry of Health information
Healthy Families
- Encouraging families to live healthy lives – by making good food choices, being physically active, sustaining a healthy weight, being smokefreeand drinking alcohol only in moderation – is part of the Government’s approach to promoting good health.
- Healthy Families NZ is a new initiative that aims to improve people’s health where they live, learn, work and play in order to prevent chronic disease.
- In Budget 2014, the Government allocated $40 million over four years to support Healthy Families NZ.
- The programme’s approach is supported by a growing body of evidence – for example from Healthy Together Victoria and Colac in Australia and the EPODE pilots in Europe – which suggests that concentrated, community-led health promotion, tailored to specific community needs and focused on the environments where people live, learn, work and play, can be successful in addressing the underlying causes of chronic disease.
- The most visible aspect of Healthy Families NZ will be the establishment of Healthy Families communities in the following 10 locations across New Zealand:
- Far North District
- East Cape
- Lower Hutt City
- Waitakere Ward
- Rotorua District
- Spreydon-Heathcote Ward
- Manukau Ward
- Whanganui District
- Invercargill City
- Manurewa-Papakura Ward
- In each community, a government-funded local lead provider will be responsible for bringing together a partnership of key organisations in the community, and establishing a dedicated health promotion workforce.
- Partnership members will be organisations or individuals best placed to influence participation and action within the community.
- The health promotion workforce will work across schools, early childhood education centres, workplaces, and other community settings such as sports clubs, to support New Zealanders to make healthy living choices.
- Together, the Healthy Families NZ partnerships will be responsible for achieving measurable improvements in the health of children and families. Organisations in HFNZ partnerships will work together with communities towards the goal of more children and families making healthy food and activity choices and sustaining healthy weights, and reductions in smoking and harmful alcohol use.
Implementation Update – September 2014:
- The process for establishing Healthy Families NZ began with a two stage competitive tender process to select a locally based provider that has the credibility, capability, experience and infrastructure to lead the implementation of Healthy Families NZ in each community.
- The procurement process for nine of the 10 Healthy Families NZ Communities is now complete. The following locally-based providers were selected:
Far North District:TeRunanga o TeRarawa
Waitakere Ward: Sport Waitakere
Manukau Ward:Tāmaki Healthy Families Alliance (Auckland Council in partnership with Alliance Health Plus and NgāMana Whenua o TāmakiMakaurau)
Manurewa-Papakura Ward:Tāmaki Healthy Families Alliance (Auckland Council in partnership with Alliance Health Plus and NgāMana Whenua o TāmakiMakaurau)
Rotorua District:TeArawaWhānauOra(in joint partnership with Kowhai Health Associates)
Whanganui District:TeOranganui
Lower Hutt City: Hutt City Council
Spreydon-Heathcote Ward: Pacific Trust Canterbury
Invercargill City: Sport Southland
- As no eligible proposals were received for the East Cape through this process, the Request-for-Proposal was re-advertised and negotiations with the preferred provider are now underway.
- A dedicated team of 4 FTE is currently being established within the Ministry of Health to manage the implementation of Healthy Families NZ.
- Other establishment activities include working with Health Promotion Agency on national-level support for the programme, including the adaptation of the Healthy Together Victoria Achievement Programme. The evaluation and monitoring framework for Healthy Families NZ is also currently under development.
- Further information can be found here:
Ministry of Health website:
For more information about the Ministry’s structure and business units go to Ministry business units.
Other government agencies
3DHB Quality Awards
Please note – the deadline for nominations has been extended to Friday 24 October
Quality Awards highlight the collaborative approach that pioneering health services, NGOs, and individuals are leading across our sub-region to improve health outcomes and remove disparities where they exist.
We know there are quiet achievers working away in each department and we need your help to recognise them across eight award categories. Now is the time to promote and share your best practice with health care leaders within the region.
For application forms and any other queries, please see Tickets now available from:
Office for Disability Issues newsletter extra, 9 October 2014
United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities' publishes recommendations for New Zealand
The first review on New Zealand’s implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities has recently been completed. On 15 and 16 September 2014, in Geneva, Switzerland, the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities meet with a delegation of government officials and asked over 80 questions on our progress with implementing the Convention. Disability sector representatives, including representatives from Disabled People’s Organisations and the Human Rights Commission also had an opportunity to talk directly with the Committee.
You can read a summary of the Committee's meeting with the government delegation at: Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights website.
On 4 October 2014, the Committee published its recommendations for action by the Government. It considers that there are several areas of the Convention that need further attention. You can download and read these recommendations in the Committee's report called "Concluding Observations on the initial report of New Zealand" at: Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights website.
The Minister for Disability Issues has welcomed the Committee's recommendations. The Minister said that the Government will formally respond to the Committee in early 2015. You can read the Minister's statement at: Beehive.govt.nz website.
Further information on the Convention and New Zealand's review is available on the Office for Disability Issues' website. Further information on the process for the Government response will be provided in future newsletters.
