MEDIA RELEASE

Canterbury Report Published

Friday 21 December 2012

The New Zealand Council of Christian Social Services (NZCCSS) has been working with Christchurch social services agency members to produce the Canterbury Report. “This Report brings together the on-the-ground experience of our Christchurch based social service agencies together with government statistics to help reveal progress and pressure points as Canterbury continues to recover from the earthquakes”, said Trevor McGlinchey, Executive Officer NZCCSS.

“Ever since the earthquakes the New Zealand Christian Council of Social Services has been supporting its member Social Service Agencies in Christchurch. Their gift to this region has been a gathering together of the important issues that have affected the region since the quakes. While a great deal of attention has been given to business recovery, repair of the infrastructure and to rebuilding the CBD (and rightly so as this needs to be done), less focus has been on the social recovery and the needs of social service agencies who have continued to operate in very difficult circumstances”, said Michael Gorman, Missioner, Christchurch City Mission and NZCCSS Board Member. “The increased demands made on the services in terms of food banks, counselling and social work are highlighted. This report is hopeful in that it looks to the future and contains an implicit commitment from the agencies that they will continue to work for the recovery of the area while working with those in immediate need.”

Mary Richardson, Executive Director of the Christchurch Methodist Mission said, “The dominant issues for those who are poor and powerless include the paucity of affordable housing and the lack of suitable jobs for many”.

“The changing social structure in the city and surrounding districts, and the continuing of unresolved housing and insurance issues, will impact on the emotional and social wellbeing of the people of Canterbury for the next few years”, said Vaughan Milner, Chief Executive Officer of Presbyterian Support Upper South Island. “The NZCCSS Report provides useful information which will help keep social and community wellbeing high on the political radar”.

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