Netball Manurewa - Bringing Value to the Community - A 'Value of Sport' Case Study

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Netball Manurewa - Bringing Value to the Community - A 'Value of Sport' Case Study
Netball Manurewa –
Bringing Value to the
Community

A ‘Value of Sport’ Case Study

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Netball Manurewa - Bringing Value to the Community - A 'Value of Sport' Case Study
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS                          AUTHORS                             CONTACT DETAILS
    We would like to acknowledge the          Visitor Solutions with input from   Netball Manurewa
    input of the management and key           management at Netball Manurewa      95 Browns Rd
    informants who provided information                                           Manurewa
    and insights about the values generated                                       Auckland 2102
    by netball in Manurewa.                                                       09-2670865

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Netball Manurewa - Bringing Value to the Community - A 'Value of Sport' Case Study
CONTENTS
Section One : Background and Context
•   Introduction
•   Methodology
•   Netball Manurewa
•   Summary of Value Themes

Section Two : Values from Netball
•   Friendships and Networks
•   Strengthening Families
•   Personal growth
•   ‘Mana wahine’
•   Making a contribution
•   Community focus
•   Ownership and pride

Section Three : Summary
Appendix

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Netball Manurewa - Bringing Value to the Community - A 'Value of Sport' Case Study
BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT

    Introduction                                 Sport New Zealand to assist Netball      Meeting and interview results were
                                                 Manurewa to carry out the case study,    compiled, summarised and fed back
    Netball Manurewa are involved in             and in the process to test how the       to participants for their review and
    this case study because they want to         toolkit was being applied.               additions as required.
    revitalise netball in Manurewa and to
    grow the benefits they know it can                                                    The final report was compiled on the
    bring to individuals and groups in           Methodology                              basis of the ‘Case Study’ template from
    their community. They see netball as                                                  the ‘Value of Sport Tool Kit’. A design
    a powerful tool for generating social        The methodology was based on             graduate was used to format the final
    benefits. While not part of Netball          a qualitative exploration of the         report and related images. Emphasis
    Manurewa, Louisa Wall - the local            experiences of a small number of         was placed on using images to convey
    Manurewa MP and ex-Silver fern               key informants identified by Netball     key value themes.
    - put it like this in her submission         Manurewa 1. These were people well
    supporting the new Netball Manurewa          experienced with netball in Manurewa
    Community Events Centre:                     and who could provide insights on
                                                 how involvement with netball had         Netball Manurewa & the Community
    “Netball is a wonderful and                  benefited them, and how they had         Events Centre
    successful vehicle for healthy               seen it bring benefits to others. This
    lifestyles; fitness; social networks;        overlapped with some consideration       Netball Manurewa delivers netball
    player progression; role modelling;          of how the new Community Events          services through a local Netball
    goal setting; opportunity for                Centre might be making a difference.     Centre which includes an indoor
    advancement: and a platform to                                                        court, 12 outdoor courts (including 6
    achieve and celebrate personal and           Based on this core key informant         with lights) a number of other rooms
    team success.”                               knowledge resource, the overall          and facilities in the building which have
                                                 approach was based on a number           been developed on Auckland Council
    Netball Manurewa want to build on            of accessible research methods that      land. This Centre has been providing
    the recent boosts they have been             could easily be used by others wanting   access to netball for the population of
    getting from the new Community               to conduct their own versions of this    Manurewa and neighbouring areas for
    Events Centre. They want to use this         case study 2. The key methods used       over 30 years. Its population catchment
    case study to show people the social         were:                                    covers areas of South Auckland that
    benefits that are being generated.                                                    are among the fastest growing; most
    These social benefits include both the       •   Applying the Sport New Zealand       ethnically diverse; and most socio-
    direct benefits to netball participants          ‘Value of Sport Tool Kit’            economically and health deprived
    (as players and/or volunteers), and          •   Meetings (with follow ups)           in New Zealand. The need for more
    also the indirect benefits to the wider      •   Phone Interviews (with follow        and better sport and recreation
    Manurewa Community. This case study              ups)                                 opportunities is very high in this part
    is aimed at providing a key resource         •   Review of available background       of Auckland.
    for Netball Manurewa to advocate the             information, including
    key benefits and values their activities     •   Local      authority      planning   The Events Centre has fulfilled this role
    are helping generate. They can use the                documents, newsletters and      in the past predominantly through its
    case study to advocate:                               submissions                     long established netball activity. While
                                                      • Netball Manurewa and club         netball activity levels were high in the
    •   to the current participant and                    websites/Facebook pages         past, a decline in facility standards over
        non-participant      communities              • Articles on the Internet          time contributed to some people
        - for motivating more players,                • Statistics     New     Zealand    choosing to use other facilities such
        volunteers and involvement, and                   population data                 as the Papakura Netball Centre. This
    •   to current and potential funders         •   Photo resource                       was accompanied by a general decline
        - for achieving more financial and                                                in netball participation overall. To start
                                                     • Netball Manurewa sourced           to address this decline, and after many
        in-kind support.                                 photos from its own resources    years of advocacy, funding was gained
                                                     • Specific photographs were          to undertake a major upgrade of the
    Sport New Zealand supported Netball                  also taken on 2013 finals day
    Manurewa to conduct this case study                                                   Netball Centre and its outside facility
                                                     • Facebook        images     (with   areas. This programme was planned
    as part of the pilot test programme                  permission)
    for its ‘Value of Sport Tool Kit’. Visitor                                            as a series of stages, and Stage 1 was
    Solutions was commissioned by                                                         completed in early 2013.

