41 minute read
Carmel College
Tuakana Programme
Carmel College’s Tuakana Programme strives to strongly support the Year 6 to 7 transition and to create long-lasting bonds between students that contribute towards all students feeling deeply connected to each other through a shared school identity and common understanding of what it is to be part of the Carmel College community.
We have found that having the Year 7s meet their Tuakana and Atawhai teachers on Orientation Day has allowed them to feel more confident about their transition and helps them feel a sense of belonging and pride in their House from the outset. The connection the new Year 7s feel to their house and Atawhai is established on their first day of school as they meet in their Atawhai groups. This year was the first year that we had just the Year 7s and their Tuakana leaders at school. The new students loved this as it really gave them a chance to connect with their Atawhai teachers, other new students and spend quality time with their Tuakana leaders. The Year 7s have weekly sessions for the first six weeks of the first term with their Tuakana leaders and ongoing catch-ups over the year. The nature of the Atawhai structure means the relationship doesn’t end in six weeks or even in a year. The tuakana/teina relationship is one that continues through the years and many of our school leavers are still in contact with their teina!
Tuakana Leader, Layla James, Year 11
Being a Tuakana leader is a privilege. As a leader, you are entrusted to represent Carmel College with pride. Tuakana leaders develop great friendships with their teina, and teina are put at ease knowing they will always have a friend and someone to help them cope with the challenges they face when joining a new school. Throughout Term 1 we played a number of games during Atawhai time with our teina, making them feel comfortable and allowing them to get to know their fellow Atawhai members. Tuakana leaders have taken on the role as a sister figure for the teina; we help to guide them through the exciting environment at Carmel, and give useful advice on how to go through life at a new school with an open mindset.
Year 7 student, Erina Younan
As a Year 7, I had little idea what I was meant to be doing when starting at a new school. Thanks to the tuakana leaders this lack of knowledge was not a problem. The tuakana leaders make me feel comfortable around the school as they guide me through with their knowledge. We meet up once a week with our buddy Atawhai and we just talk about how our week has gone so far and some upcoming events around the school. Then we wrap up with a game! Tuakana time helps me learn so much about life at Carmel.
Introducing Rosie Shanks, Special Education Needs Co-ordinator and Head of Learning Support
Rosie’s journey has not been a direct pathway. Having completed a Bachelor’s degree in Economics she spent many years working in corporate banking. With a desire to make a difference in people’s lives Rosie retrained as a teacher.
After a short stint teaching, she changed tack and became a stayat-home mum with two daughters. Seeking a role to assist students while having the time to focus on the family, Rosie joined Carmel College as a teacher aide which then progressed into a teaching position for economics and business as well as ORS funded students.
Rosie’s current role involves supporting students and teachers so as to enable Carmel’s diverse learners to flourish in the classroom. At Carmel College, we strongly believe that every student has the right to learn alongside their peers with a strong sense of belonging.
We recognise that whilst all learners come with different backgrounds and cultures, some students have specific learning and physical challenges that create barriers to accessing the curriculum and reaching their full potential. Our vision is to create pathways to success for all students in an inclusive school environment.
We supports students with; • Teacher aide support. • ‘Pull Out’ groups to develop Math and Literacy. • Learning Hub which is a safe space for students to withdraw to and receive assistance. • Lucid Lass Assessments to identify learning strengths and challenges. • Special Assessment Conditions so students are able to demonstrate their knowledge and ideas in formal assessments without barriers. • Individual Education Plans to identify learning goals for students who need customised support or have specific learning priorities.
Rosie Shanks.
Welcome to Matua Maurice
Ko Mauao te Maunga Ko Tauranga te Moana Ko Mataatua te Waka Ko Ngai Tauwhau te hapu Ko Maurice Nelson Au. Tēna koutou katoa te hapori ō Carmel College.
Maurice Nelson has joined the Carmel College whānau in 2021 as Head of Te Reo Māori. He has come via Saint Kentigern College and St Mary’s College where he held the role of Teacher in Charge of Te Reo Māori.
Maurice’s teaching career started on Waiheke Island over 10 years ago which is where he also met his lovely wife Leah over 30 years ago. Together they raised four beautiful children, three of whom continue their schooling in Years 7, 11 and 13 at Sancta Maria College. Their eldest son currently attends university at the Manukau campus.
Maurice is grateful for the opportunity to work at Carmel for two reasons. The first is to help raise the profile and presence of the Māori culture and language in the school, and two, he is looking forward to immersing himself in the core values of a Mercy school once again.
His main role at Carmel College is to teach te reo Māori from Year 7 to 13. He is also in charge of several Year 7 Tikanga classes. Maurice has a passion for all sports particularly basketball, rugby and touch rugby, so if he’s not in the whānau room you may see him out in the community at one of your daughter’s games. Maurice also enjoys connecting people to the Māori culture through kapa haka.
