27 January
A new Men’s Resource Centre in Gisborne will soon be opening thanks to the efforts of offenders on community work sentences and Gisborne Family Works.
Community Probation and Psychological Services (CPPS) will be providing a work party to help get the men’s Resource Centre ready for opening within the next month. Located above a Family Works/Presbyterian Support Services run op-shop, the second floor residence will be cleaned out by CPPS work parties ready for revamping.
Gisborne CPPS Service Manager Tim Marshall says Community Work sentences require offenders to do unpaid work in the community for non-profit organisations as reparation for their offending.
“We work with a large number of non-profit community groups and provide them with resources to help them achieve their goals. It’s great to be able to help further the work of a worthy group such as Family Works, who have been a long time sponsor of community work placements.”
“The site of the centre will require CPPS work party to carry out a large amount of painting, clean-up of the building, cleaning inside the premises, and small repair jobs in order to house what will become the first men’s resource centre in Gisborne,” says Mr Marshall. “The work party has at least two to three days worth of solid work ahead of them, and the results should be brilliant for the Gisborne community.”
The old accommodation will be converted into a Men’s Resource Centre in order to provide a number of services for men in the local community. “In the long term, the services will include a violence free intervention group; men’s health clinic; practical literacy and support services; and men’s advocacy. It will also be available for other community groups,” says Mr Marshall.
The Resource Centre idea was proposed by Tairawhiti Men Against Violence, a group which Mr Marshall helped set up three years ago to encourage men to take more responsibility for their role in family violence.
Family Works will be running the Men’s Resource Centre, and in conjunction with CPPS will continue to assist offenders in community work programmes in the downs-stairs op-shop.
“Family Works have provided agency placements for some time and it is great that our work parties can be part of this exciting new initiative, as many of our Community Work offenders would be candidates to access such a service,” says Mr Marshall. “What’s more, they’ll be helping put something positive back into the community, and learning from the work they do.”
Each year New Zealand communities benefit from almost three million hours of labour supplied through offenders serving their Community Work sentences.
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