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Netball Manurewa - Bringing Value to the Community - A 'Value of Sport' Case Study
There was a deliberate intent to            have the usual provision of bar, smoking           While expressed here as a concept
reposition the Centre as a more             area and pokies. In that respect it also           from Maori culture, it applies to all
general community resource than             represents something different from                girls and women.
simply a netball facility, and this is      the other ‘club’ venues available in       •       Making a contribution – the role
reflected in the new name given to          the area. Feedback indicates that is               played in passing on the benefits
the Centre – the Netball Manurewa           increasingly bringing different groups             and values to others. It’s not just
Community Events Centre. The                together that wouldn’t otherwise do                about getting, it’s also about giving.
community and participant response          so.                                        •       Community focus – the role played
to this first stage of the upgrade has                                                         by providing a place really seen as
been very positive, and there are signs     The outdoor courts are also                        an inclusive community centre
that use numbers and the variety of         experiencing an increase in community      •       Ownership and pride – the role
users are beginning to expand. This will    use with the college netball competition           played by netball and the new
be a challenge as past users and those      starting again after a three absence,              centre in generating feelings of
users displaced while the upgrade was       Saturday competition and week night                community ownership and pride.
taking place (e.g. badminton) have          training use. Informally the courts are
found alternative sites elsewhere. But      used widely for exercise and a range of    These themes are overlapping and are
the features of the improved facility       games. There is still scope to increase    not listed in any order of priority as
quality, community orientation and          the participation in these competitions    all are important. And their relative
its strategic central location to bus,      with more participants in more teams.      importance will vary anyway for
rail, and road links (with extensive car                                               different people in different situations.
parking) are expected to draw some          The purpose of this case study is
back. For many, that convenience close      to help advocate for more netball
to home is a key factor.                    participation and more use of the
                                            Events Centre by the community. The
Use of the indoor courts and                following value themes identified in
spaces is now also showing signs of         this case study summarise some of
increase in both numbers and variety.       the reasons why people may want to
Premier grade netball takes place           consider doing this.
on Wednesdays; while the regional
netball league games occur on                                                                                     x
Fridays. Kid’s rugby league training and
netball training occur on Tuesday and       Summary of Value Themes
Thursday nights. Sundays are booked
by two churches and there has been          The benefits and values identified
provision for the return of volleyball      from involvement with netball, Netball         Manurewa Netball Centre
and badminton. Office space is rented       Manurewa, and the new Events Centre
by the Maori Women’s Welfare League         are summarised under the following
and, on event days, there are spaces also   value themes:
set aside for the local Maori Wardens.
There are holiday programmes run            •   Friendships and Networks – the role
in the school holidays, including free          played in the creation and growth
breakfast and lunch. And on most                of personal, social and professional
Saturday nights the hall is now booked          friendships and networks.
for social functions. These used to be      •   Strengthening Families – the role
predominantly Pacific functions, but are        played in the growth and strength of
now used for the weddings, birthdays            families through intergenerational
and other gatherings by many sectors            activity involvement and sharing.
of the community (e.g. Middle-eastern,      •   Personal growth – the role played
Indian). On Sundays there are two               in growing as a person, and
church groups that also hire the indoor         as someone positive in the
venue.                                          community. It is also linked to        1
                                                                                         Subject to time and availability – not all those asked
                                                                                       were able to participate.
                                                ‘Mana Wahine’ (see below)              2
                                                                                         The scale of the case study was kept at a moderate
While having high quality indoor            •   ‘Mana wahine’ – the role played in     level, to be accessible to sports groups to complete
spaces: café, catering, bathroom and            growing girls into strong women.
                                                                                       some if not all of the research and reporting tasks
                                                                                       themselves. In this case the option to bring in an
changing facilities, the Centre does not                                               external provider was taken.

