Kaitiakitanga te hapori
FVSV / Disability Community Voices
The Kaitiakitanga te Hapori was originally established as part of Te Aorerekura - a national plan to end family violence and sexual violence.
The network is called Kaitiakitanga te Hapori, which means
a community that protects and uplifts each other.
From time to time, VisAble sets up hui (meetings and workshops) or surveys with and for the disabled community, to understand your experiences.
In 2025 and 2026 our mahi (work) has focussed on these topics:
family violence and sexual violence (FVSV) services
services for helping families and caregivers experiencing child to parent violence and abuse
We wanted to understand what it’s like for disabled people to use these services – exploring what worked well, what was difficult (barriers you encountered and your concerns), and your ideas for improvements.
Our goal is to help government departments and other providers improve their services for tāngata whaikaha Māori, disabled people and their whānau / families.
We aim to:
show what barriers exist
share the concerns disabled people have
provide ideas for how these issues can be resolved, removed or reduced.
Much of this work has been funded by The Centre for the Prevention of Family Violence and Sexual Violence (formerly Te Puna Aonui) to make sure tāngata whaikaha Māori, disabled people, and whānau / families are included in this important kaupapa.
You’re able to access the findings under “Findings and reports” at the end of this page.
Where relevant to this kaupapa, other organisations are welcome:
to share their research and resources with VisAble – so we can make it available here
to promote their survey and hui opportunities on VisAble’s website.
For example, VisAble is honoured to include the Reflections documents in its website. In these documents, some of the survivors of abuse in care have shared their reflections and insights one year on from the release of Whanaketia: the findings of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care.
The reflections are thought-provoking - exploring what, if anything has changed.
Opportunity for other organisations to share their work or invite your involvement.
Find out more information, and access the findings from hui, kōrero (workshops and conversations) and surveys here:
