Child & Family Services

Whānau Ora

Whānau Ora is a key cross-government programme jointly implemented by the Ministry of Health, Te Puni Kokiri and the Ministry of Social Development.

It is an approach that places whānau at the centre of decision making about their future and in control of the services they need to achieve their aspirations.

Focusing on increasing the wellbeing of individuals in the context of their whānau by integrating health, education and social services. Whānau Ora differs from traditional social and health approaches that focus solely on the needs of individuals.

Whānau Ora works in a range of ways, influenced by the approach the whānau chooses to take. Whānau Ora is not a one-size-fits-all approach. It is designed to be flexible to meet your specific needs.

Some whānau will want to come up with their own ways of improving their lives and may want to work with a hapu, iwi or non-government organisation (NGO). Other whānau will choose to seek help from specialist Whānau Ora providers who can offer them a range of services tailored to their needs.

Whānau will have a champion to work with them to identify their needs, develop a plan of action and broker access to a range of health and social services. The focus of Whānau Ora is an opportunity for whānau to identify their own strengths, needs and priorities and to actively participate in the development of solutions to issues they may face.

The Whānau Ora liaison will support whānau through this process and connect the whānau with agencies or specialist services that can progress them towards achieving their goals.