Te Korowai Ture ō Waitākere

We have now started planning for 2012, and now is the perfect chance for you to get on board. We are focusing our education in several areas in 2012:

1.  Targeted education to community organisations
We are delighted to be in a position to assist with staff trainings on the legal elements of the community work that your organisation does. We have regular involvements with CAB’s in Waitemata and Rodney and we are proud to be able to help their volunteers do the fantastic work they do. We have also been involved with many other organisations in 2011. If you wish to get on the roster, we are very happy to accomodate you. Please contact (09) 835 2130 or shane@waitakerelaw.org.nz and we can have a chat about how we can help.

2.  Public Education
We are committed to expanding our public education in 2012 and are in contact with adult education providers and community houses to get involved and out in the community. Nominal small charges may be involved to cover catering and material costs, and they will be announced as required. Look out for further announcements, including the Legal Education Series 2012!

3.  Community Radio
We are working with a community radio provider to get out into the public and provide legal information to the masses.

4.  Regional Work and Community Forums
We were very proud to present the Youth Justice Forum 2011 and we believe it was a roaring success. More work will be coming out around these issues and we are looking forward to influencing policy at a macro-level to get better outcomes for our Waitemata youth. We will be planning another community forum to tackle another massive legal issue in our community, look out for further announcements around this in 2012! We also wish to continue to work regionally with other CLC’s in Auckland for great common benefit, to bring an Auckland enriched and empowered with knowledge of legal rights!

If you want any information about legal topics, we would be more than happy to help. Contact (09) 835 2130 or shane@waitakerelaw.org.nz for more information and let’s work together for a strong Waitemata!

The WCLS are proud to announce the opening of our brand new clinic at Birkenhead Community Link on the Shore! We are situated inside the WINZ building near the corner of the big intersection at Birkenhead. There is parking nearby and very close to bus access as well so feel free to come down and discuss your legal needs. As always, there is no need for appointments, just come on in. The new times on the North Shore are as follows:

Monday 10am – 12 at the Northcote Citizens Advice Bureau, Ernie Mays Street, Northcote, North Shore
Monday 1pm – 3pm at the Birkenhead Community Link, 87 Birkenhead Avenue, Birkenhead, North Shore

We would like to thank the WINZ office at Birkenhead and the CAb at Northcote for their support and continuing use of their facilities. We would urge anyone with insufficient means in the area that has legal trouble to come on down and have a chat to us. The WCLS continues to be For Shore!

The Waitakere Community Law Service, along with our friends at YouthLaw and Auckland Disability Law are proud to present Decision Waitemata 2011! This is an excellent opportunity to meet MP’s and hear from a noted academic on the electoral referendum.

DR STEPHEN WINTER of the University of Auckland will be speaking about the upcoming MMP referendum.  Also speaking on other policy areas are:

PHIL TWYFORD MP – Labour
TAU HENARE MP – National (Waitakere), MAGGIE BARRY – National (Takapuna)
DAVID CLENDON MP – Green
ANDREW WILLIAMS – NZ First
DAVID SEYMOUR – ACT
SUE BRADFORD – Mana

Meetings at:

Taitamariki Hall in Takapuna -  13^th October (Auburn Reserve at the end of Como Street, Takapuna)

 Unitec Waitakere Basement Lecture Theatre (510-B007) -  20^th October (end of Trading Place, Henderson)

 Be there at 3.30pm for afternoon tea and a chat with the MP’s. The meeting is from 4pm to 5.30pm.

Spaces are limited so please RSVP for the Waitakere or Takapuna meetings by Thursday 6 October 2011. To register for the meetings, email info@adl.org.nz. Both events are disability accessable and there will be deaf interpreters provided for Waitakere as well!

Opposition to the new policies announced regarding Housing NZ has been growing. Last week we presented the changes to the policies as we saw them to a group of housing organisations and members of the public. There was almost universal concern.