In addition, Maurice will be encouraging and supporting Carmel College staff with several initiatives to strengthen their knowledge of te reo me te ao Māori (the language and the Māori world views)
“He waka eke noa” We are in this together.
Ngā mihi nui ki a koutou
Why we need a recycling centre on the North Shore
By Alexis Poppelbaum, Hibiscus and Bays Local Board member
Two grand pianos. That’s the equivalent weight of Change Committee. We argued why there is such great how much waste each person in Auckland sends opportunity for a large, central CRC here on the North to landfill each year. We need to be far more Shore, which all four North Shore Local Boards stringent about diverting compostable and support. recoverable resources from ending up in a Most of our residents have poor access to landfill. Resource Recovery Centres are one a CRC. The closest is Devonport, which serves tool for achieving this. people around there very well, but for most North The average Aucklander sends one tonne of Shore residents, is at least a 30-minute drive away. waste to landfill each year. The concern isn’t just The North Shore is a huge part of the Auckland how much stuff we’re sending to the dump, but region and we have the potential to achieve a what we’re throwing out. Alexis significant reduction of waste to landfill as well as
About half of what the average household in Poppelbaum. recovering high-value items and materials. Our residents Auckland throws out each week is compostable material are passionate about the beautiful place we call home here (40% food waste, 10% garden waste). Because landfills are starved on the Shore. We’re engaged and want to do the right thing but with of oxygen, compostable material doesn’t biodegrade. Instead, it rots very limited access to a CRC, this makes it challenging. down creating contaminated leachate. It also gives off methane gas, We’ve been busy identifying potential locations for Council staff to which is a whopping 25 times more potent at trapping heat in the investigate, and we are fortunate to have established and experienced atmosphere than carbon dioxide. community organisations that Council would partner with to run a
From audits, kerbside rubbish bins and bags also still contain a lot CRC. We envision that a new CRC would link in with the existing of material and items that can be recycled, reused or repurposed. facilities, such as the one in Devonport. Most of the waste we throw out each week could be used in more The Devonport Community Recycling Centre is a partnership productive ways rather than rotting in dangerous landfills. It has the between Auckland Council and Global Action Plan Oceania. You can potential to be a valuable resource for Aucklanders – creating jobs find them at 27 Lake Road where most types of waste are accepted, and boosting the economy while allowing us to take better care of our including building materials, green waste, recyclable materials, environment. general rubbish, household and commercial recycling. They also sell
Auckland Council is planning to expand the current strategy a wide range of garden supplies such as bark, and Living Earth garden from 12 Community Recycling Centres (CRCs) to 23 facilities by 203 mix, lawn mix and organic compost. Trailer hire is also free when (includes CRCs and resource recovery parks). CRCs are an incredibly landscape supplies of over $35 are purchased. For more information important way for us to reduce the waste we’re sending to landfills. and opening hours contact: 09 445 3830 or www.facebook.com/ You can drop off unwanted items and materials for reuse and recycling devonportrecycle/ and most CRCs have shops on site which sell usable household We have to keep striving to do better. We’ll continue keeping materials. the pressure on so that residents across the North Shore have good
We need one of these facilities to be in a central location on access to CRCs so we can all do our bit to divert more waste from the North Shore to adequately service our residents. Earlier this entering landfills. year, Anna Atkinson (Upper Harbour Local Board) and I presented our Local Boards’ feedback on the updated strategy for recycling Views expressed are my own. centres to the Mayor and Councillors at the Environment and Climate Alexis.poppelbaum@aucklandcouncil.govt.nz
Adam Benli (Trustee Director, Global Action Plan), Julia Parfitt (Hibiscus and Bays Local Board), Alexis Poppelbaum, Nicholas Mayne (Upper Harbour Local Board) at the Devonport Community Recycling Centre.
By Sonia Thursby, CEO, Yes Disability YES recognised by Rotary
Sonia Thursby.
YES was presented with the “Arthur Coombes Memorial Cup” from Rotary. This is awarded to community organisations that have made a difference and delivered service of excellence to the community. We are super grateful and so very proud.
2021 is a time for expansion and change for the team here at Yes and I.Lead. New projects, new people, and a whole new conference!
Project Employ, which was created to help upskill youth with disabilities with employment skills to help them into meaningful employment, has now been transformed into I.Employ. But no fear, the same concept, drive and even staff have transferred into a new I.Lead project called I.Employ, with Sarah Dann-Hoare overseeing workshops provided within this project dedicated to education, training and employment for youth with disabilities.
We have a new member of staff joining our team. Mags Gerasimova is our new Project Coordinator, assisting the team with high-level administration and supporting the coordination of the many projects we currently run. Coming from a background in youth work, she is passionate about working in an innovative space to provide as much opportunity for youth with disabilities to lead their best lives and we welcome all that energy into the Yes team!
