Waitaki Newcomers Network

Upcoming Events in Waitaki

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About us

Welcome to the Waitaki Newcomers Network. This service has been running since 2012 and has helped over 800 families settle here. Contact us today and join the team of people who have chosen to make Waitaki their new home.

Our Coordinator: Jan

Tēnā Koutou Katoa. 

I am Jan Taylor, and I work as the coordinator for Waitaki Multicultural and the Waitaki Newcomers Network. I am supported in my role by amazing volunteers and facilitators who work incessantly to create sustainable, safe spaces for “newcomers” and “migrants” as they settle into the communities that shape the Waitaki District; we currently have over 500 families involved in our kaupapa and many enjoy the events and activities that we as an organisation provide.

I recently moved from the North Island to Oamaru after a brief 16 week stop in Christchurch to work in the Electoral Commission Head Office during the 2023 election period. I therefore empathise with the challenges out newcomers and migrant families can face while finding their way in a new community and more often a new country.

I am now retired from an extensive background in the “hair and beauty” industry. I enjoy the leisurely pace of Oamaru and find it ideal to ease into my new role while I complete the final stages of studying my “Bachelor of Law”, I believe my degree will complement my position and be beneficial to those we offer support to. I have also been an “Employment Law” Advocate for the past decade, so I am no stranger to a good legal argument. I look forward to being an active member of the Waitaki District and getting to know you all.