How we can help you

WINZ has contracts for transitional housing that allows whanau to have a home space, where support is provided to actively provide a good foundation for whanau to gain skills and understanding of how to obtain more permanent housing. It can take 3 months to find a more permanent residence, please contact us for more information on this service. This means you do not need to have your ‘ducks in a row’ before you make a move to leave your situation. You can leave immediately, and we will assist you with further information on this service, please remember that there is often a waitlist for this service with WINZ.

Our safe house is for women and children that are at risk from family violence and need somewhere safe to stay until either their house is deemed safe to live in or alternative accommodation can be provided. Our safe houses are confidential and are spaces where you can trust you are safe. There are no strings attached to this free service, as soon as you make contact with us about this to see if the safehouse is available. If the safehouse is not available then we may be able to support you into alternative emergency accommodation.

We can offer counselling through independent registered counsellors, who have a contractual relationship to deliver free services to women in need. This means you not only receive the tools you need to keep physically safe, but we will also support you with the resources you need to support your mental and emotional wellbeing too.

Our 0800 16 33 44 number is 24/7 and answered within 15 minutes by a trained member of the Nelson Women’s Refuge they can provide immediate support for crisis situations. We all need someone we can turn to and sometimes it needs to be someone with the right tools to support you in making the best choices for you and your children’s safety.

Advocacy is for women who have or are currently experiencing family violence. Our advocates are registered and qualified social workers who will support a women on their journey to safety and wellbeing. Offer support with other agencies, referral to support services, lawyer visits, police visits, doctors and protection orders. This means you will not go on the journey to safety alone. Someone will be with you every step of the way and provide you with the support you need. Our advocates are trained to specifically support you through this process.

We offer tailor made programmes either in a group or individual setting to suit the client. These are once a week for 8 weeks and can be delivered after hours and by various digital and face to face means. These teach the women how to remain safe, make changes to grow and develop whether or not they choose to leave the abuser. It means we can support you no matter what choice you make – and equip you with tools for your future that can help you in your specific situation, and empower our violence survivors into being stronger survivors.

Our children’s programmes are made specifically to support children so that they can understand the emotions they are going through and how to deal with these. They will learn how to keep themselves safe in unsafe situations and offer support via counselling and support with schools and other referral agencies.

Our rangitahi (teenager) programmes are made specifically to build rapport and support rangitahi through these times. You will learn how to keep yourself safe in unsafe situations and we offer other support via advocacy, counselling and support with schools and other referral agencies.

We currently do not have a Pet Refuge in the Nelson/Tasman area however, for your much loved pets, SPCA is a good place to start and our team here can assist with contacts in the community who may be able to help.