Te Mātuku Launches Whānau Voice Report Series To Guide Local Health Decisions

Friday, 26 September 2025, 7:56 pm
Article: Moana Ellis - Local Democracy Reporter

Te Mātuku, the iwi-Māori partnership board for Te Ranga Tupua, has released a four-part series of whānau voice reports, capturing kōrero from families across Whanganui, Rangitīkei, Ruapehu and parts of South Taranaki. The reports reveal that wellbeing is inseparable from equity of access, cultural safety and trust. Covering a wide scope – from primary health care and child wellbeing to mental health, cancer screening, rural health and kaumātua support – they provide a grassroots view of what communities need most. 

Te Mātuku manu tāiko/CEO Elijah Pue said the reports carry the weight of lived experience. “Through whānau-led insights, we are forging a path towards local health services that are culturally grounded, equitable and responsive,” he said. More than 276 people participated, supported by independent Māori research institute Te Atawhai o Te Ao. Participants, all with whakapapa to iwi of Te Ranga Tupua, were engaged through surveys, interviews and hui. 

“Their kōrero provides the foundation for understanding community priorities, experiences and aspirations in health and wellbeing,” Pue said. Iwi-Māori partnership boards were established under the Pae Ora (Healthy Futures) Act in 2022 to ensure Māori health needs and priorities are reflected in decision-making. Pue said whānau voice is a critical touch point between the system and whānau.

"Engaging with our whānau will likely become the main function of IMPBs moving into the future. “The release of the first four whānau voice reports signals our ongoing commitment to regular engagement and amplification of whānau perspectives, priorities and aspirations to inform decision-making processes across the health landscape.” 

The reports highlight recurring concerns around access, distance and the need for care that is both practical and culturally safe. In Report 1 on primary health care and wellbeing,whānau called for health services to be based within communities rather than out of reach. One participant said: “Health services need to be where our whānau are, on the marae, in our communities, not miles away where we can’t get to them.” In Report 2 on mokopuna ora (child and youth wellbeing), parents and caregivers stressed the importance of nurturing tamariki and rangatahi in ways that support both mental and physical growth. 

“We want our mokopuna to thrive, not just survive,” one kōrero stated. In Report 3 on mental health, social cohesion and cancer screening, participants called for stronger community connections and a proactive approach to preventive care. 

One comment reflected a desire for culturally safe screening: “We need to see the faces of whānau when we go for screening, so we feel safe.” In Report 4 on rural health, oranga promotion and kaumātua insights, rural whānau named challenges including distance, lack of services and limited cultural responsiveness. Kaumātua voiced a need for holistic support: “We need health that looks after our wairua as much as our tinana.” The full reports are available on the Te Mātuku website. 

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