It is important to frame the debate in context. It goes without saying that people whom apply for Housing NZ homes are the people that are in most need of housing. With the economy as it is, the section of New Zealand society that are in need is growing. Food prices have gone up 7.5% in the period June 2010-2011. Unemployment is at 6.6%! During research we came across a very interesting report put out by the Salvation Army in February, detailing among other things the increasingly desperate housing shortage in Auckland. It stated that Auckland has a shortage of at least 6,000 homes. In the period June 2008 to June 2009, the Auckland population growth consisted of 21,800 people. Also during that period, only 3,200 building consents were issued. That’s 1 home for every 7 new Aucklanders. Read the report here.


Housing NZ in particular will be under increasing pressure by these forces. There is overcrowding in some houses and under occupation in others. Housing NZ need to make sure that those whom are in desperate need of a house get one. With that policy in mind, the Minister has announced a few changes, which are as follows:



1. From July, tenancy reviews will be in place for Housing NZ houses. These will be either every 3 years, or whenever a change of circumstances is reported. If the HNZ house is no longer needed, the occupants will be expected to move on.

2. HNZ waiting lists are currently broken down into four categories, from the A list of most needy to the D list of the least. Those on the C and D lists will no longer be eligible for an HNZ house. They will instead be directed to an Options and Advice Service, to facilitate a move to a community sector house or private rental.



We have been invited by Monte Cecilia and our friends over at the Mangere CLC to present on these changes as well. But we want to know, what does the community of Waitemata think about these changes? E-mail your thoughts here and have your say!

In August, the WCLS are heading all over Waitakere with new and exciting legal education opportunities, plus a few old standards that never go out of style. These classes will present important information in an easy format, and you are encouraged to come along with questions, stories and problems to solve. Whether you are from an organisation helping others or an individual with a legal problem of your own, we would love to have you come by for a chat. Introducing to you the legal education programme for August:



Know Your Rights At Work
Introducing first up, we have a topic that is always a problem. Employment issues are still among the most common in our clinics, and it can affect your life drastically. It’s time we sorted it out together. Coming from our workplace after business hours, come along and check it out.

Where: The Waitakere Community Law Service Meeting Room on Trading Place in Henderson, to book contact Shane at (09) 835 2130
When: Thursday 4 August 5.30pm
Who: Shane Henderson BA. LLB.



Pulled Over by the Cops: Criminal Law and Traffic

Your rights with the police are a fascinating and important topic. Can you refuse to take a breath test on the side of the road? Are you entitled to call a lawyer before taking a blood test? Answers to these and more, get your knowledge before it’s too late!

Where: Te Atatu Peninsula Community House, to book contact Jacqui on (09) 834 5827
When: Monday 8 August 10am
Who: Shane Henderson BA. LLB.



Tenancy: Freedom and Protection

Tenancy is a growth area. The housing shortage is in full swing and people are desperate for homes. Those who are lucky enough to be renting may experience rent increases, leaky taps, cracked ceilings and all sorts of problems as landlord’s struggle with the costs of housing themselves. This is where we come in. Because of all this, the times that we live in mean that you need to know your rights NOW. Do come along.

Where: Glen Eden Community House, to book contact Leanne on (09) 818 2194
When: Wednesday 17 August, 7pm
Who: Shane Henderson BA. LLB.



Don’t Be A Slave to Debt:  Clothing Trucks and Loan Sharks

It’s time we said NO to loan sharks and bit back ourselves out West. Too often we have met our fellow Waitakere residents crippled under mounting debt. Would you believe that in this day and age people are still getting away with locking other people into credit contracts with absurd levels of interest out in the back of a truck? Join our crusade and come along to Ranui as we land the first blow in our attempt to overcome this horrible problem in our community.

Where: Ranui Community Centre, to book contact Lippy on (09) 833 6280, or just come along
When: Saturday 20 August at 10am
Who: Shane Henderson BA. LLB.



We hope that you can make it along to another exciting month for legal education in our fair city. We are currently in the process of booking classes for the rest of the year, and some very exciting opportunities have come up already. The WCLS is poised to get more involved with the residents of the North Shore, and visit more communities out West as well. If you want knowledge on any legal topic and you’re keen to book us yourself, contact us here and we’ll sort it out!

