Leading from the front issuu

FOUR COOL CHILD
FRIENDLY SCHOOLS
The artwork that accompanies Neil Cleaver’s korero is
from a book titled Listening to Voices in Four Hawke’s
Bay Schools. Written by Roger McNeill and Kerry Kitione,
this special publication shows inclusion and transformative
values in action in a cultural context and shows how
four schools in different and exciting ways developed
caring connected communities, ensuring everyone is
treated with respect and compassion and exclusions are
rarely used. The schools involved were Flaxmere Primary
School, Camberley School, Te Kura Kaupapa Māori O
Te Ara Hou — Poupou of Tamatea Arikinui, Rongokako
and Te Awhiorangi, and St John’s College.
MINISTRY REFLECTS DYSFUNCTION
by neil cleaver
A LOOK BACK AT SOCIAL
WELFARE SERVICES IN NEW
ZEALAND FROM 1980–2021
After 10 years working as a teacher, Neil Cleaver made
the switch to Social Work while living in Northland. This
career switch lasted 41 years with Oranga Tamariki and
its forerunners. Throughout, he contributed to front line
social work, staff training, residential social work, management,
quality evaluation and policy advice.
Not surprisingly Neil has an encyclopaedic knowledge
and understanding of the Ministry — of its highs, lows
and challenges. “It’s a tough gig”, he says at the end of
this story but his determination to affect positive change
was strong and steadfast for the decades he worked
there.
The release of a report in 1988, Puao-te-Ata-tu, which
looked into racism in New Zealand, and especially within
the Department of Social Welfare, found that the state
system was failing the Tangata Whenua. The vision of
Puao-te-Ata-tu was for Māori to care for Māori whenever
possible. From that time, Neil was committed to see this
vision realised in every facet of the Ministry he was involved
with. This is an honest look at a tough topic.
IN THE BEGINNING
I was born and brought up in New Plymouth and after
leaving school I went to Palmerston North Teacher’s College
and followed that up with ten years of teaching in
South Auckland, Kaitaia and various schools in Taranaki.
While in Kaitaia I was a family home foster parent for a
short time which was my first introduction to the Department
of Social Welfare which would in some way be my
employer for the next 44 years.
I started as a social worker in 1977. In those days we
worked “patches” and mine consisted of a triangle with
corner end points at Midhurst, Eltham and Whangamo-
Artwork above by Herewini Nicholson, Camberley School.
Napier Pilot City Trust – for a kinder, fairer city 149