Office for Disability Issues October Newsletter
Part one: Government news
01: Message from the Minister for Disability Issues
02: Implementation of the new Disability Action Plan has started
03: Think Differently update: Making a Difference Fund announcements
04: Increased funding to support sign language for deaf children
05: Building Access Review report published
06: Mental Health Law Conference dates announced
07: Short film on the Disability Convention and New Zealand's implementation
08: Call for applications for UNESCO Natcom Contestable funding round
Part two: Sector news
09: Be Leadership Programme expressions of interest open
10: Identification tags for certified Disability Assist Dogs
11: Community Law Canterbury disability law advice clinic
12: NZ VASS October Forum- registrations now open
Follow this link to access the newsletter
NGO information
Women’s Health update – September edition
- Maori and abortion: An 'impossible' choice?
- Big Latch on 2014
- Surgical Mesh Update
- Emergency Contraception & Body Weight
- Healthy Babies, Healthy Futures
Follow this link to access the update
NgāKupu, Injury Prevention Aotearoa update
In this issue:
New child falls campaign
Get ready for Safety Week
Board nominees
October is 'Angel Month'
Canterbury's White Ribbon campaign launch
Follow this link to access the update
Places to find NGO information
Community Research
Consumers Voice
Volunteering NZ
Training, education, resources and conferences
Social justice in communities - What is it? How can we build it?
How can we sustain it?
23-24 October 2014; Rydges Latimer, Christchurch
A conference jointly hosted by Community Networks Aotearoa (formerly NZCOSS) and the NZ Council of Christian Social Services.
Social justice is vitally important in Christchurch as it is rebuilding and redeveloping; it is equally important in all of our communities. It does not happen by accident but is the result of deliberate and inclusive decision-making. Inspirational speakers from Christchurch, elsewhere in New Zealand and Australia will share their experiences in working within communities to bring about self-determination, inclusion and empowerment for community members. This conference will strengthen participants’ commitment to social justice, it will inform them of how socially just communities have been developed and will inspire them to work towards this ideal in their work and communities.
Registrations are open – register now!
The NZ Telehealth Forum is holding a half day Workshop: What’s Holding Us Back? at the HINZ Conference
1-5 pm 10 November; Sky City Convention Centre, Auckland.
See the Programme here. See here for Workshop and full HINZ Conference Registration.
A Practical Guide to Working with Suicidal Youth: A New Zealand Perspective
9:15am – 3:00pm, Monday 10th November 2014
Kohia Education Centre, Gate 1, 78 Epsom Avenue, Epsom, Auckland (Parking in Student Carpark, Gate 2, Top Floor Only is reserved for KohiaCtr)
$185.00 (inc. GST) Direct Credit or cheques to Professional Development Seminars, morning tea ONLY included.
This is a seminar for anyone interested in improving their skills when working with suicidal youth. It will be a practical, how-to type seminar run by a practitioner who is working at the coal face with NZ youth. Francis Jamieson is a school counsellor who also has a private practice. He has many years working in mental health and has developed some very effective techniques and interventions in working with suicidal youth. He is author of the book ‘A Practical Guide to Working with Suicidal Youth’. This day will cover a map of teenage development, effective intervention techniques, and will explore the reasons why some teenagers contemplate suicide with treatment implications for each one.Click on this link for the flyer
The Role of Cooperatives, Mutuals and Trusts in Building Contemporary Sustainable Economies
20-22 November; Wellington.
This event features keynote speakers from the UK, Australia and USA and several interesting panels are planned. The conference is being organised by Victoria, Massey and Waikato universities, with input from the Treasury and Diana Suggate from the Department of Internal Affairs.
The UK Government has actively been promoting the role of cooperatives and mutuals in delivering public services. This includes encouraging employee-ownership of services formerly delivered by government. Cooperatives and mutuals are seen as a way of combining private sector efficiency with social purpose, while remaining accountable and without privatising public assets. Cooperatives and mutuals reinvest their profits in the enterprise for the long-term benefit of members, service users, employees, the community and government agencies that purchase their services. The Australian government is now showing similar interest – see recent speech by the Minister for Social Services .
NB: For those only wishing to attend the main day (Friday 21 November) there is a one day registration fee available.
Events included in previous updates
Digital Leadership for NGO Boards
9am – 4pm Wednesday 5 November; Grant Thornton Offices, Level 3, 2 Hazeldean Road, Addington, Christchurch
Ko Awatea - Data for Improvement
9am – 4pm, 12-13 November; Room 106, Ko Awatea Centre, Auckland
External Participants: $500 + GST; CMH / Ko Awatea Staff: Free
Group Rates: Group rates are available. Please contact for further information.
In our own backyard – National Injury Prevention Conference
6–7 November, Te Papa Tongarewa, Wellington
Registrations close on Friday 17 October
Health Infomatics NZ 2014 conference
10–12 November 2014, Skycity, Auckland
Workshops – Monday 10 November
ANZTSR (Australia/New Zealand Third Sector Research) conference
18 - 20 November, Christchurch
World Indigenous Conferences in Cairns QLD Australia
The 2014 World Indigenous Domestic Violence Conference is to be held on 8–10 December and the 2014 World Indigenous Health Conference is scheduled for 15–17 December in Cairns, Queensland, Australia.