Guided by tikanga
Published: March 4, 2025
Anaru Hawkins
Pathways Kaihautū (Cultural Lead National)
We are proud to provide care and support that reflects our dedication to Te Tiriti o Waitangi, the founding document of Aotearoa. We actively acknowledge its principles and strive daily to be an exemplary Tangata Tiriti partner, upholding the articles in all that we do.
Central to our Rautaki Māori is a focus on achieving equity for Māori within our services.
Over the past five years, we have been developing a framework for our workforce that draws on Māori knowledge and customs—wisdom passed down
through generations. We’re now rolling this out across all our services.
This framework is called Nga Whakahaere Tikanga—the customs that guide us— and informs the care and services we offer, ensuring they are grounded in tikanga Māori.
Inspired by the work of Sir Mason Durie, who developed a model of health and wellbeing based on the four walls of a whare, we have expanded this framework to include the environment around us.
For most Māori, the wharenui of a marae shapes our ideas around inclusion and interconnectedness.
It reminds us of our place in a wider whānau system, where every person has value and something to contribute, just as each person has a role on the marae.
Teachings of whānau, respect, and responsibility are central to how we care for others—principles passed down through generations that continue to guide our actions today.
By applying these teachings, we aim to create spaces that promote restoration and recovery, just as a whare must be kept strong and healthy for those within.
The development of Nga Whakahaere Tikanga has been guided by Māori language expert and author Keri Opai and is fully supported by our Māori workforce.
We are confident that if we get it right for Māori, we will get it right for everyone.
We want to ensure that the mana of the care we provide is rooted in these tikanga, creating an environment where all people feel respected, valued, and supported.
Ma te tika, ma te pono, ma te aroha.
Ahakoa te aha, tatou i a tatou.
Mauriora!
Let’s do what’s right, let’s be authentic
in what we do, let’s do that with love.
And before we do anything with others,
let’s get it right with each other first.
Mauriora!
— This story was first featured in Harikoa magazine (issue 3, 2024).
