In 1987, 35 years ago, parents and whānau of people with a learning disability in the Eastern Bay of Plenty put together a blueprint for Idea Services (then  the NZ Society for the Intellectually Handicapped) on how to ensure their services were appropriate for Māori.

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I (Ruth Gerzon) was tasked with compiling this report. Many of those who produce it have since passed away, and I wish to honour their work by publishing it here. 

To read the 1987 report click here.

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Sadly the recommendations were ignored, very little has changed and most Maori in the Eastern Bay of Plenty still have to buy into  Pākehā disability programmes in order to get support.   

 

However the work of the kaumātua  and whānau continued and they set up the first kaupapa Māori home for people with learning disability in this country, Te Whare Manaaki.

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