Settlement Support available for newcomers to the region
Support and information is available to Tasman District’s settlers, immigrants and refugees, said Sonny Alesana, the communication liaison adviser for NZ Settlement Support when he outlined the service he provides at the Golden Bay Community and Whanau meeting on Tuesday.
As the Nelson/Tasman Settlement Support co-ordinator, Mr Alesana works with a support committee made up of local service providers and representatives from migrant and refugee groups to establish the support required and to provide information to people who want to settle in the Nelson/Tasman region.
This service is for anybody who wants to settle in the region, he says, although the major focus is on helping migrants, refugees and their families to settle and be accepted into the wider community and to overcome the cultural and language differences.
“It is about connecting people to services and giving people information on how to access these services, and being a point of contact. Some people contact me prior to coming to New Zealand with questions mainly about education, health and social networking. And then there are differences in other areas, like tax laws or the superannuation scheme.”
The service was initially set up by the Department of Labour in 2006 to address skill shortages and to attract people with qualifications to New Zealand. It is still funded by the Department and the Nelson City Council holds the contract to deliver this service for the Nelson/Tasman area. The main objectives are to get people into employment appropriate to their qualifications and skills, to become competent in English and have appropriate language support, and to access appropriate information and responsive services that are available to the wider community, such as housing, education and services for families.
Settling in also means being part of supportive social networks, participating in civic, community and social activities, feeling safe in expressing ethnic identity and being accepted by the wider host community.
Newcomers are also introduced to the relevance of Te Ao Māori (the Maori world), Te Tiriti ō Waitangi (the Treaty of Waitangi) and Māori as Tangata Whenua.
“Nelson is now the fourth most popular place in New Zealand for new migrants to settle, with the majority coming from the UK,” says Mr Alesana. “This looks set to increase, with a wide variety of people from very different ethnic backgrounds arriving as well. It is important to make this transition as smooth as possible, not just for the migrants but for the rest of the community. Settlement Support has a vital role to play in this process.”
Mr Alesana says that about half the enquiries from people wanting to settle here come from the UK, followed by some 30 percent from the European continent, with the remainder coming from the Pacific, Asia and the USA.
Sonny Alesana can be contacted at Settlement Support on 546 0305.
Ina Holst
