Kia ora whānau,

As we move further into 2025, Shore Trust continues to grow stronger, thanks to the hard work and commitment of our team, residents, and families.

Shore Trust Highlights:

Community Engagement:
Our residents have been actively participating in local events, strengthening their connections within the community and celebrating inclusion. Our heart goes to Attainable staff and our residents who worked there, as the fire burnt almost all the facility and unfortunatly is not going to be open soon, our residents join the hui organised by attainable team to plan for a new start. With the wealth of resources and activity on Shore we found a music class for Tuesdays.  

Staff Development:
We continue to invest in professional development for our team, ensuring that staff have the latest skills and knowledge to deliver high-quality, person-centred support. Our new House leader started at Belmont and soon we have another new member taking over the house leader role in Nile Road house.

Facility Enhancements:
Recent upgrades to our homes have improved accessibility and comfort for our residents. We started the work on Nile road recreational room. Our new gardening project at Nile road is open to all.  These changes reflect our commitment to creating safe, welcoming environments where people can thrive

Sector Update:

We are expecting a bit of financial challenge as the Health Sector seems under pressure.

Pay Equity Advancements:
On 6 May 2025, the government announced important steps toward pay equity for disability support workers. This is a significant recognition of the vital role our workforce plays. (NZDSN source)

Leadership Appointment:
Shore Trust is a member of NZDSN and welcomes Debbie Hughes who has been appointed the new Chief Executive of the New Zealand Disability Support Network (NZDSN). Her experience in disability leadership and policy will guide the sector through future opportunities and challenges. (NZDSN source).

June 2025 will be the month for the Shore Trust survey, we use survey-monkey to learn about your feedback, you all will receive an email invite for participation. 

Together, we are making Shore Trust a place where people belong, grow, and feel valued.

Thank you all for your ongoing support, aroha, and commitment.

Nga mihi nui

Noori Zehab 

Manager, Shore Trust

On behalf of the Shore Trust team

Kia ora whānau,

As we approach the end of the year, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on the wonderful experiences, achievements, and improvements that have shaped our journey in 2024.

This was my first Christmas gathering with Shore Trust, and I must say it was truly heartwarming to see the team, residents, and families come together in such a meaningful way. The preparation, care, and collaboration that went into the day, especially the efforts from both staff and residents, showed what makes Shore Trust such a special community.

This year, the Board decided to combine the AGM and Christmas celebration into one day. It was a great decision that allowed us to save travel time for families while still ensuring both events were purposeful and enjoyable. The AGM gave us an opportunity to reflect on our accomplishments, acknowledge areas for growth, and share plans for the future.

A Special Thank You
I want to express my gratitude to our incredible team for their hard work, dedication, and adaptability throughout the year. A big thank you also to the Board for their unwavering support and strategic leadership, ensuring that Shore Trust remains a strong and forward-thinking organization.

Improvements and Achievements
Throughout 2024, we have achieved significant milestones, including:

• Key facility upgrades, such as improvements of both houses’ environment.
• Enhanced processes for document management, resident care plans, and health and safety audits to ensure our systems are robust and efficient.
• A renewed focus on team development and training, helping us strengthen the quality of care we provide.

Sector Changes and Our Future
This year brought significant changes within the health and disability sector, in August 2024, the government announced that Disability Support Services (DSS) would transition from Whaikaha-Ministry of Disabled People to the Ministry of Social Development. While these changes present challenges for providers, they also highlight the importance of being a resilient and robust entity. At Shore Trust, we remain committed to delivering high-quality, person-centered care while adapting to sector demands. Our focus on strengthening processes, supporting staff, and engaging with families will continue to position us strongly as we head into the new year.

Looking Forward
We are excited about what 2025 will bring and will continue working towards creating an inclusive, supportive, and thriving environment for our residents and their whānau.

Thank you for being part of the Shore Trust community. Your support, trust, and partnership mean everything to us.

Wishing you all a safe, restful, and joyous holiday season

Nga mihi nui

Noori Zehab 

Manager, Shore Trust

On behalf of the Shore Trust team

Its beginning to look a lot like Christmas!!

Well at least in our Shore Trust homes it is, as we bring together our end of year gatherings and community. I love this time of the year when Christmas trees go up, the pohutukawas are blooming, and we get to share in end of year celebrations with all our whanau.

