October 29, 2019
He Korowai housing scheme on a roll
More Auckland state houses made surplus by Housing New Zealand’s regenerations schemes are on their way to the far north.
Kaitaia’s He Korowai Trust will used the refurbished houses to expand its papakainga, where whānau can buy in under a rent to own scheme which addresses not only their housing but their social and educational needs.
Chief executive Ricky Houghton says 20 homes have been completed so far, and he aims to add another 30 over the next year now the model has been shown to work.
He says the task of fixing up the houses creates other opportunities.
"We’ve started up the Sweet As Academy. That stands for Students without education or employment training achieving and succeeding. We use the houses as classrooms to give them their qualifications and they do building and construction apprenticeships, and once they’re qualified the trust employs them," he says.
Ricky Houghton says solutions for Kaitaia won’t come out of Wellington but have to come out of the community
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