Celebrating Mahi Tahi with Construction Plus

On Wednesday 2 December, Kāinga Ora’s Construction Plus team put on a thank you breakfast to celebrate the programme’s 1 year anniversary, and the local youth who have been supported into employment during the programme’s first 12 months.

Held at the Synergy Projects Workshop in Oranga, attendees included employers within Kāinga Ora developments and around Onehunga, local board members, service organisations and community members.

The success of the Construction Plus programme relies on a collaborative approach by several parties—in particular Kāinga Ora, Kaea Group (Kaea Consultants Ltd ™) and Synergy Projects. It was great to acknowledge these relationships and to share the success stories of the programme’s local youth – a true display of Mahi Tahi.

What is Construction Plus?

12 months ago, Kāinga Ora set out to run the Construction Plus programme within our urban development projects in Auckland. Its aim is to connect local communities impacted by urban development to sustainable opportunities through education, training and employment. The programme helps support and guide career pathways into a wide range of construction-related roles by connecting employers and employees.

To date, we’ve engaged with close to over 100 akonga (learners), 50% of these have been presented with employment or training opportunities. Our akonga are being engaged, navigated and provided pastoral support by our service providers, Kaea Group as they journey towards securing sustainable employment. We’ve focused on building strong relationships with community groups, schools, trade training institutes, jobs and skills hubs, civil and build partners to make a difference in how we transition our akonga—who are predominantly Maori, Pasifika, women in trades, long term beneficiaries and of late, community members affected by COVID-19. 

To find out more about the Construction Plus programme contact Nigel Chandra on nigel.chandra@kaingaora.govt.nz or 021 081 54729.