Waikato Family Centre

Caring for mothers and their babies in times of crisis

Waikato Family Centre works centrally in Hamilton from a welcoming villa on Radnor street. I was greeted by Raewyn Mackenzie, the Manager, and Jo Coulter the Nurse Manager, who then took me on a tour of the facility which comprised of sleeping rooms for babies and their mothers, the communal kitchen area, and a comfy lounge.

The Centre provides daytime assistance and support for families in the community and the greater Waikato region, who are struggling with concerns with their babies and toddlers. In 2020, the Centre cared for and supported 631 new families and had just under 4000 presentations throughout the year. The service covers a wide range of Child and Maternal health issues such as breastfeeding, and bottle feeding, sleep concerns, reflux in babies, toddler behaviour, adjustment to motherhood, and many other challenges families may face.

The experienced Health Professionals have been known to be a “lifeline” for families, who are struggling at this crucial time. While the Centre has referrals from Plunket, Mothercraft Unit, GPs, NICU, Midwives, Perinatal Mental Health, and self-referrals with a constant overflow of cases redirected to the Centre.


Not only does the Waikato Family Centre provide hands-on help, support, guidance, and education for families, but it also runs weekly evening group sessions for women who have anxiety and depression using mindfulness, led by a qualified counsellor.

Early intervention has been known to reduce admissions to Perinatal Mental Health and the Mothercraft Unit run by the DHB and GP’s.

Sessions on baby movement and massage run by Sport Waikato, Pilates by trained instructors, Pelvic Floor sessions led by a Physiotherapist, Sound Bowl meditation classes are held at the Centre as well as informal coffee afternoons where mothers can connect with other mothers. The service continues to grow to meet the needs of families.



The Common Good Foundation (on behalf of The Tindall Foundation) provided a grant of $10,000 in the past year to back the Waikato Family Centre in offering support and confidence to young mothers and their babies.



Report by Betty-Ann Kamp
Common Good Foundation
April 2021