Social Housing

Social housing solutions and responses following the Canterbury earthquakes.

The weeks and months after the earthquakes saw many displaced residents across Canterbury, compelled to leave damaged homes and unsafe environments. As entire neighbourhoods were declared unliveable and houses red-stickered for eventual demolition, people were faced with the reality of relocation, either temporary or permanent. The content on this page relates to the social housing situation that arose from the Canterbury earthquakes, including some of the most relevant personal accounts, interviews, news reports, and research papers.

Personal Stories:

Mary Hamilton's Story | UC QuakeStudies - Mary talks about her relocation after the earthquake on 22 February 2011, when her home was damaged. She applied to Housing New Zealand and after initially being offered a place on Hampshire Street, she was eventually allocated a home in Shirley. She also mentions her struggles with mental health, and how this was exacerbated by discomfort in the rough neighbourhood. She mentions issues with heating in her new home that she has brought up with Housing New Zealand, but they have not responded. Interview conducted 15 November 2013
June Tiopira's Story | UC QuakeStudies - June talks about struggling with homelessness after the Canterbury earthquakes. In the immediate aftermath, she took her children to live temporarily with her mother in Avonside, then sold most of her belongings and moved to Picton for a few months. This didn’t work out, and eventually June was allocated a home by Housing New Zealand. Interview conducted 25 November 2011
Lois Herbert's Story | UC QuakeStudies - Lois talks about her work as manager of the Battered Women’s Refuge during and after the Canterbury earthquakes. She discusses Housing New Zealand on page 6 and mentions the fact that many women who they saw at the refuge were struggling with housing because they did not meet the criteria to be allocated a new home. Often this led to these women moving in with friends, or sometimes with abusive partners. Interview conducted 6 September 2012
Transcript of participant number AP2511's earthquake story | UC QuakeStudies - The participant talks about how the Methven Heritage Centre became a temporary refuge after the earthquake on 22 February 2011. They mention people from Christchurch coming to the iSite for accommodation, and people in the community opening their homes to house others temporarily. Interview conducted 15 November 2012

Audio Files:

RNZ Morning Report, 3 May 2012 - “Call for more temporary villages in Christchurch” (4 minutes)
RNZ Morning Report, 9 July 2012 - “New housing village opens for quake-displaced residents” (2 minutes 40 seconds)
RNZ Morning Report, 5 April 2013 - “Govt announces 40 new houses for Chch” (3 minutes 10 seconds)
Parliament Question Time, 2 April 2015 - “Question 11. POTO WILLIAMS to the Minister for Social Housing: Why are Christchurch's social housing organisations facing increased homelessness four years after the last major earthquake?” (TIMESTAMP 56:55)
Parliament Question Time, 16 September 2010 - “Question 11. CHESTER BORROWS to the Minister of Housing: What is the Government doing to assist people whose homes are not habitable following the Canterbury earthquake?” (TIMESTAMP 50:07)
Parliament Question Time, 1 August 2012 - “Question 12. Hon ANNETTE KING to the Minister of Housing: What recent reports has he received on housing in the Aranui area of Christchurch?” (TIMESTAMP 57:35)

Research Papers and Articles:

“Housing Affordability in Post-Earthquake Christchurch.” - This resource discusses Housing New Zealand and the damage to their existing properties caused by the earthquakes, which made it more difficult for them to relocate the new influx of homeless clients. Published 2014
“Post-Disaster Mobilities: Exploring Household Relocation after the Canterbury Earthquake.” - This is an extensive thesis paper (Master of Science in Geography) that looks at “patterns of residential mobility amongst thirty-one red-zone households from the suburb of Southshore, Christchurch.” Published 2013
“The Wrong Side of the Tracks.” - This thesis (Master of Architecture - Professional) proposes an alternative model for the social housing in Christchurch: one that would bring state homes out of the eastern suburbs and into the city centre. Published 2014
“Planning for Resilient Communities: and Every Other Day." - This thesis (Doctor of Philosophy in Geography) analyses various neighbourhoods and communities in Christchurch after the earthquakes. Hoon Hay and Opawa – both suburbs with social housing – are discussed, and some of the residents interviewed give their opinions on the state homes. Published 2017
“Christchurch: The Transitional City Pt IV, pages 280-281: Temporary Housing.” - This two-page spread from the book Christchurch: The Transitional City Pt. IV briefly outlines the temporary villages that were set up after the earthquakes. Originally Published 2012
“Anglican Advocacy: Housing press release.” - This press release from the Anglican Advocacy discusses a Government report on Christchurch housing and criticises some of the claims made by Parliament regarding the housing situation in Canterbury. Written 5 April 2013
“Anglican Advocacy: Incentive scheme proposal.” - This report, written by the Anglican Advocacy and Te Whare Roimata outlines how social housing could look in Christchurch’s Inner City East following the earthquakes. Written 2012
Southern View 9 December 2013 (Page 1 & 3) | "Social housing units in planning stage." - This newspaper article details some of the plans for a new set of housing units in Aranui. It also gives information on the state of other housing units in Christchurch, many of which were damaged in the earthquakes and had to be vacated for repairs to take place.

Other Resources:

“Housing Emergency Lease Programme.” - This is the (now archived) Housing New Zealand website, as it appeared in 2011 following the earthquakes.

General Searches:

For further information on social housing and the Canterbury earthquakes, search the CEISMIC collection or get started with one of the links below.