scholarly journals Relationship-based early intervention services for children with complex needs: lessons from New Zealand

2016 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 330-344 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carolyn Blackburn
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Early Intervention ◽  
Children And Families ◽  
Relational Pedagogy ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Complex Needs ◽  
Early Intervention Services ◽  
Key Characteristics ◽  
Family Practices

Purpose A case study is reported of a relationship-based early intervention (EI) service for children with complex needs in New Zealand. The purpose of this paper is to explore parent and professional views and perceptions about the key characteristics of a relationship-based EI service. Design/methodology/approach This qualitative study involved interviews and observations with 39 participants (10 children, 11 parents and 18 professionals). Findings Parents appreciated the knowledgeable, well-trained professionals who invested time in getting to know (and love) children and families and family practices, worked together in harmony and valued the contribution that parents made to their child’s progress and achievement. Professionals described the key characteristics of the service in terms of the range of therapies offered by the service, the focus on a strengths-based and family-focussed approach, play-based assessments, acceptance and value of family practices (including responsiveness to Maori and bi-culturalism), appropriate and respectful places to meet and greet families and work with children, and recruitment and retention of humble professionals who identified with the ethos of the model. Observable social processes and structures within the delivery of the model include respectful professional interactions and relationships with children and families, integrated professional working, effective and timely communication between professionals and families, pedagogy of listening, waiting and personalisation, engaged families and actively participating children. Originality/value This case study emphasises the significance of professional love and relational pedagogy to EI services and the value of this to improving parent-child relationships and children’s long-term outcomes.

Cultural societies and information needs: Croats in New Zealand

2019 ◽  
Vol 68 (8/9) ◽  
pp. 652-673 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maja Krtalić ◽  
Ivana Hebrang Grgić
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Significant Role ◽  
Social Life ◽  
Information Dissemination ◽  
Home Country ◽  
Immigrant Communities ◽  
Technological Changes ◽  
Content Type

Purpose The purpose of this paper was to explore how small immigrant communities in host countries collect, disseminate and present information about their home country and their community, and the role of formal societies and clubs in it. Design/methodology/approach This paper presents the results of a case study of the Croatian community in New Zealand. To illustrate how cultural and technological changes affected information dissemination and communication within the community, the case study presents both historical and current situations. Methods used in this case study included a content analysis of historical newspapers published in New Zealand by the Croatian community, content analysis of current webpages and social networking sites, and interviews with participants who have management roles in Croatian societies and communities in New Zealand. Data were collected from December 2018 to February 2019. Findings Formally established clubs and societies, but also informal groups of immigrants and their descendants can play a significant role in providing their members with information about the culture, social life and events of the home country. They also play a significant role in preserving part of the history and heritage which is relevant, not only for a specific community but also for the history and culture of a home country. Originality/value The methodology used in the research is based on data from community archives and can be used for studying other small immigrant communities in New Zealand or abroad. The case study presented in the paper illustrates how the information environment of small immigrant communities develops and changes over the years under the influence of diverse political, social and technological changes.

Service Provider Combinations and the Delivery of Early Intervention Services to Children and Families

2010 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 132-144 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melissa Raspa ◽  
Kathleen Hebbeler ◽  
Donald B. Bailey ◽  
Anita A. Scarborough
Keyword(s):  
Early Intervention ◽  
Service Provider ◽  
Children And Families ◽  
Early Intervention Services ◽  
Intervention Services

scholarly journals Exploring the role of employer forums – the case of Business in the Community Wales

2017 ◽  
Vol 39 (7) ◽  
pp. 986-1000 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cassandra Bowkett ◽  
Marco Hauptmeier ◽  
Edmund Heery
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Citizenship ◽  
Codes Of Conduct ◽  
Employment Relations ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Key Characteristics ◽  
New Form ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
Equality And Diversity

Purpose Collective employer representation in the UK has changed in fundamental ways in recent decades. Collective bargaining has declined and instead, the authors have seen the emergence of a significant new form of collective organisation, the employer forum (EF), which promotes good corporate behaviour and typically focusses on issues of equality and diversity, social policy and community engagement. The purpose of this paper is to examine this new form of collective action through a case study on Business in the Community (BITC) Wales. It also compares this EF with traditional employers’ associations (EAs) in order to establish what is significant and distinctive about EFs. Design/methodology/approach BITC Wales is a “typical case” (Patton, 2014; Seawright and Gerring, 2008) that shares key characteristics and functions with other EFs across key analytical dimensions, and therefore provides insights into the wider population of EFs in the UK. In addition, the paper compares EFs, examined through a qualitative case study of BITC Wales, and traditional EAs, introduced and discussed in the literature review, along the same analytical dimensions. The aim of contrasting EAs with the case study on BITC Wales is to establish what is distinctive and significant about EFs and to consider the implications for employment relations in the UK. Findings The paper argues that EFs and EAs support employers in dealing with the challenges of managing the employment relationship and threats to profitability in different political contexts. The organisation of employers in EAs was a response to increasing trade union power and labour costs. EFs are helping employers to deal with a different set of challenges, including declining social cohesion in communities in which employers operate, reputational and legal risks posed by new equality and diversity legislation and expectations of good corporate citizenship by consumers and their own employees. EFs address these challenges by engaging in social projects in local communities, by promoting good corporate behaviour through benchmarking and codes of conduct, and by boosting the reputation of employers through award schemes and promotion of corporate social responsibility activities of member companies. Originality/value Previous literature has not examined EFs and their role in employment relations. This paper considers EFs as a new actor in employment relations.