Another major event coming up this year is our next I.Lead conference! As part of the conference, we will be discussing the work we have already done on the recommendations made to Government at the last conference, we will be preparing more report cards on what work there is still left to do, and how we will be expanding our I.Lead network with more Regional Groups and the National I.Lead Committee.
We are looking for expressions of interest from around the country from young people with disabilities who want to be part of the Conference Organizing Committee! Get in touch with Josh (josh@yesdisability.org.nz) or Niah (lavinia@yesdisability.org.nz) for more information!
It’s all on here at Yes, and we look forward to all the amazing work, opportunities and challenges still to come, and with the young people leading the charge, it’s sure to be a very exciting year for us!
www.yesdisability.org.nz
Wilson Home Trust
The Wilson Home Trust provides a range of grant funding to assist with everything from mobility equipment to mobility dogs and holidays to wellbeing support.
We aim to assist and improve the lives of children and young people with physical disabilities and their whanau. Information about the grants scheme can be found on our website: www. wilsonhometrust.org.nz; the next grants closing date is Thursday 22nd April 2021.
Justine van Dam has been busy with weddings on site, and we are excited to see that there are a number of autumn weddings booked into May. If you would like to have a look at the gorgeous chapel and gardens or enquire about having your wedding here, email weddings@wilsonhometrust.org.nz or call 09 485 3464.
Attention local knitters /crocheters: With winter and the colder weather around the corner, we are needing hats and scarves for our families, so please pick up your needles and get knitting or crocheting. Please drop off to the Trust Cottage at 1 St Leonards Road, Hauraki.
If you would like to know more about the Wilson Home Trust and the work we do check out our website www.wilsonhometrust.org.nz or facebook page https://www.facebook.com/wilsonhometrust1/.
With Councillor Richard Hills, North Shore representative on Auckland Council.
Turning the tide on water quality
Richard Hills.
What a stunning summer we had on the Shore; we had fantastic weather plus heaps of festivals, events, activities music and food, and the America’s Cup celebrations.
Water quality was a focus as always, with questions about what is being done to improve water quality after a significant downpour. The answer is that after decades of under-investment, Auckland Council is spending billions on water infrastructure to clean up our beaches and improve water quality.
This investment includes our Safeswim and Safe Networks programmes. Safeswim is world leading; cities are looking to use our realtime modelling to inform residents. Three years ago the only way to alert the public about poor water quality was to take samples and report results 48 hours later, which was no help to anybody. We can now feel confident when our beaches are safe for swimming and are warned of the few times there may be a risk of pollution.
North Shore residents’ support for our water quality targeted rate improvements has made a real difference. Through Safe Networks, forensic testing of kilometres of pipes picked up some easy fixes. Many issues have been on private properties such as illegal connections, broken pipes or people pouring waste down stormwater drains.
In 2019, forensic testing of homes and businesses across Takapuna picked up 45 issues that were addressed to prevent wastewater flows onto our beach. Private landowners fixed their issues, and we replaced the plumbing at the Takapuna Beach toilets too. We’ve seen improvements in water quality at Takapuna with far fewer issues than previously.
Last year when we investigated pipes across 851 homes in Milford and Castor Bay, 36 issues were found, 19 were fixed, five abatement notices were issued and 12 issues are to be addressed by property owners. This work will continue up the Wairau catchment and I’m working with Healthy Waters on proposals for gross pollutant traps and other measures to help improve the water quality in our biggest and most challenging catchment. Local boards, the Milford business and residents associations and other community groups are working in this space too.
The last stage of the $12m Hurstmere Road upgrade kicks off soon. The water infrastructure has been upgraded and the new rain gardens are operating and cleaning stormwater before it gets to Takapuna Beach. Native trees and grasses will be planted this planting season.
Construction on a $15m Mairangi Bay pump station will also start soon. This will help with growth and take pressure off the wastewater infrastructure to prevent overflows in Campbells Bay and Castor Bay.
At Milford there’s an $8.3 million stormwater project to reduce flooding in the town centre. We are replacing old pipes and installing a stormwater treatment device to improve water quality in the Wairau Estuary. It was delayed until late this year, but we now aim to get it started just after Easter.
I released our five yearly State of the Environment report in March and the good news is that generally across Auckland we are seeing a small overall improvement to water quality, and where we are putting in work and investment we see significant improvements.
Restoring the mauri of our natural environment isn’t an easy fix, particularly in urban areas. There are many issues to address that have built up over generations. When I look at what’s happening in other cities across Aotearoa with bursting pipes and failed infrastructure, I am glad we’ve got this work underway in Tāmaki Makaurau. It will take time and effort from everyone, but are we already seeing a positive difference.
Feel free to continue to contact me about local issues on Richard.hills@aucklandcouncil.govt.nz
The freedom to leverage our expertise and deliver effective programmes
Jayne de la Haye
One of the big advantages of teaching and learning in an independent school is freedom - the freedom to create an educational experience that truly aligns with our beliefs about what learners need.
