Taituarā members come from across the motu and work in a range of operational, leadership and strategic roles in local government. They are united by a drive for professional excellence through connection, knowledge and care for their communities. Our member profiles allow us to get to know our members better, share their stories and highlight the passionate people working in local government.
Get to know Taituarā member, Darren Edwards – Chief Executive at Kāpiti Coast District Council.
Darren Edwards doesn’t describe his career as a straight line. Instead, he talks about “three careers” – first with the Police, then Central Government and now Local Government.
Now Chief Executive of Kāpiti Coast District Council, Darren has been in the role since 2022. He lives in Te Horo on the Kāpiti Coast with his wife Belinda who has her own demanding career as CEO of Basketball New Zealand. Their three adult children are all grown and now carving out careers of their own.
Darren has strong links to Tai Tokerau and whakapapa to the iwi of Te Roroa, Te Rarawa and Ngāpuhi. He’s the youngest of seven siblings who are spread throughout Aotearoa.
Darren’s first career began at just 21, when he joined the New Zealand Police. He spent 14 years policing mainly in Northland, with time in Auckland, working across volume crime, mass disorder and VIP protection. That experience shaped his views on leadership and accountability but after more than a decade on the road, he was ready for a change.
His second career took him into central government, joining the Ministry of Fisheries as District Compliance Manager for Northland, and later the Ministry for Primary Industries. Along the way, he completed a military secondment focused on advanced leadership training.
The move into local government came from a desire for greater community connection and more quality time with his family while his kids were still at home. Darren began at Far North District Council in a compliance role and quickly realised he’d found his place.
“For me, it’s not about where I am,” he says. “It’s about what I can do to better the organisation that I’m working with.”
Landing in Kāpiti
Since then, Darren has worked across operational and strategic leadership roles, including Chief Information Officer and Group Manager at Invercargill City Council, before returning to Far North District Council as Group Manager for Strategy and Policy. Those experiences eventually led him to the Chief Executive role at Kāpiti Coast District Council.
Ask Darren what he’s most proud of right now, and his focus isn’t on a single project, it’s on where the organisation has landed.
“I’m really pleased that at Kāpiti we’re in such good shape financially, democratically and asset-wise,” he says. “That puts us in a position to make decisions that genuinely change the way we operate.”
He’s seen how important tough decisions can be for the future of a community, noting an earlier councils’ decision to install water metres. While a controversial decision at the time it’s set the district up for success.
“While the rest of the Wellington region continues to have water restrictions, we haven’t had one for 11 years. It shows the importance of future thinking and making hard decisions — even when they come at a personal cost.”
Leadership and trust
Central to Darren’s leadership philosophy that has stayed true throught his career is trust and transparency at all levels. In local government this is particularly important between elected members and the organisation.
“We work as one team,” he says. “The lines between governance and operations are very blurred. That only works in a high-trust environment.”
That trust is actively built and maintained through intensive councillor inductions, regular one-on-one time with elected members, and open access to communication across the organisation.
“There’s no gatekeeping,” Darren explains. “Anyone can pick up the phone and talk to anyone. That relationship-building goes both ways.”
Building a high trust environment takes work and care but Darren says it’s more than worth it when it comes to the results. Building that level of trust has allowed the council to work on long-term plans with flexibility and room for movement that have allowed them to bring about real change.
Building connections
Darren has been a Taituarā member since his early days in local government, first engaging through a regional leadership programme while working in the Far North.
“That programme helped me build confidence and realise that the skills I brought from central government were relevant and useful.”
He later took part in the Taituarā Executive Leadership Programme where he formed connections and long-lasting friendships with people who have become the leaders in local government.
“We can be quite isolated in local government,” he says. “It’s hard to lift your head and see what’s happening over the boundary. Taituarā gives you that broader perspective, and the relationships that come with it.”
Darren is in his own words a ‘massive champion’ for Taituarā and believe strongly and the benefits of being a member last year he gave his time to help reshape the membership categories to work better for those in the sector.
What’s coming?
Looking ahead, Darren sees a real opportunity for local government to lead particularly with the amount of change and reform coming over the next five years.
“There’s a real ability for local government to take the lead and determine the outcome of those reforms rather than being a follower or having it placed upon us. The next five years for me are quite exciting.”
His advice to others working in the sector is simple and encouraging:
“Never settle for mediocre. Never think you’re not good enough. There is always opportunity in local government, and to challenge the norms. Take the opportunities, you can’t get it wrong if you’re learning.”
