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Food,
entertainment, fun and lots of free vouchers to fast-food outlets
will delight kids who attend the Children's Day event organised
by the Mt Roskill Citizens Advice Bureau this Sunday.
The
bureau is one of the many groups around the country organising something
for New Zealand's first-ever national Children's Day.
The
event, which the Mt Roskill bureau has organised in partnership
with one of its local primary schools, will celebrate the children
in its community and draw attention to the huge number of resources
the bureau has relating to the needs of children.
"The
91 Citizens Advice Bureaux that belong to the national Association
hold a vast amount of information relating to children," says Chief
Executive Officer Nick Toonen of the New Zealand Association of
Citizens Advice Bureaux. The bureaux are spread from Kaitaia to
Invercargill and are staffed by volunteers from the community.
"People
go to a Citizens Advice Bureau for information about custody and
access to children, to find out what level of child support they
are entitled to, for emergency housing, food parcels, to find out
what childcare is available in their area, or what holiday programmes
are on offer. Or they want to know their rights as a consumer when
their children's brand new sneakers fall apart. Or perhaps their
child has been expelled from school and they need information about
their rights as a parent. The list of information on child-related
matters a CAB can provide is endless.
"The
other aspect to the CAB service that many people benefit from is
that our trained volunteers have time to sit down and talk through
problems with their clients. Many of our volunteers have been parents
and know the stresses associated with child rearing, and combined
with their extensive training this means they are well placed to
understand the problems parents are facing. They are there to listen
and support people to find the best solutions possible to their
problems. They have access to an extensive and up to date information
database and can refer people onto the organisations that can help
with their specific problem or enquiry."
To
get in touch with your nearest Citizens Advice Bureau phone 0800
FOR CAB (0800 367 222) or visit our web site, www.cab.org.nz
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