NEWS + MEDIA

Keep up to date with the latest news from RBS below…

Waiora House opened and blessed

‘Nā tō rourou, nā taku rourou, ka ora ai te iwi. With your basket and my basket, the people will thrive’.

A place where people can collaborate, connect and work together for the betterment of the community – that’s the vision behind the new Waiora House, which this morning opened its doors to the public for the first time.

The new $7.7 million building on the corner of Kaimanawa Street and Spa Road replaces the former Taupō Maternity Hospital, which used to occupy the site but was demolished in 2019 after asbestos was discovered. The former hospital building had been serving as a hub for Taupō district social sector agencies and four years later the new Waiora House will bring those agencies together under one roof once more.

The new building was designed by local firm Shelter Architects and constructed by Taupō building firm RBS Group, with local subcontractors and services used throughout. It has been designed for collaboration and connection and comprises a shared office space as well as meeting rooms and gathering areas for community use.

The maihi (barge board) on the exterior of Waiora House and the waharoa (entranceway) feature carvings by master carver Delani Brown. The figurehead on the maihi represents Tama-nui-o-te-Rā; and the carved pou is Hine Te Waiora, representing pure water springs and the birthing waters, with a kererū on her crown. Guardian figures presented on her body represent local hapū and mana whenua. The figurehead on Hine Te Waiora’s crown acknowledges Rongo, who represents love, compassion, growth and nurturing.

Inside, the artworks on the glass represent whānau, and wrap around the main meeting in the manner of a korowai (cloak).

While Taupō District Council owns Waiora House, the Waiora Community Trust will run the new building and manage the tenants.

Taupō District Mayor David Trewavas said he was excited to see the building open to the community.

“Waiora House stands not just as a physical structure, but as a symbol of hope, growth, and collaboration. This facility will serve as a hub for meaningful interactions and support all members of our community,” Mr Trewavas said.

“Over the past years, the pandemic and other factors such as the housing shortage have made life considerably harder for a sizeable, but often overlooked, number of people in our district. For years, Waiora House was the place they went to for help and advice, and Council was committed to rebuilding it so that our district has a social services hub once more. It’s also an exciting opportunity to create a beautiful flagship community centre for our district.

“I would like to say a huge congratulations to everyone involved in making Waiora House a reality.”

Val Hoogerbrugge, standing in for Waiora Community Trust chairman Chris Johnston, thanked everyone involved in the project and said the trust was looking forward to the collaborative working opportunities ahead.

The ribbon to mark the building opening was cut by Mata Knight, the first baby born in the original Waiora House in the 1940s, and it was blessed by local hapū.

Taupō District Council
01 September 2023

RBS achieves SiteWise status once again

The RBS team has continued to focus on improving and upholding our health & safety processes and procedures to the highest standard - once again achieving SiteWise GOLD status!

For more info on SiteWise click here.

14 August 2023

Taupō social services hub takes shape

Designing a building to house multiple social services has required a bit more thought than the traditional, open-plan office block.

Waiora House on Spa Rd is taking shape and on track for completion in mid-2023.

From there, it will be an integral part of the Taupō community, housing social services agencies for generations to come.

The previous building was home to numerous social services for 34 years - a place where people went for support and advice, and was originally the Taupō Maternity Hospital. It had to be demolished following the discovery of asbestos in 2019.

Project manager Pete Bradshaw says Taupō District Council has been working with the Waiora Community Trust on a purpose-built, safe and welcoming building to act as a social services hub that will be council-owned but operated by the trust.

“This is such an important project for the community. Whilst the project has had its challenges, everyone involved has gone the extra mile to achieve a quality outcome. We’ve been working with the trust and tenants and local company Shelter Architects to make sure the design is going to work for everyone in the building and main contractor RBS has been doing a great job turning the plans into a reality.”

Shelter architect Paul Raven said the project had come together very well and his team were proud to have been involved in the design.

“The important part is listening and finding out which pieces of the puzzle the people using the building want and need, then figuring out how they all fit together. The service providers of the new Waiora House have different models and ways of working but it was clear based on what we learned from them that they held some common values. This helped us to evolve the design.”

