Community and Voluntary Sector

Transcription

1 Policy 2014 Community and Voluntary Sector HIGHLIGHTS Introduce a Social Inclusion approach as a new way of working together with communities. Review the decisions to disestablish the Charities Commission and the Office of the Community and Voluntary Sector. Work with the sector to establish long-term funding cycles so that the sector has more certainty around planning and delivering its programmes. Introduction New Zealand is a great place to bring up children and a place where communities have a strong role to play. Labour believes that a connected community is a caring one. Our people thrive when they are able to share their skills, lend a helping hand in tough times and pull together to make a difference. Labour encourages that Kiwi spirit of finding local solutions to local problems and using that No. 8 wire mentality. That same spirit will be required in tough times and Labour recognises the vital role played by the community and voluntary sector to create a strong, resilient and cohesive sense of belonging to a community. Treaty of Waitangi settlements and Māori development aspirations have shifted the lens of service delivery towards engaging Māori directly to tackle some of the most challenging problems in our communities. Whereas the former view in society used to be By Māori for Māori, there is an emerging view that the models developed by Māori providers are suited to a broader spectrum of society. The community and voluntary sector plays an increasing role in supporting communities and delivering social services. Labour understands that an investment approach to the capacity of the sector is essential as service delivery becomes more decentralised. This focus will enable the sector to address social issues of long-standing concern in innovative and creative ways. Labour believes that workforce development of the sector is essential and will contribute to this need. Labour is mindful that the private sector has skills and expertise that could be engaged to help build the capacity and contribution of the community and voluntary sector. We will put significant effort into building this engagement. Community-based child and whānau service providers play an important role to make sure that children get the best start in life. They are the people who know what their community needs, where the gaps are, and what can be done to make sure the best models of care are available. They are also the people who are the first point of contact for the most vulnerable whānau in our communities.

2 Labour is committed to working alongside the community and voluntary sector, towards a long-term investment in the relationship, and towards supporting resilient communities looking for locally responsive solutions. It s about all of us working together, collaborating jointly, and empowerment and active participation in local decision-making by the sector. Engaging with the community: A social inclusion approach The Fifth Labour Government made a commitment to a new way of working with communities based in partnership in social development. New relationships and a deeper understanding of government and community roles did emerge from the partnership approach; but overall the partnerships didn t achieve the kinds of potential and produce the results they might have. Community sector and government relationships remain quite fragmented. Labour is not convinced New Zealanders are getting all the benefits of cooperation, prevention, smart community knowledge on where the problems are, who is involved, and how to fix them. While we have seen some real innovation in areas including Māori social services (which Whānau Ora has built upon), there are many other areas where we still haven t got the machinery in place for bringing that knowledge and expertise into the heart of policy and programming processes. Where this really matters is in areas where no single agency, government or community can fix the problem on its own. These are areas where people are experiencing multiple challenges, or making transitions in their lives that can see them falling between the cracks because no one agency has the job of looking after them. Homelessness and rough sleeping for example, often involve people with challenges in housing, work and income, mental health, substance abuse and more, and need input from health, housing, local government, and social development agencies. Without well led, strongly coordinated efforts, these people end up being dealt with by the police. Young people considering leaving school early face different hurdles: but can easily be neither in work, nor school, nor training. A social inclusion approach puts coordination around complex issues and needs at the top of the agenda. It appoints a social inclusion commissioner (or equivalent) with the power to identify issues, see what works and requires coordination between government agencies, with identified counterparts in the leader s and ministers offices. It monitors outcomes, and re-focusses efforts which are not working. It finds international experience, investigates how it has been evaluated, and what evidence there is for its success. It cements the best approaches into place with public service agreements at central level, complemented with better coordination at local level. Under Labour in New Zealand, it will also need to forge the best possible working relationships with community groups and agencies, and, where appropriate, local government. Labour will introduce a Social Inclusion approach as a new way of working together with communities, in the areas where this can make the most difference. It is an approach we have seen working well elsewhere: but that we want to develop here in our own, can-do Kiwi version. Internationally, there have been a number of areas where this approach has yielded real benefits, both in terms of problems and opportunities. The problems have included: Violence (including domestic violence) against women and children

