Plunket

This is Plunket

There’s nothing else in the world quite like the free service Plunket provide to whānau/families in New Zealand.

As Aotearoa’s largest Well Child Tamariki Ora service provider, our Plunket nurses meet with more than 500,000 Kiwi families each year, around 2,100 tamariki/children a day – and we see more than 80% of all newborn pēpē/babies in New Zealand (more than 50,000 a year).

Well Child visits

Every family in New Zealand is eligible for eight free Well Child visits. These are free and take place in your home or a local Plunket clinic, or community space (preschool, marae).

Your little one’s first five visits are due to happen in their first year, where most people find some extra support is most helpful.

At these visits parents and caregivers can talk about anything and everything that’s top of mind for them: breast or bottle feeding, sleep (or the lack of it), parental mental health, difficult situations at home, tantrums – anything. We’re here to help.

Our nurses will also do a health and development assessment with each child to check they’re growing as we’d expect. These checks are amazing at picking up any developmental concerns nice and early, so your little one can have the best possible start at life.

As well as the Well Child service, Plunket also offer:

• PlunketLine – a free 24/7 parenting and child health helpline, staffed by registered nurses.

• Community services – Plunket deliver a range of mostly free services to support children and whanau, often developed after specific needs are identified by that community (e.g. migrant support groups, mental health services, Kaupapa Māori antenatal classes). These services are delivered by our community services staff, often with the support of our wonderful volunteers, and are funded through fundraising, partnerships and community grants.

• A strong voice for all matters related to young children, families and their wellbeing. Plunket has recently made submissions on and presented to the Child Poverty Reduction Bill and Mental Health Inquiry, among others.

For over 100 years Plunket staff and volunteers have worked together in communities to provide families with access to the range of services they want and need. Support services to young families include family centers, parent groups, toy libraries and car seat rental schemes to name just a few.