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Netball Manurewa - Bringing Value to the Community - A 'Value of Sport' Case Study
VALUE THEME 1
    SECTION TWO:                                   Friendships &
                                                     Networks
    VALUES FROM NETBALL
    This section summarises value              This relates to the role played by         Some of the main benefits are the
    responses in more detail. It is based on   netball and its Manurewa venue in          friendships made through being
    the responses given by the respective      the creation and growth of personal,       involved. I have made a lot of friends
    key informants3 under each of the          social and professional friendships and    and contacts through netball and
    summary themes.                            networks. These may be short term          some of these friendships have also
                                               through to lifetime connections. As        continued outside of netball.
                                               stated by one respondent the different
                                               types of friendships generated can be
                                               “for a season, a reason, or a lifetime”.   There are many benefits but it’s also
                                               Tied in with many of the comments          the little things as well, being part
                                               made about friendships was a concept       of something bigger than yourself,
                                               of there being a wider social family –     learning      interpersonal     skills,
                                               a “family of friends”. A selection of      and making great friendships of
                                               some of the typical comments made is       different types – some friendships
                                               listed below: 4                            are for a season, a reason or a
                                                                                          lifetime.
                                               I am part of a huge netball family.
                                               I loved playing it and I also love
                                               watching it, supporting it and             Netball relationships give a lot of
                                               being part of it – it’s a whole family     people a safety and security net, a
                                               experience. The game carries so            circle of supportive people outside
                                               much more with it – it’s not just          the home.
                                               a game.

                                                                                          It’s about being part of the netball
                                               You can build family connections           family
                                               and groups of lifetime friends. It’s
                                               all a lifetime family and connection
                                               together. I believe women naturally
                                               gravitate towards a sport that
                                               fosters family and connection, and
                                               I’m still involved with women I
                                               played with as a young mum 40
                                               years ago.

                                               The Husbands and Wives Club
                                               started as a group of young mums
                                               back in 1986 who just wanted to
                                               get back in to playing with friends.
                                               It developed into mixed teams
                                               as more husbands and guys got
                                               involved. It also diversified with
                                               some basketball and touch teams
                                               as more kids got involved. It has
                                               always been a very friends and
                                               family-oriented club, and of the 7
                                               original mums 2 are still going.

                                                                                          3
                                                                                            Key informant contacts were identified by Netball
                                                                                          Manurewa.They are listed in the Appendix along with
                                                                                          brief descriptions of their relevant backgrounds of
                                                                                          Netball in Manurewa.
                                                                                          4
                                                                                            Note that many comments address multiple themes,
                                                                                          and some are also noted under these other themes.

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Netball Manurewa - Bringing Value to the Community - A 'Value of Sport' Case Study
VALUE THEME 2
      Strengthening
         Families

This relates to the role played by        I started coaching with my                With the school teams, some of the
netball and its Manurewa venue in the     daughter’s teams when they were           parents get involved with the sports
growth and strength of families through   at school, and then just carried on.      teams, first through supporting or
intergenerational activity involvement                                              volunteering, and that gives them
and sharing. In this context, ‘family’                                              a purposeful reason to get more
could also include people’s ‘families     I’m also involved for my daughters        involved with the school. It gives
of friends’. A selection of some of the   as well. It starts when they’re still     many more confidence to come
typical comments made is listed below:    in prams on the side-lines. I wanted      along to schools and get involved in
                                          to give them the chance to have           other ways, or to talk with schools
It started with me looking after          the opportunities I had through           about their kids and education.
the kids while my wife played, but        netball. So I coach through the age-      Without that sports connection
soon I started playing myself. So I       groups and it keeps me in the sport       this would be less likely for some
started out playing for fun but then      at a really involved level.               parents. Netball is often the first
got more involved in more serious                                                   step. Because it is every week we
competition and tournaments. As                                                     are able to develop a relationship
time passed I got more involved           I have daughters and I want them          with parents and then get them
with coaching my daughter’s               to have the same playing and              involved in helping with other
teams, then other teams and I’ve          learning opportunities as I had. It       sports and activities within the
been the premier team coach for           gives them something positive to          school.
the last 15 years.                        do and helps fill their time. It really
                                          gives them an alternative activity
                                          to get involved in.
It’s all about the inter-generational
sharing with children and
grandchildren. I couldn’t imagine         The centre provides a positive
life without involvement with             environment for the children and
netball. I love it.                       their families to be together.

I’ve watched, supported, coached          You can build family connections
and travelled with all my 5               and groups of lifetime friends. It’s
daughters with netball over many          all a lifetime family and connection
years to different age-group              together. I believe women naturally
competitions.                             gravitate towards a sport that
                                          fosters family and connection, and
                                          I’m still involved with women I
Some parents have also got involved       played with as a young mum 40
with teams through coaching or            years ago.
just supporting and volunteering,
and that has given some of them
more confidence and abilities. Some
of this has included doing training
and getting qualifications.

