Care Matters NZ

21/10/2025

Join one of our upcoming Care Matters workshops to connect, learn, and strengthen your wellbeing and community connections📓🤝
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Register now https://carematters.org.nz/face-to-face-workshops-and-events-2/
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🗓️ 29 October – Carer wellbeing workshop - New Zealand Down Syndrome Association (NZDSA) - Online - https://carematters.org.nz/events/nzdsa-wellbeing/
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🗓️ 20 November – Tailored workshop - Palmerston North - https://carematters.org.nz/events/palmerston-north-egl/
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🗓️3 December – Tailored workshop - Palmerston North - https://carematters.org.nz/events/easie-living/
Image description:

A flyer titled “Upcoming Care Matters Workshops” which lists the three upcoming sessions. The Care Matters logo and website link www.carematters.co.nz are at the bottom. The colours are creams, browns and green.

09/10/2025

We're excited to partner with New Zealand Down Syndrome Association to bring a carer wellbeing workshop to the Down Syndrome community 🧡💜
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To mark the UN International Day of Care and Support, we invite parents, family, whānau, and aiga carers to a special workshop honouring your incredible mahi.
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This free wellbeing workshop is designed as a calm, welcoming space where you can pause, connect, and focus on you. Together we’ll explore tools and ideas to strengthen resilience, nurture balance, and support you in the important role you play.
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Date: Wednesday 29 October 2025
Time: 7.00-8.30pm
Online
Register here:
https://carematters.org.nz/events/nzdsa-wellbeing/

Care Matters and the New Zealand Down Syndrome Association (NZDSA) are excited to bring the Down syndrome community a care and wellbeing workshop!

To mark the UN International Day of Care and Support, we invite parents, family, whānau, and aiga carers to a special workshop honouring your incredible mahi.

This free wellbeing workshop is designed as a calm, welcoming space where you can pause, connect, and focus on you. Together we’ll explore tools and ideas to strengthen resilience, nurture balance, and support you in the important role you play.

Date: Wednesday 29 October 2025
Time: 7.00-8.30pm
Online

Register here:
https://carematters.org.nz/events/nzdsa-wellbeing/

06/10/2025

Next week, Care Matters is hosting two workshops in Henderson Auckland in partnership with A Supported Life! 💫
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With a morning and evening session to suit your schedule, it's a chance to answer some burning questions and connect with other whānau carers in your community 👋 Sessions are tailored to what matters to you, just let us know when you register via our website 💻
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🗓️ 15 October - 5.30pm - 9.00pm

🗓️ 16 October - 9.30am - 2.30pm
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https://carematters.org.nz/face-to-face-workshops-and-events-2/
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We look forward to seeing you there!
Flyer description:

A flyer for Care Matters workshops in Auckland. The heading reads “Free Care Matters Workshop” with the tagline “Learn, explore, and connect with others. By families, for families.” It lists two dates: 15 October (5.30pm–9.00pm) and 16 October (9.30am–2.30pm). The workshops are held in association with A Supported Life and Parent to Parent. It includes contact details for Tina and a booking link via the Care Matters website. The design uses blue and white colours with the Care Matters, SAMS, and Parent to Parent logos.

03/09/2025

The Care Matters Team would love to connect with family and whānau carers in your community 🤝 ✨.
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We come to you and offer free, relaxed workshops where you can share kai, learn, and kōrero with others who understand the journey 🙌. Our team are also family and whānau who have walked similar paths 👣.
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Workshops can be tailored to suit your group. We are flexible, and they can be one-off sessions or a two-day journey, held in the daytime or evening.
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Frequent topics include:

- History of disability in Aotearoa

- Enabling Good Lives

- Ageing well

- Adolescence and puberty

- Wellness

- How to negotiate for what you want

- What's in your community
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If this sounds like something your community would value, please contact Tina Lincoln at tina@carematters.org.nz or text 027 318 7258 💻 ☎️.
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We’d love to hear from you 🦻.
Image description:

A Care Matters flyer. In large and blue text “WANT A WORKSHOP FOR WHĀNAU CARERS?”.

It explains that the Care Matters team will come to your community with resources, lived experience, and kai, for free.

It includes a call for expressions of interest and lists possible workshop topics. There is an illustration in blue of people listening to someone speaking. At the bottom are contact details and the Care Matters logo.

13/08/2025

We’re so pleased to welcome Tina Lincoln back to the Care Matters and SAMS space! 🙌
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Over the past nine months, Tina has been on sabbatical at VisAble, doing important safeguarding work. Her time there deepened her understanding of how communities can connect better with safeguarding agencies, how abuse can sometimes go unnoticed or be seen as the norm, and how working across multiple agencies can help untangle complex systems while making sure the voices of Disabled People are heard 🗣️📢 .
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With 19 years at SAMS, Tina has been greatly missed, especially for her wise words, quick wit, and unwavering advocacy. Her return brings fresh energy, insight, and strength to our work 🌟.
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Tina is back as Development Manager at Care Matters and will continue as a Senior Leadership Team Member at SAMS. We’re looking forward to what's ahead with her back on board.

Hoki mai anō!
Image description:

Tina has wavy brown hair tied back, she wears a black top with a colourful floral pattern over a long-sleeved black shirt. She's in a bright room with couches, large windows, and a potted plant in the background.

