Introduction

This survey will be open until Monday, 7 November 2016.

Results from this survey will shape the upcoming discussion paper on the 16 September 2016 workshop. The paper will be published later in the year and a copy will be sent to the Chief Economist at the New Zealand Treasury.

The 'hows' developed at the workshop come under six key themes and groups: A: economy, B: social services and community, C: rural isolation, D: education and E: health. From these, 36 'hows' to tackle poverty were identified.

It would be terrific if you could complete the following survey by rating each of the 36 'hows' from 'not a great idea' to 'a really interesting idea', and/or adding new hows (those that may have been missed or new ones you have thought of since the workshop took place). The survey can also be repeated; so if you think of another idea, you do not need to redo the survey in its totality, but instead just add your name at the top and then go to the question you want to add to or expand on. None of the questions are compulsory.

In the interest of gaining a broad overview, this survey is designed to seek feedback from attendees and non-attendees alike.

Thank you for your interest. If you have any questions, please email us at tacklingpovertynz@mcguinnessinstitute.org.

All the best,

Wendy McGuinness and the team at the Institute

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* 1. If you would like us to get in touch with you about the survey and discussion paper, please put your name, mobile number and email address in the boxes below. (Please note, all questions in this survey are optional.)

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* 2. What is your connection with Kaikohe?

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* 3. Did you attend the TacklingPovertyNZ Kaikohe one-day workshop on 16 September 2016?

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* 4. Are you

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* 5. What age bracket do you belong to?

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* 6. To help us understand your answers, can you tell us if you

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* 7. A: Looking at ways the economy can better contribute to tackling poverty in the Kaikohe area, here are some of the ideas raised at the workshop. We would like to know which you recommend we highlight in the discussion paper. Please rank the 'economy hows' below.

  Not a great idea Kind of interesting Interesting A really interesting idea
1. Community ownership: Increasing community ownership of the local economy by buying from local businesses, promoting local business ownership and through cooperative banking.
2. Collective buying: Forming collective buying arrangements in the community to overcome price increases in the area. Models for this system exist in Italy and Cuba and involve a group of buyers who prioritise people and the environment in their purchasing decisions.
3. Regulating money ‘loan sharks’: Regulating money ‘loan sharks’ to stop them preying on the vulnerable.
4. Innovative debt solutions: Exploring innovative ways to package debt such as mortgages, higher-purchase agreements, cash loans, car costs and student loans. This will help break cycles of debt and generational benefit reliance.
5. Removing gambling facilities: Closing down gambling facilities like the pokies in Kaikohe.
6. Stronger regulations for ‘big business’: By empowering the local council to stand up to ‘big business’ (such as The Warehouse and other businesses on the Australia/NZ Stockmarket) by imposing stronger regulations, possibly based on the size of the floor plan for the proposed business. The operation of ‘big business’ in the local community needs to be on the town’s terms.
7. Natural resource innovation: Exploring the potentials of natural resource innovation to grow the local economy while also reinforcing shared values of environmentalism and appreciation for the land.
8. Development: Developing older areas of town to stop money leaving the area and going to larger centres, and to reduce the presence of empty buildings which in turn contribute to the poverty mind- set of the town.

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* 8. B: Looking at ways social services and the community could better contribute to tackling poverty in Kaikohe, here are some of the ideas raised at the workshop. We would like to know which you recommend we highlight in the discussion paper. Please rank the 'social services and the community hows' below.

  Not a great idea Kind of interesting Interesting A really interesting idea
9. Grassroots community collaboration: Encouraging grassroots community collaboration with networks of likeminded agencies and groups to ensure that local solutions are driven by community members. This will improve resilience and sharing about how to work within constraints.
10. Cooperation and shared goals: Changing the culture of social services from a contest approach to one of cooperation and shared goals. This could be achieved by decentralising WINZ and other agencies of importance to allow the sharing of information between professionals, and improve connectivity and accessibility.
11. Increase connectivity: Creating an initiative within social services that increases connectivity between providers and consumers so that risk indicators can be identified and acted upon from birth and throughout an individual’s adult life.
12. Housing: Increasing the availability of emergency housing.
13. Car registration: Providing free car registration for those on the benefit.
14. Benefit following the child: Ensuring the benefit follows the child rather than the parents. This will provide extra support in situations such as grandparents raising grandchildren and children who are constantly on the move from one family member to the next.
15. Police force: Increasing the size of the police force to enable around the clock availability in the local area.
16. Pastoral care: Providing pastoral care for prisoners on parole to aid their reintegration and reduce the chances of reoffending.