I started out looking after my
daughters on the side-line while
their mother played, and then
I started to play as well, and
eventually so did they. We’re all in
it.

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Netball Manurewa - Bringing Value to the Community - A 'Value of Sport' Case Study
VALUE THEME 3
         Personal Growth

    This relates to the role played by         Growth in confidence and               really came out of their shells. They
    netball and its Manurewa venue in          leadership are two ways that many      developed better communication
    growing as a person and as someone         girls have developed through           and interpersonal skills by getting
    positive in the community. It relates      netball (at least in part). Some of    outside their comfort zone. Seeing
    to having new experiences; meeting         this has included doing training       them going from being followers to
    challenges; trying new things; getting     and getting qualifications.            leaders is one of the most rewarding
    skills and the confidence to use them;     Some parents have also got involved    things about being involved in
    learning new ways of doing things;         with teams through coaching or         netball coaching.
    making better choices; having better       just supporting and volunteering,
    behaviours; competing and striving.This    and that has given many of them
    is linked to ‘Mana Wahine’ but includes    more confidence and abilities.         Being in an executive position I
    benefits to people of all genders, ages                                           found I had to deal with all sorts
    and cultures.This was the biggest single                                          of people with different abilities,
    type of theme described, and a larger      One young guy was an older             cultures, agendas – sometimes
    selection of some comments made is         brother of a girl that played. We      it would be people who were
    listed below:                              needed umpires and he agreed to        challenging your ideas or decisions
                                               go to the classes so he could be one   – it was senior management really.
    Personal growth has been a big             of the school umpires. He is now       Working in committees was
    part of it. I’ve had many friends          a senior umpire and very involved      challenging but I learned a lot.
    who have got involved in coaching,         in netball.
    skills and leadership in ways they
    never knew they could.                                                            One of the big things is seeing
                                               For a collegiate team I coached I      the benefits people get from being
                                               insisted they all attend the umpires   involved. That includes things
    Once people get talked into getting        classes – I wanted to make sure they   like speaking in front of others,
    involved in coaching for example,          understood all the rules – and they    organising events, managing things.
    they get trained and challenged and        gained a respect and appreciation      It can make people break out of
    they get huge confidence that they         for umpires. A couple of those         themselves, really empowers them.
    can be more than just a mum at             girls coached younger teams and        They realise they can do things
    home. They can be a coach, umpire,         some have gone on to do sports         and they can take that confidence
    committee member, treasurer,               study at tertiary level.               to other aspects of their lives. Many
    manager – really doing things that                                                started out not thinking they could
    take a big step out of the home. Forty                                            do something and now they’re
    years ago women stayed at home             We had 6 staff members from            leading the way.
    and cooked and looked after the            the school complete the umpiring
    family. But with more involvement          classes one year – most had never
    there are many avenues for growth          played netball in their life (3 were   I am right into coaching now and
    from traveling; getting lots of skills;    males) – they went on to play in an    I’m doing a Sport Science Degree
    interacting with many different            indoor competition                     at MIT (Manukau Institute of
    people, having to plan and take                                                   Technology). It’s not something
    leadership. People can develop new                                                I ever thought I’d do when I was
    capabilities. It can take them many        The girls that get more involved       young. Getting so involved in
    other places both physically and in        develop more skills and confidence,    netball made that happen.
    skill and confidence. It can really        and share that with others in the
    grow women.                                community.
                                                                                      I started very young and I really
                                                                                      liked the competition. I was very
    It’s great seeing kids growing as          I’ve seen the skill and capabilities   competitive and liked the challenge.
    people as well as players                  that some players have got from        I’ve played in lots of different
                                               being in netball. I’ve coached some    competitions and tournaments
                                               kids through the age-groups since      right to the highest levels, and I’m
                                               they were about 6, and they had        still just as passionate about netball
                                               quite humble beginnings. Most of       and sport as ever. And through
                                               them were shy little flowers and       playing at Manurewa back in my
                                               quite timid, but over time they        day we would could get to play
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Netball Manurewa - Bringing Value to the Community - A 'Value of Sport' Case Study
the best. Manurewa was strong in          codes of spectator and participant      My daughter loves netball with the
netball and all the best players were     behaviour. So parents supporting        same passion as me and that seems
with normal clubs – not like the          or working with netball are             to keep her going well. So I let her
franchises we have now.                   encouraged into better behaviours,      play lots of netball and Netball
                                          and that provides better role model     Manurewa helps offer an alternative
                                          examples to the kids. It reinforces     to some of the other options kids
I ended up doing things that I            the behaviour guidelines the kids       could choose. Some of those can be
wouldn’t otherwise have done. For         are exposed to at school.               quite scary. That’s not to say that its
me public speaking was a big thing,                                               easy though as netball can be pretty
and I wasn’t keen on standing up                                                  expensive with costs and travel,
and talking, but now I’m used to          The club culture is also good and       but the passion it creates for your
speaking to groups of 500 at times.       helps to create and support good        daughters and the payback you get
                                          behaviour and growth.                   are worth it. It’s hard though for
                                                                                  lots of kids, and the clubs always
Health is also a big benefit. Back a                                              have to do fundraising. The costs
few years most of our uniforms            I sometimes think netball saved         can be petty high but it’s worth it if
had to be around size 16, now they’re     my life. Because of netball I avoided   it’s going to help keep the kids off
more like size 10 to 12. The women        some of the trouble young people        the streets and teach them helpful
are fitter, faster more healthy. Part     can get into. Being involved with       life skills.
of it also is that it is smokefree in     netball influenced some of the
the netball centre. There isn’t even      choices I made, and took me in
a bar like in many sports venues.         a different direction from some         The regular Saturday morning
                                          of the kids my age back then. It        sport and training gives a routine
                                          filled up my time and gave me           and requires discipline and
I have daughters and I want them          something to do that I was really       motivation, and that seems to work.
to have the same playing and              passionate about. I loved it so I put   For many kids sport is their vehicle
learning opportunities as I had. It       in the time to play and train and       for getting better things going.
gives them something positive to          get involved when I could have
do and helps fill their time. It really   been doing something else, maybe
gives them an alternative activity        getting into trouble.                   The main benefit I got was that it
to get involved in.                                                               really saved me at a time I could
                                                                                  have gone down a different path. I
                                          One of the big benefits is that it      really loved it – still do in fact. And
There is a simple code of conduct         helps keep kids busy, and keeps         I want to be passing that on.
in place for all players and              them out of getting into trouble.
spectators which is enforced by           Youth can get in to trouble but a lot
the community and also the                of the youth around here are very
Maori Wardens who are on-site.            good at sport, and getting involved
This has changed the behaviour            in sport shows them that there
of the spectators where the verbal        are options and that they do have
abuse of umpires has decreased            skills. Netball is HUGE for girls in
significantly. The code of conduct is     doing this.
- No Violence; No Bad Language; No
negative behaviour from parents
towards umpires; No smoking               Netball Manurewa has helped
Involvement with netball goes along       some top players get their start –
with codes of behaviour – there are       like Temepara George

