Hastings District Council

This article is about the council in New Zealand. For the council in England, see Hastings Borough Council.

Hastings District Council Te Kaunihera ā-Rohe o Heretaunga
Coat of arms
Brand logo
Type
Type	Territorial authority of Hastings District
Term limits	None
History
Established	1 November 1989 (1989-11-01), 36 years ago
Preceded by	Hastings City Council Havelock North Borough Council Hawke's Bay County Council
New session started	17 October 2025
Leadership
Mayor	Wendy Schollum, Ind 17 October 2025
Deputy	Michael Fowler, Ind since October 2025
CEO	Bruce Allan (acting) c. 1 August 2026
Structure
Seats	16 (including mayor)
Political groups	Independent (14)   Independent Green (1)   CARE for Hastings (1)
Length of term	3 years, renewable
Elections
Voting system	First-past-the-post
First election	14 October 1989
Last election	11 October 2025
Next election	14 October 2028
Meeting place
Hastings District Council building
Website
hastingsdc.govt.nz

Hastings District Council (abbr. HDC; Māori: Te Kaunihera ā-Rohe o Heretaunga) is the territorial authority for the Hastings District of New Zealand's North Island. It serves as the district's local government alongside the Hawke's Bay Regional Council as the regional council. It has existed since the 1989 reforms to local government.

The governing body of council has 14 councillors and is chaired by the mayor of Hastings (currently Wendy Schollum since October 2025). There is also a community board representing rural communities.

History

2022–2025 term

Cyclone Gabrielle recovery

In the 2024 budget, the government gave the council $1,470,000 towards road infrastructure affected by Cyclone Gabrielle. Mayor Hazlehurst welcomed the move.

Councils in Hawke's Bay established voluntary buyout schemes following the devastation of the cyclone, with 153 properties in the Hastings District deemed to be unsafe for continued human residence ("Category 3"). 24 of these were bought out right, with the owners of the rest of the land agreeing to receive relocation grants but retaining ownership. The costs for these buyouts was split evenly between council and the central government.

In the councils Long Term Plan, $17 million per year for 16 years was forecast to be put towards the cyclone recovery programme. Former Council CEO Nigel Bickle described the Long Term Plan as "...the most challenging..." the council had ever dealt with. Mayor Hazlehurst said in April 2024 that the council had spent in the past year "close to $155 million" in response to the cyclone.

Governing body

Mayor

Main article: Mayor of Hastings, New Zealand

One mayor is elected at-large; they chair meetings of the governing body and act as the head of local government in the district.

Current composition

The current members of the governing body of council are:

Role	Portrait	Name	Affiliation		Ward
Mayor		Wendy Schollum		Independent	Elected at-large
Deputy		Michael Fowler		Independent	Hastings-Havelock North
Councillor		Steve Gibson		Independent	Hastings-Havelock North
Councillor		Yvonne Lorkin		Independent	Hastings-Havelock North
Councillor		Simon Nixon		Independent	Hastings-Havelock North
Councillor		Nick Ratcliffe		Independent Green	Hastings-Havelock North
Councillor		Callum Ross		Independent	Hastings-Havelock North
Councillor		Kevin Watkins		Independent	Hastings-Havelock North
Councillor		Derek Nowell-Usticke		CARE for Hastings	Mohaka
Councillor		Henare O'Keefe		Independent	Flaxmere
Councillor		Alwyn Corban		Independent	Heretaunga
Councillor		Hana Montaperto-Hendry		Independent	Heretaunga
Councillor		Elisha Milmine		Independent	Kahuranaki
Councillor		Siiam Daniel		Independent	Takitimu
Councillor		Kellie Jessup		Independent	Takitimu
Councillor		Heather Te Au-Skipworth		Independent	Takitimu

