SKIP Whanganui collaboration effort
Collaboration is central to SKIP's support of parents. We know there are already groups working hard in their communities and by encouraging them to work together - to pool their local knowledge, resources and contacts - we can reach a lot more parents. That means we can make the best use of existing community resources and the SKIP positive parenting message will be consistent for all.
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Collaboration in Whanganui
Collaboration changes communities and Royce Dewe's experience in setting up SKIP Whanganui perfectly illustrates this.
When Royce attended the SKIP launch in Wellington in 2004, she listened very carefully.
"I heard the word collaboration very clearly," she remembers. "I thought about it in the car all the way back to Whanganui and realised we were in a good position to get things happening."
She invited a variety of other agencies to a meeting to talk about a SKIP collaboration and was blown away by the response. She gave 24 hours notice of the meeting, which was attended by representatives from early childhood, kindergarten, public health and social service agencies.
"Everyone saw the need for action and the opportunity to work together, rather than competing for funding."
The collaboration made an application to the first round of the SKIP Local Initiatives Fund (LIF) for a SKIP co-ordinator to liaise with the different groups, organise training, promote SKIP resources, establish a database of parent support and work with other groups to organise community-wide parenting events.
The application was accepted and SKIP Whanganui was born.
Royce says the collaboration has gone from strength to strength. Meetings rotate around the premises of the different groups and everyone now has a greater understanding of the people involved and the work they do. This is proving really useful when parents are referred between the different groups.
"We're sharing knowledge and expertise across the groups, and find we're more likely to pick up the phone when there is an issue."
That collaboration has grown as other groups see the work they are doing and understand the approach. By 2009, 50 local organisations, agencies, early childhood and social services working alongside families in the Whanganui region are part of the Whanganui SKIP Forum.
There are many benefits to the parents. They get consistent messages from everyone involved and exposure to SKIP resources everywhere they go.
"Each one of us taps into the communities we work with and we end up reaching across the whole community. We find we're engaging with families that can be hard to reach.
"The work we're doing is based on the needs of the community. It strengthens what we're already doing."
Tips for effective collaboration
- spend time building relationships where expectations are clear and understood by everyone
- respect diversity; recognise the unique skills and experiences everyone brings
- have a shared vision, values and principles to guide how you operate
- decide on the outcomes you want to achieve - why you are there
- plan how you will achieve the outcomes and how you will measure them if you are successful
- use open and clear communication, including how you will keep in touch between meetings
- plan what you are going to do together - don't come up with an idea and then ask people to support you
