Sport Hawke’s Bay’s model for ensuring strong engagement with Maori
Overview
Māori development aspirations and growth are alive and well with collaborations within Sport Hawkes Bay.
Twenty-five percent of the population of Hawke’s Bay is Māori. In areas like Wairoa, the figure climbs above 60 percent. So it is essential that the Regional Sports Trust, Sport Hawke’s Bay, has a comprehensive engagement with Māori.
That is indeed the case. The Māori context is embedded into Sport Hawke’s Bay’s programmes and activities. Its strategy is continually influenced by the goal of delivering to the needs of their Māori communities. Within the RST, and increasingly across its partners and stakeholders, there is significant effort to ensure everyone – Māori and non-Māori - is comfortable working in the Māori world.
The foundation to the commitment is a ‘Protocol Agreement’ between Sport Hawke’s Bay and Ngati Kahungunu , one of New Zealand’s largest iwi. Supporting the agreement, a Roopu Manaaki (strategic team) and two Kaiwhakahaere (coordinators) ensure close ongoing collaboration between the iwi and Sport Hawke’s Bay, and effective delivery of activities and programmes across the region.
In effect, this structure enables Sport Hawke’s Bay to connect to resources from beyond SPARC’s He Oranga Poutama (HOP) investment. This includes access to key people and other community resources.It’s an excellent approach, reflecting Sport Hawke’s Bay’s level of connectivity with the communities it serves.
Structure
Protocol Agreement
The ‘Protocol Agreement’ between Sport Hawke’s Bay and Ngati Kahungunu precedes SPARC and is a memorandum of understanding, first signed in December 2000 at Waipatu Marae. A key player in its establishment was Chris Tremain; then the Chairman of Sport Hawke’s Bay, now MP for Napier and the Government Whip. Crucially, the agreement is renewed every five years: it is a living, and a guiding, document.
Ngati Kahungunu iwi is centred in the eastern North Island areas from Wairoa in Northern Hawke’s Bay, down to Cape Palliser in South Wairarapa. The agreement covers the area Sport Hawke’s Bay is responsible for, from Wairoa to Takapau, near Waipukurau. Sport Hawke’s Bay also connects further south into the Kahungunu rohe, through its relationship with both Sport Manawatu (Tararua) and Sport Wellington Region (Wairarapa) to ensure a coordinated approach.
The Protocol Agreement states:
Both parties see mutual benefit in facilitating sustainable management and delivery of initiatives for whanau, hapu, iwi and Māori. They intend to do this in a co-operative and a mutually beneficial way. The primary focus will be on strengthening the community through increased Māori participation in health, sport, fitness, recreation and physical leisure … [the purpose is] to collaborate in developing, facilitating and implementing strategies, policies and relationships that encourage improved services to Iwi, Hapu, Whanau and Māori and Māori Communities in the health, sport, fitness, recreation and physical leisure sectors.
Roopu Manaaki
The Roopu Manaaki is a ‘Protocol Team’, which meets at least four times a year to support and deliver on the Protocol Agreement – it’s a ‘strategic influencer’ across Sport Hawke’s Bay’s activities and programmes. The team includes members from the iwi, Taiwhenua (six groups of affiliated marae/hapu within the iwi), RST and Te Puni Kōkiri, plus other invited participants from key Māori organisations. Te Puni Kōkiri is involved to represent Māori who don’t affiliate to Ngati Kahungunu.
The Roopu Manaaki connects to the highest level of the organisations. The Chief Executive of Ngati Kahungunu, Chief Executive of Sport Hawke's Bay, and Regional Manager of Te Puni Kokiri are all members. The Roopu Manaaki Chair is well-known rugby icon and Kaumatua, Tom Mulligan. The Roopu Manaaki also has significant direct representation on the Sport Hawke’s Bay board.
The Roopu Manaaki:
- Leads an Active Maori Strategy, contributing to regional strategies including Sport Hawke’s Bay’s strategic and annual plans
- Gives strategic advice to Sport Hawke’s Bay on needs and aspirations of the region’s Māori population
- Contributes to decisions on resourcing priorities, including funding and services
- Develops and promotes Kaupapa Māori initiatives to encourage greater levels of activity for whanau, hapu iwi and Māori
- Supports and advises the Kaiwhakahaere in their delivery of the HOP annual plan
- Assists the Chief Executive of Sport Hawke’s Bay, particularly in the area of Kaupapa Māori, Tikanga Māori and Kawa.
Kaiwhakahaere
Two Kaiwhakahaere are the interface between strategy and delivery. One Kaiwhakahaere is based in Wairoa. The Regional Kaiwhakahaere is based at Sport Hawke’s Bay head office in Taradale. The Regional Kaiwhakahaere has a strong influence within the organisation because the position reports directly to the Chief Executive. “She has my ear,” confirms Colin Stone, the Chief Executive of Sport Hawke’s Bay.
