Our District

Located on the west coast of the North Island, the Whanganui district is bounded by the Ruapehu, Rangitikei, South Taranaki and Stratford districts and includes a number of rural communities. Most of Whanganui’s population (48,000 and growing) lives in the urban area at the mouth of the Whanganui River.

A welcoming community

Diversity is an important part of Whanganui’s character and newcomers from around the world find a warm welcome here. In keeping with our famous hospitality, Whanganui is one of New Zealand’s first accredited Welcoming Communities. Helping newcomers to feel they belong in Whanganui means they can more readily participate in and contribute to our community. For more information and helpful links for newcomers, visit: www.whanganui. govt.nz/welcome

A safe community

Safer Whanganui is a community-led collaboration that provides leadership and direction, with everyone working in partnership to create a safer community for all. The Safer Whanganui Strategy covers all people, all ages and all ethnicities living, visiting or passing through our district. This strategy has been developed by the Safer Whanganui steering group. We want a community that is an attractive place to live in, work and visit, where people can go about their daily activities without fear or risk of harm and injury.

Positive ageing

Whanganui District Council is committed to promoting positive attitudes to ageing in Whanganui so that older adults are at the heart of our community and are able to be as informed, active, healthy and independent as possible. An AgeFriendly Plan has been developed for Whanganui and includes actions based on the eight essential criteria of an age-friendly community. This plan aims to build on existing work, enhancing it where needed and looking for new initiatives to fill the gaps.

Sister cities

Our Sister Cities programme provides us with a platform to develop international friendships, leading to a mutually beneficial exchange of ideas and the development of social, cultural, economic and educational opportunities. Whanganui and Nagaizumi-cho in Japan became sister cities in 1988. There are now strong social, cultural, sporting and educational links between the two cities. The sister city relationship with Toowoomba in Australia was forged 37 years ago. In February 2019, Whanganui entered into a strategic relationship with Lijiang, China. Formalising this relationship was the first step in a commitment to identify and develop mutually beneficial economic, cultural and social outcomes.

Having your say in our community

Give us your thoughts on council proposals and help us make fair and informed decisions.

We want to hear from residents, businesses, workers, students, volunteers and more – anyone who is interested in our community. The Our District, Your Say panel provides an informal way for you to give us your feedback and ideas. You can sign up at: www.whanganui.govt. nz/online-community-panel You can also submit your views at: www.whanganui.govt.nz/have-yoursay or follow us on Facebook @whanganuidistrictcouncil

Antenno

Antenno is a free mobile app that sends you notifications and alerts about places you care about. We will send you information about things like water shut-offs or roadworks in your street, community events in your area, and more. Seen some graffiti, found a pot hole, or have a new idea? Go to the ‘Report it’ section of the app and add a report to tell us about it. Your report goes directly to our customer service team who then assign it to the relevant staff member. Learn more at: www.whanganui.govt.nz/antenno

Our Mayor and Councillors

There are a number of ways you can be heard by your elected members. You can simply email or make a phone call but other alternatives are available. You may like to present at a full council meeting, give us feedback on public consultations or register for our online community panel. You may also like to present a petition (a minimum of 20 signatures is required) which is a more formal mechanism to make a request to the council. For more information on all these options, visit: www.whanganui.govt.nz/engaging-with-your-council

Mayor

Hamish McDouall

Deputy Mayor Jenny Duncan

Councillors Charlie Anderson Philippa Baker-Hogan James Barron Josh Chandulal-Mackay Helen Craig Brent Crossan Kate Joblin Hadleigh Reid Alan Taylor Rob Vinsen Graeme Young Phone Email

027 407 6516 hamish.mcdouall@whanganui.govt.nz

021 669 847 jenny.duncan@whanganui.govt.nz

027 672 1400 charlie.anderson@whanganui.govt.nz 027 272 7953 philippa.baker-hogan@whanganui.govt.nz 027 220 0552 james.barron@whanganui.govt.nz 027 548 4999 josh.chandulal-mackay@whanganui.govt.nz 021 103 0737 027 215 1785 helen.craig@whanganui.govt.nz brent.crossan@whanganui.govt.nz 027 683 6471 kate.joblin@whanganui.govt.nz 027 687 7307 hadleigh.reid@whanganui.govt.nz 027 348 9684 alan.taylor@whanganui.govt.nz 021 766 781 rob..vinsen@whanganui.govt.nz 027 444 4740 graeme.young@whanganui.govt.nz

Whanganui Rural Community Board

Chair

Peter Oskam Phone Email

027 285 8603 peter.oskam@whanganui.govt.nz

Deputy Chair David Wells Board Members Bill Ashworth Michael Dick Alistair Duff Sandra Falkner 027 289 5112 david.wells@whanganui.govt.nz

06 342 7704 bill.ashworth@whanganui.govt.nz

06 342 9922

michael.dick@whanganui.govt.nz 022 0844 020 alistair.duff@whanganui.govt.nz 021 069 0276 sandra.falkner@whanganui.govt.nz Grant Skilton 027 245 8067 grant.skilton@whanganui.govt.nz Crs Charlie Anderson and Brent Crossan are appointed councillors on the Whanganui Rural Community Board.