Articles tagged with Support

Showing 12 of 102 articles

Government Launches First Crisis Recovery Café in Whanganui to Support Mental Health

02 Sep 2025 | 1 year ago | 1186 views

The Mental Health Minister opened Whanganui’s new Crisis Recovery Café at Aunty’s Café, the first of six cafés being rolled out by the Government nationwide. These cafés, led by Balance Aotearoa and iwi providers, offer peer-led, non-clinical support for individuals facing mental health or addiction challenges in a community setting. The Government aims to reduce pressure on traditional crisis systems by providing faster access to support, increasing frontline workers, and enhancing crisis response through initiatives like crisis cafés and peer support specialist roles in emergency departments.

Tags: Matt Doocey Mental Health Minister Crisis Recovery Café Balance Aotearoa Te Oranganui Hāpai Mauri Tangata peer support specialist mental health plan Health NZ frontline workers

New Social Investment Fund Targets Vulnerable Children for Positive Impact

25 Aug 2025 | 1 year ago | 1399 views

The Social Investment Fund, recently launched by Social Investment Minister Nicola Willis, targets children facing challenging family or educational circumstances, including those with parents in jail or who have been in the care system. Data-driven evidence supports early intervention for these children to improve outcomes and reduce long-term government costs. The Fund, with a budget of $190 million over four years, aims to invest in effective strategies, empower community organizations, and measure the impact of interventions transparently.

Tags: Social Investment Fund Nicola Willis children parents school data evidence outcomes government support communities

New Zealand Approves Psychology Assistant Role to Boost Mental Health Support

20 Aug 2025 | 1 year ago | 1520 views

Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey welcomes the New Zealand Psychologists Board's approval of the Psychology Assistant role to enhance access to mental health and addiction support. The initiative aims to address workforce shortages by providing a career path for psychology graduates unable to enter clinical psychology programs. Psychology Assistants will work under supervision to expand support services, reduce vacancies, and improve mental health outcomes for New Zealanders.

Tags: Matt Doocey New Zealand Psychologists Board Psychology Assistant mental health addiction support workforce shortages clinical psychology programme mental health system mental health workforce Health NZ.

Minister Karen Chhour Urges Caregivers to Provide Safe and Loving Homes: Enhanced Support Available

13 Aug 2025 | 1 year ago | 1513 views

Minister Karen Chhour urges individuals capable of offering a loving and stable environment to consider becoming caregivers, emphasizing improved support and training. Budget 2025 allocated $16 million to enhance care environments and caregiver training. Initiatives include caregiver feedback incorporation, improved on-boarding processes, and prioritizing safe and loving homes for children.

Tags: Minister for Children Karen Chhour caregiver support training Budget 2025 Caregiver Panel Oranga Tamariki Caring Families Aotearoa approval process

Successful Military-Style Academy Pilot Transforms Young Lives, Reducing Youth Offending

08 Aug 2025 | 1 year ago | 1336 views

A 12-month Military-Style Academy pilot at Te Au rere a te Tonga in Palmerston North has successfully supported youth offenders and their families, resulting in improved behavior and reduced re-offending rates. Minister for Children Karen Chhour received overwhelmingly positive feedback on the pilot's outcomes, with many participants showing promise and making positive life changes. The government's initiatives, including the pilot program, have contributed to a significant reduction in serious and persistent youth offending, leading to safer communities and increased opportunities for at-risk youth.

Tags: Karen Chhour Minister for Children Youth Justice Social Workers Te Au rere a te Tonga Palmerston North Youth Offenders Support Services Community Safety

New Zealand Vintage Vehicles & Private Motorhomes Shift to Annual Inspections from Sept 1

31 Jul 2025 | 1 year ago | 3152 views

Starting from 1 September, vintage light vehicles and private heavy motorhomes in New Zealand will transition from six-monthly to annual vehicle inspections, as announced by Transport Minister Chris Bishop. This change aims to reduce bureaucracy for the approximately 128,000 vintage vehicles and 39,000 private motorhomes registered in the country, as these vehicles are less likely to have faults contributing to serious crashes compared to modern cars. Public support for this change was overwhelmingly positive, with 89% in favor of annual inspections for private heavy motorhomes and 98% for vintage light vehicles.

