Viewpoint – Hearing local voices

On hearing this issue is about ageing well, it was tempting to write about the ageing effects of being a local board member, but I will restrain myself!

Ageing well is a great goal, and one I see happening with many members of our communities. In Rodney, there are many groups and volunteer initiatives which are driven by the commitment I see in our more mature members of society. The passion for our local places, environment and people is inspiring.
Many groups have formed with common interests and goals in mind. So many in Warkworth that as a Local Board member it is incredibly difficult to connect with them all. So, last year, myself, Ivan Wagstaff and Tim Holdgate started a regular bi-monthly Warkworth Community Groups Representative meeting held in the evening.

Each group sends just one or two representatives along. At this stage, the groups have included incorporated/charity organisations, and recognised ratepayer, business or environmental groups. We’d love to see others who are leading in other areas, such as youth or social support groups, as well. This could relate to a larger concern, events or projects, which you feel the Local Board could assist with, or to share with the others. If you know of any community groups who aren’t receiving our invite for this, please ask them to email me at michelle.carmichael@aucklandcouncil.govt.nz and I will add them to the mailing list.

This group representative meeting is something I would like to see continued and replicated in other local board areas. It has been valuable for connecting with a lot of groups in a time-efficient way and is a fantastic opportunity to share the immense knowledge and capabilities we have in our area.

Our mature members of society are the demographic the Local Board hears from the most. Each year, we have council-wide consultation relating to our Local Board plans and budget priorities. Staff provide us with a summarised version of the consultation feedback, and we also see a redacted (names removed) version of the entire feedback. This feedback we receive helps to inform our decision-making.

I want to encourage everyone to please participate in our consultations, as this does eventually affect you. I know consultation can be time-consuming and hard to find, something I would like to see made simpler through tools, such as an app where you can select the area and types of consultation you would like to be notified of and participate in. I believe the more people and sectors of society we hear from, the more accurate the statistics will be in representing the range of community priorities and views there are. This is an incredibly important part of democracy to ensure we represent everyone fairly.

In the meantime, please visit, join or sign up for notifications of the consultations available through our https://akhaveyoursay.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/ site.