Police and leaders, staff and volunteers with Te Hāhi are celebrating 10 years of partnership and support.
Te Hāhi – a faith-based volunteer organisation – has worked alongside Police since 2016 to support whānau experiencing family harm and other hardships.
The work began in Tairāwhiti and Rotorua but now covers 10 Police areas in Eastern, Bay of Plenty, Waikato and Wellington Districts.
Senior Sergeant Michael Trotter, National Coordinator Family Harm and acting Manager Family Harm Partnerships and Response, says the anniversary is an opportunity to celebrate past progress in creating safer homes and communities and look ahead with confidence.
“Through their commitment, compassion and strong community connections, Te Hāhi has helped whānau access the support they need during some of life's most challenging times,” he says.
“Their ability to engage whānau with empathy and a genuine human response has been instrumental in creating hope and positive change for people affected by family harm or living through hardship.”
Te Hāhi – te reo Māori for ‘the church’ - is based on a collective of churches in the areas where it operates.
It is not a specialist family harm service - it aims to complement, not replace existing services in the community, providing emotional, spiritual and practical support to vulnerable people, not just those experiencing family harm.
Te Hāhi works with partners such as Age Concern, Women’s Refuge, Victim Support and Wellington Free Ambulance, as well as Police. Volunteers can link clients with a variety of services, from food banks to debt services to marriage counselling.
Its volunteers provide awhi to people who might not get any other referral, says National Coordinator Teri Walker.
"We now work with several other local agencies and organisations, but New Zealand Police remains our key partner.
"It’s a privilege to continue to work alongside Police staff offering support to those in our communities who are overwhelmed by their circumstances or need another option of support.
“We can be a listening ear, arrange an emergency food parcel if required, offer practical help and use our connections with local providers to connect people who are isolated and who would fall through the cracks,” she says.
“Sometimes people are living with no hope, and we try to bring them hope.”
Then there are the pooled resources and talents of its volunteers: for example, in Tauranga, the largest Te Hāhi area, it can call on 10 churches and 80 volunteers.
“Te Hāhi is a great community resource. Within 48 hours of getting a referral we try to connect with people and see how we can help them.”
Although Te Hāhi is church-based, its services are available to people of all faiths and none. “As Christians, this is what we’re called to do,” says Debbie Simpson, of Te Hāhi Operations.
“This is what the Church is called to do. We’re here to help people, not build our churches. This flows through to all our volunteers.”
Inspector Natasha Allan, acting Director Prevention, says Te Hahi demonstrates the power of community-led prevention and the difference made when Police and trusted local partners work together.
"Our role is to keep people safe and focus on our core policing functions but we know lasting wellbeing for whānau often comes through connection, support and trusted relationships within the community," she says. "That's where Te Hahi adds enormous value.
"This partnership has shown how local churches, volunteers and Police can work together to provide whānau with pathways to support while strengthening community resilience.
"As the partnership continues to grow, it remains an excellent example of collective effort delivering better outcomes for individuals, whānau and communities.”
Read on below image for examples of Te Hāhi in action, and more information...
Te Hāhi in action
- Police asked if Te Hāhi could provide a Vietnamese speaker for a woman who had a baby at 42 and was isolated and suffering post-partum depression. Volunteers arranged medical support and helped her into a mums-and-babies music group, from where she sent a Google Translate message: “I feel so happy today”.
- Volunteers aided a woman after her partner caused damage at her home. They replaced five damaged doors, painted and arranged for a food parcel. “Thanks to your generosity I was able to repair my home and begin rebuilding both my living space and peace of mind for myself and my babies,” the woman wrote.
- Police asked if Te Hāhi could help a mother-of-two young children whose partner had slashed the tyres on her car, leaving her unable to take the kids to school with no money to fix the damage. Volunteers quickly replaced the tyres. “Thank you so much… you’re amazing,” she wrote.
More information
- Te Hāhi operates in Tairāwhiti, Rotorua, Hawke’s Bay, Kapiti Coast, Hutt Valley, Porirua, Morrinsville, Te Awamutu, Taupō and the Western Bay of Plenty. They are interested in expanding further if local police, churches and community partners are keen.
- To find out more, contact Te Hāhi through its website