Te Piringa Ahuru, a new peer support hub offering immediate, non-clinical mental health and addiction support, opened at Hunters Plaza on Friday 23 January.
Located in a main retail unit within the shopping centre, Te Piringa Ahuru is a walk-in space where people can talk with trained peer support workers in a relaxed and welcoming environment. No appointment or referral is needed.
The hub is staffed by peer support workers with lived experience of mental health and addiction challenges. They are there to listen, walk alongside people, and support them through difficult moments. Te Piringa Ahuru is also open to family members and friends who are supporting a loved one.
Te Piringa Ahuru has been established as an alternative to acute admission for people seeking immediate support during the day. It is designed as a short-stay space that offers connection and support, rather than clinical or medical treatment.
A key feature of Te Piringa Ahuru is its location. The hub sits alongside mainstream retail outlets at Hunters Plaza and is styled in the same way as neighbouring shops. This placement is intentional. By being visible and accessible in a busy shopping centre, the hub presents mental health and addiction support as a normal part of everyday life.
The approach reflects the understanding that mental health and addiction challenges are experienced by people across families, communities, neighbourhoods, and workplaces. They are not issues faced by a separate group that can be kept out of sight. Te Piringa Ahuru is intended to reduce stigma by making support as ordinary and approachable as other services found in a retail environment.
The official opening was attended by the Right Honourable Matt Doocey, Minister for Mental Health. The opening marks a first in New Zealand, with a peer support hub operating openly within a major retail centre.
Ember Korowai Takitini, created the space in partnership with Drive Consumer Network and Te Whatu Ora. If successful, the model is intended to inform similar peer support hubs in other locations across the country.
Te Piringa Ahuru is open seven days a week and welcomes anyone looking for a safe place to talk about their mental health or addiction, or those supporting someone they care about.
