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Fencing Contractors Association of New Zealand (FCANZ), the industry body for fencing contractors, has partnered with rural mental health and wellbeing advocate Craig “Wiggy” Wiggins. Wiggy has stepped up as a patron for the Association in a move that is expected to bring greater support to those living and working in rural communities. 

Phil Cornelius, FCANZ President, says that the partnership with Wiggy is important for the industry and the rural sector. “As an Association we represent the fencing industry as a whole, but our roots are very rural, and the majority of our members are still strongly connected with the rural sector. Rural mental health has always been a challenge, but even more so now in light of the unprecedented destruction caused by the extreme weather events of the first two months of 2023.”

Whatever With Wiggy founder Craig Wiggins is well known for his rural mental health initiatives including “Lean on a gate, talk to a mate” and his Whatever With Wiggy Facebook group. Established in response to the 2020 COVID lockdown, the Whatever With Wiggy Charitable Trust seeks to maintain and build connections within the rural community. 

Initially Whatever With Wiggy consisted of a Zoom meeting every Thursday night, with up to 80 plus attendees, discussing everything from covid to politics, to mental health and all issues affecting rural communities. Now, as part of the ongoing advocacy work for mental health and wellness in rural communities Wiggy’s work also includes nationwide Rural Health and Wellbeing checks with the Carr Family Foundation, checking farmers’ overall health and wellbeing at rural events, and Agriconnect, providing mental health seminars for the rural service industry and rural professionals.

“Being invited to be a Patron for FCANZ is an exciting time. It allows us another way to connect with another important part of the rural community – and means that we can continue supporting those who need it. We’re already hearing about the stresses that rural fencing contractors are under trying to support their existing clients, while servicing all of the insurance assessments coming through – not to mention dealing with the impact that the Cyclone has had on their own personal and business lives. There are challenging times ahead.”

FCANZ has always had a connection with Wiggy, so this partnership is not unexpected. In 2022 Association members raised $15,000 for the Whatever With Wiggy charitable trust in an impromptu charity auction at their annual conference. “This level of un-prompted support shows just how important our members and industry partners feel Wiggy’s work is. We’re excited to have him on board as our Patron and we look forward to working with him further”

FCANZ will be holding a charity auction at their conference this year in New Plymouth and hope to meet or beat the $15,000 raised last year.

Anyone who is interested can reach out for support through the Whatever With Wiggy Facebook page at www.facebook.com/whateverwithwiggy  

To learn more about FCANZ or find a fencing contractor in your area visit www.fcanz.co.nz 

Fencing industry body Fencing Contractors Association NZ (FCANZ) recently presented the Whatever With Wiggy charitable trust with a $15,000 donation from its members. The funds were raised at an impromptu charity auction held at the recent FCANZ annual Conference, with Association Partners and some members donating the items to be auctioned.

“We were astounded by the generosity of not only our members for bidding on auction items but also for the support shown for this Charity by Association Partners who continued to donate items throughout the evening.” says Phil Cornelius, President of FCANZ.

Auction items ranged from tools, augers, wire, netting and Y-posts to white water rafting trips and even the shirt from the back of auctioneer Stephen Caunter. “The willingness for people to donate and bid shows just how highly they value the work that Wiggy is doing” said Cornelius.

Whatever With Wiggy founder Craig “Wiggy” Wiggins is an advocate for rural mental and physical health and champions Lean on a Gate, Talk to a Mate. Receiving news during COVID that a friend had taken his life, lead to the creation of the lean-on-a-gate movement. Wiggins says “Taking five minutes to check in with a mate, or young worker can reduce those feelings of isolation and could save a life. You never know – you just might help someone out.”

Wiggy also works closely with the Carr Family Foundation Rural Health and Wellness Van, which provides free health checks at rural events across the country. The van attended the FCANZ National Fencing Field Day in Mosgiel this year and saw almost 60 people across the day – of which over a quarter were referred to their GP for follow-up.

Phil went on to add, “The value of the work that Wiggy and his colleagues do can’t be underestimated and we look forward to seeing what we can achieve with the Charity Auction at our August 2023 Conference in New Plymouth. It is humbling to see how big the hearts are in the fencing industry.”

Auctioneer Stephen Caunter in full flow – before he auctioned the shirt from his back!

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FCANZ has had on its radar for a number of years diversifying the Association’s focus to include some of the other sectors that our members are involved in.  Sector Advisory Groups are one way of achieving this.

The member surveys that we have run over the past two years have helped highlight the variety of sectors that our members engage in. Over the years Board members such as Paul Fitzsimmons and Mike Renner have brought their knowledge and expertise, but more momentum and depth is required.

The Board has also recognised the need for better member engagement, with many of you having the skills to contribute to the continued growth of the Association, particularly in terms of supporting the Associations role in the industry and getting messaging through to our client base as to why use professional fencing contractors.

To get the process moving we are looking at the formation of the following Sector Advisory groups.

1. Rural
2. Residential
3. Security
4. Horticulture/Viticulture

These are the initial breakdown that we propose, and over time we can add other groups, especially if we find individuals who want to join together to advocate.

The purpose of the groups is to advocate for the sectors and grow sector representation and resources, whether it be:

• coming up with ideas and suggestions to help promote these sectors to a range of clients.
• adding to the partner database to include the growth of partners in these sectors.
• specialized Best Practice Days
• assisting in the development of industry/ best practice standards for the sector
• contribution to training resources & events.
• information sharing, communication, relationship building.
• provide information and feedback to Executive Director and Board.

The Board encourages you to consider putting yourself forward to join up with one of these sector advisory groups. No matter your company size or your fencing experience (although high quality workmanship is a must!) we are looking for individuals who have good skill sets and want to contribute to our industry’s coverage and growth.

The advisory group composition is proposed as:

• 3 – 5 volunteer representatives on each advisory group.
• FCANZ to cover expenses if incurred
• Online meetings (in an evening) or time to suit will be held at least 4 times a year with a minimum of 1 FCANZ Board member to attend each meeting.

Please email for further information or to express your interest.