Independent schools are required by the Ministry of Education to demonstrate that they are safe places for children, but they are not required to follow the Government’s National Education Guidelines. Instead they can work with their parent community to deliver a curriculum that meets the values and expectations of those who have chosen the school. At Kristin, commitment to EOTC (Education outside the Classroom) experiences such as forest learning in the Junior School, and Camp Week for the entire Middle and Senior School (years 7-13), are two examples of this, while another is selecting the delivery and content of the curriculum.
Over the past few weeks, the media has shown renewed interest in some approaches to teaching and learning advocated by the Ministry of Education. Debate around how best to teach students is a worthwhile discussion, but it reminded me of the fatigue that many experienced teachers endure as a result of the introduction of a succession of initiatives. Even more disheartening is when teachers experience ideas going full circle and techniques that they used in the past, and were then told to disregard, are reintroduced; often under the guise of a snappy new title. This is the reality faced by many who work within national education systems and it also accounts for huge amounts of investment of both time and money in updating resources, providing training and reworking planning and assessment.
Many educators who prefer to work within the independent sector are attracted by the freedom to develop a curriculum and teaching style that is grounded in evidence-based experience and best practice. It allows schools such as Kristin to attract teachers who are passionate about doing everything they can to meet the needs of individual students. The International Baccalaureate (IB) curriculum that underpins much of our curriculum is the result of years of collaboration and research from dedicated teachers with real-life experience, from around the globe. This is unique among educational systems and explains why the IB retains its reputation for rigor and excellence.
In the Middle School, the IB Middle Years programme encourages academic excellence alongside a truly broad range of learning experiences to ensure well-rounded students with academic, social and study skills are ready to meet the challenges of Senior School and beyond. In Senior School our students have the freedom of a dual pathway that allows them to choose between NCEA and the IB Diploma programme, depending on their individual needs and preferences.
In the Junior School, our independence guarantees that our approaches to the basics of literacy and numeracy are always balanced. A ‘structured literacy’ approach, which has received much support in the press recently, is about ensuring our youngest learners are explicitly taught phonics, and the essential foundation of phonological awareness. Phonics has always been a part of Kristin’s Junior School literacy programme as our experienced teachers understand how important a sequential approach to learning sound and letter relationships is to mastering literacy skills. They draw on the best of both a phonics approach, alongside an understanding of how to develop children’s love of books and a ‘can do’ attitude to reading and writing.
For teachers who truly love seeing the difference they make, there is no more rewarding place to work, than an environment that has the freedom to embrace their expertise and empowers them to use it in the most effective ways.
Jayne de la Haye is the Principal of Junior School and Early Learning at Kristin. She has spent over two decades teaching and leading in a variety of top-tier schools around the globe.
Tammy McLeod (BA LLB) is the managing director at Davenports Law and a trust and asset structuring specialist. Tammy leads the Davenports Trust Team and enjoys providing clients with advice and assistance on a broad range of issues involving the structuring and establishment of asset plans, interpretation of trust deeds, the management and administration of trust funds and trust disputes. An important part of Tammy’s practice is reviewing existing asset holding structures to ensure they achieve the needs and requirements they were established to meet. She is also experienced in Property (Relationships) Act issues and advises clients on both contracting out agreements and separation.
Geoff and Dianne
Tammy McLeod.
Geoff and Dianne set their trust up in the early 2000s when their children were in their primary school years. It was set up on the recommendation of their accountant and while there was some asset protection reasons, the main driver at the time was tax efficiency. The trust owned their family home and the shares in their company which was a successful car mechanic business with a number of branches across Auckland.
The business had provided great cashflow over the years, and on the recommendation of their accountant, they had used the trust to their advantage and allocated income to the beneficiaries. Their accountant had explained that trust income can be taxed in two different ways. Either the trustees pay tax on the income at the trustee rate which is currently 33% and then most often the trustees can make tax free capital distributions to beneficiaries. Or, the trustees can allocate income to the beneficiaries at the beneficiaries’ personal tax rates and the beneficiaries then declare the income in their tax returns and pay the tax at their marginal rates.
As Dianne wasn’t working, for many years the trustees had allocated income received by the trustees to her to take advantage of a lower tax rate. They had also allocated income to Geoff and Dianne’s two children, Jane and Tom, once they reached the age of 16. However, more often than not, rather than actually distributing the cash to Jane and Tom, the trustees would simply allocate the income to them and then use the actual cash to pay down trust debt. The trustees then ended up owing Jane and Tom what had been allocated to them. This was reflected in their beneficiary current accounts in the trust’s financial statements.
Over the years because of the profitability of the business, Jane and Tom had ended up with sizeable current accounts. Jane was owed just over $175,000 and Tom, as he was younger, $152,000. With the changes to the Trusts Act, Geoff and Diane understood that as their children were now over the age of 18, they had to know that they were beneficiaries of the trust, but they also could ask for a copy of the trust deed and the financial statements for the trust. If either Jane or Tom asked to see the financial statements for the trust, they would then be able to see that the trust owed them both large sums of money and could potentially ask for those amounts to be paid to them. Neither Geoff nor Dianne wanted this to happen.