3 Child abuse and maltreatment Youth offending and the mental health of offenders in our Corrections facilities Keeping young people in formal education and assisting their transitions to further tertiary education, training or employment opportunities The effects of poverty and deprivation (including homelessness and rough sleeping) Supporting the needs of people with disabilities (and their families). The opportunities have been in areas such as providing support to older workers and disabled workers with volunteering or otherwise making a contribution. Labour s Social Inclusion approach will be based: in a shared community/government commitment to shared high level goals on identifying and tackling difficult problems and development opportunities, and learning how to work together to the point where accountability for local outcomes can be genuinely shared. Labour s Social Inclusion approach is not about more meetings or consultation : it is an invitation to a working partnership, not just a contracting relationship. It will involve enabling the community to work with government on problem and opportunity identification. In other words, taking time to identify where there is a need or a better way of working together. Having good information is a crucial step in identifying challenges and developing and implementing solutions. Local information and practical experience needs to be considered alongside the best New Zealand and international evidence in any policy dialogue about our communities. Given the complexity of some of the challenges facing New Zealanders it is crucial to identify the issues and the parameters of the debate from the outset. It is equally important to acknowledge and discuss the obstacles preventing everyone from working together effectively and successfully. Labour will respect and seek to build existing community capacity to act as real partners for government, not just sites for short term pilot projects or rapid rollout of programmes to national scale. An important aim will be identifying and supporting community and local government partners who can bring effective coordination, in-depth knowledge of local situations, practical experience and active policy capability to the table. On this basis, respectful and equal partnerships between government and community become a real possibility, not just a politically convenient vehicle for a top down contracting relationship, or a rationale for more meetings which don t produce durable programming and budget commitments. On this basis, accountabilities for local outcomes can be shared, rather than dumped on communities or retained by risk-averse central government agencies. Local capabilities, funding for particular functions, and responsibilities for outcomes can be durably aligned. Genuine commitments to strengthening communities can be forged. take a rigorous approach to identifying and calculating the benefits of working together under a social inclusion framework. The social inclusion approach creates new efficiencies by making existing resources and programmes more effective. It is not a substitute for wider social development policy and approaches to jobs, income or care; and isn t the approach that will work best in every area. It will take time and commitment to develop, sector by sector, issue by issue.

4 Not all opportunities will be able to be developed or funded; but those that are will have a real possibility of moving ahead. Where devolved funding can create greater efficiencies and effectiveness, Labour will explore this possibility. Where the social inclusion approach can make a real difference, we need to let it do its work. Active collaboration with the sector Labour has a long history of engaging with the community and voluntary sector and is committed to building this strong relationship into the future on a joint collaborative basis. In Government, Labour signed the Statement of Government Intentions for an Improved Community-Government Relationship in The current Government has signed the Kia Tutahi Standing Together Relationship Accord which builds on Labour s previous work of building stronger community-government relationships. review the effectiveness of the Kia Tuatahi Standing Together Relationship Accord in facilitating whole of government engagement with the community and voluntary sector. The Office for the Community and Voluntary Sector, which was established under Labour, was previously split between the Department of Internal Affairs and the Ministry of Social Development. It was reintegrated into the Department of Internal Affairs and has since been disestablished and turned into the Community, Voluntary and Sector Policy Team. The key work areas of the Community, Voluntary and Sector Policy Team are the implementation of Kia Tutahi; policy input into cross-government initiatives impacting on community organisations, social enterprises and volunteers; and policy relating to the Charities Act evaluate in consultation with the community and voluntary sector, whether the reintegration and then disestablishment of the Office of the Community and Voluntary Sector has enhanced relationships and improved inter-agency responsiveness to the sector. Labour is committed to better service delivery to children and their families. This involves connecting thinking and action across agencies, services, communities and organisations. Barriers put up by agencies, a lack of communication and information sharing, and separate assessment processes mean people often fall through the gaps. In the last year of the Fifth Labour Government we announced a significant investment in contracting community and voluntary sector groups to deliver essential services. The Pathway to Partnership was a multi-year plan to build strong, sustainable and more effective community-based services for families, children and young people. work with the community and voluntary sector to establish long-term funding cycles so that the sector has more certainty around planning and delivering its programmes. Integrated service delivery is not a new idea, however over the years we have seen many different projects being started and funded only to be taken over by the next good idea.

