About Us
Waitara people are passionate about the community. Our people and our place are our greatest assets. Together we can realise the potential of our amazing community!
Te Ara Whakamua o Whaitara (TAWOW) is a 5 year partnership between the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) and the Waitara Community. TAWOW was established in response to a series of community hui about the aspirational potential and shared future of Waitara.
During a collaborative process carried out in 2018-19 Waitara community worked with DIA to develop a Community Led Plan. Ultimately the aim of the plan is to fully realise the potential of Waitara, while retaining and enhancing what makes it so distinctive and great.
A voluntary Leadership Group, nominated by the community, now provides Leadership and guidance based on the aspirations set out in the community plan.
The Leadership Group currently includes; Mawhaturia White (Chair), Teri Tamati, Sharon Moala, Tane Heketa, Jarod Dixon, Marnie Reinfeld, and Fliss Sies.
Te Ara Whakamua has a Community Development worker – Dave Haskell, who is available throughout the week to meet with community members interested in the project. Dave is available to assist groups within the Waitara community in accessing resources, funding, building relationships with stakeholders and provide guidance to fulfil projects in Waitara.
All queries about TAWoW should be directed to Dave – e.g. how the TAWoW process works, how to put in a proposal, what other types of support might be available, or to simply discuss your ideas – please contact Dave via email: admin@tawow.org,nz
What is driving this mahi?
We know that this is a great community to live in with a strong tradition of individuals and groups leading the work needed to achieve the changes they want to see in town. We have been inspired by the prospect of what we might achieve if all this fantastic community-mindedness was brought together and focused on shared community aspirations. This is not to say that we don’t have significant challenges. The 2018 Census data was not yet released at the time of developing the Community Plan, but we know from anecdotal and previous evidence that we have comparatively high rates of deprivation, we have work to do to restore and look after our natural environment for future generations, our residents predominately need to leave town to earn a living, and there are some barriers to investment in town. During the consultation process, there was mention of the growing fear of the drug culture, community safety and vulnerable families. We have not glossed over these challenges; however, we deliberately adopted a strengths-based attitude in our approach and believe that this work will complement the mahi of others tasked with addressing these issues.
Overwhelmingly, throughout the process to develop this plan, Waitara people were passionate about the community, stating ‘our people and the place’ are our greatest assets. Ultimately, what we want as a community is to fully realize the potential we can see Waitara is bursting with, while retaining and enhancing what makes our town distinctive and great.
What is a community-led plan?
A community-led plan provides a framework for positive mandated action by both the people and organisations within the community. It is also a reference document for government agencies, social and community sector providers seeking to contribute to the wellbeing of residents, and potentially for people considering moving to or investing in Waitara.
This plan outlines the shared visions of the Waitara Community in 2018 and practical actions to work towards achieving those visions. The great community response to, and participation in, TAWOW’s activities to gather input from the community, give us confidence that this plan, broadly, represents the views and has the mandate of the Waitara community
Whose plan is it?
The ‘TAWOW’ plan belongs to the community of Waitara; it is a ‘living document’ and it will continue to be adapted
and refined to suit community purposes, passions, aspirations, and learnings. Our role was to facilitate a process to gather input from the community, to identify shared aspirations and to synthesise the results into this community plan.
How will this plan be used?
Aside from supporting community action within Waitara, this plan is also intended to be used as the basis for funding or other formal applications for external support for the Waitara Community to achieve the actions outlined here.
Who will make it happen; when will it happen?
The actions outlined in this plan will need to be purposefully initiated to avoid this plan gathering dust while sitting on a shelf. This will require many people and groups within the community working together. The pace of progress will be dictated by the resources we have within the community and by the level and intensity of support/funding we gain from stakeholders and other external parties.
Contact Us
Facts, Data and information Gathering Phase
The Geographical Area?
The Waitara community includes both the township and rural areas surrounding it.
The focus of the TAWoW Community plan is about inclusion of community members and fostering a sense of belonging rather than purely boundaries prescribed on a map.
2013 Census
Data from the 2013 Census been used to illustrate a quick snapshot of the demographic profile.
6,483
People usually
live in Waitara.
74,184
People usually
live in New Plymouth.