Family violence services
Below is a list of the key family violence services, the help that they offer, and how to contact them.
Women's Refuge
Location: All across Aotearoa, New Zealand
Crisis line 24/7 – 0800 REFUGE or 0800 733 843
New Zealand’s largest nation-wide organisation that supports and helps women and children experiencing family violence.
What to expect:
Women’s Refuge gives 24/7 access to safe houses in all regions. Find the refuge closest to you: Find your local Refuge | Women’s Refuge Their support is confidential and non-judgmental.
They’ll help you navigate the support services you might want or need such as: Police, Oranga Tamariki, legal system, courts, Work and Income, housing, doctors, immigration, and schools. They’ll also help connect you with any additional support services you need.
Women’s Refuge workers are trained and have an in-depth understanding of how to support people in abusive situations and also support women in isolated regions. They make home and community visits. They have education and support groups for women and children about living free from violence.
Women’s Refuge gives information and presentations to community groups, schools and workplaces.
Aviva Christchurch Women's Refuge
Location: Ōtautahi/Christchurch
24/7 support line: 0800 2848 2669
What to expect:
Aviva support people of any age, gender, ethnicity or sexual orientation who are experiencing, or have experienced family violence.
Their services include individually tailored advice, advocacy and safety planning, access to budgeting services and information on legal, health and financial issues as well as help to access to support from other agencies.
While Aviva doesn’t operate a safe house, they can support you to access refuge or alternate emergency accommodation through other agencies.
Family Action - Whānau Toa
Location: Tāmaki Makaurau/Auckland
Phone number: Monday to Friday 8.30am to 5.00pm 0800 326 327 or 09 836 1987 (for people in Auckland)
What to expect:
Family Action run a West Auckland women’s refuge for women, youth, children and families who have experienced family or sexual violence, abuse or trauma. They offer a range of services such as: safety planning, crisis counselling and intervention services, information about protection and custody and ongoing support.
Kindred Services
Location: Tāmaki Makaurau/Auckland
24/7 women’s refuge support: 021 842 917
What to expect:
Kindred Family Services provide quality interventions to support, empower and advocate for people so they are able to reach their full potential.
They also provide a 24/7 support line and a culturally-responsive Women’s Refuge responses to family violence where the safety of women/children is essential. This can include advocacy, safety planning, safe housing, 24/7 crisis response, awareness/education, counselling, whanau and collaborative community participation.
Mother of Divine Mercy Charitable Trust
Location: Tāmaki Makaurau/Auckland
Phone number: (09) 820 0453
What to expect:
Mother of Divine Mercy offer Auckland-based wrap around support services including advocacy information and support with Police, lawyers, courts, Work and Income and other government agencies. They can also send referrals to counsellors, lawyers and doctors.
The also provide a Safe House shelter, Community based advocacy, information, education, awareness services and programs, free counselling, and culturally-responsive support led by Pan-Pacific approaches.
Shakti
Locations: Tāmaki Makaurau/Auckland, Tauranga, Te Whanganui-aTara/Wellington, Ōtautahi/Christchurch
Crisis line, 24/7, multilingual – 0800 SHAKTI or 0800 742 584
What to expect:
Culturally safe, specialist, confidential support for women and their children of Asian, African, and Middle Eastern origins.
Refuges that offer culturally appropriate refuge or shelter for ethnic women wanting to escape family violence.
Shakti’s culturally appropriate crisis intervention and prevention services are safe and confidential services.
They help with legal support, and advocacy in housing and immigration and with ACC. Shakti offers therapy, counselling, and referral to health services.
Their self-empowerment and life skills programmes promote confidence and self-reliance.
Shama, Ethnic Women's Trust
Location: Waikato
Phone number: Monday to Friday 9:00am to 4:30pm (07) 843 3810
What to expect:
Shama is a community organisation that works with ethnic women and families to provide both a Waikato regional response for family violence and a national response for sexual violence which includes a crisis response service, long term therapeutic support and prevention work through community development.
Shine*
Location: Tāmaki Makaurau/Auckland
Shine website including 24/7 chat online
Crisis line available 24/7: 0508 744 633
What to expect:
Shine has two refuges at confidential locations in Auckland. Ring Shine’s crisis line to talk about going to a refuge.
Refuges offer warmth, shelter, safety, food, clothing, a supportive environment for families, and emotional support.
They can also support you with organising Work and Income (WINZ) benefits, support groups, counselling, and finding a lawyer.