Geoff and Dianne were actually not too concerned about Jane. Jane was a in a stable relationship with her husband of five years and Geoff and Dianne felt that even if Jane did see that the trust owed her $175,000, they would be able to explain the tax nuances to her and she would be able to see the bigger picture. Their accountant even suggested that they could ask Jane to gift her beneficiary current account to the trust in order to clear the balance.
Tom on the other hand was more of a concern. Geoff and Dianne were not that keen on Tom’s partner. They thought that she influenced Tom in a way that made him quite focussed on money and she was always hinting to Geoff and Dianne that she thought that they could be helping her and Tom with a deposit on a house. Even though Geoff and Dianne’s business had been successful they didn’t have the ready cash for that kind of assistance and were firmly of the view in any event, that the children should be forging their own paths. They were very concerned that if Tom knew that the trust owed him $152,000, then he would tell his partner who would then encourage him to call up the loan.
Geoff and Dianne were in a tricky situation. They really needed to get some advice as to how they might be able to restrict the information that the trustees had to give the children if asked. However, that would still not get around the fact that the trust did owe their children that money.
As we move into a new tax year, it is an opportune time for trustees to review beneficiary current accounts, take specialist legal and tax advice and decide how to deal with them in the context of the new law.
For specialist trust advice don’t hesitate to contact Tammy McLeod or the Trust team at Davenports Law by calling 09 883 4400 or visiting davenportslaw.co.nz.
09 883 4400 DAVENPORTSLAW.CO.NZ
Accountancy with Graham Lawrence of Bellingham Wallace.
Taxation and the property market
Graham Lawrence.
Despite the interruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, New Zealand house prices skyrocketed in February. According to the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand, the national median house price rose $50,000 in February 2021 while the median house price in Auckland went up by $100,000.
The property market in Auckland sold 2775 houses in February; this is the highest sales volume for February in 14 years. Before you jump on the wagon of property “flipping” or ponder on using your properties as rentals, it is important to consider the potential tax issues that may arise to avoid any surprises.
Tax department's approach around property compliance
In 2015, the Government announced that additional funding will be provided to increase focus on the tax collection of residential property held for less than five years. For the 2016 year, it was reportedly assessed that additional tax owed in property transactions was over $70 million and surpassed $100 million in the 2017 financial year. In addition, from 1 January 2020, an IRD number will be required on nearly all land transfers.
This demonstrates the tax department’s determination in policing property compliance and gaining greater oversight of property transactions. From our experience, the tax department predominately focuses on residential property “flipping” in the high-risk markets, particularly Auckland.
The Bright-Line Tests
The two-year bright-line test' was introduced by the Government in 2015 and further extended to five years in March 2018. Broadly speaking, a property sale transaction will be subject to income tax on the gain made on sale if one of the following situations applies: • for properties purchased on or after October 1st 2015 through to 28 March 2018, sold within two years; or • for properties purchased on or after March 29th 2018 sold within 5 years.
There are exemptions available, for example if the sale of the property caught under the bright-line test is your main home or inherited property.
The rules may appear simple but there are a few “fishhooks” that will catch unsuspecting taxpayers. For instance, there are specific rules around the definition of date of acquisition/ disposal for the bright-line rules and what happens if a single property has been used by you partly as a residential home and partly as a rental property
Bright-Line Tests and Trusts
The application of the bright-line tests and the main home exemption become more complex if trusts are involved. There are additional requirements that both the properties and the trust must meet to ensure that people cannot manipulate the main home exemption.
Broadly, if your family home is owned by a trust, the main home exemption will apply if the family home is occupied by the beneficiary of the trust; however, if you are the settlor of the trust and you own in your capacity another property as your main home, then the main home exemption cannot be used on the property owned by the trust.
Ring-fencing of residential property losses
In an attempt to level the playing field between homeowners and investors, the Government introduced a new law that ringfences rental property losses. Essentially, after 1st April 2019, you can no longer offset tax loss from your rental properties against your overall income. Instead the loss is ring-fenced and can only be deducted from future property income. These rules also extend to overseas rental properties – and beware of the impact of unrealised losses on foreign denominated mortgages.
GST issues for properties used for short-stays
Although residential rental properties are not subject to GST, properties rented out on a short-term basis on popular platforms such as Airbnb are subject to GST if the income is over the $60,000 threshold. There are further special rules for mixedused assets such as your holiday homes and baches.
Once a property is included in the GST nest, GST consequences also arise on the disposal of the property or upon cancellation of GST registration.
Owning overseas properties
An important point many people have overlooked is that overseas residential property owned by a New Zealand tax resident is also subject to the bright-line tests. This means if you are a New Zealand tax resident, and you sold your overseas residential rental property within the bright-line period, any gain made on the sale will give rise to a New Zealand income tax liability.
