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Published: February 2026

Download Mental Health Bill submission pdf, 284 KB Since our formation Te Hiringa Mahara - Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission has contributed to policy development to ensure Aotearoa New Zealand has mental health law based on human rights and eliminates coercive practices or reduces them to the

Published: January 2026

and other organisations in Aotearoa New Zealand must work together with rangatahi Māori and young people to make long-term systemic changes to address their barriers to wellbeing.

Published: 14 February, 2023

of rural communities in Aotearoa New Zealand . Around 16% of the population live in rural areas, and around 35% in total live outside of large urban areas - these figures are higher for Māori. The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted and exacerbated pre-existing challenges and has had large impacts on

Published: 3 December, 2025

ensures transparency, acts as a lever for change, and allows people to see the impact from our recommendations.  The first recommendations were made in the Kua Tīmata Te Haerenga | The Journey has Begun, monitoring report published in June 2024. These were directed towards Health New Zealand and the

Published: 15 December, 2025

working for people and their whānau. It was also the first time in over a decade that Australian based TheMHS Learning Network have run an event in Aotearoa New Zealand.   Bringing together over 200 people generated a lot of energy and discussion. The final session led by Ember Innovations

Published: 14 June, 2021

providing oversight of the nation’s mental health and wellbeing system, holding the Government of the day and other decision makers to account for the health and wellbeing of all people in Aotearoa New Zealand. “Karen has a strong discipline of bringing community voices to the fore. She listened

Published: 27 June, 2024

More evidence of the state of New Zealand youth mental health — Youth and rangatahi wellbeing and access to services assessment — has been released today and shows that while most youth and rangatahi are doing well, there is a steady decline in youth wellbeing in comparison to older age groups more

Published: 24 July, 2024

documenting the harms that have impacted the lives of thousands of New Zealanders, but to also recognise and understand the subsequent trauma and distress that people live with as a result.   We acknowledge the pain, loss and anger of those who contributed their voices to this inquiry and

Published: 28 October, 2021

wellbeing systems in Aotearoa,” says Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission Board chair Hayden Wano. “Our role is to be the eyes and ears of the people of New Zealand, amplifying the voices of our communities. We bring focus to areas where meaningful action can be taken. Appropriate access to and choice

Published: 16 September, 2024

is imporant in daily life, and over half of all New Zealanders agree te reo Māori should be taught in primary school. These findings are further supported by our recent wellbeing assessment showing that support for te reo Māori is high among Māori and is increasing among non-Māori.  Our work on