30/07/2025

Moemoe and Hailey recently hosted two workshops in Auckland. 🛫
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Our smaller groups create space for real kōrero and tailored support on topics you're interested in like ORS, funding, autism, wellbeing, and effective communication. 💬 🤝
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Our incredible whānau facilitators are here to explore what matters most to you. 🤍
Image description:

A small group of people are sitting around tables. They are facing a screen displaying a slide titled "Preparing for the assessment." Some people are listening while others are talking. The room has a high ceiling, soft lighting, and tree designs on the walls. There are notes, cups, and papers on the tables.

09/07/2025

June was absolutely jam-packed! Our amazing facilitators Moemoe, Will, Lisa, and Faedra were busy, delivering workshops all across the Lower North Island. 👏
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Next up? We’re hitting South and Central Auckland on the 16th and 17th of July. 🛫 Don’t miss out, register now and learn what you care about!

👉 https://carematters.org.nz/workshops-events-upper-north-island/
Image descriptions:

1. This flyer has a teal background with bold accents in yellow, beige, and black. A yellow star at the top left reads FREE in bold.

The event date, 16 July 2025, is displayed in large white text, with session times 9:30 AM - 2:00 PM in yellow below. Centered beneath is the main title, CARE MATTERS WORKSHOP, followed by smaller text that says, “Supporting the health & wellbeing of disabled people, whānau and carers.”

The bold beige and black text reads: South Auckland

Small text underneath invites attendees to "Learn, explore, and connect with others. By families, for families."

Booking information appears next, directing readers to the Care Matters website and listing contact details in beige. The website, www.carematters.org.nz, is included below.

The flyer includes two illustrations: a group of four people in a discussion circle, and a family of three with a child in a wheelchair.

The bottom of the flyer highlights the Care Matters and Parent to Parent logos, with small text noting that the service is provided by SAMS and Parent to Parent.

2. Flyer two is the same, the date has changed to 17 July 2025 and the location is Auckland Central.

07/07/2025

The Make it Easy translation service has created eight booklets for and about the Rainbow (LGBTQIA+) community.

These booklets are in Easy Read.

Easy Read uses simplified language supported by images. It is designed for people with learning (intellectual) disability but many other communities find Easy Read a useful source of information that is easy to understand.

These booklets were co-designed with four people with learning disability, all members of People First New Zealand Ngā Tāngata Tuatahi.

These members were advisors who shared a range of experiences, including discrimination from support providers, difficulty with families, and wanting to support a trans flat mate.

The project was generously funded by the Rule Foundation's Rainbow Wellbeing fund.

The Rainbow Easy Read documents are available for free download below:
https://linktr.ee/rainboweasyread

26/06/2025

Lianne and Hailey were in New Plymouth this week, chatting about communication and wellbeing. They were lucky to be joined by the amazing team from EGL Taranaki, who shared about their great mahi in the community. 👏
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Next up, we're heading to South and Central Auckland! 🛫 Join us on the 16th and 17th of July for workshops packed with practical kōrero, connection, and more. You can register now on our website! 💻
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https://carematters.org.nz/face-to-face-workshops-and-events-2/
Image description:

Nine people are smiling, sitting or standing around a large table covered with a white tablecloth. On the table are drinks, playdough, pens, and paper.

16/06/2025

It's Volunteers Week from 15-21 June, a special time to show extra aroha to those who work tirelessly to improve the lives of others. 🩶
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A chance to recognise all the families, carers, and people across the disability sector who, despite budget cuts, staff shortages, and reduced funding, remain dedicated to supporting disabled people to live good lives. 🫂 🌟
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Carers especially have been going above and beyond since March last year. We see you, we appreciate your incredible mahi, and we stand alongside you in continuing to push for change that improves the lives of disabled people and their whānau. 👏
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The Care Matters website has resources to support those experiencing burnout. You are not alone. We also have upcoming workshops if you'd like to explore carer wellbeing more, register via our website. 💻 🤎

https://carematters.org.nz/resource-category/carer-wellbeing/
Image description:

There is brown text in a curve saying "Volunteer week. 15-21 June. Te Wiki Tūao ā-Motu" There is a drawing of a brown hand open, in the palm is a red floating heart with brown lines coming from the heart. Below is the SAMS logo in green. There are green stars scattered on the cream background.

15/06/2025

Lisa and Faedra had a great time facilitating a recent workshop in Palmerston North at the Easie Living store. 👩‍🏫
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SAMS offers free workshops across Aotearoa, each tailored to what communities want to learn about. You can register for a workshop on our website or sign up to our database to be notified when we're in your region next. 💻 🔔
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Upcoming workshops:

📍 16 June - New Plymouth

📍 16 July - South Auckland

📍 17 July - Auckland Central

https://carematters.org.nz/face-to-face-workshops-and-events-2/
Image description:

Faedra is sitting at the front of the room presenting to the group. There are two people wearing black sitting at the back both taking notes. There is a TV that is showing a proverb 'Ko te ahurei o te tamaiti ​arahia ō tātou mahi​. Let the uniqueness of the child guide your work.​'

04/06/2025

📣 Just a reminder, we're heading to the Lower North Island next week for our workshop series! The 9th, 10th, 11th and 12th of June.
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We've added extra spaces, so if you've got questions about navigating the disability space or want to connect with others on the journey, now’s the perfect time to register.
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We’re really looking forward to seeing you there, it’s going to be a great week! 🙌
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https://carematters.org.nz/face-to-face-workshops-and-events-2/?e-filter-994a94f-event-categories=lower-north-island
Image description:
Four woman are sitting at a small table at a cafe. They are talking, taking notes and drinking.