How We Commission
Whānau Ora Commissioning Agency (formerly Te Pou Matakana) has served the North Island since 2014 and is the largest in Aotearoa. We are here to support the aspirations of whānau (families) by: commissioning kaupapa that support whānau to achieve their goals. working alongside our Whānau Ora partners to build on the strengths and assets of whānau and their communities seeking co-investment, co-design and co-production opportunities that support whānau aspirations.
Commissioning activities aim to achieve whānau outcomes. Outcomes mean whānau will enjoy good health, experience economic wellbeing, be knowledgeable and well informed, be culturally secure, resilient, self-managing and able to participate fully in te ao Māori and in wider society.
Our commissioning models point of difference
Standard funding models
Standard funding models invest in tightly defined services and activities that are specific to a service and programme. They focus on unit costs, prescriptive activity, targets and exacting outputs making services rigid with little flexibility to respond to changing circumstances and needs.
Deficit-focused data requirements ask what’s wrong and how to reduce it – creating a missed opportunity to take a more preventative and strengths-based approach.
A hierarchical structure sees professionals sitting above service users in decision-making, leaving service users divorced from the design and delivery of their services. Instead, decision-makers are those disconnected from the user experience of the services.
Our funding model
Our commissioning for outcomes approach invests in social outcomes for whānau (and the wider community). Identifying needs and issues happens within communities and whānau who also co-produce methods of addressing these needs and concerns.
We help to create long-term social value by focusing on the bigger picture of issues and trends to help us build awareness, and take a more preventative approach to existing and emerging issues.
Our strength-based thinking of data means we explore the needs and assets of whānau (and communities). This allows us to build a picture of what works to lever current strengths and build upon weaknesses.
Because we co-produce (commissioning model, programmes) everyone has a stake in success making success more likely.
We stimulate innovation by moving away from over-specified services and asking Whānau Ora partners, whānau, and communities (who use services) to explore ideas and activities to help achieve success. Ultimately services users are best placed to say how the service is working and what could be done better.
Funding allocation
Whānau Ora Commissioning funds are allocated into the regions based on the distribution of the Māori descent population by Māori electoral regions, using Census data.