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* 9. C: Looking at ways to tackle poverty around rural isolation in the Kaikohe area, here are some of the ideas raised at the workshop. We would like to know which you recommend we highlight in the discussion paper. Please rank the 'rural isolation hows' below.

  Not a great idea Kind of interesting Interesting A really interesting idea
17. Door knocking: Encouraging door knocking and meetings between neighbours in local communities to facilitate connections and meaningful relationships. Social gatherings could be held at marae or clubrooms. 
18. In-home visits: Normalising in-home visits by health professionals to reduce the impact of rural isolation and remove barriers to receiving adequate health care. 
19. Rural bus services: Implementing rural bus services between rural communities and main towns to allow access to services such as medical appointments. 
20. Roading network: Improving the quality of the existing roading network in the Far North and evaluating the possibility of expanding it. 
21. Funding: Securing funding to enable WINZ to supply petrol vouchers for those whose movements are restricted by their location and ability to buy petrol. 

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* 10. D: Looking at ways education could better contribute to tackling poverty in Kaikohe, here are some of the ideas raised at the workshop. We would like to know which you recommend we highlight in the discussion paper. Please rank the 'education hows' below.

  Not a great idea Kind of interesting Interesting A really interesting idea
22. Cultural education: Changing the education system to better address culture, spirituality and morality to strengthen a person’s wairua (spirit/soul). This will encourage a love of learning and produce creative, critical thinkers and innovators. 
23. Research: Using research to understand what forms of education are effective for the community in order to build and develop existing models. For example, research the value of peer education. This is a way of working with available resources to achieve education reform.
24. Long-term, holistic approach: Adopting a long-term, holistic approach to education that encompasses all levels and ages, including in-home education and basic life skills such as gardening and managing personal or household finances, as well as more formal education.
25. Mentoring: Implementing a mentoring system for those who are struggling in the existing education system.
26. Diversify teachers: Ensuring that teachers are diverse enough to engage and provide strong role models for their students who are in the process of developing their own identities and may also have one or more parent absent from their lives. This will reduce the creation of ‘educational refugees’ – students who drop out when transitioning from primary to secondary or from secondary to tertiary education.
27. Remove labels: Educating teachers about the power of labelling their students and ensuring that they value the potential of their students regardless of those students’ backgrounds. This will help combat the erosion of self-esteem and resulting problems including mental health issues like depression and suicide, addiction problems and involvement in the criminal justice system.
28. Accountability: Increasing accountability in the teaching profession to ensure that teachers are evaluated based on the visible outcomes in the lives of their students, rather than just focussing on test scores of questionable relevance.
29. Participation: Increasing participation in early childhood education to strengthen family and community ties, providing one-on-one personal connections and creating networks of support. This is modelled in Te Kohekohe, which benefits from a focus on the positive and a hands-off approach by the Ministry of Education.
30. Driving lessons: Teaching driving in schools so that students can get their license. This will help combat geographic isolation and reduce the rate of ‘behind the wheel’ offences.

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* 11. E: Looking at ways to tackle poverty around health in the Kaikohe area, here are some of the ideas raised at the workshop. We would like to know which you recommend we highlight in the discussion paper. Please rank the 'health hows' below.

  Not a great idea Kind of interesting Interesting A really interesting idea
31. Mobile health facilities: Establishing mobile GP centres in high schools to facilitate greater access for those who may only travel to town for school. 
32. Elderly: Providing special support for the elderly and those with age related illnesses.
33. Remove liquor stores: Making alcohol unavailable in Kaikohe by closing down liquor stores in the area. 
34. Mental health support and counselling services: Increasing the availability of mental health support and counselling. 
35. Living conditions: Prioritising the improvement of living conditions to stop the spread of preventable diseases such as MRSA (Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus). This would also improve the rates at which developmental milestones
36. Healthy lifestyles: Creating education programmes about living healthy lifestyles, to reduce the risk of issues such as diabetes. 

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* 12. Do you have any new ideas not already discussed above? These ideas may have been missed at the workshop or might have resulted from discussions after the workshop. We would like as many ideas as possible. Please explain and expand here or email us at tacklingpovertynz@mcguinnessinstitute.org.

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* 13. If you have any questions or feedback about the workshop series, it would be terrific if you could share these below. Alternatively email us at tacklingpovertynz@mcguinnessinstitute.org.
We believe tackling poverty is an important issue and we only have limited resources - so we need to know what worked and what did not.

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