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Netball Manurewa - Bringing Value to the Community - A 'Value of Sport' Case Study
VALUE THEME 4
           ‘Mana Wahine’

     The role played by netball and its         My involvement grew from
     Manurewa venue in growing girls into       wanting to promote healthy living,
     strong women. This relates to instilling   family and mana wahine. Netball
     self-awareness confidence and pride,       here has provided a base to apply
     empowering young women, and                these principles and to grow them
     building their strength. While this was    into something more on-going.
     expressed here as a concept from           And it is very well set up for these
     Maori culture, it is present in Pacific    to be shared and reinforced with
     cultures and also in other cultures        family and friends.
     through their concepts of feminism,
     empowerment and women’s rights.
     This overlaps strongly with Theme 3        One of the big benefits is that it
     (Personal growth), but is distinguished    helps keep kids busy, and keeps
     here as being more specific to women       them out of getting into trouble.
     and to netball. A selection of some of     Youth can get in to trouble but a lot
     the typical comments made is listed        of the youth around here are very
     below:                                     good at sport, and getting involved
                                                in sport shows them that there
     My involvement with netball is             are options and that they do have
     also because of what it brings to          skills. Netball is HUGE for girls in
     young Maori women – socialisation,         doing this.
     empowers them to be strong,
     gives them confidence and skills,
     builds on their cultural base – all        Some girls have stayed involved
     represented as ‘mana wahine’.              and got in to coaching and
                                                umpiring, giving something back
                                                to the community
     The girls that get more involved
     develop more skills and confidence,
     and share that with others in the          The girls that get more involved
     community.                                 develop more skills and confidence,
     Supporting netball is also about           and share that with others in the
     promoting health and ‘mana                 community.
     wahine’ values with young Maori
     women and girls. Netball is a
     beautiful way to help teach young
     Maori girls how to be strong Maori
     women.

     Growth in confidence and
     leadership are two ways that many
     girls have developed through
     netball (at least in part). Some of
     this has included doing training
     and getting qualifications.

