About Us
Parents Centres New Zealand Inc has a network of 50 Centres nationwide - making it the largest parenting-based infrastructure and network to support parents and their children in New Zealand.
The primary objectives of Parents Centres are: Community Support and Community Education.
Community Support: our 50 Centres deliver support where needed and at the time of need to all parents in the community. Examples of such support are: sudden infant death syndrome; parents in prison; teenage parents; sudden antenatal death; miscarriage support; breastfeeding; child development; toy libraries; playgroups; crèches; special needs.
Community Education: focusing on antenatal and childbirth education; parent education around coping skills; practical parenting; professional development for parents and all aspects of baby and toddler care through to ensuring children and parents are ready for the school years. Parents Centres employ over 120 Childbirth Educators across New Zealand.
Parent Education focuses on creating an environment where children will thrive and be nurtured through effective parenting. We see a critical component of this to be the initial and continued engagement and bonding between the parents and baby.
Parents Centres NZ Inc is the largest provider of Childbirth support and education in New Zealand. As such we are particularly aware of the need to deliver effective, efficient and timely antenatal and postnatal support to parents.
In order to do this effectively Parents Centres New Zealand Inc also has one of the largest volunteer networks in the country.
Our history is long and proud. The Parents Centre movement commenced in 1952 due to a demand in improved birthing practices for women and antenatal and postnatal care for parents. We offer close on 60 years of experience in working with parents in the community. Parents Centres touches parents in excess of 220,000 times per annum!
Parents Centres New Zealand Inc is operated from a National Support Centre in Mana, Wellington, supporting approximately 3,500 volunteers who deliver Parents Centre programmes and support services nationally.
We target all demographics of parenting and all family compositions.
We have approximately 120 child birth educators who are all certificated through Aoraki Polytechnic to diploma level. The diploma is a joint initiative operated in conjunction with Parents Centres New Zealand Inc and Aoraki Polytechnic.
Parents Centres share a vision of New Zealand being a society that values parenting as being fundamental to the well being of all members of society and believe that parenting creates the environment that sews the fabric of our social structure. Our education, support and services are focused on driving that vision.
Parents Centres share a mission to bring about a society in which parents are highly valued in their role in the community through positive birth experience and informed parenting and advocacy.
For further details on Parents Centres click on the links below.