Another common misconception is that rental income generated from overseas property is not subject to New Zealand tax. It is important to remember New Zealand tax residents must pay tax on their worldwide income and not just income with a source in New Zealand.
The income tax and GST rules concerning property-related transactions are complicated.
The easiest way to get some comfort and certainty on any proposed transaction is to talk to your tax advisors or give us a call. We would be happy to provide guidance to you and ensure that your tax liabilities are being managed correctly.
By Graham Lawrence (Director) and Harriet Zhang (Senior Tax Consultant) Phone: 09 309 7851, Visit: www.bellinghamwallace.co.nz
Lester de Vere & Richard Stevens are probably the Shore’s leading Business Brokers. Born and bred on the Shore they represent ABC Business
Brokers in their home patch. They have spent many years in business themselves before taking on the role at ABC. Their passion is to 'help vendors transition through the sales process Richard Stevens and Lester de Vere and creating a win-win for both seller and purchaser' Lester is ABC’s No.1 Auckland Salesperson in 2018 & 2020 and being named ABC’s Trusted Advisor of the Year 2018. Richard awarded the Rising Star of the Year 2020.
Handling a Direct Approach
So you have been approached by someone wanting to buy your business? Well, you should feel good about the fact that someone sees value in your business – or should you? Often a direct approach is because the buyer perceives a significant opportunity in buying your business. By initiating a direct approach they can keep a potential sale under the radar of other buyers thereby securing an advantage – potentially a discount on the true value of your business.
Reacting to a direct approach would normally see a business owner turning to their accountant for a perspective on the value of the business, followed by a rush to take up the offer as there will likely be pressure from the potential buyer to ‘act soon’. The end result could see the sale of your major incomeproducing asset for an amount significantly below what could have been achieved.
With some assistance from a specialist, preparation, tuning and effective marketing strategies to create some competition, you will greatly increase the chances of maximising the value of your business and minimising the stress and complexity that you would otherwise encounter.
No offence to accountants, but most business sales specialists are selling businesses as their primary activity day in and day out. This keeps them in tune with market and industry trends, relative value and demand, all of which will affect what a buyer is prepared to pay for your business asset. With a direct approach and only a single buyer, the seller has little bargaining leverage.
If you are approached to sell, pause, take a breath and by all means have a conversation with your accountant to get their perspective on value. However, start to think about engaging a business sales specialist. A better price will be achieved if there is more than one actively interested buyer and you will at least be able to sleep knowing you have explored all potential sales avenues. Most business sales specialists will have genuine registered buyers actively looking for business opportunities or they will be aware of potential buyers worth approaching on your behalf.
Cheers for now Lester & Richard
Lester de Vere, 0274 599 773 or email: Lesterd@abcbusiness.co.nz; Richard Stevens, 021 375 149 or email: richards@abcbusiness.co.nz; Facebook: Lester de Vere ABC Business Broker / Richard Stevens ABC Business Broker Visit: www.abcbusiness.co.nz
Legally Speaking with Lauren Davis, Lawyer, Schnauer & Co. What’s mine is yours, what’s yours is mine
Lauren Davis.
There are some relationship milestones which are easy to remember: your first date, your first anniversary, the resolution of your first argument, the excitement of first moving in together – the list goes on.
One of the milestones that is less clear cut (and probably far less exciting to keep track of) is the moment that your property becomes “relationship property”; when “what’s mine is yours and what’s yours is mine” becomes a summary of your legal entitlements rather than just a turn of phrase.
This milestone is reached when you get married, enter into a civil union or have been living together as a couple in a “de-facto relationship” for three or more years. After that, there is a baseline presumption that all property that is owned by both partners (whether in joint or separate names) becomes relationship property to be divided equally between partners on separation or death.
There is often confusion about when a de-facto relationship first reaches the milestone of three years. A lot of that confusion is caused by the phrase “living together as a couple”. So, before you start counting the time that has passed since you and your significant other moved in together, let me clarify this idea of “living together as a couple” and what it really means.
“Living together as a couple” is a phrase which encapsulates the idea of mutual commitment and recognises the fact that not all relationships are the same. While sharing a home together may often be a very central part of showing your commitment to one another, it is not the be-all and end-all when it comes to determining if you are in fact in a de-facto relationship. This means that even if you do not live under the same roof you could still be living together as a couple and still qualify as a de-facto relationship with a shared relationship property pool. If you present to the world as a couple, share significant parts of your life together and have done so for three or more years you may be far closer to the milestone of being in a qualifying de-facto relationship than you had previously realised.
As your relationship begins to develop and you approach that three-year mark, it may be worth discussing with your partner how you both envisage your property ownership in the future. You can decide whether you’re both happy with the “what’s mine is yours and what’s yours is mine” approach or perhaps whether you want to keep some things separate. If the latter option is preferable to you, a contracting out agreement gives you the ability to ring-fence parts of your property to ensure it retains its classification as “separate property” and does not fall into the “relationship property pool”.
