Kotahitanga - Working with our partners and stakeholders

Safe to talk - Kōrero mai, ka ora

Since Safe to talk Kōrero mai, ka ora went live in February, more than 2,000 people have contacted the helpline and over 22,000 people have visited the website.

The helpline provides 24/7 access to free and confidential information and support for people affected by sexual harm in any way. It enables people to get advice and support from trained specialists and to be connected to support services in their community.

The helpline is operated on our behalf by Homecare Medical, a social enterprise owned by the primary health organisations ProCare and Pegasus Health.

Safe to talk is available by calling 0800 044 334, texting 4334, emailing support@safetotalk.nz and live webchat on www.safetotalk.nz which also has a range of resources and information about sexual harm.

Minister for Social Development Carmel Sepuloni with Safe to talk Clinical Lead Dr Siale Foliaki (left) and Associate Minister for Social Development Peeni Henare (right).

KickStart Breakfast winners

We partner with Fonterra and Sanitarium to support the KickStart Breakfast Programme which makes sure that children in over 950 schools around New Zealand get the best possible start to the day.

There was enormous excitement at Terrace End School in Palmerston North recently when the staff and children found out it was the 2018 Breakfast Club of the Year.

The school was recognised for its flexibility in running its Breakfast Club and the role of senior students at the school in setting up breakfast each day and mentoring the younger children.

In addition, Putaruru Primary School was recognised for two volunteer ‘unsung heroes’ who organise their breakfast club and Gisborne Boys High School received the school champion award to recognise the contribution of a student in organising the club.

Find out more about the KickStart Breakfast Programme

Terrace End School of Palmerston North celebrate being named the 2018 Breakfast Club of the Year with representatives from Fonterra, Sanitarium and MSD.

New free financial helpline MoneyTalks

A new free financial helpline MoneyTalks , for people struggling with their finances, was officially launched in August.

Trained financial mentors can provide immediate support to people and/or refer them to Building Financial Capability (BFC) services in their own communities. BFC helps people, families and whānau experiencing hardship to build their financial capability and resilience.

MoneyTalks is available from 8am to 8pm Monday to Friday and from 10am to 2pm on Saturday by freephone 0800 345 123, text 4029, email help@moneytalks.co.nz, online chat/website www.moneytalks.co.nz.

So far, most of the people contacting MoneyTalks have sought advice for themselves while others were concerned friends and families.

We have contracted FinCap to run the MoneyTalks helpline.

From left, National BFC Trust Chairperson Susan Kosmala, Trust CE Tim Barnett, MSD Family and Community Services Manager Gordon McKenzie and BFC team member Chris Law.