Vital funding

Community Trust South (CTS) has confirmed a grant of $140,000 a year for three years to support community funded Family Works’ services and programmes.

CTS has been supporting Family Works’ services and programmes since 1996, contributing more than $3 million in that time.

Family Works director Judith McInerney said the ongoing support from CTS was greatly appreciated and needed to assist Family Works to deliver vital services to families in Southland.

“Without their assistance we would need to reduce services in Southland which would have a significant impact on our community given the recent reduction to services following significant funding cuts from Oranga Tamariki (OT) last year.”

CTS chief executive Jackie Flutey said the Trust was a proud supporter of Presbyterian Support Southland (PSS) and Family Works. 

“The services offered by PSS help to build a stronger, more connected community and closely align with the Trust’s purpose of empowering communities to fulfil their aspirations. We are proud to play a part in supporting the services offered by Enliven and Family Works and appreciate how instrumental these are for caring for our most vulnerable communities.

“By nurturing wellbeing, fostering resilience and helping to ensure everyone has access to the care and support they need – PSS is encouraging people to make the most of their strengths and ultimately build a thriving future for us all.”

Some Family Works services are delivered under government contracts while others are reliant on community funding.  For instance, the Incredible Years parenting programme is run under a contract with the Ministry of Education and the Family Start programme and Foster Care service are run under OT contracts.  Services reliant on community funding include the Buddy Programme, Parenting Programme and some clients in the Social Work and Counselling Service.

Family Works is fortunate in that other community funders also recognise the value of its services. Among them, Lottery Community Grant run by the New Zealand Lotteries Commission, ILT and ILT Foundation and Olive Hutchins Charitable Trust.

An estimated 1100 individuals and families have been supported by Family Works in the past financial year.

“Families continue to present with complex needs and often come to us in crisis, with an urgent and immediate need for support,” Judith said.

“These are increasingly complex situations, which can require lengthy involvement, and more often than not families will need to access more than one of our services.

“These grants and donations mean those who need support are able to continue to access our services and programmes free of charge.”

An example of this is Tū Manawa Active Aotearoa which recognises the value of the Buddy Programme. Thanks to recent funding from Tū Manawa, a group of Invercargill Little Buddies and their Big Buddies went on a memorable day trip to Te Anau to explore the glowworm caves.

Judith said these types of activities give the Little Buddies experiences they might not otherwise have the opportunity to experience as well as building community, friendship and camaraderie amongst everyone involved in the Buddy Programme and those who support it.

Family Works is not only backed by community funders, but also receives support from individuals, community groups and businesses throughout the year.

The community’s support for Family Works’ annual Christmas gifts and hampers appeals is a prime example of this, with their success solely reliant on the community getting behind them.

“Each year, the generosity of the community is overwhelming and leaves us as an organisation feeling very humbled and supported.  We know we are not alone in the work we do as we have a community team behind us and our clients,” Judith said.