Case Study_Monte Cecilia_FINAL
Māori Wellbeing:
A Guide for Housing Providers
The Guide was developed at the New Zealand Centre for Sustainable Cities by Dr Guy Penny (Tāmaki Makaurau/Ngāti Kahungunu ki Te Wairoa) and Dr Lori Leigh in 2024. It was originally developed in response to requests from primarily non-Māori housing providers within the Public Health and Urban Research Programme. They were interested in incorporating concepts from the Whakawhanaungatanga Māori Wellbeing Model for Housing and Urban Environments into their own practices.
Māori Wellbeing: A Guide for Housing Providers (the Guide) was created as a learning and development tool primarily for housing providers. The idea for the Guide came out of discussions with community housing providers involved in the Public Housing and Urban Regeneration Research Programme after the publication of the paper: A Whakawhanaungatanga Māori Wellbeing Model for Housing and Urban Environments (Penny et al 2024).
This model of Māori wellbeing centres on the concept and practice of whakawhanaungatanga – making and strengthening connections and relationships. It presents six pathways, drawn from Te Ao Māori, through which wellbeing is enhanced using whakawhanaungatanga. The overall goal of this model of Māori wellbeing is to support those involved in housing provision and management to: Create spaces, places and connections that enhance and uplift the mana and mauri of Māori tenants.
The Guide was developed at the New Zealand Centre for Sustainable Cities by Dr Guy Penny (Tāmaki Makaurau/Ngāti Kahungunu ki Te Wairoa) and Dr Lori Leigh in 2024. It was originally developed in response to requests from primarily non-Māori housing providers within the Public Health and Urban Research Programme. They were interested in incorporating concepts from the Whakawhanaungatanga Māori Wellbeing Model for Housing and Urban Environments into their own practices. It was advanced with input from an advisory group with expertise in kaupapa Māori research, public health, housing and urban design. Most importantly, it was developed with support and feedback from Community Housing Aotearoa and iterations of the guide were tested with community housing providers Te Toi Mahana and Dwell Housing Trust, and a Wellington-based tenant group. Housing providers were specifically interested in an evaluation tool using a set of indicators based on the whakawhanaungatanga pathways presented in the model. They emphasised that they wanted a practical way to self-assess the extent to which their organisations were meeting the wellbeing needs of their Māori tenants and to identify gaps in their understanding and practice.
In addition, they were interested in guidance and resources to improve and develop organisational capabilities across Governance, Tenancy Services and Property so that these functions more effectively aligned with the wellbeing needs of their tenants.
In teams or as individuals, users of the Guide work through a set of assessment and reflection tasks before considering activities and resources that form the basis of an Action Plan for Building Māori Wellbeing Capability. While designed primarily for housing providers, the Guide offers ideas to organisations operating in the housing, neighbourhood and urban development sector interested in Māori wellbeing, and to those organisations wanting to develop or enhance their capability to support the wellbeing
of Māori.
“Our Chief Executive has scheduled monthly reflection meetings going through The Guide and opening discussion around each section. This has encouraged us to freely discuss strengths and weaknesses we have noticed within our area of work that we could grow. The tool has helped us to really narrow down focus areas pertaining to aligning ourselves as great Te Tiriti partners.”
– Zoe Tait-Dang, Dwell Housing Trust
“This is such a useful resource! What I see is something that will be a great opportunity to sit with stakeholders and look at what we are doing and what we may want to do going forward. I enjoyed the worksheets, opportunities for reflection and action and can see how that will be very useful in our teams to talk about and journey towards pūawai. I liked the way in which there were so many ideas articulated in a way that allows participation at various levels without becoming overwhelmed. Also, the way in which it provided starting places without saying this is all.”
– James Widgery, Ka Puta Ka Ora Emerge Aotearoa
“. . . a great piece of work, it is nice and simple and will help organisations better understand what they can practically do in relation to being good Treaty partners and working more effectively with Māori.”
– Lauren James, General Manager, Ka Uruora Kāinga
Order form for Māori Wellbeing: A Guide for Housing Providers
The Guide is available in a digital version (download at no cost) or a printed version for $35 (including postage). To order or download The Guide please complete the form below:
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