“We visited existing buildings with similar functions – like The Kollective in Tauranga and Scion in Rotorua – to see how collaborative work spaces had been designed elsewhere. It was also important to reflect the perspective of local iwi and hapū: the importance of the site, the significance of Mt Tauhara and the river, and the meaning of Waiora – which refers to water but references being sustained by the environment and having access to resources that support and sustain life.

“Our response is a building that is simple in form, that meets the requirements of the people and that respects the site. There is a non-symmetrical shape to the building and the waharoa - it has a curved aspect to it that gives a welcoming and nurturing feel.”

Eileen Devane of the Taupō Women’s Refuge and the Taupō Community Food Bank, both of which were tenants of the old Waiora House, was looking forward to the new building’s completion and had been involved in discussions about it from day one.

“Social services tend to be very siloed and require a high degree of confidentiality. I understand that need for privacy, but I also know we can work around that in terms of an open plan concept. And I think people will see that the concept can work - it will mean some change, but we can adjust, we’re pretty good at changing and adapting!

“Social services don’t always need to be siloed anymore. It’s about sharing the load and being open and welcoming and making sure we have a wrap around for people – and that is why it makes so much sense to have all our services in a ‘one stop shop’.

“Some of the bigger services have moved on to bigger spaces, which makes sense, but we’re really excited about seeing the building finished and starting a whole new chapter for Waiora House. We’ve worked with the project team along the way and it’s been great seeing how everyone has cooperated to make it the best it can be – not just for now but for generations to come.”

Taupo & Turangi Herald
Friday 03 February 2023

The RBS team achieves SiteWise GOLD status

The RBS team has worked hard during the past few months to build on existing Health & Safety procedures as well as undertaking additional training and health monitoring with the aim of increasing our SiteWise status. We are very pleased to announce that we have just been awarded SiteWise GOLD status!

This means that our team has demonstrated our committment to Health & Safety and shown that we have high quality health and safety systems in place.

For more info on SiteWise click here.

Friday 26 August 2022

The RBS team is proud to once again achieve SiteWise Green status

We take Health & Safety seriously here at RBS Group and are proud to announce that we have achieved SiteWise Green for the second year in a row.

Achieving SiteWise Green means: We have demonstrated that we have quality health and safety systems in place.

For more info on SiteWise click here.

Monday 9 May 2022

Taupō district social services hub Waiora House to rise again

The Taupō district’s much-loved social services hub, Waiora House, is set to make a reappearance on its iconic Spa Road site.

The new Waiora House, which will be owned by Taupō District Council but operated by Waiora Community Trust, will be a purpose-built, safe and welcoming building that will support the needs of the social sector for many years to come.

Previously located in the former Taupō Maternity Hospital, it housed a variety of not-for-profit organisations and was highly valued by the community. It was demolished in 2019 after asbestos was discovered and since then, planning has been underway for a replacement building.

The new Waiora House has been designed to be flexible to allow people and agencies to work together in a connected and collaborative way. In addition, there will be public and private meeting spaces for community use.

Waiora Community Trust deputy chairman Chris Johnston is on the steering committee overseeing the project and said it was exciting to see the new building about to start.

“For the past 34 years Waiora Community Trust’s management of Waiora House has allowed the social sector to have a safe, affordable hub for up to 22 entities, providing essential social services to our community,” Mr Johnston said. “The new building with its modern efficient layout will ensure these organisations can continue to operate in the most effective and collaborative manner.”

Taupō District Mayor David Trewavas said Waiora House is an integral part of the community and its services have never been more in demand, with pressure on the social sector increasing.

“The pandemic and other factors such as the housing shortage have made life considerably harder for a sizeable, but often overlooked, number of people in our district,” Mr Trewavas said.

“For years, Waiora House was the place they went to for help and advice. Council is committed to rebuilding it so that our district will have a social services hub once more. It’s also an exciting opportunity to create a flagship community centre for our district.”

The building contract has been awarded to locally-owned and operated company RBS Group Limited who plan to begin work on the site next month. The building is expected to be complete by late April 2023.

The amount originally budgeted for the rebuild was $5.9 million but that has risen by another $1.8 million due to the soaring cost of construction materials and supply issues since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Published in the Taupo & Turangi Weekender, Friday 11th March 2022