10
11
VALUE THEME 5
             Making a
           Contribution

     The role played by netball and its        I like having an opportunity to           Manurewa boasts a high numbers
     Manurewa venue in enabling people         share things I enjoy.                     of males, contributing to the game.
     to make a contribution by passing on                                                It’s fantastic for whanau and the
     the benefits they had experienced. As                                               community to see more men
     stated by one informant “It’s not just    I’m keen to help give others the          involved with the sport.
     about getting, it’s also about giving”.   opportunity to experience the fun
     People generated additional benefits      from netball, especially own family
     to themselves and to others by making     members and school kids                   .Off the top of my head I have
     a contribution. This emphasised the                                                 to mention a club that has been
     role of volunteers in some comments.                                                affiliated to Netball Manurewa
     A selection of some of the typical        I coach indoor over summer –              since I was in primary school. I
     comments made is listed below:            mostly kids - and outdoor over            personally have no affiliation to
                                               winter, which is a mix of senior          St Annes, however they’re a club/
                                               and junior teams.                         school that have been involved
     I have 5 daughters and I wanted                                                     with Netball Manurewa for a huge
     to share my good experience of                                                      amount of time, from their little
     netball, and it’s just carried on.        I want to pass that experience            league teams through to Senior
                                               on to others, to get them the             level. The continuous talent that
                                               opportunities I had. So being in          club/school produce is exciting for
     I played at different clubs, but          coaching is a big part of that and        the game. It’s evident that netball
     always wanted to come back to be          it’s kept me in the sport.                is a popular sport in their school
     involved at Manurewa because it                                                     and is driven by the countless
     had been so good for me, and now I                                                  volunteers that assist to run their
     coach the kids.                           I have daughters and I want them          club/school.
                                               to have the same playing and
                                               learning opportunities as I had. It
     Probably a big personal satisfaction      gives them something positive to          It was important to see the role
     is from the results you are               do and helps fill their time. It really   voluntary contributions made as
     part of. That includes coaching           gives them an alternative activity        well, all those voluntary efforts are
     the girls at different levels and         to get involved in.                       important, although not everyone
     having successes in grades and                                                      wants to do everything. Some
     tournaments, and seeing some of                                                     are just happy in the netball side
     the girls really excelling.               It’s important to also recognise          of things, maybe coaching or
                                               that volunteers are a key part of         organising netball. But there are
                                               delivering grassroots community           other roles that are important
     And it’s also about the association       sport.                                    which involve administration,
     with people and the satisfaction                                                    dealing with council, funding,
     you get from them enjoying what                                                     compliance etc. which also
     you’ve helped deliver.                    Netball itself is a culture for many      have to be done. That wasn’t for
                                               including myself, the love of the         everyone. It’s probably important
                                               game inspires all the volunteers          to recognise that and keep the
     One of the big benefits for me is         involved with the game (which             netball and management sides
     seeing the benefits people get from       are many) to continue passing it          separate. Many people accept that
     being involved. That includes things      forward to the up and coming.             split. And it is particularly relevant
     like speaking in front of others,         Saturday mornings you see kids’           if you’re running the netball centre,
     organising events, managing things.       teachers, whanau and extended             especially when dealing with
     It can make people break out of           whanau volunteering to help               its management and operation,
     themselves, really empowers them.         make the sport possible. Without          organising events, managing rental
     They realise they can do things           the countless volunteers, there           use, other sports users, community
     and they can take that confidence         would be no teams especially              users, and all the communication,
     to other aspects of their lives. Many     in the younger grades. What is            negotiation and management that
     started out not thinking they could       also impressive about Netball             goes with that.
     do something and now they’re              Manurewa is the number of fathers
     leading the way.                          that are involved in coaching,
                                               umpiring, managing etc. Netball
12
13
VALUE THEME 6
         Community Focus