The WCLS is now on Facebook! For updates on everything we are up to, including any exciting education or law reform opportunities as well as any community involvement, feel free to visit us here!

WCLS media release on new HNZ housing policy:

6 July 2011

Government’s State Housing Policy Will Cause Greater Hardship For West Auckland’s Low Income Tenants.

The government’s recent change of policy on HNZ tenants, which starts on the 1 July, risks increased overcrowding and shoddy housing conditions at the lower end of the private rental market in Waitakere.  “At Waitakere Community Law Service we are made aware of some shocking housing conditions provided by some landlords, and this will only increase as more people are priced out of home ownership and excluded from state housing,” says Paula Bold-Wilson, Waitakere Community Law Service manager.

Rents are rising which are not matched by increases in wages.  Auckland has a growing housing shortage, and without a greatly increased investment in social housing this move by government will only exacerbate the problem.  Government money being provided to the 3^rd sector, not-for-profit housing providers is totally inadequate to meet the demand from those households with low incomes.  More households will face great insecurity with private sector rental tenancies subject to 90 day termination notices with no reason needed.  

Phil Heatley, Minister of Housing, stated on 29^th June, that 3,000 people on the waiting list are those in the most urgent, A and B, categories, which are those that HNZ will now only accommodate[1].  Yet, Phil Heatley also stated that 6,000 tenancies are turned over annually.  Who will be accommodated in the remaining 3,000?  Will they be sold off?

Reviewing HNZ tenancies every 3 years will make it very difficult for people to invest in their community and cause upheaval for children’s education.  It is almost penalising people for improving their financial circumstances, and may inhibit people to do so. 

This move by government will undoubtedly result in a higher demand for tenancy advice at the Law Service.

Paula Bold-Wilson, Manager, Waitakere Community Law Service, ph 835 2130, mobile 0274 929 474.

ENDS

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[1] Speech to Christchurch Housing Forum, 29^th June 2011, http://www.beehive.govt.nz/speech/growing-social-housing-working-community-housing-sector

Media Release

Waitakere Youth Justice Forum

 

How we’re turning youth offenders into adult criminals.

 

6 July 2011

The Waitakere Community Law Service will host a youth justice forum on the 14 July 2011 where six speakers will critically examine the issue of youth offending.  Paula Bold-Wilson, Manager of the Law Service states “We are extremely fortunate to have a number of prominent speakers who have agreed to discuss this issue in the heart of Waitakere”, she says.  Inspector Gary Davey – Area Commander, Waitakere Police, Bobby Newson, Kim Workman from Rethinking Crime and Punishment, Garth McVicar from Sensible Sentencing Trust, Faye Pouesi from Westside Counselling Service and Niwa McAllister, a young person, will provide a broad range of perspectives on youth offending.  So far, we have had over 100 members of our community who have indicated that they will be attending, which shows a lot of interest in this issue.

Paula states, “We hope this forum will bring our community together to advocate for a greater preventative approach to youth justice.  We cannot continue on the same path of building more prisons, we need to shift the focus from a punitive approach, to a more empowering and sustainable one.  In fact, we’ve seen some great community initiatives in West Auckland, including Te Kooti Rangatahi, and there are positive youth programmes that really make a difference”.  As Niwa McAllister, a young person who will speak at the forum said “I went to juvie, but it was the staff at Zeal who made a real difference in my life; I just needed someone to care and to show me another world, free of violence and anger”.

 “While there is a strong argument to pour more resources into the police and the justice system, equally we need to advocate that funding is redistributed into local youth programmes, early childhood education, and within the wider social services, which make a difference in young people’s lives”, says Paula. 

ENDS

For further information please contact Paula Bold-Wilson, Manager, Waitakere Community Law Service on

Work:  835 2130

Mobile:  027 4929 474

Email:  paula@waitakerelaw.org.nz