RAW visit.

It's no secret that women struggling to keep their lives on track due to substance abuse, crime, violence or poverty can struggle to access support services. He Kete Oranga o te Mana Wāhine is helping change that, supporting women through substance abuse issues when they come to us at the behest of the justice system.

A similar trust-run initiative Reclaim Another Woman, based in rural Morrinsville, is also creating powerful change in the lives of several wāhine. Founded in 2014, RAW was created to break the cycle of intergenerational offending, educational underachievement, persistent poverty and violence for a group of disadvantaged women through inclusion, community and opportunity.

RAW provides a residential facility and accommodation for women reintegrating into the Waikato region. After a settling in period the wāhine then come up with individual goals and are given the encouragement and support to stick to them. Overseen by a peer support worker, initiatives included the women selling coffees out of a food truck at a local market and growing produce in their garden to be prepared and delivered to people in the community. Some wāhine had also had their course fees paid so they could undertake further study.

In July, reintegration navigators Abii and Milly, alongside Pathway chief operations officer Kirsten Billcliff, headed north to see the initiative first-hand, which was all about getting a feel for how RAW ran its initiative, how it differed from He Kete and how it made things work.

Abii says the model worked well and was encouraged by what she saw. "Overall, we had a great time on the trip seeing something run a different way. It was good to see there's another agency out there who's engaging with women and supporting them in creating a positive future for themselves."