Te WH?ngai Trust is a Charitable Trust providing work, life skills training, and multi-agency advocacy (assisting with Courts, Corrections, Work and Income, CYPFS, health, and other support services) to develop pathways into education and employment. We focus on developing those in our community that needs a hand-up, not a hand-out.
The Trust assists people that find themselves at a disadvantage through current circumstances to upskill themselves and assess their skills and transition back into community life and future employment.
We provide live, hands-on work platforms which are native plant nurseries and an agribusiness that allows participants to discover their skill sets and share basic life and work experiences while training in the community and achieving NZQA qualifications. The end goal is to obtain meaningful employment within the community, developing connections and well-being. Te WH?ngai platforms are co-designed with community partners to fit unique multisector needs of the community in which they operate.
The simulated community business/ life skills platforms are based on Kaupapa Māori. Participants focus on therapeutic self-management programmes for goal setting, and internal motivation gaining confidence to problem solve and accomplish new behaviour. We seek actions and solutions that work best for and with our excluded and disadvantaged within the values and practices of WH?ngai.
The platforms actively involve the people and communities with a common vision, ensuring our disenfranchised people create opportunities for growth while contributing their skills to benefit the community that supports them. Multisector community strengths are harnessed to achieve previously unachievable Whānau centric outcomes creating social, environmental, economic, and cultural positive outcomes for all participating sectors.
The united vision is to support Whānau and communities to eradicate poverty in a way that simultaneously reduces inequality and exclusion while protecting the environment on which we all depend. We nurture the people for them to create a legacy for future generations.
Our aim is to work with families to create opportunities for themselves, our children, and youth that build resilience and independence, transitioning into future pathways and transferable skill sets.
16-65-year-olds are able to participate in our programme, and we encourage volunteers and retirees of all ages to come and share their life experiences with our participants – please contact us to register your interest.
We welcome participants from Thames, Hauraki Plains, North Waikato, Meremere, PÅkeno, Tuakau, Franklin, Miranda, Pukekohe, Papakura, Waiuku, Kaiaua, Te Kauwhata, and the Auckland region.