A Whakatāne social housing development aimed at creating a supportive village environment is in the running for a social impact award.
Ngāti Awa social and health service, Te Tohu o Te Ora o Ngāti Awa, has been announced as a finalist for the Social Impact award at the Infrastructure New Zealand’s Building Nations 2026 Impact Awards.
The nomination is for Tūkōkeke Kāinga Māori on Golf Links Road, a village that delivers a new model for housing on Māori land.
This award recognises projects that have delivered outstanding social outcomes through collaboration with Māori, stakeholders and communities.
The projects in this category use collaboration to achieve tangible outcomes that raise the bar in delivering best practice in improving social outcomes and serve as a model for future projects.
The other three finalists in this category are Auckland Council for Te Akaa Raataa– Stage 1, a regeneration project aimed at improving Puhinui stream in Manukau; Te Ara Tupua Alliance for Te Ara o Tupua Horo Rangi and Te Ara o Tupua Horo Nuku, a shared pathway and seawall in Lower Hutt; and National Infrastructure Funding and Financing for its Rural and Marae Drinking Water Programme.
Tūkōkeke Kāinga Māori was opened in March last year with 15 new homes, arranged in a supportive village environment next to the social and health services’ offices.
The village is now fully occupied, and Te Tohu o Te Ora o Ngāti Awa has started on a similar project on 15 hectares of land near Huna Road, Kawarehe Kāinga Māori, in partnership with Kawarehe Trust and Adventure Solutionz.
Te Tohu o Te Ora o Ngāti Awa chief executive Enid Ratahi-Prior said the housing programme sat between social housing and full market rentals as “affordable housing” and was targeted at working whānau who aspired to own their own home.
The programme sought to empower people to transition from poverty to wellness through culturally grounded housing, accompanied by financial support services.
Infrastructure New Zealand is an industry association promoting best practices in transport, energy, water, telecommunications, and social infrastructure.
Winners of the Building Nations awards will be announced at a gala dinner in Christchurch on August 20.
LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
