Women's Refuge
Women’s Refuge is New Zealand’s most significant family violence organisation with a 37 year history of providing comprehensive services for women and children.
Women’s Refuge runs 49 Refuges throughout the country including kaupapa Maori and Pasifika Refuges and Refuges for Asian, migrant and refugee women. 63% of the work force is unpaid volunteers.
Our comprehensive services include:
- Providing help and support for women and children 24 hours a day in their community
- Parenting skills courses and self–esteem programmes in which women are taught how to live free from family violence
- Child–focussed sessions to teach self–care when facing violent situations
- Providing trained workers to access legal services and welfare support both in Refuge and in the community
- Providing information and education about family violence to community groups, agencies and professionals
- Campaigning and lobbying government at a national level
All women and children with whom Refuges work can elect to receive one, some or all of the services available. These services range from a short stay in a safe house to escape immediate danger, to participation in both crisis and preventative services for longer periods.
In 2008/9 15,840 women and 12,288 children accessed services. Women’s Refuge received a call for help every 10 minutes.
In November 2008 Friends of Women’s Refuges were able to donate $150,000 from their beautiful NZ Sculpture OnShore exhibition. $1000 was given to each Refuge to buy new whiteware for their safe house. The rest has been used to develop a new Child Advocacy Kit called Mokupuna and an updated programme for women accessing Refuge services. The Child Advocacy Kit is a comprehensive tool for child advocates to use in their work. The kit was rolled out at a very successful training conference that gave advocates a wonderful opportunity to get together and share their stories, discuss their work and learn how to use their new resource.
We thank Friends of Women’s Refuges for being such great friends and for their continued support of our work! The money raised from their mammoth efforts have helped thousands of women and children move forward in their lives and live free from fear and violence.
Julia Parfitt, Prime Minister John Key, Women's Refuge Chief Executive Heather Henare and Erich Bachmann at the 2008 cheque presentation
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