The Family Law team at Schnauer and Co Lawyers can guide you through the ins and outs of your relationship property entitlements and can provide assistance in both the drafting and execution of contracting out agreements if needed.
Schnauer & Co, 1 Shea Terrace, Takapuna 09 486 0177 www.schnauer.com
Do you have this pest plant in your backyard?
APRIL PEST PLANT OF THE MONTH: Pampas
Pest plants, such as moth plant and pampas grass, are invading Auckland’s North Shore – your gardens and your nearby bush reserves. Controlling them when they are small is easy and cheap. If they are left to grow, they can spread across your property onto your neighbours’ gardens and to nearby reserves.
Auckland Council has recently introduced new rules that require people in some areas to remove some pest plants from their property, in order to protect our native biodiversity.
Pampas is an invasive grass which forms in clumps up to six metres tall. Sometimes mistaken for our beautiful native toetoe, the leaves of pampas are razor-sharp, hence its common name, ‘cutty grass’. Unlike toetoe’s drooping creamy-coloured flowers, pampas produces flowers from February to April that are erect, dense and uniform – generally white, pinkish or purplish in colour.
Pampas is a serious threat to some natural areas like sand dunes, stream banks and coastal cliffs where it can completely replace native plants. It is also a problem on roadsides, as it reduces visibility. Pampas can be a fire risk and harbours animal pests such as rats, mice, rabbits and possums.
Take action as soon as possible before the seeds form next summer: • Report the weed using the EcoTrack.nz app. • For young plants, the best option is to loosen the soil and pull them out. A digger or bulldozer can be used to remove big plants. • To avoid nasty cuts, wear gloves and protective clothing. • If using herbicides, they’re most effective on pampas during spring and early summer before the plants are flowering. Slash plants about 30cm from the ground and spot spray the regrowth with glyphosate 15ml/l (plus penetrant). Ask at your local garden centre, hardware store or RD1 farm supply store. Always wear appropriate personal protection equipment and read the manufacturer’s label for guidelines and recommendations. • For more experienced volunteers with Growsafe qualifications, other herbicide methods may be used. • Leaf matter can be left on site, acting as mulch and shading out the seed bank. • Speak to your neighbours to encourage them to take action too! • For more information and guides on weed control, visit restorehb.org.nz/resources-pest-plants/
There are several environmental networks across Auckland’s North Shore that support communities to recognise, report and remove pest plants and restore our native wildlife.
East Coast Bays and Hibiscus Coast – Restore Hibiscus & Bays: info@restorehb.org.nz, restorehb.org.nz/resources-pest-plants/, Facebook.com/RestoreHB Kaipātiki – Pest Free Kaipātiki: enquiries@pestfreekaipatiki.org.nz, pestfreekaipatiki.org.nz/pest-plant-resources, Facebook.com/ pestfreekaipatiki/ Takapuna – Pupuke Birdsong Project: enviro@takapunatrust.org.nz, Facebook.com/pupukebirdsongproject Devonport Peninsula – Restoring Takarunga Hauraki: pestfreedevonport@gmail.com Upper Harbour – Upper Harbour Ecological Network: upperharbourecology@gmail.com, Facebook.com/UpperHarbourEcologyNetwork For advice on chemical-free alternatives – Kaipātiki Project, community@kaipatiki.org.nz, kaipatiki.org.nz, Facebook.com/kaipatikiproject
This Pest Plant of the Month feature is a collaborative initiative between Restore Hibiscus & Bays, Pest Free Kaipātiki Restoration Society, Pupuke Birdsong Project, Restoring Takarunga Hauraki, the Upper Harbour Ecological Network and Kaipātiki Project. Building on Te Ao Māori principles of kaitiakitanga and whanaungatanga, these environmental networks bring our communities together to foster guardianship, care and respect towards our whenua, natural world and indigenous wildlife.
Life Education's Harold hard at work for our youth
Sandra Jacobs.
Having once again successfully navigated a five-day lockdown, a priority for schools is student well-being. Schools are under increasing pressure to place emotional well-being at the forefront of all their teaching and learning programmes.
In our complex and changing society, our children’s mental health and well-being shapes their success in life. Young people face an increasing number of issues that can seriously impact their well-being.
Schools need programmes such as Life Education’s Healthy Harold lessons which are integral to developing our young people at this challenging time.