List of members by term

Term	Mayor	Councillors	Ref.
1989−1992	Jeremy Dwyer	Trevor Baker Judith Baxter Ralph Beamish Selwyn Begley Harvey Boyden John Campbell Terry Coxon Mike Donnelly David Law John Paterson David Pearse Harry Romanes Colin Shanley Megan Willians
1992−1995
1995−1998
1998−2001
2001−2004	Lawrence Yule	Chase Arguette Judith Baxter Cynthia Bowers Derek Brownrigg Mary Hannan Dean Hyde Richard Jones Mick Lester Keriana Poulain Norman Speers Tim Tinker Deborah Turner Margaret Twigg Kevin Watkins Dinah Williams
2004−2007		Chase Arquette Cynthia Bowers Derek Brownrigg Rodney Heaps Dean Hyde Richard Jones Mick Lester David Pearse Keriana Poulain Norman Speers Tim Tinker Deborah Turner Margaret Twigg Kevin Watkins Dinah Williams
2007−2010		Cynthia Bowers Robert Burnside Wayne Bradshaw Derek Brownrigg Rodney Heaps Mandy Kimber Mick Lester Henare O'Keefe Keriana Poulain Norman Speers Deborah Turner Margaret Twigg Kevin Watkins Anne Wilson
2010−2013		Cynthia Bowers Wayne Bradshaw Ru Collin Sandra Hazlehurst Rodney Heaps Scott Henderson Tania Kerr Mick Lester Simon Nixon Henare O'Keefe Jacoby Poulain John Roil Margaret Twigg Keving Watkins
2013−2016		Cynthia Bowers Wayne Bradshaw Malcolm Dixon Sandra Hazlehurst Rodney Heaps Tania Kerr Mick Lester George Lyons Simon Nixon Henare O'Keefe Adrienne Pierce Jacoby Poulain John Roil Kevin Watkins
2016−2019		Bayden Barber Malcolm Dixon Damon Harvey Sandra HazlehurstR Rodney Heaps Tania Kerr George Lyons Simon Nixon Henare O'Keefe Adrienne PierceR Jacoby Poulain Geraldine Travers Ann Redstone Kevin Watkins Wendy Schollumby Eileen Lawsonby
	Sandra Hazlehurst
2019−2022		Bayden Barber Alwyn Corban Malcolm Dixon Damon Harvey Tania Kerr Eileen Lawson Simon Nixon Henare O'Keefe Peleti Oli (L) Wendy Schollum Sophie Siers Geraldine Travers Ann Redstone Kevin Watkins
2022−2025		Ana Apatu Marcus Buddo Alwyn Corban Malcolm Dixon Michael Fowler Damon Harvey Henry Heke Kellie Jessup Tania Kerr Eileen Lawson Renate NepeR Simon Nixon Ann RedstoneR Wendy Schollum Kevin Watkins Hana Montaperto-Hendryby Heather Te Au-Skipworthby
2025−2028	Wendy Schollum	Alwyn Corban Silam Daniel Michael Fowler Steve Gibson Kellie Jessup Yvonne Lorkin Elisha Milmine Hana Montaperto-Hendry Simon Nixon Derek Nowell-Usticke (CARE) Henare O'Keefe Nick Ratcliffe (IndG) Callum Ross Heather Te Au-Skipworth Kevin Watkins
R resigned during term by elected at by-election

Rural Community Board

The council also has a Rural Community Board, made up of four members elected from four rural community areas:

• Kaweka subdivision: Isabelle Crawshaw (Chair)
• Tutira subdivision: Abby Morley (Deputy chair)
• Maraekakaho subdivision: George Macmillan
• Poukawa subdivision: Pete Maclennan
• District councillors representing Mohaka, Kahuranaki, and Takitimu wards are also members.

Chief executive

Chief executive of Hastings District Council
Incumbent Bruce Allan Acting  since c. 1 August 2026
Formation	1 November 2010 (2010-11-01)
Website	hastingsdc.govt.nz

The professional head of the civil service is the chief executive, who is appointed by the council.

^† Died in office

No.	Chief executive	Portrait	Term start	Term end	Ref
1	?		1989	1991
2	Eric Millar		1991	2000
3	Murray Gilbertson		17 April 2000	31 December 2007
–	Mike Maguire (acting)		1 January 2008	10 February 2008
4	Ross McLeod		11 February 2008	20 June 2018
–	Neil Taylor (acting)		21 June 2018	10 February 2019
5	To'osavili Nigel Bickle		11 February 2019	1 August 2026[†]
–	Bruce Allan (acting)		c. 1 August 2026	incumbent

Elections

List

Council

• 1989
• 1992
• 1995
• 1998
• 2001
• 2004
• 2007
• 2010
• 2013
• 2016
• (2017)
• (2018)
• 2019
• 2022
• 2025

Mayoral

• 1989
• 1992
• 1995
• 1998
• 2001
• 2004
• 2007
• 2010
• 2013
• 2016
• (2017)
• 2019
• 2022
• 2025

Wards

Current ward map (Takitimu Māori ward covers whole district)

Current wards

Currently the council has six wards; Mohaka and Kahuranaki wards cover northern and southern rural communities, respectively, the Heretaunga ward covers the non-urban surroundings of Hastings, the Flaxmere ward covers the suburb of Flaxmere, and the Hastings-Havelock North ward covers the urban areas of Hastings and Havelock North.

