Tararua REAP building on success and strengthening community links

A review was conducted of Tararua REAP to guide its future direction. Photo / NZME

Tararua REAP plans to continue building on the success of its programmes and strengthen its links with the community.

General manager Claire Chapman brought in consultants to conduct a review to help guide the future direction of the organisation.

She said there no major changes were being considered as part of the strategic plan.

"The conversations with key stakeholders [during the review] gave us the increased confidence and knowledge of our responsibility to help support other organisations and key stakeholders on their aspirations for the community."

The consultants were deliberate in not starting their conversations with direct questions about REAP.

That was important to Chapman, who said REAP was there to support the community.

"It was important to the board and the team that we're in alignment with the community aspirations, rather than being internally-focused."

"There wasn't a question mark about what we are delivering but encouragement to keep going, stay agile and even do more if possible."

Dr Jillian Chrisp of CJ Development Consultants, who carried out the review alongside partner Karen Johansen, said the fact that REAP wanted to go to key stakeholders in the community to seek their views said a lot about them.

She said there were a lot of comments about just how critical REAP was to the community and how well it operated.

There were some high-level themes "that we got talking to people around things like identity and building resilience and cohesion, building sustainability as a community and that there were some areas where REAP could really contribute to that."

Chrisp said she got the sense that Tararua was still forming as a region with an identity.

"There's real promise for the community to build itself in terms of its identity and part of its identity is understanding its stories.

"I think REAP's got a role to facilitate some of that as well."

Chapman was thrilled with the results of the review.

"Karen and Jill had a way of engaging with people.

"There was a lot of reaffirmation that our intention to work with the community is being seen as what's delivered."

She said REAP would now be working on its annual plan from the strategic plan "to make sure it happens".

"Our values are pretty much unchanged.

"We're feeling reaffirmed that we're on the right wavelength and confident and motivated."