History of the Trust

The Napier Pilot City Trust has its origins in the recommendations of a series of research reports

prepared for the Department of Internal Affairs (Hancock, Barron, Asher, 1983). Copies of these reports

can be viewed / printed by clicking here.

The report records at that time a group of Napier people were concerned about the increasing amount

of violence in NZ cities, showing the overall quality of life was decreasing. The existing welfare system

was dealing with anti-social behaviour often by trying to help or punish people well after the root

causes of problems had occurred.

The research group came up with the idea of a project involving Napier as a "working model" to

examine new ways of minimizing social problems and improving the quality of life for all citizens.

Napier was therefore established as a "pilot city" to try out innovative approaches to the problem of

creating an urban environment that could better respond to human needs.

The concept is one of community development that encourages local people to take responsibility for

the quality of life in their own neighbourhoods. This would be more effective than relying solely on the

control and provision of services and management of welfare being dependent upon policy makers in

Wellington.

The NPCT was therefore established in 1983 with a Government mandate based on the idea local

people hold the key, not the State. Early initiatives of the Trust included establishment of the

Neighbourhood Support Scheme and the Citizens Advise Bureau. A more recent catch cry of the Trust,

"develop communities, nor prisons" also embodies this approach. Napier was selected for the project

given the large number of community groups in Napier with a history of experience in preventative

social improvement programs and with an overall community network forming a city that is not "too

large to learn about itself."

Since 1986 the Pilot City Project has been implemented on a voluntary basis enabled by Napier Pilot

City Trustees, a facilitator, youth and community workers. They have worked closely as a team within

hard to reach local neighbourhoods supporting individuals and community groups that provide "real

world" social services "at the "coal face." To dowload a copy of the Trust's current vision / Kaupapa

document, click here. Please do not hesitate to contact us should you have any questions or want to

know more about our services.

Click here for a list of the groups the Trust works with.

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