Mō he oranga whānau
About Us
healthy families NZ
Healthy Families NZ is a large scale prevention initiative that brings community leadership together in a united effort for better health in the places we live, learn, work and play. These environments include our neighbourhoods, schools, workplaces, sports clubs, places of worship and marae.
Healthy Families NZ is in ten locations, in areas with higher-than-average rates of preventable chronic diseases like Type-2 Diabetes or heart disease, higher-than-average rates of risk factors for these diseases, and/or high levels of deprivation.
The areas of focus for Healthy Families NZ are:
Nutrition and local food systems
Physical activity and active transport
Smokefree environments
Reducing alcohol-related harm
Mental wellbeing and resilience
Healthy Families NZ reflects the unique context of New Zealand communities, and the special relationship between Māori and the Crown, including obligations under Te Tiriti o Waitangi. Improving Māori health and enabling Māori leadership is an integral part of the Healthy Families NZ approach.
healthy families hutt valley
Many of our Hutt Valley whānau are affected by the rise of preventable chronic disease. Healthy Families Hutt Valley provides an opportunity to look at the underlying causes. We look at how the systems that influence our everyday lives and the environments we live in play a role in our health and wellbeing.
Our role is to drive local change by connecting people and organisations that can create healthy change. We support their leadership, enable them to take action and implement initiatives to demonstrate that together we can make the Hutt a healthier place to live, learn, work and play. Our mandate is to amplify the collective effort.
Healthy Families Hutt Valley is led by Hutt City Council.
As the lead provider for Lower Hutt, it is Hutt City Council’s role to show leadership, to work alongside our partners and community and to make our environments healthier.
Healthy Families Hutt Valley and Upper Hutt City Council have also started working alongside each other to ensure positive systems change is driven across the whole of the Hutt Valley and to support people to create thriving neighbourhoods where everyone leads a healthy and happy life.
Read article: Joining forces with Upper Hutt City Council (21 April 2023)
our environments
We want to make the healthy choice the easy choice for all our people. To do this we need to understand what choices are accessible and affordable in our neighbourhoods. This interactive map shows a snapshot of the availability and access to:
· Alcohol
· Tobacco
· Unhealthy Food
· Healthy Food
· Vaping Products & Devices
· Gambling
· Playgrounds
· Water Fountains
· Schools
· Public Transport
· Cycling Routes
Click on the image to see the interactive map