News and Some Blogs

The latest news and information from the social sector.

Volunteers staff new Habitat for Humanity op shop

MEDIA RELEASE Volunteers have been busy setting up racks of clothing and pricing shelves of homewares before a new Habitat for Humanity ReStore op shop opened in Mount Maunganui last week. The shop...

Social Security Amendment Bill – submissions due by noon Fri 24 Jan

By Liz Davies, Chief Executive, SociaLink/Tūhono Pāpori   I hope everyone has had a wonderful break and have been able to soak in the lovely weather as you celebrated the New Year.  At the risk...

Knowing your Worth

Do you know how much it really costs you to deliver a service or programme? If you don’t know the costs of delivering the service, how can you communicate it to others, including funders? Often...

Waipu Hauora makes use of data insights

SociaLink’s Community Insights service is helping Waipu Hauora’s health and wellness service do more with the information it collects on the people it serves. The Hauora, based at Hungahungatoroa Marae, is the main health and social service provider for the community...

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Rārangi Hiahia

The Māori Social Sector Needs Assessment was carried out during November 2021 - January 2022 via a survey and a series of  personal interviews. Read about what Māori providers need and want.

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Families delighted with digital help

Families in need throughout the western Bay of Plenty are getting their children online for school, thanks to 50 Chromebooks funded by a group of funders. The 50 laptops for families in need have been funded by Western Bay of Plenty’s Covid-19 Recovery Fund,...

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Māori mental health trust looks for tutors

A Tauranga Māori mental health trust is looking for instructors who can teach traditional crafts to people struggling with mental health issues. Kessie Kohu of Rau Ō Te Huia Community Trust, which operates from 20th Avenue, says learning traditional crafts such as...

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COVID-19 Message Grid – 10 February 2022

This contains the most up-to-date and approved messaging on key COVID-19 matters. Information that changes or is added between grids will be highlighted. Please ensure you are using the most up to date version. This version was current at 10/02/2022 5:04 pm. Download...

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Mentoring on offer for social agencies

SociaLink, the umbrella organisation for Western Bay of Plenty social agencies and charities, is looking for experienced local leaders to mentor up-and-coming managers in the not-for-profit sector. SociaLink has appointed a Mentoring Programme Coordinator to link...

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Work Vaccine Mandates – are they lawful?

“We are confident and comfortable in the approach we took, including with our risk assessment to arrive at our decision to introduce a vaccine mandate. Every individual company needs to undertake their own risk assessment and get advice as it pertains to their own...

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Growing divide between vaccinated and unvaccinated

People need to fight the Covid virus, not each other, the general manager of SociaLink, the Western Bay’s umbrella social agency says.Liz Davies says there’s a growing divide between those who have had their Covid-19 vaccination and those who haven’t. “Facing the...

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TECT Community Awards

Nominations are now open Is there a volunteer at your community group who deserves some recognition? Have you ever thought about shining a spotlight on the work your community group does and getting some region-wide promotion? Make sure you nominate your volunteers...

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SociaLink’s AGM

Thursday 23 September at 4pm Guest speakers: Amohaere Tangitu followed by Tessa Mackenzie - Bi-cultural governance in practice - the journey so far.  An adaptation of the Two House Model. Watch the video 15 mins Keep checking back as we will be posting the other...

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