Innovation: Napier Connects

New Zealand

AAI Domains:

• Participation in society (voluntary activities, social connectedness)

• Independent, healthy and secure living (lifelong learning, physical exercise)

Strong social connections within communities is an indicator of social cohesion that is associated with improved individual and population health although the causal mechanisms of this relationship are not fully clear. Social innovations can make an important contribution to building social connections and social cohesion and in an ageing society it is particularly important that they encourage inter-generational activities.

Older people have a wealth of experience and wisdom that they can pass on to younger people in the formative period of their life while there are new skills that they can pass onto the older generation. Creating stronger social connections is a critical part of combating social isolation and loneliness that blights the health and well-being of people of all ages and particularly affects the lives of older people.

In the small city of Napier on the north island of New Zealand the local branch of Age Concern, a non-governmental voluntary organisation, conducted some research with older people in the community and found that loneliness was a major issue affecting their lives. Age Concern lobbied the Minister for Senior Citizens in the national government and this prompted a policy initiative to find local solutions to this issue.

Age Concern and the Napier municipality consulted with people of all ages but particularly older people in the city through World Cafes, largely unstructured and informal meetings, to develop a suitable strategy. Through this process they devised Napier Connects, a partnership initiative between the municipality and a range of non-governmental organisations headed by the local branch of Age Concern.

Napier Connects is a programme with multiple components to encourage physical activity, lifelong learning, inter-generational activity and stronger social connections. The elements of the programme include weekly walking groups, a community computer hub with high school students training older people in how to use ICT, a knowledge bank with older people sharing their skills including carpentry, knitting and sewing with younger people.

The local college, the Institute of Technology, established a mentoring programme; students paired with older people with a wide range of experiences in the world of work. The programme also included Working Bees in which volunteers tidied up older people’s properties and improved public spaces by tidying up litter and painting fencing. Volunteers began to visit older people to offer a home safety check conducted by the local fire service and to encourage older residents to be more involved with local activities.

The programme was widely considered to be highly successful by participants and local stakeholders despite having very limited resources. The Minister for Senior Citizens recognised the achievements of Napier Connects with an award and resources for the municipality to develop a toolkit outlining how the programme was developed and a guide for other places to follow similar footsteps.

In terms of active ageing, Napier Connects relines on mobilising voluntary activities among people of all ages. This often involves increased levels of physical exercise through taking part in a walking group or a Working Bee for the benefit of older people and the wider community. It is also relevant to lifelong learning through the process of inter-generational exchange of knowledge in a relatively informal fashion as well as mentoring for college students.

Napier City Council website