Te Tuinga Whanau Support Services Trust

To be homeless is to be excluded from one of our basic human rights, the right to adequate shelter. Contrary to common stereotypes it is not a personal lifestyle choice, and most homeless people also experience multiple disadvantages including very low income, poor physical or mental health, unemployment, addiction and exclusion from the social institutions others take for granted. (Richards, 2009)

Whare Tauranga is the first stage of Te Tuinga Whanau's 'Whare 4 Whanau' project. It will cater to disadvantaged families, it is not for individuals nor will it have the capability to support visiting families.

Chamberlain and MacKenzie (1992) define homelessness as:

- Primary homelessness is defined as rough sleepers (using parks, the street, cars, derelict buildings, makeshift shelter).

- Secondary homelessness includes people who are transient between forms of temporary shelter (family, friends, hostels, night shelters).

- Tertiary homelessness includes people in housing which is unsuitable for their needs and has no security of tenure (including boarding houses).

- Marginal homelessness includes people in housing which is physically unsuitable (overcrowded, substandard).

Many whanau currently experience at least one of the above definitions. The aim of this project is to cater to whanau/families only.

SCOPE

How are we going to address the crisis of whanau (families) ability to access affordable accommodation?

The cornerstone of this project is the generous koha of whare from Tauranga Moana Maori Trust Board based at 3 The Strand, Tauranga.

This issue cannot be resolved through funding alone, social services alone nor one off donations. It must be a collaborative approach; community serving community. Te Tuinga Whanau Support Services will take a lead role in bringing key stakeholders together to make this proposal happen. Given that winter is already knocking at the door, there is an urgency to get this project underway within two weeks.

We look forward to working together with you to make a difference for those needing a warm, stable, and secure place to call home.

- Tauranga Moana Maori Trust Board

“Engari ki te matekai to hoariri, whangaia, ki te matewai, whakainuimia”

“If your enemy hungers, give him food, if he thirsts, give him water”

This whakatauki relates to Heeni Te Kiri Karamu born in 1840. She is best remembered as the compassionate heroine of the 1864 battle at Pukehinahina (Gate Pa) on the outskirts of Tauranga. During a lull in the conflict, Heeni heard a cry for help from a mortally wounded British officer. She crept down to where the officer lay and gave him and some others water to drink.

Tauranga Moana Maori Trust Board fosters the advancement of its beneficiaries to accomplish their hopes and aspirations and supports them by providing a range of services.

- Te Tuinga Whanau (Bonding of Whanau)

Te Tuinga Whanau Family Support Services Trust was incorporated as a Charitable Trust in August 1993. The Trust was established to promote the wellbeing of individuals and their families by providing information and support, leading and enabling them to move towards greater social independence as well as the ability to achieve their maximum potential.

The Trust is predominantly concerned with the provision of accessible and empowering support services for – whanau/families, at risk children, and youth. Te Tuinga Whanau Support Services Trust is about empowering those who need help most to help themselves.