From a two-tone population, the Western Bay has been changing in recent years – following a national trend to a more multicultural society. Journalist Hamish Carter takes a look beyond the recent census figures, at the region's changing face.

Figures for the wider Bay of Plenty show the share of overseas-born residents has inched up in seven years since the 2006 census, with the portion rising 2.4 points to 17.3 per cent – with the greatest number by far coming from the UK and Ireland (39.8 per cent), followed by Asia (21.8 per cent).

Carol Andersen and Helen Gould from Settlement Support Tauranga help migrants from around the globe settled in the Western Bay. Photo by Tracy Hardy.

Tauranga's Settlement Support service helps newcomers settle in – and while not everyone relies on their support, communications advisor Helen Gould says their figures are a fair indication of migrant trends.

'There is a growing general interest in coming to Tauranga,” says Helen, who understands the Western Bay's 135 different ethnic community's means it is the third most diverse region in the country.

In 2012, the service helped 518 migrants and their families settle in the Western Bay, with clients from England topping the list (50), followed by those from India (27), South Africa (17), Sri Lanka (16) and Brazil (13).

In the 11-months to December, numbers had slipped overall to 394, with new arrivals coming from a wide range of countries topped by India (20), South Africa (13); and Kiribata, Korea and Argentina (11 each).

Helen believes the drop in those seeking help is just a blip and says the trend for increasing migration, particularly from Asia, is set to continue.

Census figures show the number of Asians living in the Western Bay region has almost doubled from 4428 in 2006 to 8235 this year, out of the region's total population of 158,481. Numbers in the Middle Eastern/Latin American/African category also rose sharply, from 450 to 864.

Helen and her colleague Carol Andersen help new arrivals settle in to their new life and work by encouraging them to improve their English language skills, with job seeking, helping them build social connections and providing information on Kiwi culture and ways, when required.

'The big thing we advise new migrants to do is to get involved wherever they can, whether that be through a child's school or sports team or joining a club or volunteering.”