Mātika Te Kāhui Taiohi
More than just a place to stay, Mātika Te Kāhui Taiohi provides a safe environment where young people are embraced with manaaki, respect and aroha.
We recognise the unique challenges rangatahi face and offer pathways that empower them to build confidence, develop skills and work towards long-term housing stability and wellbeing.
Based in Petone Lower Hutt, our service provides safe and secure housing and social support for up to six rangatahi tāne between the ages of 18 and 21 years old.
The support we offer includes:
Accommodation
At Mātika Te Kāhui Taiohi, we provide a fully furnished, comfortable and welcoming whare. Each rangatahi has their own fully furnished bedroom to ensure privacy and comfort. There are two shared bathrooms in the whare and comfortable living spaces that enable rangatahi to relax and enjoy their home with their flatmates and kaimahi. Our whare operates under a tikanga and kawa centred around whanaungatanga, manaakitanga and kotahitanga and each of our rangatahi affirm their commitment to our tikanga and kawa while they reside in the whare. This includes living in a shared accommodation environment where they are responsible for shared daily living chores and working as a whānau to maintain our whare.
In-whare support
We understand that rangatahi need their privacy and the ability to make their own decisions about their life. We provide 24/7 in-whare support to rangatahi, with kaimahi who recognise that it is their job to act as guides and mentors to support and encourage rangatahi to make good choices about how they want to live their lives. Operating under a strong trust model, it's important to us that our whare is similar to a home, and our kaimahi and rangatahi treat eachother like whānau. This means that as a whānau, we are all able to move about freely as long as it's clear where we are and when we will be coming home.
Navigational Support
Navigation work is a key component of the support provided by Mātika Te Kāhui Taiohi. Upon entering our whare, each rangatahi is assigned a navigator who works with them to develop a Mauriora Plan - a tailored plan that identifies the aspirations and goals of rangatahi and the steps that will be taken to help rangatahi achieve mauriora. Mauriora Plans are reviewed and updated on a regular basis to ensure rangatahi are supported to remain on track to achieving success. If support is needed to bring things back on track, our navigators support and awhi rangatahi every step of the way. Additional to this, our navigators act as strong advocates for all their social and health needs, not only supporting but also teaching them how to navigate complex government agencies and to get the support they need from community services.
Life Skills and Programmes
While rangatahi are living in our whare, we invest time and resources into developing their life skills and providing programmes that support their personal development. * Cooking classes * Budgeting and financial literacy * Numeracy and literacy support * Health and fitness * Driver licensing * Te Ao Māori * Basic home DIY * Maara kai * Fishing Programme * Barbering Programme * Employment Programme
Eligibility criteria
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Be male
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Aged between 18 and 21 years old
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Living in Te Whanganui ā Tara
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At risk of homelessness
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Agree to be referred to our service
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Agree to abide by the tikanga and kawa of our whare.
As a shared living accommodation, we are required to assess the needs and support required for every rangatahi.
If the needs of rangatahi are outside our scope of expertise, we will assist them and their whānau to find the right support.
How to make a referral
Referrals are welcome from social and community services and agencies across Te Whanganui ā Tara.
Rangatahi are also welcome to self-refer.
To make a referral, please download and complete our referral form and email it to Mātika Te Kāhui Taiohi Pou Arihi, Anaru Para at anaru@heherengakura.nz