Wellbeing Centre
The Wellbeing Centre provides counselling and therapeutic support for children, young people, adults, couples and families across West Auckland. Its work responds to trauma, anxiety, depression, grief, relationship challenges, and emotional dysregulation, recognising that wellbeing is shaped by life experience, culture, relationships, and social circumstances. Sitting within our wider wrap-around model allows counselling to be offered alongside other community supports.
The Wellbeing Centre Team
This year, the Centre continued delivering established services including ACC Sensitive Claims, Counselling in Schools, Aoake Te Rā – Bereaved by Suicide, HealthWest for Youth and Southern Cross EAP. A significant development was securing the ACC Psychological Services contract, enabling the Centre to expand its clinical capability, undertake psychological assessments and treatments, and strengthen referral pathways for clients with more complex needs.
A significant development was securing the ACC Psychological Services contract.
The Centre also continued to grow its range of therapeutic responses. The 16-week Dialectical Behaviour Therapy life-skills group, focused on emotional regulation, distress tolerance, mindfulness and interpersonal effectiveness, has now run for three years and is attracting increased interest because of its effectiveness. Family Therapy has also strengthened the Centre’s holistic approach by helping families understand patterns of communication, conflict, roles and relationships rather than locating difficulties with one individual.
Demand continues to increase, with more referrals from schools, GPs, medical clinics, Citizen Advice Bureau, EAP providers and clients beyond West Auckland. Counselling interns have helped expand low-cost support while contributing to the development of the future counselling workforce, with last year’s five graduating interns, all moving into employment.
The Centre’s key opportunity is to grow capacity while protecting what makes its work effective: a relational, trauma-informed, holistic and professional approach. Its greatest reward is seeing clients leave with renewed hope, stronger relationships, greater resilience, and confidence to continue their journey.