Tags: Transport Minister Chris Bishop vintage vehicles motorhomes inspections New Zealand Warrant of Fitness Certificate of Fitness Land Transport Rules Reform Programme light vehicles public support

Improved Access to Maternal Mental Health Support in Waikato, Hawke’s Bay, Mid Central, and Wellington Regions

30 Jul 2025 | 1 year ago | 2047 views

New funding of $4.9 million will improve access to specialist mental health support for women and families during and after pregnancy in Waikato, Hawke’s Bay, Mid Central, and Wellington regions. The investment aims to provide timely and appropriate care for those facing mental health challenges during pregnancy or postpartum, including support for birth trauma or stillbirth. This funding will create more roles in community-based specialist infant and maternal mental health services, ensuring more equitable access and reducing wait times for those in need of care.

Tags: women families mental health support pregnancy specialist care Mr Doocey maternal mental health investment access funding

New Mental Health Accreditation Pathway Opens Doors for 330 Counsellors in NZ Public Services

26 Jul 2025 | 1 year ago | 2144 views

Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey announces the removal of a workforce barrier for over 330 experienced counsellors in publicly funded mental health services through a revised accreditation process with Health New Zealand and NZAC. The strengthened accreditation pathway aims to address workforce shortages and increase timely mental health support for New Zealanders. The initiative is part of broader efforts to reduce vacancies, utilize underutilized workforces, and improve access to mental health services.

Tags: Matt Doocey Health New Zealand New Zealand Association of Counsellors workforce barriers mental health support workforce shortages Health NZ counselling primary mental health workforce peer support specialists

Empowering Frontline Workers: Enhanced Training for Family and Sexual Violence Response

24 Jul 2025 | 1 year ago | 1881 views

Frontline services are implementing enhanced training to support staff in responding to family and sexual violence, aiming to train 10,000 workers within the next two years. Minister Karen Chhour emphasizes the importance of this training in providing best practice support for victim-survivors and enabling staff to effectively address such violence. Progress against the Te Aorerekura Action Plan includes training for Ministry of Justice, Department of Corrections, and Police recruits, with a focus on collaboration and commitment to improve support for victim-survivors.

Tags: training staff support family violence sexual violence frontline services Minister Karen Chhour government departments Te Aorerekura Action Plan

Government-backed Gumboot Friday Provides Vital Mental Health Support for Young New Zealanders

23 Jul 2025 | 1 year ago | 1952 views

Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey supports Gumboot Friday, an initiative aiding youth mental health. Government funding has enabled over 30,000 counseling sessions for 10,000 young New Zealanders. The initiative plans to expand, with 700 counselors registered and aims to reach 15,000 youth with 40,000 sessions in 2025/26.

Tags: Matt Doocey Government funding Gumboot Friday young people mental health support counselling sessions New Zealanders counsellors I Am Hope partnership

Government Launches Enhanced Task Force Green Program to Support Flood-Affected Tasman and Marlborough Districts

09 Jul 2025 | 1 year ago | 1784 views

The Government has activated an Enhanced Task Force Green (ETFG) in response to flooding in the Tasman and Marlborough districts. “Enhanced Task Force Green funding builds on the Government’s commitment to support those impacted by this event,” Minister for Social Development and Employment Louise Upston says. “The recent flooding has been a significant and adverse event damaging farms, homes, roads and bridges.

Tags: Government Enhanced Task Force Green Louise Upston flooding farmers growers assistance support job seekers

Government Facilitates Support for Flood-Affected Farmers in Nelson, Tasman, and Marlborough Regions

30 Jun 2025 | 1 year ago | 2116 views

The Government today classified the flooding across the Nelson, Tasman, and Marlborough regions as a medium-scale adverse event unlocking extra support for flood-affected farmers and growers Agriculture Minister Todd McClay, and Rural Communities Minister Mark Patterson say. “Last week’s deluge damaged infrastructure such as livestock fences, culverts, and tracks, and left pasture and orchards covered in silt and flood debris,” Mr McClay says. “The Government is making up to $100,000 available to support and coordinate recovery efforts, including up to $20,000 for the Top of the South Rural Support Trust.

Tags: Farmers Mark patterson Marlborough Mayoral relief fund Metservice Ministry for primary industries On farm support Patterson Rural communities Rural support trust Taskforce green Todd mcclay Top of the south rural support trust