Ōtara has been chosen as the initial location for rollout of the Resilience to Organised Crime (ROCC) Work Programme in Counties Manukau, with a view to expanding over time to other South Auckland communities.
The ROCC work programme was launched in South Auckland in October 2023, with an initial hui held to introduce the Counties Manukau community to the ROCC work programme.
At that meeting it became clear how deeply the community cares about South Auckland, and the need for the ROCC work programme in this space.
A second community hui in February 2024 was attended by community members, grassroots groups, local council, government agencies and Police staff from Ōtara, Ōtāhuhu and Māngere who discussed community aspirations, and what success looks like for each area.
The hui showcased the diversity of South Auckland, united by common goals: safe streets; engaged whānau; and flourishing, resilient communities.
It was brought together collaboratively by Police’s Partnerships and Harm Prevention Team and the Regional Public Service Commissioner (RPSC) office for Tāmaki Makaurau, part of the Ministry for Social Development.
ROCC Senior Advisor Senior Sergeant Nora Poching facilitated the day, held at the University of Auckland’s South Auckland campus Te Papa Ako o Tai Tonga.
ROCC engaged Live illustrators to help capture community expertise and present visual representations of the important themes identified in the discussions - see the images in the carousel above and further notes in the panel at the end of the story.
Organised note-taking was key for keeping up with the robust and rapid discussion taking place.
The hui identified tangible signs of success and the communities’ aspirations.
These included whānau growing and harvesting their own food, children being able to safely walk to school and youth confidently speaking their ethnic language.
Aspirations for fewer liquor and vape stores, no roller doors, no drugs, people able to live and work in their own community area, and team sports thriving were highlighted.
Visionary aspirations included feeling connected to whakapapa, not having to worry about violence, stopping the cycle of trauma, and reclaiming cultural identity.
The day ended with a co-design session to identify the most pressing areas of need, ranging from what the focus should be to important considerations of how ROCC should look because “when whānau are taken care of, children are doing well”.
Community members emphasised that any programmes need to be a coordinated and integrated response bringing together existing services to make it easier for people to get the right help, at the right time.
The ROCC Regional Steering Group decided the programme will first be established in Ōtara, followed by other South Auckland communities.
Initial engagement and consultation will be undertaken with Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki regarding the implementation of the work programme, as the ROCC co-design process needs to take place with iwi.
Illustrating the point
⇒ Live Illustrators worked with a note-taker to capture and summarise in real time the discussions at the hui, and create illustrations which can be shared with the community. You can scroll through the images in the carousel at the top of the story.
⇒ The images reflect Ōtara community members' aspirations for everyone to have a place to belong; new healthy narratives; and to empower the community. Success looked like whānau being proud to be living in Ōtara.
⇒ The discussions around aspirations for Ōtāhuhu included a sense of belonging and pride in identity, and having an aligned vision. A more closely focused illustration showed what success looked like for Ōtāhuhu community members.
⇒ For Māngere, aspirations and success looked like infrastructure fit for community purposes, wrap around support and having the basics covered.