Greater Wellington YMCA chief executive Brendan Owens (left) and interim YMCA Central chief executive Kevin Ross are in talks about merging the two. Photo / Laurel Stowell
Greater Wellington YMCA chief executive Brendan Owens (left) and interim YMCA Central chief executive Kevin Ross are in talks about merging the two. Photo / Laurel Stowell
YMCA services in Whanganui will continue despite its impending merger with Wellington but some jobs will be lost and it will sell its present home, the former St George's school.
YMCA Central, which includes Whanganui and Palmerston North, is in financial difficulty, interim chief executive Kevin Ross said.The merger with Greater Wellington YMCA will share resources and cut costs.
It's likely to happen within the next two months, after Central agrees to conditions about finance and structure.
In the meantime YMCA Central is restructuring. Some jobs will be lost, and more could follow after the merger, Ross said.
He hopes to keep all the Whanganui programmes going. But he said programmes always come and go according to changes in need and viability.
Out-of-school care in Bulls, for example, will move to a Marton provider - but not as a result of the merger.
YMCA Central bought the former St George's Preparatory School complex in 2012, when it needed the space as part of an arrangement with Whanganui schools hosting students from South Korea.
The buildings have suited its early childhood education venture, but no longer suit the larger organisation. YMCA Central intends to sell them, and Ross said someone is interested in buying.
In future its separate functions could be housed in different places, as they were before the purchase of St George's.
The main reason for YMCA Central's financial difficulty is changes in education, Ross and Greater Wellington chief executive Brendan Owens said.
The secondary students the YMCA teaches are some of the most difficult around.
"You spend a lot of time just getting the kids to class to have a chance to learn."
They tend to drop in and out, and the organisation has to pay back the contract funding if they don't attend.
"That did happen, and it's still happening, but less," Ross said.
Camp Raukawa is one of YMCA Central's operations.
The students are also expected to meet all the same standards as other teenagers in secondary schools. There's more compliance, and more competition for students, and the base funding of $10,800 per student hasn't increased.
"It's pretty difficult staying alive in this space at the moment," Owens said.
Ross agreed to return as interim chief executive after Aaron Palmer left in January, for personal reasons. He and Owens want to keep the YMCA "brand" alive in Palmerston North and Whanganui.
As well as working with young people across the board the YMCA looks after the most needy and vulnerable, Ross said.
"Whanganui needs that. We think it's really important for our community. The merger will retain that."
YMCA • started in London 175 years ago • been in this region for 104 years • aims to help people, especially youth, reach their full potential • funding is 50:50 user pays and contracts with government
YMCA Central • formed in 2011 with merger of Whanganui and Palmerston North • more than 100 full and part-time staff across both centres • 80-100 full-time students
YMCA Central provides • early childhood education • education for teenagers not fitting into mainstream schooling • numeracy and literacy education • before and after school childcare • holiday programmes • mentoring • youth justice work • Camp Raukawa
