Te Whāriki Manawāhine Research 2024: He Whare, He Taonga

The position of Te Whāriki Manawāhine o Hauraki (Te Whāriki) - Hauraki Women’s Refuge’s on housing is that Wāhine and their whānau deserve a safe, warm home regardless of socio-economic status.

The He Whare, He Taonga housing project envisions a future where tamariki are raised in non-violent villages founded on mātauranga me tikanga Māori. These are villages where Wāhine Māori and their whānau are fully supported to recover from their lived experiences of mahi tūkino, and they are thriving.

In 2020, Te Whāriki secured strategic planning funding from the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development. With that funding, Te Whāriki developed a housing strategy informed by Wāhine and key Informants to deepen the organisation’s understanding of the underpinnings of housing poverty for Hauraki Wāhine and their whānau. 

Te Whāriki found that the dire private and public rental housing shortage in the Hauraki region had created a crisis for Hauraki whānau. Furthermore, the profound impact of whānau violence, and systemic entrapment forces many Hauraki Wāhine and their whānau into homelessness. This crisis highlights the Call To Action for targeted mātauranga Māori solutions to address the intersecting challenges of mahi tūkino and housing poverty.

Te Whāriki Manawāhine o Hauraki 

Te Whāriki has been operating a professional, specialised mahi tūkino service for 40 years, supporting all communities within the Hauraki rohe. As a Tangata Whenua service, the organisation stays connected to Hauraki, whānau, hapū, and iwi through their staff, 95% whakapapa to Hauraki. 

Purpose of research: He Whare, He Taonga 

The aim of this research is to investigate how providing secure housing can serve as an intervention to address the underlying causes of mahi tūkino, particularly focusing on the adverse impacts experienced by Wāhine Māori and their whānau. The primary driver for the research project is to understand the relationship between persistent disparities, housing poverty and mahi tūkino experienced by Hauraki Wāhine Māori. 

Amplifying wāhine voices 

Wāhine, seeking support from Te Whāriki face profound challenges in finding suitable and sustainable housing, which can force them back into the violent situations they were trying to escape. These challenges often include homelessness, isolation from whānau and community support, and the critical need for confidentiality and anonymity in their pursuit of assistance. Despite these intersecting persistent, systemic and structural obstacles, their hope for a long-term housing solution fuels their determination and courage to strive for a new beginning.

To that end, He Whare, He Taonga aimed to amplify the voices of Wāhine and whānau affected by the intersection of whānau violence and housing poverty. 

Findings

This research finds there is a connection between Wāhine Māori lived experiences of mahi tūkino and their housing situation, pointing to housing poverty as a primary factor. The overlay of mahi tūkino with housing poverty creates a situation where Wāhine and their whanau face a double layering of harm. Wāhine want solutions, and to actively participate in designing and implementing solutions for resolving the mahi tūkino - housing poverty connection. Find out more on page 16 of the research.

Read the research here