Shine’s people can help you to find safe, permanent housing. In Auckland, Shine has transitional housing – supported rental housing for families ready to leave the refuge
S.O.S Kaipara
Location: Kaipara District
Phone number: (09) 439 6070 or 0800 33 88 44
What to expect:
S.O.S Kaipara provide wrap around specialist support services for women, children and wider whānau affected by abuse and violence in the Kaipara District. They provide support, advocacy, refuge accommodation, crisis and family therapy counselling.
Taupō Women’s Refuge
Location: Taupō
24/7 crisis line: 07 377 1055
What to expect:
Taupō Women’s Refuge provides a safe, warm, comfortable home to victims of family violence who need to leave their own homes for any reason. This service provides women and children the time to put plans in place and to ensure their safety at the same time. They facilitate both one-on-one and/or group support for those experiencing family violence.
Tauranga Women's Refuge
Location: Tauranga
Tauranga Women's Refuge website
24/7 helpline: 0800 TO REFUGE or 0800 86 733 843
What to expect:
Tauranga Women’s Refuge provide a 24-hour Crisis Phone Line, Safe House shelter, Community based advocacy, information, education, awareness services and programs, free counselling, Kaupapa Māori Women’s and Children’s programs
They also offer offer wrap around support services including advocacy information and support with Police, lawyers, courts, Work and Income and other government agencies. They can also send referrals to counsellors, lawyers and doctors.
Te Roopu O Te Whānau Rangimarie O Tāmaki Makaurau
Location: Tāmaki Makaurau/Auckland
Phone number: Monday to Friday 9:00am to 5:00pm (09) 390-1283
What to expect:
Te Roopu O Te Whānau Rangimarie O Tāmaki Makaurau provide a temporary safe house shelter in Auckland for women and their children requiring safety and support as a result of family violence in the home and/or community.
They also offer safety programmes for adults and children who are experiencing family violence, which help build strategies on how to understand and deal with the affects of family violence.
Te Whāriki Manawāhine O Hauraki – Hauraki Women’s Refuge
Location: Hauraki/Thames
Hauraki Women's Refuge website
24/7 Free call Crisis Line: 0800 868 3132
What to expect:
Te Whāriki Manawāhine O Hauraki provide services to whānau throughout Hauraki from the top of the Coromandel Peninsula to Te Aroha in the South and from Kaiaua in the West, and over to Whitianga, Whangamata and Waihi in the East.
They have a Safe House for women and children who need breathing space from Family Violence, including Sexual Violence.
They also offer home and community based advocacy and support for whānau and individual whānau members wanting to recover and heal from whānau violence.
Te Whare Marama O Māngere
Location: Tāmaki Makaurau/Auckland
Phone number: (09) 2767922
What to expect:
Kaupapa Māori provider that offers a place of safety which includes emergency accommodation, advice and wellbeing programmes to Women and Children in the community who are experiencing family violence and abuse.
Te Whare Tu Whānau (Gisborne Women’s Refuge)
Location: Tairāwhiti/Gisborne
Free call crisis line: 0800 377 600
What to expect:
Te Whare Tu Whanāu provide women’s refuge and responses to whānau violence led by a Te Ao Māori and whānau centred approach, where the safety of whānau is essential.
This includes advocacy, safety planning, safe housing, 24/7 crisis response, awareness/education, counselling, whānau wananga and collaborative community participation. This is informed by whānau voice, safe practice, and grounded in an understanding of the power imbalances that disproportionately affect wahine, tamariki, tangata whenua and minority groups.
Waikato Women’s Refuge – Te Whakaruruhau
Location: Kirikiriroa/Hamilton
Waikato Women's Refuge website
24/7 phoneline: 07 855 1569
What to expect:
Te Whakaruruhau Maori Women’s Refuge has four refuges across Hamilton. You can call their 24/7 crisis hotline to find out what services are available to you.
They offer services designed to lead women and their families towards safety, stability and wellbeing, including help to leave an abusive relationship, developing a safety plan, advocacy with government agencies, and grants of furniture, clothing or food.
They also work with men using violence to give them the tools and support to become violence-free.
Whānau Awhina Women's Refuge
Location: Whakatāne
Phone number: (07) 308 5531
What to expect:
Whānau Awhina provide refuge for women and children in Whakatāne, Kawerau and Ōpōtiki experiencing violence or abuse in a safe and confidential environment. Involved in crisis intervention, obtaining protection orders and other services as needed.