     The role played by netball and its          often the first step. Because it is       it found people didn’t want
     Manurewa venue in creating the              every week we are able to develop         Netball Manurewa to shift; there
     feeling of a real inclusive community       a relationship with parents and           was a strong local community
     centre with many community linkages.        then get them involved in helping         connection. It was identified that a
     It relates to familiarity; good access;     with other sports and activities          shift of location would have left a
     links to other parts of the community;      within the school. As more people         lot of users groups without a home
     and its role as a type of venue/place       experience it they see things that        and they would have had to find
     different from any other social venues      they could use the Centre for, so its     another place.
     in the area. A selection of some of the     utilisation is increasing. It really is
     typical comments made is listed below:      an alternative to other social venues
                                                 out there as it is good quality and       Netball in Manurewa used to be
     The netball centre has had a big            doesn’t have smoking, drinking or         really strong, but it dropped off a bit,
     effect on the community. If you             pokies. Though people could have          largely due to our old centre being
     didn’t know Manurewa you would              a temporary bar I think, but there        pretty rough. Many went to play
     have no idea there was such a good          are no facilities for a bar.              through the Papakura Centre. But
     community centre. It is developing                                                    with the new Netball Manurewa
     into a real focal point.                                                              Centre it can only improve – it’s
                                                 The netball centre is really a big        so much better than what we used
                                                 benefit to the community after the        to have, much better quality and it
     The netball centre has also become          upgrade.                                  has the great central location. It’s so
     a significant part of the Manurewa                                                    easy to get to by walking or public
     community. Because of its central                                                     transport, just like when I started
     location, safety, parking, and quality      It is probably the backbone of a          to get involved.
     facilities it is highly utilised. It gets   lot of community groups and
     used for weekend netball, school            their activities. It gets used for
     netball, and a variety of other             many different activities including       I started playing from a very young
     community uses like church on               Karate, Badminton, Aerobics etc. It       age. It was something that I could
     Sundays and weddings (recently              also gets used for school holiday         do easily as the Manurewa netball
     for huge Indian and Middle Eastern          programmes.                               clubs were good and the netball
     weddings). It does bring different          There is still not as much daytime        centre was in easy walking distance.
     groups together that wouldn’t               use as we’d like, and there isn’t as      I could walk to games and training.
     otherwise do so.                            much school use outside of holiday        That made it very accessible. The
                                                 programmes as we’d like                   public transport was also good
                                                                                           which made it easier for others to
     Meeting people from different                                                         come to play.
     backgrounds was important. And              A key part of its value is its very
     it did result in some friendships           central location. Kids can just walk
     and sense of being part of the              there and there is plenty of parking      The new netball centre is very
     community.                                  and public transport access.              important though. It’s much better
                                                                                           than what we used to have – the
                                                                                           facilities were pretty bad and you
     With the school teams, some of the          The general feeling in the                needed skis for the floor! And it
     parents get involved with the sports        community is that it is awesome,          still has the same great location.
     teams first through supporting or           and it got real support from the          Kids can still walk or come on the
     volunteering, and that gives them           Local Board and Council.                  bus or train. Without that it would
     a purposeful reason to get more                                                       be a lot harder. There was an idea to
     involved with the school. Having                                                      shift netball Manurewa to a multi-
     been involved at the netball gives          There was a time when the idea            sport hub at another park, but
     many parents more confidence                was to shift netball to a sports hub      there was a petition to stop that
     to come along to schools and get            already happening at Mountford            as this location is much better for
     involved in other ways, or to talk          Park. But we felt it was less             us. I expect that numbers involved
     with schools about their kids and           accessible with less parking, and a       will increase because of this, and
     education. Without that sports              lot of the existing use would make        maybe some of those who went to
     connection this would be less               it crowded. There was stakeholder         play through the Papakura Centre
     likely for some parents. Netball is         consultation undertaken and               might come back to Manurewa.
14
The club culture is also good and
helps to create and support good
behaviour and growth.

It’s getting more diverse. This
was predominately a Pakeha
community many years ago which
was reflected in the committee
and player membership make
up. This has now changed to the
community being majority Pacific
Island and Maori community
which also now reflects the
makeup of the committee and
player membership.
It gets used by many different
groups outside of sport. There are
Pacific churches and there have
recently been some huge Indian
and Middle-Eastern community
weddings.

                                     15
VALUE THEME 7
         Ownership & Pride

     The role played by netball and its          There is no other good quality
     Manurewa venue in generating local          facilities in the area so the new
     pride in the community.This is reflected    netball facility is also being used
     in less vandalism; people taking care       by the community as a function
     of facilities; better behaviour in the      centre. There are all kinds of
     area; advocating use of the facilities to   uses, like the free school holiday
     others; using the facilities more often;    programmes for 40 children that
     and more diverse user groups. While         also provides breakfast and lunch.
     not large pride is present and growing.
     A selection of some of the typical
     comments made is listed below:              It provides a really good and
                                                 obvious location for the Maori
     The physical upgrade to the netball         Women’s Welfare League Offices.
     facility has contributed to more            We share a lot of goals with Netball
     community pride. The old facilities         Manurewa and we have such a
     were pretty run down and got a              good central location here.
     lot of vandalism. The new facilities
     have been treated well so far in the
     last year since the developments            Netball teaches more than just
     started being completed.                    the sport alone; the values and life
                                                 skills that netball offers are crucial
                                                 to the community. Kids and adults
     It is more valued by the community          alike for that matter learn respect,
     and there is a greater sense of             friendships, discipline and many
     ownership. The old facilities were          other interpersonal skills which all
     not treated well, but it is different       transfer back into the community.
     now and they are well looked after.         Really, netball is used as a vehicle
                                                 to teach life.
     As more people experience it they
     see things that they could use it           Netball in Manurewa used to be
     for, so its utilisation is increasing.      really strong but it dropped off a bit,
     It really is an alternative to other        largely due to our old centre being
     social venues out there as it is good       pretty rough. Many went to play
     quality and doesn’t have smoking,           through the Papakura Centre. But
     drinking or pokies.                         with the new Netball Manurewa
                                                 Centre it can only improve – it’s
                                                 so much better than what we used
     Involvement with netball goes               to have, much better quality and it
     along with codes of behaviour –             has the great central location. It’s so
     for example codes of spectator              easy to get to by walking or public
     behaviour. So parents supporting            transport, just like when I started
     or working with netball are                 to get involved.
     encouraged into better behaviours,
     and that provides better role model
     examples to the kids. It reinforces
     the behaviours the kids are exposed
     to at school.

