Healthy Puketāpapa

Note: This is a repost from my facebook page.

Today I thought I’d delve into some of the info from the “Healthy Puketāpapa Strategic Framework” – a 37 page document that is full of really interesting information as well as a quick runthrough of the plan itself.

Healthy Puketāpapa is a guide that sets out to improve the quality of life for our Puketāpapa residents.

It contains some sobering facts about Puketāpapa – 20% of Puketāpapa homes are overcrowded, 41% of our neighborhoods are classed as the ‘most deprived in the country’, our residents make up 10% of ED admissions due to alcohol, despite making up only 4% of the population, 36% of tamariki live in poverty and Puketāpapa gets a score of 37/100 for walkability due to our street network lacking connectivity and a lack of local services within a walkable distance – putting us as one of the ‘lowest’ Local Boards in Tāmaki Makarau.

Some of these issues are beyond a local board’s control. However, the last board saw the importance of building a guide towards creating a healthy Puketāpapa.

As such, the document sets out 5 ‘priority areas’ for health and wellbeing in Puketāpapa and actions the local board can take:

1) Wai (water) is the first and easiest choice of drink.

-Install new water fountains across Puketāpapa.
-Introduce free water bottle refill stations across Puketāpapa.
-Promote water first at all our events and facilities.
-Promote tap water as our first choice of beverage.
-Gather cultural stories of wai (water).
-Instead of promoting sugary drinks marketing, promote water at places where tamariki and whānau meet.
-Reduce plastic straw use in Puketāpapa.
-Connect wai projects to other Healthy Puketāpapa projects.

2)Access to healthy kai for all.
-Encourage early childhood centres, schools and businesses to promote healthy options
-Encourage food recycling and zero waste activities
-Remove junk food marketing near tamariki settings
-Work with partners to promote initiatives to create eco-neighbourhoods
-Promote healthy kai choices in all our organisations, events and facilities

3)Encourage movement.
-Create more greenways and cycleways throughout Puketāpapa.
-Promote and develop public transport in Puketāpapa.
-Ensure all park developments meet community needs.
-Promote the connections between nature, physical activity and mental wellbeing.
-Connect residents to Puketāpapa’s whenua/land and maunga/mountains to build pride and sense of belonging.
-Promote physical activity at activities, events and in all local grants.
-Connect residents to inter-generational opportunities to get moving that cater for our diverse community.

4)Improving access to healthy housing.

-Promote Healthy Homes Standards.
-Support healthy rental homes and higher quality social housing.
-Support actions to create sustainable homes.
-Create social cohesion projects that support communities in new housing areas.
-Engage business partners, housing developers, schools and the community to create community centred housing.
-Get Puketāpapa residents to define what is a healthy home to influence future actions.

5)Less use of unhealthy substances.
-Get Puketāpapa communities to define the issues, priorities and solutions for alcohol, tobacco and drug harm reduction.
-Promote alcohol-free, tobacco-free and drug-free Puketāpapa activities and events.
-Use community advocacy to push for no more bottle stores in Puketāpapa.
-Reduce alcohol sponsorship and advertising in Puketāpapa.
-Introduce Smokefree Puketāpapa town centres and parks.
-Use community engagement and cohesion projects to build inclusion and celebrate diversity.