Research shows us the need for our programmes in schools. The following are critical significant health issues for young people in New Zealand: • New Zealand has one of the worst youth suicide rates in the
OECD – and on average, 20 young people are admitted to hospital each week due to self-harm (Chief Coroner 2019). • New Zealand has one of the highest child obesity rates. We know this leads to poor mental health, higher incidences of being a victim of bullying and lower educational achievement (Taking Action on Childhood Obesity, WHO, 2016). • Thirty percent of children aged 13 or younger have tried alcohol, and 18% of that group say they ‘currently drink’, with nearly 7% saying they have been ‘binge drinking' in the last four weeks (University of Auckland Youth 2000 Series). • Youth experience high levels of anxiety, depression and psychological distress. Among 15-24 year-olds, 19% reported moderate to severe depression, 12% reported moderate to severe anxiety, and 36% reported medium-high levels of psychological distress within a two to four week period (HPA
Wellbeing and Mental Distress in Aotearoa NZ: Snapshot 2016). As a charity, we work hard to raise funds to keep Healthy Harold in schools across the North Shore. We seek financial support from grant applications and donations from companies and businesses on the Shore. We wish to acknowledge Albany Toyota’s ongoing financial assistance and recognise the need for Life Education within schools
Contact us: secretary@lifeeducationnorthshore.nz Visit: www.lifeeducationnorthshore.nz
By Bronwyn Bound, Sunnynook Community Centre Manager Greetings from Sunnynook Community Centre
Bronwyn Bound.
We had a great time at Sunnynook Community Centre on Friday 26th February 2021 for our ‘Mini Family Fun Evening’. It was a lot of fun and the entertainment (Sam & Loris Duo) was a huge hit with our Indoor Bowling Group who enjoyed sitting (and dancing) on the deck and listening to the jazz music.
We are very excited that the playground/community space project outside the Community Centre is due to commence in late April and will take approximately 10 weeks. This will be a huge improvement to the current playground and will allow us to do more events for the community based around the Centre.
We live in an awesome, supportive community and are very grateful for all the volunteers who come and help out at the Centre. We also enjoy our strong relationship with the local businesses in our community and encourage you all to ‘shop local’ and support them – we are so fortunate to have so many wonderful cafés in our area.
We are looking forward to running our Holiday Programme and Youth Programme during the April school holidays.
Check out www.sunnynookcomcentre.co.nz where you will find more information about the classes being run at the Centre.
All the best
Bronwyn Bound, Centre Manager
Email: office@sunnynookcomcentre.co.nz for more information or phone (09) 410 4902.
with Lindsay Knight
President tackles challenging period head on
Nobody could accuse Bowls North Harbour’s president, Maureen Taylor, of over-stating the case when she describes her two years to date in the position as “very memorable”.
Her term, which started in the 2019-20 season and is now into the current season, has coincided with the pandemic, which has caused so much disruption to all areas of everyday life. And lawn bowls, and many of its activities, has been among the casualties, which has caused someone like Maureen all sorts of headaches, for she not only is president of the centre but is a key member of the centre match committee.
“There has been a lot of disruption not just for Bowls North Harbour but nationally and for the clubs,” she says. “A lot of our clubs in particular have been hit very hard.”
Inevitably, the various lock-downs have meant a considerable amount of rearrangement which has had impacts on all levels of the game, requiring sacrifice and good will from everyone to ensure most of the programmes can be accommodated.
There were many cancellations of events last season, the most significant being the abandonment of the national inter-centre championship, for which Harbour had high hopes of success.
For this season, for Bowls North Harbour especially, the biggest blow has been the cancellation of the New Zealand Masters tournament, just as it was about to begin, which the centre was due to host for the second consecutive year.
The February lockdown came on the very eve of the tournament and indeed many of the players and officials first learnt of the need to cancel at the welcoming function at the Browns Bay club.
That meant those bowlers who had already arrived from many parts of the country, even from Central Otago in the South Island, had no option but to return home. And for the Harbour centre it meant a considerable loss of revenue, for in the 2019-20 season the Masters had been an excellent money-spinner.
The various lockdowns have also meant many meetings could not be held in the usual, formal sense, introducing Maureen to something she and others of her generation, had never heard of previously: Zoom conferences.
Maureen now hopes that something like normality will return for the 2021-22 season and while she has yet to confirm her availability most probably would be happy for her to continue into a third year.
A youthful 80-year-old, Maureen only arrived in New Zealand to join son Neil in 2000 from her native Scotland, where she first played bowls with her late husband Bill in Aberdeen in the early 1980s. Indeed, she was a spectator in that city when Peter Belliss won his world singles title from her countryman Willie Wood.
She quickly became just as steeped in the game here, firstly with the Mairangi Bay women’s club and then the combined club, as president and umpire, and since 2008, after a shift to Stanmore Bay, with Orewa, where she soon became match committee chair.
She has been equally effective on the green and with Mairangi clubmates, the late Moira O’Brien and Caryl Miles, in 2002-03 won the centre’s champion of champions triples title.
And while it has been a tough couple of years for local bowls, she is mindful of the battles of others elsewhere, especially her relatives and friends in her homeland who have been in much longer lockdowns. “Sometimes I think New Zealanders don’t appreciate how lucky we’ve been here.” she says.
