What is Waimate's community-led development approach?

What is Waimate's community-led development approach?

Waimate

Waimate township is the central hub for the wider Waimate District. It is a rural town which services a large geographic area and sits halfway between two bigger towns Timaru and Oamaru

There is a strong sense of community with an ability to innovate. Waimate has historically been an incubator for new ideas and programmes, which have then been picked up by other centres e.g. Waimate Community Vehicle Trust,

Mobile Kindy and the school-based Community of Learning.The shared vision is “To keep Waimate's strengths as a good place to live, where we know the names of our neighbours, where people regularly stop and talk with other locals and feel pride in their community”. The community has identified the need for a strengthened and equipped culture of volunteering, with clear succession plans in place and emerging leaders identified and nurtured. Another key area for progression is economic development and some key projects have been identified including; developing a tourist circuit.