Seismic risk management of a large public facilities portfolio: a New Zealand case study

Facilities ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 34 (13/14) ◽  
pp. 809-827 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin Quinn Walsh ◽  
Reza Jafarzadeh ◽  
Nicola M. Short ◽  
Jason M. Ingham
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Best Practice ◽  
Geographic Location ◽  
Seismic Retrofitting ◽  
Management Decision ◽  
High Exposure ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Public Facilities ◽  
Evaluation Programme

Purpose The purpose of this article is to assist facilities asset managers who are dealing with regulatory environments pertaining to earthquakes and buildings. These professionals can learn a great deal from the successes and short-comings of a case study programme from the Auckland Council Property Department (ACPD), which manages the public facilities portfolio for the largest local administrative region in New Zealand in both population and landmass. Design/methodology/approach ACPD has initiated its response to New Zealand’s earthquake mitigation mandates by identifying buildings most at risk to an earthquake in its large and varied portfolio through the use of a rapid building evaluation programme strategically targeted to vulnerable building types with consequential attributes, including service type, number of occupants, floor area and geographic location. Findings ACPD was able to rapidly cull down its portfolio of approximately 3,500 buildings to just over 100 “high-exposure” buildings in urgent need of evaluation, set priorities for future evaluations, estimate needed operational and capital expenditures for long-term planning and provide useful information to more general facilities management decision-making processes. Originality/value A number of major cities around the world in areas of high seismicity have enacted ordinances mandating seismic retrofitting. However, much of the existing guiding literature regarding earthquake-related portfolio evaluations and costs pertains to specific scenarios involving real or hypothetical earthquakes. This case study, in contrast, details the approach taken by a public portfolio owner responding to legal mandates and attempting to quantify and reduce its life-safety risk exposure across a large portfolio as efficiently as possible using readily available information, a rapid building evaluation programme and best-practice predictive models for consulting and construction work.

Measuring resilience: by whom and for whom? A case study of people-centred resilience indicators in New Zealand

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Loïc Le Dé ◽  
Karl Wairama ◽  
Monynna Sath ◽  
Anthony Petera
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Local People ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The People ◽  
Facilitation Skills ◽  
Resilience Indicators ◽  
Practical Implications

PurposeResilience has become a priority of most agendas for disaster risk reduction at different scales leading to an increase demand for measurement of resilience. However, resilience is mostly defined, assessed and measured by outsider experts rather than by those primarily concerned – local people. This article presents the development of people-centred indicators of resilience in New Zealand. It details both the process and outcomes of these indicators.Design/methodology/approachThe study draws from participatory methods to develop a six-step tool kit for people-centred indicators of resilience. The people-centred indicators were implemented with four communities in New Zealand in 2019 and 2020.FindingsThe paper highlights that people are capable at defining and assessing their own resilience. The indicators enabled people identify and measure areas of low resilience and foster dialogue between locals and practitioners to strengthen it.Research limitations/implicationsPeople-centred indicators also have limitations and pose challenges. Their development requires strong facilitation skills; it limitedly enables comparison across communities and implies downward accountability.Practical implicationsThe findings should stimulate discussions about who should measure resilience and for whom such measurement is it for. It provides a tool kit that can be used by practitioners and policy makers to measure and strengthen community resilience.Originality/valueMost resilience indicators is outsider-driven and limitedly involves local people. This study uses a radically different approach placing people at the centre of resilience measurement.

SCM competencies in construction: issues and challenges in New Zealand

2015 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 522-538 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Fei Ying ◽  
John Tookey ◽  
Johannes Roberti
Keyword(s):  
Supply Chain ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Supply Chain Management ◽  
Construction Industry ◽  
Central Business District ◽  
Skills Training ◽  
Chain Management ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Study Approach

