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A new centre focused on specialised support for children and families impacted by trauma has opened in Northland.
Charitable Trust Stand Tū Māia celebrated the long-awaited opening of its purpose-built regional centre on Friday.
The organisation provides intensive wrap-around services for children and whānau.
Stand Tū Māia’s new facility includesresidential care for vulnerable children.
The trust’s chief executive Fiona Inkpen said they believed the new centre would become a beacon of excellence, “strengthening collaboration across the children’s sector in Northland”.
Inkpen said over the last 12 years, more than 1300 families and more than 3400 children in Northland have been supported by the charity.
Whangārei MP Dr Shane Reti and Northland resident, former Stand Tū Māia board chairman Wayne Chapman, opened the centre in front of 200 people, who included Whangārei Mayor Vince Cocurullo.
Stand Tū Māia's new regional facility has space for families to benefit from wrap-around services. Photo / Katrina Cooper
Regional manager Rosey Davies said two purpose-built whare for tamariki and whānau to stay overnight meant access to specialised support.
“This kāinga [village] is so much more than bricks and mortar. It is a place of transformation, of hope, of healing.”
Stand Tū Māia's new facility offers residential care and wraparound services for vulnerable children and their families. Photo / Katrina Cooper
Chapman said more than three-quarters of whānau Stand Tū Māia worked with reported a drop in traumatic stress as well as improvements in home life, school connection and wellbeing.
The Northland resident served as national board chairman for 22 years.
“Right now, more than 400 families – over 1600 individuals – are on our waiting lists, hoping for the support we can offer,” he said.
The build was funded through a mixture of community donations and the sale of the former Stand Tū Māia facility, which was almost 80 years old.
MP for Whangārei Dr Shane Reti and Stand Tū Māia board member and former chairman Wayne Chapman attend the opening. Photo / Katrina Cooper
It followed a period of uncertainty around funding for the charity.
“The need for a specialist service like Stand Tū Māia is clear and urgent,” Inkpen said.
“We are a strong fence at the top of the cliff, offering a proven alternative to state care.”
Reti said the new facility increased local capacity to deliver specialist residential care for Northland children.
“A clear benefit is that fewer young people will have to travel long distances to access services, enabling them to remain closer to home,” he said.
Brodie Stone covers crime and emergency for the Northern Advocate. She has spent most of her life in Whangārei and is passionate about delving into issues that matter to Northlanders and beyond.
