Te Tiriti o Waitangi: Te Tiriti is the foundation of our practice and our values. We are committed to the out working of Te Tiriti o Waitangi and our Vision, Mission, Purpose and Values.
Vision
A vibrant connected community where everyone reaches their God-given potential.
Mission
Bringing connection, wellbeing and transformation to our community through faith, hope and love.
Purpose
The Neighbourhood Trust is the community arm of St Albans Baptist Church. Our purpose is to demonstrate the love of Jesus through unconditional service.
Our Values
Whanaungatanga:
Whānau are the cornerstone of our community and their wellbeing is paramount.
Manaakitanga:
protecting the mana individuals and groups in our community through mana enhancing practice.
Aroha:
Unconditional love, believing every person has potential.
Mana taurite:
Equity, one size does not fit all and we will do whatever we can to be responsive to the needs of individuals regardless of culture, gender, sexual orientation or ethnicity.
Wairuatanga:
The Neighbourhood Trust believes in Te Whare Tapa Wha and the importance of developing taha wairua in peoples lives.
Our History
Neighbourhood Trust (NHT) was established in May 1999 to enable the people of St Albans Baptist to be more active in serving their community.
NHT’s activities have changed and expanded over the years, but the heart of these programmes is still the focus on building resources into families and older adults in the North East part of Christchurch. Starting from small beginnings, NHT has evolved and changed to meet current community need and while some services are no longer provided, others are growing and getting stronger and new projects are in the development stage.
In the early years, we refurbished computers to make them available to the community and later added an Upskilling in Computers programme. As other organisations came into the market creating better access to these specialist skills, NHT closed down these activities.
The support for new parents has taken many forms over the years, from antenatal classes to Mainly Music and coffee groups, changing to adapt to the needs of families.
NHT has worked with the local Papanui / Innes Community Board in a number of ways. In 2006 it was commissioned by the Board to do research into the needs of the Mairehau / Shirley Community. A number of activities began as a result of that research.
Immediately after the 2011 earthquake NHT was invited to work with the Community Board to get timely information out to the St Albans / Mairehau / Shirley / Richmond areas and distributed 6,000 flyers into those areas. NHT also hosted the Towards Recovery series at the St Albans Baptist Church facilities.
The Christchurch earthquakes tore apart the fabric of our community and the years following saw a huge investment in door-knocking (over 7,000 homes), free meals and clean water, drop-in lunches, and recovery workshops.
Since the earthquakes, NHT has supported our community through the trauma of the mosque shootings and Covid-19.
During lockdown NHT provided Kai Boxes (food parcels) to whānau in need and kept in touch with our community via phone and social media. The Northwest Collective worked as a tremendous team, by collaborating to minimise the hardship whānau faced during this time.
In 2020 we transformed our Mairehau building space into The Whānau Centre (previously craft collective shop, Pay It Forward) and are enjoying having a physical presence in the community we serve the most. We utilise the space for ESOL classes, support huis, Kai Box distribution, and coffee groups.
NHT has always been strongly collaborative, actively seeking out partners to add value to our clients as well as theirs, and to bring resources into a community in the most efficient way.
Having experienced some changes in leadership and community behavior patterns the Neighbourhood Trust is in refresh and rebuild mode. We are looking at the future with excitement and enthusiasm, new leadership and a clear vision.
Our Team
We have a passionate and dedicated team of staff and volunteers who ensure the smooth day-to-day running of the Neighbourhood Trust and its community programmes, activities, and events.
Angela Sanderson
Rowan Durward
Sarah Tomsett
Judith Keir
Roana Johnstone
Christine Arnold
Jess Lyons
Don Benn
Dawn Hastings
Our Board
Neighbourhood Trust is governed by a Board of volunteers who meet monthly to provide strategic direction and oversee the running of the organisation. Currently, our Board members are:
Leanna Dodge
Graham Collinswood
Tony Norriss
Alan Bastin
Ruth Davies
John Alpe
Sponsors
Thank you to our funders for supporting Neighbourhood Trust to positively impact Mairehau and St Albans communities.
Partners
Neighbourhood Trust partners with other like-minded organisations to offer programmes, classes and events that create connections, support local people, and build on community strengths.
The North West Collective is a group of nine Christchurch community organisations that provide services and programmes to their communities. We are committed to working together to strengthen our communities and aim to be both caring and professional as we partner with our communities.
Neighbourhood Trust has partnered with Community Focus Trust to manage the logistics of providing kai for those who need extra support putting food on the table in our communities, via our Kai Box initiative.