A “huge” highlight of her time at Number 10 Youth One Stop Shop have been the people she has worked with, Jude Crump says. After 16 years at the organisation, which started when she was employed as a nurse in the health clinic, Mrs Crump has resigned. She has filled in as interim director on several occasions and has spent the past four as director. Mrs Crump said working in the not-for-profit sector was always challenging because of the constant need to find funding. “Our staff have done a lot with a little, I think probably would be what I’d say. “I know that our staff really care about the young people that they’re working with.” When working with young people, it was more important to “be the fence at the top of the cliff rather than ambulance at the bottom of the cliff”. The challenges facing young people seemed to have increased since she started at Number 10, she said. “Now we are seeing complex issues that are not just one or two issues, it’s three or four or five issues.” Some of the organisation’s clients were neurodiverse young people who were struggling in the school system. Young people were able to access many services quickly at Number 10 which suited them, she said. “They don’t want to be bounced around to multiple places.” Despite the challenges, it was not all doom and gloom. “We have some incredible young people who are amazingly resilient and can make life work with what they’ve got. “I’ve been really privileged to work alongside them.” Another highlight was winning the not-for-profit section at the Southland Business Excellence Awards in 2023. “In the not-for-profit space, you often feel a little bit like the poor cousin of all the businesses, so it was really nice to get that affirmation.” She had appreciated the support of groups who did similar work to Number 10. “We feel like there’s not patch protection and we work together for the good of the young people of Murihiku.” While she was sad to leave Number 10, it was easier to do so knowing Candace Bangura, the director before her, had returned to the role, Mrs Crump said. “I feel like a parent handing a baby over. “You know you can give the baby to the new person because you know that the new person’s going to do a really good job and look after the baby, as it were.” Her husband, Pete, died in 2024 and she had continued at the organisation, working through the “firsts” occasions that happen with a bereavement. However, during last year’s Christmas holidays when she was thinking about planning the direction of Number 10 for the next three years, she realised she did not have the energy to look ahead and needed a break. “I think it was a decision about finishing while I’m doing well.” She would take a couple of months’ holiday, which included trips to Perth and Sri Lanka, and then look for work.