Māori wards

The council had introduced the Takitimu Māori ward at the 2022 local elections. Following the decision of the Sixth National Government to force local councils to either abolish Māori wards or hold a referendum on their continued existence, the council voted unanimously to retain them and thus to hold a referendum, to occur alongside the 2025 local elections. Deputy Mayor Kerr called the Government's decision a "farce", and Mayor Hazlehurst said it was "disheartening" that the Government did not trust local councils on the issue.

The result of the referendum held on 11 October 2025 was that the Māori ward will be abolished, with remove on 49.8% defeating keep on 45.7%.

Youth council

The Hastings District Youth Council is made up of 15-20 young Hastonians aged 15 to 21 who live, work, or study in the district. In 2020, Hastings youth councillors were granted speaking rights on council subcommittees, allowing them to actively participate and provide input. This initiative aimed to empower youth by involving them in local governance and decision-making processes.

Vote on Youth Councillors having voting rights on committees

	For	Against	Absent
	Sandra Hazlehurst (mayor)	Alwyn Corban	Kellie Jessup
	Tania Kerr (DM)	Malcolm Dixon	Kevin Watkins
	Ana Apatu	Michael Fowler
	Marcus Buddo	Damon Harvey
	Hana Montaperto-Hendry	Henry Heke
	Heather Te Au-Skipworth	Eileen Lawson
	Wendy Schollum	Simon Nixon
Total	7 (mayor tiebreak)	7	2

In September 2024, the Hastings District Council voted to grant youth councillors voting rights on subcommittees. The decision was evenly split among councillors, with Mayor Hazlehurst casting the tie-breaking vote in favour. She stated that this move provided "an opportunity for the next generation to influence change which will impact our community into the future."

The decision elicited mixed reactions; supporters viewed it as a progressive step towards youth empowerment and leadership development, whilst critics emphasised that youth councillors are unelected. The Taxpayers' Union protested the decision by setting up a "bouncy council" outside the Hastings District Council building.

Voting rights granted to youth councillors were limited to subcommittees and do not extend to full council meetings, ensuring that primary decision-making authority remains with elected councillors.

The Local Government Act permits councils to appoint unelected members to committees, a practice often used to involve subject matter experts or iwi representatives. The decision to grant voting rights to Youth Council members aligns with these existing provisions.

The decision was accompanied by "misinformation", according to one of the youth councillors. Certain elected members and advocacy groups, including the Taxpayers’ Union, claimed that the vote would allow youth councillors to vote in full council meetings, which was incorrect. The voting rights applied only to council subcommittees.

Coat of arms

Coat of arms of Hastings District Council

Notes The council has a coat of arms, granted in 1993, which incorporates features from the coats of arms of the former Hastings City, Havelock North Borough and Hawke's Bay County councils. The blazon is: Crest On a wreath of the colours, clouds Argent, rays Or, a sunburst supporting a toothed wheel, perforated of six, centred and rimmed Argent, Gules. Escutcheon Per pale Vert and Argent, in dexter a cross-crosslet fitchy Or (for Havelock North Borough Council); in sinister, on a cross carved with a Māori pattern Gules, a sun in splendour Or (for Hawke's Bay County Council); on a chief party per pale Argent and Vert, a lion passant guardant, armed and langued Gules within an orle of fern leaves all counterchanged (for Hastings City Council). An inescutcheon Or charged with a manche Gules (for Warren Hastings). Supporters Dexter, a ram, tail couped, horned and hoofed Or, proper, supporting on a staff proper palewise flying to the dexter an ensign Sable, two bars Argent edged and charged with a hawk rising Or (for Hawke's Bay and Lord Hawke). Sinister, a bull, armed and hoofed Or, supporting a staff property palewise flying to the sinister, edged Or, a New Zealand Ensign; all supported by a profusion of apples, pears, peaches, grapes and miro berries with their leaves, surmounting a Māori style carved panel representing Rongomatane and Haumiatiketike, all proper. Motto Urbis Et Ruris Concordia (Town and Country in Harmony).