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SECTION THREE:
SUMMARY
The seven main value themes                     population that is significantly
identified here are clearly a summary           growing in numbers and diversity
of a wide diversity of different benefits   •   there are few other venues in
and values to different people. Many            the area offering the range and
of these benefits and values have               quality of facilities and community
been well established through the               opportunities
history of Netball Manurewa, and the
opportunity now exists to increase          Recognising these community strengths,
and enhance them through the impact         this case study has been undertaken
of the new Community Events Centre.         to illustrate the range and depth of
Not only can this revitalise Netball in     social benefits that can be generated
Manurewa, but it can also embed the         from supporting growth in local sports
existence of a real community centre        participation and community uses at
– somewhere that everyone can come          the Netball Manurewa Community
to and use. This can be built from          Events Centre.
the strong foundation of community
involvement that is still clearly evident
in local sport and culture.

The key challenges are to turn around
some of the trends that have been
negatively affecting both grass-roots
sport and community participation.
These are mainly related to the
decline of team numbers, the decline
of volunteers and the availability of
community hubs. For example, fewer
coaches and helpers have resulted
in fewer teams being able to play.
Manurewa is part of a wider low socio
economic area so a lot of parents
have to work in multiple jobs on the
weekends and weekdays and don’t
have time to volunteer. There are
also issues from the cost of transport,
although the Event Centre’s strategic
location is ideal for public access. A
decrease in gaming funding for school
team uniforms has also left some
schools unable to provide uniforms, so
some kids and teams cannot compete.

Some of these issues are quite simple
to address, and would require only a
little targeted assistance to address.
And to aid that there are also some
key community strengths that can be
built on:

•   there is clearly also a lot of latent
    motivation in the community to
    do better for its kids.
•   the new Events Centre is highly
    strategically located in the
    central transport hub of a young

                                                                                      17
APPENDIX 1 –
     KEY INFORMANTS
     The key informants for this case study     Tania Low
     and their backgrounds in Manurewa          Tania has been involved in netball for
     netball are noted in brief below:          many years, starting out a long playing
                                                record as a junior at Manurewa and
     Devida Hati-Ross                           coming back there after many years at
     Devida is the Game and Facility Co-        senior level in other clubs to involve
     ordinator at Netball Manurewa. She         her family and provide coaching. To
     has worked at the centre since 2004        develop her coaching further she is
     and prior to that was involved through     currently completing a Sport Science
     being a player at the centre; being a      Degree at the Manukau Institute of
     past committee member (starting            Technology.
     at age18); and being a former Vice
     President of the centre                    Anet Conroy
                                                Anet has been involved with netball in
     Denise Ewe                                 Manurewa for over 20 years. She has
     Denise has been involved in helping        been a player, coach, umpire and also
     deliver netball in the Counties Manukau    coordinator for school teams from
     and greater Auckland for 33 years, and     Wiri Central Primary, where she is also
     played before that. This has involved      Deputy-Principal. Beyond netball she
     being a coach, manager, advocate and       has been active in supporting touch,
     coordinator. She is currently President    rugby, league and tennis. Roles have
     of Tamaki Makaurau Poi Tarawhiti           included treasurer of the tennis club.
     (Auckland Maori Netball); and is the
     Maori Women’s Welfare League Area          Kay McIntyre
     Representative for Tamaki Makaurau         Kay is Project Manager for the Netball
     (their offices are located in the Events   Manurewa        Community      Events
     Centre). In addition she was Vice          Centre Development. She provided
     President of the Papakura Netball          considerable background information
     Centre for 8 years.                        and comment which complements the
                                                interview responses.
     Patrick Maxwell
     Pat has been involved with playing,
     coaching and supporting netball in
     Manurewa for around 30 years. He
     started out coaching his daughters but
     began playing himself; has been part of
     the Husbands and Wives Netball Club
     formed in 1986 (now H&W United);
     and has been their premier team coach
     for 15 years. He has spent a lot of time
     involved in club committee and netball
     administration work, and is a recent
     past President of Netball Manurewa.

18
APPENDIX 2 – MANUREWA
LOCAL BOARD LINKS
MANUREWA LOCAL BOARD
http://www.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/
representativesbodies/LocalBoards/
Manurewalocalboard/

MANUREWA COMMUNITY
PROFILE
http://www.aucklandcouncil.
govt.nz/representativesbodies/
LocalBoards/Manurewalocalboard/
localboardprofile

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