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to understand the nature and extent of current practice of construction supply chain management (CSCM) in the New Zealand (NZ) construction industry; consequently, to examine the challenges and issues that the industry is confronted in implementing an efficient CSCM. The construction industry, which contributes around 5 per cent to gross domestic product, is a vitally important industry in NZ. With over 50,000 businesses, the construction industry is the third largest industry by business count in NZ’s economy (Statistics New Zealand, 2009). Although it is widely accepted that productivity can be improved by adoption of effective supply chain management (SCM), no studies have investigated this at the tactical level in the NZ context. Design/methodology/approach – A case study approach is used for probing SCM practice on a NZ$75-million commercial project located in Auckland Central Business District. The supply chain network of the principal ground works and superstructure construction stages was studied. Findings – The key findings of the case study suggest that the flow of materials remains the main focus of CSCM practice. It was found that essential skills training for CSCM was extremely limited and largely ill-defined in terms of its nature and content. Finally, it was identified that as the NZ construction industry moves towards a significantly more collaborative framework, the efficacy of CSCM operations is expected to substantially improve. However, this last point did not negate the requirement to expand and improve skills training in CSCM. Originality/value – The results of the case study present that our best industry proponents are inadequate in their knowledge of CSCM as a result of education and training. This is a key issue that needs to be addressed through education at all levels. Similarly, they have virtually nil capability with logistics and the efficiency of transportation as a result of standard contractual costing procedures. Until the SCM/logistics knowledge gap is recognised and addressed, the improvements in logistics and, therefore, SCM will not occur in the NZ construction industry. That said, the findings related to partnering and collaborative thinking in NZ are encouraging. NZ has these elements largely in place already and a willingness to engage, particularly in alliances, in the future. It remains to be seen whether there will be sufficient energy expended in NZ by the leading players to create effective partnering and alliancing through improving SCM and logistics competencies.

Identification and Referral for Early Intervention Services in New Zealand: A Look at Teachers’ Perspectives – Past and Present

2019 ◽  
pp. 027112141988164
Author(s):  
Karyn Aspden ◽  
Stacey M. Baxter ◽  
Sally Clendon ◽  
Tara W. McLaughlin
Keyword(s):  
Early Childhood ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Early Intervention ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Early Childhood Teachers ◽  
Postal Survey ◽  
Policy And Practice ◽  
Early Intervention Services ◽  
Referral Practices ◽  
Teachers Perspectives

Inclusive experiences for all children are foundational to New Zealand early childhood education, yet teacher beliefs and practices related to identification and referral processes may be delaying access to important early intervention support for children with disabilities. To better understand teachers’ perspectives, past and present, this article details the findings from two studies conducted 14 years apart. Through comparison of findings from the work of Aspden and Baxter, this article explores teachers’ beliefs and experiences related to identification and referral practices. In the original 2003 study, 50 early childhood teachers completed a paper-based postal survey, whereas in the 2017 replication, 78 early childhood teachers completed an online survey. Persistent concerns about teacher engagement with identification and referral processes were evident both past and present, particularly in relation to perceived parental reaction and beliefs about the adequacy of service provisions. Furthermore, the data revealed tensions between embracing a strengths-based approach and the need to identify children’s disabilities. The findings provide insight into referral practices in the New Zealand early childhood context and suggest the need for ongoing teacher consultation in relation to policy and practice, the development of more formal referral policies and procedures, as well as enhanced professional support and development that targets teachers’ need for knowledge of and connection with specialist agencies.

The role of senior management in developing and achieving a successful enterprise education programme?

2015 ◽  
Vol 57 (7) ◽  
pp. 791-811 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kerry Lee ◽  
Ghada Hebaishi ◽  
John Hope
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Education Programme ◽  
Management Team ◽  
Senior Management ◽  
Ministry Of Education ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Interpretive Case Study ◽  
Enterprise Education

Purpose – The New Zealand Ministry of Education identified that teachers need to be confident they have the support of their school management team before they embrace twenty-first century teaching and learning in enterprise education (Ministry of Education, 2013b). The purpose of this paper is to outline an interpretive case study which investigated the views held by the management of a New Zealand secondary school, well known for enterprise education. Design/methodology/approach – The study used semi-structured interviews to investigate what aspects were deemed important by senior management and whether they saw themselves as pivotal in the success of enterprise education. Findings – The management team believed their role to be pivotal and that nine aspects were necessary for a successful enterprise programme. Originality/value – It is anticipated that the results from this interpretive case study will assist others in their planning, development and success of future quality enterprise education programmes.

scholarly journals System leadership development in Children’s Centres in the UK

2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 470-488 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kaz Stuart ◽  
Megan Wilcox
Keyword(s):  
Leadership Development ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Complex Nature ◽  
Children And Families ◽  
Content Type ◽  
System Leadership ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Children’S Centres ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose This study aims to establish the complex nature of leadership in children’s centres in the UK and to demonstrate the value of system leadership as a vital concept for children’s centre leadership. Design/methodology/approach The study presents a case study of leadership development with 24 leaders of children’s centres across Hertfordshire. Findings The study considers the efficacy of system leadership, including distributed leadership, within this setting. Evaluation of the programme found that the concept of system leadership was appropriate, supportive and validating for leaders of children’s centres; however, the concept needed support with further practical tools and resources. Research limitations/implications The limitation of the study is its specificity to one local authority, and further research will be needed to see how generalisable the findings are. Practical implications The implication of the study is that leaders of children’s centres could be supported to work more effectively with system leadership. Social implications When leaders of children’s centres feel effective, they have enhanced well-being and achieve more outcomes, which in turn enhances the well-being of the children and families that they serve. Originality/value Leadership in children’s centres is an under-researched and under-supported area. This study makes a new contribution to this sector of leadership.

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