A Piece of Home, Away From Home

A community to lighten the work of others.

The  Settlement Centre Waikato has had a number of changes since it was established in 1999, aiming to better serve those who are new to the Kirikiriroa-Hamilton community. When you enter the settlement centre, it has a light and friendly atmosphere because the employees from different backgrounds have very good rapport with each other.

The things the settlement centre has to offer is for new migrants and settlers to attain a driving license, to better their English and interpreting courses and if you speak another language there is an in-house training the centre has on offer. The centre relies on volunteers to support their work and unites different communities through events like the New Zealand Ethnic Football Festival which has been running for 20 years.

It was originally established by the Hamilton Multicultural Services Trust (HMS Trust) in collaboration with the Hamilton City Council to meet the need for support for migrants and former refugees. Formerly called Hamilton Interpreting Services and the Migrant Resource Centre, the name Settlement Centre Waikato now reflects that they serve not only migrants but also former refugees and new settlers in Hamilton.

Corazon Blow is an immigrant from the Philippines and been living in New Zealand for almost 37 years. Originally settling in Auckland, she moved to Hamilton for a change and to be close-by her parents. Corazon is currently employed as the centre lead at the Settlement Centre Waikato. She was inspired and to do volunteering because it is what you can do if you’ve got something to offer and don’t expect anything.

Corazon says that when there is a resettlement issue, the new settlers and migrants work along-side social workers. If they feel they will benefit from counselling, there is a Diversity Counselling and a free service of an interpreter for any language barrier. There is an organisation named Shama Women’s Centre where they cater to the needs of ethnic women. Shama is a vibrant social services agency that provides culturally appropriate support, advocacy and programmes to empower ethnic women, their children and their families.

Corazon said the people do still stay connected at the settlement centre because they can avail themselves of services like driving lessons, english classes, employment solutions. They can also connect to their own ethnic community organisations and volunteer at the centre for the different community projects.

You can contact the Settlement Centre Waikato via phone 07 853 2192, email info@scw.org.nz or check their website, here. There is a requirement for volunteer candidates to have a police clearance.