Other useful resources for charities

Published 18 August 2021

Information and support from government

• All charities should read the guidelines and follow updates from the Unite Against COVID website.

• Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori have produced an excellent language resource that gives te reo terms linked to COVID-19.

• The Ministry for Ethnic Communities has prepared videos about COVID-19 in a variety of languages for ethnic communities.

• The Government also announced support for people affected by the downturn in business due to COVID-19. More information on financial support for businesses is available here and on Inland Revenue's website.

• Find out more about the leave support scheme here.

• The government's COVID-19 pages have a simple financial support tool that lets you know what support you or your organisation may be eligible for.

• Charities may qualify for the Small Business Cash Flow Loan. Find out more information here.

• Our Community Operations whānau have provided information for those wanting to look out for the next community grant round. They will also remain open, but working remotely, during the shutdown.

• To help charities with financial reporting questions, the External reporting Board (XRB) has collated useful links on its website: Information in response to COVID-19. 

• The Ministry of Health has produced specific guidance for aged care providers in how they can respond to the virus.

• Oranga Tamariki and Ministry for Social Development have information on what social services are considered essential. Please contact them if you are essential service and haven't heard from a government agency.

• Log on to your charity’s online account to review your rules document and see what procedures and policies you may have in place to deal with this kind of situation.

• Exemption cards are available for those who cannot wear a mask due to health conditions. Find more information on Exemption cards here. 

• Te Tahua Whakakaha, a fund administered by the Ministry of Culture and Heritage, has been announced. It will support the cultural sector in Aotearoa to adapt and respond to Aotearoa’s post-COVID-19 environment.

• He kupu āwhina i ngā marae is a useful resource that provides COVID-19 guidance for marae.

Resources for charities and boards

• CommunityNet Aotearoa has produced a helpful resource with relevant up-to-date information from the Ministry of Health, advice on public events and mass gatherings, MBIE’s information for businesses and general advice provided by the World Health Organisation.

• Philanthropy New Zealand has issued guidance around what charities and people who want to give can do during this time.

• Volunteering New Zealand is the national organisation for volunteering and volunteers, and it works collaboratively with Volunteer Centres. Their website has resources to help manage pandemics and disasters for volunteer organisations. They have also released guidelines for volunteers working under different alert levels and for community organisations working with volunteers under different alert levels.

• The Fundraising Institute of New Zealand (FINZ) has brought together a panel of experts for their Ask the Experts page. You can submit your own question to the experts as well as read all the past questions and answers.

• JBWere has published a guide that has seven areas of focus for board leadership to consider during times of crisis. Read the full report here. We have adapted this report into a single page guide here: Governance in a crisis for small charities. [PDF, 77 KB] 

• For Tier 1 and Tier 2 entities, the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) Foundation has released educational documents for the consistent reporting of IFRS 16 Leases and IFRS 9 Financial Instruments.

• The Institute of Directors has some tips on what Boards can do to deal with the impact of COVID-19.

• RSM New Zealand provided a blog on practical steps board's should be thinking about.

• Volunteering Waikato has written a blog that gives tips for non-profits and volunteer engagement leaders for planning for COVID-19.

• COVID-19 may make your organisation more vulnerable to scammers. Check out our FAQs page for more information. You can also report any scams to Netsafe or learn more about Spam and Electronic Messaging here.

Resources for remote working

• TechSoup has highlighted a number of useful tools, online platforms and another page suggesting helpful tech resources to aid in the transition to a remote workforce. 

Resources from abroad

• The Institute of Community Directors in Australia has given access to a library of capacity building resources including policies and help sheets to support the sector during this time.

• This information comes from the National Council of Voluntary Organisations in the UK. It has a lot of relevant information for New Zealand charities. They have also written a blog outlining what trustees need to think about and practical tips for working remotely.

• What non-profit board members should be doing right now to address the COVID-19 situation – a handy blog from BoardSource (USA).