Ōtākou Health Ltd (OHL), the charity that runs health and social service provider Te Kāika, failed to meet government-required social sector accreditation standards and consequently had its approved status to deliver social services suspended on February 4. It regained its accreditation earlier this month.
A list summarising the 28 actions, which include key management responsibilities, was provided to the Otago Daily Times by social service accreditation body Te Kāhui Kāhu general manager Magnus O’Neill.
He said an assessment of OHL, which took place in December last year, had identified the charity ‘‘needed to address 28 critical actions’’.
In the same month, the Otago Daily Times published the first articles detailing its investigation into the charity.
Mr O’Neill said Te Kāhui Kāhu assessments looked at ‘‘a wide range of criteria, including staffing, health and safety, governance and management structure and systems, financial management and systems, and quality improvement’’.
Critical actions OHL was tasked with remedying included risk management.
The charity had been required to provide ‘‘evidence about how they [OHL] monitor compliance with their health and safety policy, identify hazards and mitigate risks’’.
An updated strategic plan, including ‘‘documenting the scope, goals and intended outcomes of each service or programme’’, was also sought by Te Kāhui Kāhu, plus a ‘‘completed, up-to-date business continuity and disaster recovery plan’’.
There was also a string of requirements relating to staffing.
The charity needed to provide ‘‘evidence about professional development, vetting and recruitment procedures for both staff and board members’’.
Conflict of interest policies and procedures also needed to be evidenced and the charity had to provide full and complete audited financial statements evidencing loans, debts and business expenditure.
In several stories, the ODT has written about OHL’s repeated failures to submit its accounts on time to charity watchdog Charities Services and also has reported on large sums loaned and paid to OHL chairwoman Donna Matahaere-Atariki.
Te Kāhui Kāhu also requires relevant senior staff to be registered as officers under the Charities Services website.
OHL has now registered two additional trustees on the website.
Tuari Potiki and Christine Maxwell join the OHL board, which previously comprised only Ms Matahaere-Atariki, Matapura Ellison and James Hennessy.
Mr Potiki was employed by the University of Otago as director of Māori development between 2012 and September 2023.
OHL is one of 1700 organisations listed on a Te Kāhui Kāhu register of accredited services, and one of 74 services with ‘‘level 1’’ accreditation.
OHL is required to have its accreditation reviewed in a year’s time. The standard arrangement is that organisations’ accreditation is reviewed every two years.
Mr O’Neill said there were about 90 organisations on an 12-month or six-month review cycle across New Zealand at present.
