The Gore District Council has launched a drop-in hub, Te Kapehu, to help businesses and the community find their way in a post COVID-19 environment.

Te Kapehu is the Maori word for compass, a navigational tool for guiding and showing the way.

The hub is intended to be a community partnership to navigate the district’s future.

COVID-19 community recovery taskforce chairman Cr Richard McPhail said there was a nice symmetry between the navigators of the past and the position the province, and much of country, finds itself in today.

“We are all dealing with finding our way in a new environment. While the impact has been less widespread in our district than elsewhere in the country, we have not been immune. 

“In coming months people may find themselves in situations they have never experienced before. It is essential the council, businesses and social services are prepared to navigate the unknown, such as changes in employment levels.”

Te Kāpehu will be located at the Gore Visitor Centre in the former Salvation Army building. 

It will be resourced by Gore Visitor Centre staff with support from the Council’s event coordinator.

Cr McPhail acknowledged the work of other support agencies and organisations in the community, such as Hokonui Huanui.

He wanted to assure people Te Kāpehu was not about duplicating their work but supporting it.

“We look at Te Kāpehu as a triage point, a trusted location where staff can determine a person’s need then refer them to the appropriate business or agency.”

An example would be a displaced worker wanting to start their own business – “we would refer them to accountants, business banking managers and MBIE”.

Gore District Mayor Tracy Hicks said Te Kāpehu was the result of a series of talks with business and community leaders.

“We just want to make sure people don’t fall through the cracks. No-one could have predicted the year we’ve had so far, and it’s pretty hard right now to predict where we will be in six or 10 months’ time,” Mr Hicks said.

Being prepared for whatever the future may bring was important. There might be minimal demand at present for Te Kāpehu’s services, but that could change as the impact of COVID-19 continued to roll out across New Zealand, he said.

Contact Te Kapehu: Email [email protected], 0800 Kapehu (527 348), or drop in to the Gore Visitor Centre.