Age Concern Canterbury

07/10/2026

- Exciting Events Coming Up-

Last week all over New Zealand we saw great events take place for International Day of Older Persons. Over the next couple of weeks there are some events worth taking a look at here in Canterbury like Parakiore's First SuperGold Tuesday or Selwyn's SWELL Seniors' Lifestyle Expo.

Christchurch City Council Recreation and Sport are excited to invite to their first SuperGold Tuesday at Parakiore Recreation and Sport Centre, a special active ageing event designed to help people move, connect and discover new recreation opportunities.

On Tuesday 20 October from 10am-2.30pm, mātua, kaumātua, older adults are invited to come along and try something new, with activities including Zumba Gold, badminton, aqua jogging and fitness, walking netball, walking basketball, pickleball, dance tasters, gentle exercise, yoga/pilates, circus, diving, water polo, hydroslides, SwimSmart sessions, and more. With a $6 entry fee paid on arrival at reception, it’s an affordable way to explore a range of activities, meet new people and discover different ways to keep active at Parakiore. Poster with more information attached.

Age Concern Canterbury will also be heading along to SWELL. The Seniors' Lifestyle Expo on Tuesday 13 October from 9am–2pm at the Lincoln Event Centre. A great day out and Fee event entry!

Connect with over 70 community groups, organisations and wellbeing providers at Selwyn's premier expo for older residents. This annual event features informative talks, interactive demonstrations, live entertainment, and opportunities to discover new activities, services, and support networks.

07/10/2026

-PhD Research at the University of Canterbury-

Elliot is recruiting older adults aged 60+ for a small user study related to my PhD research on accessible interaction design for handheld AR technologies. The study explores how older adults interact with simple iPad-based activities and how digital experiences can be made more accessible and intuitive.

The in-person study takes approximately 45–60 minutes and will be conducted at HIT Lab NZ, University of Canterbury. Participants will receive a NZD $20 Westfield Gift Card as a thank-you for their time. No previous AR experience or advanced technology skills are required.

Participants can view available session times and book directly here:
https://bookwhen.com/elliotchiu

06/10/2026

Every time we receive the careful and thoughtfully baked goods from Good Bi***es Baking we are so grateful, for the amazing work that they do.

Last week was no different, Mary was turning 99 and Florence arrived with this beautiful creation for us to deliver. Keeley went to visit our client Mary and can confirm Mary was thrilled.

Thank you for all the work those bakers do!

16/09/2026

- Spring Clean Day -

As we head toward International Older Persons Day on the 7th October Te Whare Roimata reached out to let us know that they will be organising their Spring Clean Day for Inner City East and Linwood West.

To celebrate Older Persons Day, they would like to invite older people 55+ who would like some support with those small household chores that can be difficult to do such as cleaning windows, tidying cupboards, moving furniture or garden tidying to get in touch with them. They would also like to invite anyone who is keen to volunteer on the day to reach out too.

Spring Clean Day for Older Persons Day will take place on 7th October and is specifically for older people in their neighborhood (Inner City East/Linwood West). If you are interested or know someone who might be reach out to Jenny on 027 349 8855 or pop into Stanmore Book and Community Hub at 108 Stanmore Rd.

28/08/2026

Exciting times in the Papanui office as our Spring Edition of Keeping On has just been delivered!

We all sprang into action to help get them organised and out to our readers. Over the next week they will be delivered all over Christchurch. Keep an eye out for a copy in the community, pop into our office or read for free online by following this link:

Dive into our extensive resources on the topic that interests you. It's like a masterclass to be explored at your own pace.

06/08/2026

- Christchurch Girls’ High School Class of 1966 -

CHCH Girls High Alumni have reached out for an upcoming reunion. Did you start at CHCH Girls’ High School in 1966 or know someone who enrolled that year? We are celebrating 60 years since we started school there. We would love to hear from you.

Sunday 13 September
at the Richmond Club, 75 London St
Please email [email protected] for further information.

27/07/2026

University of Canterbury Product Design Student Paul has reached out to Age Concern Canterbury and our community if we can help with his project around assisted seating.

Paul's capstone project investigates how sit-to-stand assistance can be meaningfully integrated into mainstream furniture, ordinary chairs that would look at home in a dining room, living room, café, or waiting room, rather than the bulky, clinical products that currently dominate the assistive seating market. The core argument of the project is that the stigma attached to existing assistive products is one of the primary reasons they go unused, and that good design has the potential to change that.

To ground the project in real experience, Paul is running a short anonymous survey open to adults aged 50 and over. It covers everyday experiences of sitting and standing from chairs, how this affects daily life and social participation, and reactions to the idea of a more considered design solution. It takes approximately 15 minutes to complete and no personal information is collected.

The research has been reviewed and approved by the University of Canterbury Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC Reference: HREC 2024/06/BL/2604), and is supervised by Dr Euan Coutts of the UC School of Product Design.

The link to fill out the survey is here ->

The most powerful, simple and trusted way to gather experience data. Start your journey to experience management and try a free account today.

21/07/2026

- A Great Find! -
When one of our staff was out in the community, they had a chat to one of our previous volunteers who shared with us this great photo. It is of our volunteers more than 20 years ago back at the Age Concern cafe opposite the Bridge of Remembrance. We are lucky to have a long history of amazing volunteers and it's so special to have the opportunity to look back at our organization

24/06/2026

✨ Life after Stroke Sessions

Stroke Education Aotearoa NZ bring you a series of engaging FREE sessions. Join Kirstie for all the sessions or just the ones you would like to attend 💬

📅 When: Monthly/Fridays 10.00 – 11.30am

📍 Where: The Older Persons Hub, Rolleston Community Centre

These sessions will cover:

✅ Stroke Basics and the Recovery Journey – Friday 26th June 2026

✅ Managing the Hidden Effects of Stroke – Friday 24th July 2026

✅ Wellbeing after Stroke for Stroke – Friday 21st August 2026

✅ Returning to Pre-stroke Activities – Friday 25th September 2026

✅ Managing Changing Relationships/Legal Basics – Friday 23rd October

👉 To register Email: [email protected]
Get Outlook for Android

23/06/2026

From now until 31 July, disabled people, families, whānau and carers can have their say and help shape the next improvements to disability support services.

The community consultation runs until Friday 31 July.

The focus is on improving some key areas the community has said matter most. For example, flexibility in services, planning ahead for life changes, better information and advice, and respite for carers.

You can take part in a way that works for them:
· Complete the online survey
· Register for a workshop (online or in person – many date and time options available)
· Provide written or recorded feedback.

You don’t need to do everything — just what matters to you.

Find out more and take part at

DSS invites disabled people, families, whānau and carers to help shape further improvements to disability support services.