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To: Hon Penny Simmonds - Minister for Vocational Education, Minister for Social Development and Employment

Keep Tokoroa Toi Ohomai OPEN

Kia ora friends,

Some positive news - Toi Ohomai Tokoroa campus will be staying open for the next two years!

While this is not the best news for long-term stability, we hope that our local and national leadership will take accountability and ensure the sustainability of this valued community asset.

You can learn more about the decision here:
https://www.waikatotimes.co.nz/nz-news/360815782/operation-phoenix-helps-rescue-tokoroas-polytech

What next?
Our local MP, Louise Upston, has stated:
“In Tokoroa, I have tasked Project Phoenix [a local economic strategic working group] with leading a focused investigation into the education and training needs of the South Waikato District.

“This includes understanding how local employers and learners are feeding into current Toi Ohomai programmes and identifying which courses will best serve our region’s future workforce.

“The taskforce is now working with urgency to provide Toi Ohomai with clear, community-informed recommendations that reflect the district’s labour market needs and aspirations.”

THANK YOU FOR SIGNING OUR PETITION!
Your contribution has helped signal to leadership that our community will not accept an unmitigated closure. Your voice matters, so thank you for showing your support for our community, especially our youth.

Keeping Toi Ohomai Tokoroa open is essential to ensuring opportunities for our local youth and providing options for our unemployed. South Waikato mayor Gary Petley says the fight to save courses, and staff, from the funding axe is not over yet - so keep an eye on this issue via the media because the next two years of research and planning by Project Pheonix and Toi Ohomai will be super important!

Ngā mihi,
Elvisa van der Leden

Artwork from a Tokoroa of times gone by
Ensure  Tokoroa Toi Ohomai campus stays open.

Demonstrate strong, proactive leadership by working closely with South Waikato District Council, central government and other local community groups to establish a sustainable future for Toi Ohomai in Tokoroa and the immense opportunities the facility offers young people of the South Waikato. 


Why is this important?

No matter where we live in Aotearoa our communities need access to essential services, education and opportunities to grow and thrive. That includes Tokoroa and other small regional communities throughout the South Waikato. 

But as a result of this Government’s decisions Tokoroa’s Toi Ohomai campus is facing closure. The Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology has published a proposal to cut over 160 jobs which would lead to the purpose built campus in Tokoroa being closed. Toi Ohomai has said the proposal was in response to a Government expectation to become “financially viable”.

Tokoroa has already faced the devastating blow of Kinleith Mill shutting down one of its plants with 150 people losing their jobs. Families have had to reevaluate their lives in the South Waikato, with many deciding to move out of the district for more job opportunities. Some have decided to stay, looking into retraining at Toi Ohomai or seeking employment in other areas in the district. 

The Toi Ohomai campus in Tokoroa is a beacon of light for those who otherwise wouldn't have the means to travel to continue tertiary education in Rotorua, Tauranga or Hamilton. The campus and its courses are an asset to all ages, from young high school graduates to adult learners looking to upskill or retrain. With new housing developments and the Maraetai Road Business Park build, there is a light at the end of the economic recovery tunnel for Tokoroa and the wider South Waikato. If Toi Ohomai remains open in Tokoroa, it has the potential to become a significant economic catalyst for local businesses and the recruitment and retention of young people in the district. If we lose Toi Ohomai in Tokoroa, opportunities for locals will once again become extremely limited and the wider community will be left with the burden to fill the gaps. To creatively and collaboratively invest in our local community and allow time for possibilities to flourish is to contribute to the growth and vibrancy of the South Waikato and provide hope to future generations. "Patience is bitter, but its fruit is sweet".

Sign this petition to signal to Toi Ohomai and the government that the Tokoroa community deserves better and will not stand by as our opportunities for youth and future generations are shortsightedly taken away. Let’s show Toi Ohomai leadership that the Tokoroa campus is a valued asset in the community and it must stay open. 

Tokoroa, New Zealand

Maps © Stamen; Data © OSM and contributors, ODbL

Updates

2025-09-08 15:02:26 +1200

Petition is successful with 247 signatures

2025-07-22 09:54:01 +1200

100 signatures reached

2025-07-21 09:45:57 +1200

50 signatures reached

2025-07-19 10:59:15 +1200

25 signatures reached

2025-07-18 20:33:02 +1200

10 signatures reached

2025-07-18 19:31:41 +1200

South Waikato community leaders and organizers have been actively working together to find ways to apply pressure on this government to ensure Toi Ohomai stays open in Tokoroa. Putting this petition together has been a team effort, supported by former Tokoroa student turned politician, Tam Paul and Education and Workforce select Committee member Francisco Hernandez. Thank you to all who are working under the radar to keep the pressure on this government to ensure our community does not lose this valuable asset.