The two Kaiwhakahaere support Sport Hawke’s Bay staff to work in the Māori context. “The Regional Kaiwhakahaere - Theresa O’Brien - works on building skills of all our staff, Maori and non-Māori. It’s about all of us understanding the Māori culture and context. It’s about ensuring we don’t just pay lip-service,” says Colin.
“Theresa also works with other organisations around the region [such as clubs and Regional Sports Organisations]. “She helps to build the organisations’ relevance to Māori, and their people’s levels of comfort in working with Māori communities,” he explains.
Kaupapa Māori / He Oranga Poutama
The Kaupapa Māori strand of Sport Hawke’s Bay’s over-arching Māori Strategy is He Oranga Poutama. Initially facilitated by Te Puni Kōkiri in 1995, the SPARC-led initiative has evolved to support Māori well-being through sport and recreation.
Key HOP outcomes focus on:
- Kaiwhakahaere participating as leaders in their community
- Increasing opportunities for whanau to explore, learn and participate in sport and traditional physical recreation
- Revitalisation and further development of sport and traditional physical recreation.
“Kaupapa Māori is about supporting Māori to participate as Māori in sports and traditional activities such as ki-o-rahi or kapa haka. There is real benefit in Māori participating as Māori, as well as in all sports. It affirms and values their place as tangata whenua,” notes Colin.
Initiatives
Building staff understanding
Sport Hawkes Bay staff visit marae and have other opportunities to learn about Tikanga Māori and the Māori world view (organised by the Kaiwhakahaere). Sport Hawke’s Bay’s new employees are inducted into the Māori strategy; they have the option of an induction that follows Māori protocol.
Colin cites as one every day example, the Sport Hawke’s Bay nursing staff who travel around the region, The learning opportunities have helped them to engage with the people they support. They have a greater level of understanding.”
Central Football’s Maori Football Strategy
Through the Regional Kaiwhakahaere, Sport Hawkes Bay worked with Central Football (soccer) to initiate the Māori Football Strategy. This included helping decile one schools to provide football coaching and coach education and support. All up, 2100 children from 10 kura (schools) received expert football coaching from Central Football, organised by Sport Hawke’s Bay’s Education Team Member Jo Tapine.
Co-partner Te Puni Kōkiri also provided scholarships to join local football clubs, for schools to use for their most talented players. To further overcome the cost barrier, a regional promotion was run to collect good quality, second-hand boots. “We got 230 pairs. Some of them were virtually new. Over 120 were donated to the kids and the rest are now in use by the schools,” says Colin.
The Kaiwhakahaere, along with Sport Hawke’s Bay Education Team also helped to establish an inter-school football tournament. “It attracted 16 schools. Fourteen percent of the children had never played football before the programme,” Colin enthuses. “A follow-up survey showed that 96 percent of the kids want to join a football club or play for their school. It’s a good example of our strategy hitting the ground.”
Māori Sports Awards
Since 1999, Sport Hawke’s Bay has been involved in the Ngati Kahungunu Sports Awards. Over 350 people attend, including Mayors and other community leaders. “It’s become a celebration of Māori Sport. It’s a superb night,” says Colin.
Kura Kaupapa sports academies
For about four years, two Kura Kaupapa (Māori-language immersion schools) have run sport academy programmes to identify and support talented athletes. Twenty-one talented tamariki are involved on an ongoing basis. The Kaiwhakahaere supports the running of these programmes.
Key benefits
Connection. “As an organisation, we now have a good level of comfort working in the Māori context – both our Māori and non-Māori staff,” reiterates Colin. “, It’s about engagement right across the organisation. It’s about de-mystifying things, and increasing levels of comfort and confidence.”
Strategy aligned to needs. The Protocol Agreement and ongoing work of the Roopu Manaaki has enabled a far greater strategic involvement with Māori. A closer strategic match means more effective delivery, more appropriate ways of working and better results, on the ground.
Affirming of Māori Perspectives Through the high-level Roopu Manaaki, He Oranga Poutama has been a catalyst for Sport Hawkes Bay to extend their organisational capacity and capability to engage with Māori. As part of the organisation-wide approach – all staff become advocates. “ .
Looking ahead
After more than seven years, the approach taken by Sport Hawke’s Bay and Ngati Kahungunu is well bedded-in and working well. The Roopu Manaaki is proving a successful way to develop and lead strategy; the two Kaiwhakahaere are making things happen on the ground.
“The models we have are not perfect but we believe we are on the right lines,” says Colin. Looking ahead, the “new frontier” is extending the support for other organisations. Every instance of this will further drive the Protocol Agreement goal: “The primary focus will be on strengthening the community through increased Māori participation in health, sport, fitness, recreation and physical leisure.”
Contacts and links
To know more please visit www.sporthb.net.nz . To find out more about the overall strategy or programme specifics, please call Colin Stone on 06 845 9333 or email ColinS@sporthb.net.nz .
Updated | 07 Oct 2009.
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