5 Whānau Ora is about integrating services for the most vulnerable whānau. Its success will partly depend on political commitment, its ability to deliver greater outcomes to vulnerable whānau and evaluation of the model of service delivery alongside other models. This will help us to cement our close working relationship with the whole sector and give us a framework to further expand on. build on Whānau Ora focusing on four key components - leadership; flexibility of funding to get results; workforce development; and better information sharing. This will enable the delivery of measurable benefits to the community build on successful services under Whanau Ora dealing with family violence, and violence against women and girls, and respond to any problems and unmet needs created by the new funding model by once again establishing an ongoing funding mechanism to ensure security of service provision. Under Labour the Charities Commission was established by the Charities Act It was established after over a decade of discussion with the sector and a detailed Select Committee process. Under National, and after seven years of operation, the Charities Commission was disestablished and its core functions were integrated into the Department of Internal Affairs. The voluntary and community sector strongly communicated their concerns about this proposal, to no avail. Labour believes the Charities Commission had a vital and autonomous role to play in the sector. In the disestablishment process, the unique role the Commission had in providing educational material and encouraging good governance and management practices across the sector was lost. prioritise the long-promised review of the Charities Act that National abandoned, beginning with a first principles review of the legislation review, in consultation with the community and voluntary sector, whether the disestablishment of the Charities Commission and transfer of functions back to the Department of Internal Affairs has resulted in effectiveness and improved services and information for the sector. Labour will ensure that community organisations are able to engage in advocacy without becoming disqualified from charitable status, or from government funding and support. continue to support the independence of community sector advocacy including in the addictions sector. Building capacity Labour appreciates the efforts of the community and voluntary sector and the essential services they provide to New Zealanders. Labour recognises that the sector can do things that government cannot.

6 The community and voluntary sector needs a comprehensive commitment towards investing in the sector s infrastructure and human resources. This responsibility requires partnerships with the philanthropic community as well as the business and private sectors and Labour will work with third party funding communities to bring greater focus towards those investment decisions. We understand that the sector is starting to really feel the pressure of a constrained funding environment. look at ways to encourage individuals and businesses to participate in their communities by giving time, money or in-kind donations. Through supporting volunteers we grow stronger communities. The community and voluntary sector plays a vital role in our community with its dedication, work and generosity of spirit, which brings huge social, cultural and economic benefits to New Zealand society. recognise the role of volunteers and promote greater private sector engagement of employees in the voluntary sector so we can create engaged, safe and strong communities. Labour also believes that the government has a strong role to play to co-ordinate government investment and funding decisions that maintain the important role of the community and voluntary sector. provide and co-ordinate infrastructure supports and resources across the sector. This will include advice, capacity and infrastructure in human resources, legal, financial systems, audit and information technology. We will ensure the community and voluntary sector has access to easily-understood information about central government services and resources. Interfaith Labour recognises the growing diversity of New Zealand s population including the diversity of faiths and religious beliefs that exist today, and the significant role faith communities play in New Zealand society, including those who do not have religious faiths at all, nor are aligned with any faith groups. Labour in government is committed to building peace and maintaining harmonious and respectful relationships between faith communities and all New Zealanders. continue to engage and support events, educational programmes and other celebrations that enhance greater appreciation and respect for people s differences support those community initiatives and experiences that enhance our continual efforts to maintain the rule of law and to provide opportunities for all New Zealanders to release their fullest potential as active and thriving citizens of Aotearoa/New Zealand.