Kahungunu launch new Te Ara Mātua services hub to support tamariki in Heretaunga

Te Whare Wānanga Hou Te Pūtake ki Te Ara Mātua, housed in the same building as Ngāti Kahungunu Iwi Inc, offers whānau in Heretaunga an independent space for accessing a wide range of support services from Te Wero.

These services include care, health, home, and youth support, alongside training and development wānanga, one-on-one group hui, and cultural healing sessions.

This hub brings together community experts and stakeholders to ensure early and effective responses to the needs of tamariki and whānau.

“Our engagement with whānau highlighted their desire for a neutral, empowering space free from whakamā. They seek support that is inclusive, accessible, relatable, and healing – support they can trust. They want something that looks like them, sounds like them and is them. We have a similar hub planned for Ahuriri to extend this vital support to all Kahungunu whānau,” says Bayden Barber, Board Chair at Kahungunu Iwi Inc.

The hub will feature an integrated team including a Pou Tāhuhu (Independent Coordinator from Ngāti Kahungunu Iwi Inc) and two Pou Tuarongo (Te Wero Report of Concern assessors) supported by Oranga Tamariki social workers.

This team will be hired to manage and assess community referrals using a collective decision-making process. Lead Programme Advisors alongside whānau and their Pou Tokomanawa (Te Wero kaimahi) will facilitate access to services. Pou Tokomanawa will coordinate wānanga bookings with whānau through the Pou Tāhuhu, with additional kaimahi joining over time. The team will work in close collaboration with Oranga Tamariki care and protection sites and regional offices in Heretaunga and Ahuriri, as well as the Hawke’s Bay Youth Justice team.

Chrissie Hape, the Chief Executive of Ngāti Kahungunu Iwi Inc, acknowledged the significance of the launch and the whānau who have shared their experiences as part of Kōrero Mai, which inspired and enabled the realisation of Te Ara Mātua.

She also commended the tireless efforts of the kaimahi from Ngāti Kahungunu Iwi Inc, Te Wero and Oranga Tamariki to reach this point.

“Our whānau are at the centre of Te Ara Mātua. The space we have launched today was inspired by Kahungunu whānau, is led by Kahungunu whānau and for Kahungunu whānau,” said Chrissie.

In 2019, former iwi chairman Mr Ngahiwi Tomoana declared that ‘Not one more child’ would be taken into the Oranga Tamariki system without Kahungunu intervention. The launch of the hub represents a significant shift in their ability to lead the way for whānau.

The launch event was attended by Ngāti Kahungunu whānau, their Te Ara Toiora champions, and Te Wero. Special guests included Minister for Children Hon Karen Chhour, Oranga Tamariki Chief Executive Chappie Te Kani, Deputy Chief Executive Enabling Communities and Investment Darrin Haimona and the local community. Speeches were delivered by Chappie, Chrissie Hape and Ngāti Kahungunu Iwi Inc Board Chair Bayden Barber, Chief Executive, Te Kupenga Hauora o Ahuriri & Te Wero Representative Nathan Harrington and Minister Chhour, all highlighting the significance of Te Ara Mātua and the journey to its realisation.

The hub is a whānau-centric space that forms part of the transformative Te Ara Mātua model, which prototypes a Ngāti Kahungunu-led approach to supporting and caring for whānau within their community.

This prototype design, led by Kahungunu, responds to the findings outlined in the Kōrero Mai Whānau report. Based on a 2019 project, the report provided a platform for whānau and hapū to share their experiences with the state and discuss the preservation of their whānau. The primary aim of Te Ara Mātua is to keep whānau together and reunite those within the system with their whānau, hapū and iwi.

The hub’s creation is a collaborative effort by Ngāti Kahungunu Iwi Inc, Te Wero and Oranga Tamariki. It was born out of the Enabling Communities programme and a strategic partnership between Ngāti Kahungunu and Oranga Tamariki, established in 2021.

This programme is the centre piece for the decentralising of Oranga Tamariki functions into the community.

“Our vision for Oranga Tamariki is that all tamariki are safe, loved and nurtured by whānau, hapū, iwi, supported by their communities. Ngāti Kahungunu know what is best for their whānau and the launch today is a testament to that,” says Chappie.

Whānau and hapū are encouraged to learn more about the hub and access to Te Ara Mātua services. For more information, visit Te Ara Mātua | Kahungunu, email tearamatua@kahungunu.iwi.nz or visit Ngāti Kahungunu Iwi Inc on Facebook