Funding available for 2022/23 Māori Housing investments - Update as at September 2022

Demand across the rohe has far exceeded the amount of funding Te Puni Kōkiri has available in 2022/23, even with our additional Whai Kāinga Whai Oranga funding. We anticipate that our current applications for papakāinga projects, feasibility studies, repairs and capability building will exceed available funding for 2022/23. Although you may not receive funding this year, we encourage you to register your interest for future funding with your local Te Puni Kōkiri regional office. Funding applications received in 2022 that are unable to be funded will be reprioritised and reconsidered for investment in 2023/24. 

What we do

Te Puni Kōkiri provides grant funding that contributes to:

• Improving the basic quality of Māori housing stock in Aotearoa.
• Reducing the number of whānau Māori living in unsafe or substandard housing situations.
• Building the capability of whānau homeowners to repair and maintain their homes.

How we do it

Te Puni Kōkiri fund rōpū to coordinate repair programmes in communities.  The rōpū must be a legal entity. Rōpū are expected to manage the repair programme, including accessing other Government funding to improve housing quality, such as EECA’s Warmer Kiwi Homes programme which offers insulation and heater grants to low-income homeowners.

 

The eligible whānau that the rōpū support to repair their homes must:

 

• Be whānau living in substandard housing situations.
• Be the owner/occupier of the house or living in a whānau-owned house (ie, not in a private rental situation outside of the whānau).
• Be eligible for a community services card.
• Not able to finance the full cost of the repairs themselves (or with the help of whānau members).
• There must be a vulnerable person(s) living in the whare (such as kaumātua, tamariki, pakeke with chronic illnesses/disabilities)
• Have provided all appropriate access and approvals for assessments and repairs to take place.

What can the grant be used for?

1. Independent Building Condition Assessments: The costs of procuring independent building condition reports, engineering reports to confirm the repairs components, and any costs associated with procuring formal quotes for works to be completed.
2. Repairs: Repairs to bring whānau homes up to warm, dry and secure standards, specifically repairs to defects that present a serious risk to health, life, or safety.  Prioritisation is given to homes owned and occupied by low-income whanau with vulnerable persons in the household (children, kaumātua, special health and social service needs), and repairs enabling whānau to move into a vacant house.
3. Home maintenance workshops: The rōpū may provide workshops to upskill whānau in the basic maintenance of their whare.
4. Repair and maintenance plans: The whānau may require support to help them plan for repairs and maintenance after these funded repairs have been completed. Following the completion of the repairs whānau are asked to plan for the ongoing maintenance of their whare, including undertaking maintenance that they are capable of doing and engaging others to undertake other work.
5. Project administration and project management: A project administration fee can be charged as part of the grant to allow rōpū to pay for the coordination costs of organising with whānau and /or contractors to carry out repairs.

Te Puni Kōkiri has undertaken a review of the repairs programme and identified opportunities to refocus the programme to increase impact and ensure greater alignment with policy intent.

Kaitono supported with repairs funding from September 2021 must reflect these revised areas of focus.   

2021/22 Focus	Description
Priority Rohe	While investment is available nationwide, funding will be targeted towards three rohe with the highest number of rural locations, that score highly on the NZDep2018 Index of Deprivation, have high populations of Māori, and a high proportion of whenua Māori. This will ensure funding is targeted towards rohe with the highest needs – Northland, Eastern Bay of Plenty, and East Coast / Tairawhiti.
Homes on whenua Māori	Prioritise funding toward homes on whenua Māori. There are fewer options for whānau to leverage off the value of their homes on Māori freehold land to access finance to do their own repairs.  The investment in repairing homes on Māori freehold land continues to benefit future generations of whānau Māori because of the restrictions around the sale of Māori freehold land.
Rural housing	Identify and prioritise funding toward more rural communities that are experiencing greater levels of deprivation. Whānau living in rural areas often have less access to alternative forms of housing, and fewer opportunities to access other support services.
Broaden scope of repairs completed to each house	Ensure that all issues identified through the independent repairs assessment that present a risk to health or safety are repaired.  Prior to any repairs starting, the rōpū coordinating the repair programme and the whānau will agree on the repairs to be undertaken and the available budget for the housing repairs.
Provide options where houses are beyond repair	Provide options for a more comprehensive repair, rebuild or replacement as required where an existing home is considered beyond repair. Rebuild/replace projects could be accelerated by using prefabricated/factory-built homes or relocated/refurbished houses including through delivery by Iwi partners, or Kāinga Ora. Te Puni Kōkiri will be testing the policy and process for a small number of these rebuild/replacements during 2021/22, before making this option more widely available.
Continue prioritisation of homes with vulnerable persons in the household	Continue prioritisation of homes with vulnerable persons in the household, particularly kaumātua, tamariki, and those with underlying health conditions. Kaumātua flats owned and operated by rōpū Māori as sub-market rentals are eligible for the repair programme.  This initiative will increase the focus on bringing collectively owned rentals for kaumātua up to Healthy Homes Standards.

Repairs partners must also

• coordinate access to complementary funding from EECA for Warmer Kiwi Homes and MBIE for the Energy Efficiency Fund wherever applicable.
• have processes for whānau agreement to scope of repairs, communication with whānau, and complaints management.
• prioritise social procurement wherever possible.
• provide case studies demonstrating the impacts for whānau, and other outcomes and benefits realised from the investment in repairs, such as wellbeing, employment, and education.

Need more info, or want to apply for funding?

Click here to register a housing enquiry with a regional office near you. 

Demand across the rohe exceeds the amount of funding Te Puni Kōkiri has available.  We cannot fund every proposal that meets our criteria, as much as we would like to. 

For more information on what funding is available and what has been delivered go here.

 

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