Thank you to everyone who joined us recently at the Shore Trust Christmas party. It was fantastic to see you all, celebrate the year’s milestones and highlights and share the delicious food including Tali’s “special punch”. Thank you to Tali and the team for all your work making the day come together and so special. Thanks also to our lovely singers for providing the great music on the day.

Looking back on the year, amid the challenges and accomplishments, there’s so much to be grateful for, some lovely new faces and lots of laughter along the way. To the many people who have given their energy, dedication, and time to the Trust over the last 12 months, especially our amazing Team, Volunteers, and Board – I thank you. A special thanks to our families for trusting us to support your family member, it really is a joy to be a part of their lives.

On a personal note, some exciting news, my first grandchild arrived Wednesday last week. Welcome wee Thea. I couldn’t wish for a more special blessing to top off 2023.

Wishing you a very happy Christmas and well deserved end-of-year break, and we look forward to connecting with you again next year.

Ngā mihi nui & best wishes, Francie Needham, Manager

Welcome to the 30th Birthday edition of our newsletter!

This year we are honoured to celebrate Shore Trusts 30th birthday, marking an amazing 3 decades! We are incredibly proud of what’s been achieved during this time starting from small beginnings in 1992 and expanding to a second home in 2018. We are especially grateful to all those who have contributed, bringing to life the Trusts important mission and success over the past 30 years giving so much along the way.

As we proudly acknowledge all the people we serve, whanau/families, the team and trustees (past and present), a very special thanks to the founding trustees Frances Hansen, the late John Smith and John Myers for their vision and dedication. Three of the original families are still involved in the Trust and two of their family members call Belmont Terrace home today.

As shared on the website in “Our Story”, the initial objectives of the original Trust Deed still remain relevant “ to promote the development of a person with an intellectual disability so as to enable them to be as independent as possible and to enjoy their rights as New Zealanders to live as normal a community life as possible”

We are planning an exciting and joyful whakanui and celebration in November.

Ngā mihi nui, Francie Needham, Manager

We welcome Matariki celebrations to mark the beginning of the Māori New Year, and also the winter solstice signalling the shortest day leading to brighter days ahead. The cooler weather certainly hasn’t deterred everyone from getting out and about and enjoying themselves. In fact, it’s been an invigorating time for whanau easing back into much loved community activities and reconnection with friends.

This latest update is action packed with fun experiences enjoyed by whanau with a renewed sense of freedom in recent times. Terrific outings include Auckland Zoo meeting new 10 week old orangutan baby Bahmi and seeing the antics displayed on the new high canopy primate habitat; a visit to beautiful Butterfly Creek; strawberry and mandarin picking; dinner at the RSA; kayaking at Okura marine reserve; Matariki festivals and visiting One Tree Hill!

Matariki is a time to reflect, plan and look forward to the year ahead, and with Lifestyle Planning meetings in full swing it’s been an exciting time of blue sky thinking as personal goals are reviewed and refreshed. It has been a joy supporting each person to identify goals that are meaningful to them and making a plan to fulfil these in the year ahead. Pursuits include flower arranging, fruit picking, artwork, horse riding, attending Kapa haka performances, attending the gym, volunteering, Weta workshop tour, attending dining and dancing events, walking with a purpose, baking, bowling, diamond art and craft work, fishing, pub & RSA outings, billiards, quality time with family and another great holiday with housemates in 2023. Bring it on!
Ngā mihi nui, Francie Needham, Manager

Welcome to 2022! I hope this finds you well and that you still feel hopeful and positive during a time that is challenging us to find the smallest things to be grateful for. It does seem a little like deja vu, with the whole country in the Red zone phase 3 of the traffic light system and finding ourselves in the midst of thousands of daily infections thanks to Omicron.

That said we are not letting that spoil all of our fun here at Shore Trust as we continue to balance the needs of our people to connect with their families and whānau and keeping the virus out of houses.

A highlight this year has undoubtedly been our February summer holiday up north in beautiful Tapora on the Kaipara harbour; the first holiday together in 3 years. You can see a selection of photos of the happy times from the holiday featured further down the newsletter.

In other wonderful news is the very special engagement of Zara and Daniel. Read further on how their love story unfolded as told by Zara’s Mum Karen. A huge congratulations to them both celebrating this happy couple milestone in their lives.
Ngā mihi nui, Francie Needham, Manager.

We had a cracking Christmas Party celebration on Sunday finishing a roller coaster of a year on a high. A big thank you to everyone that came and helped make the day so special with our whanau. It was so wonderful to reconnect with family and friends and be together again.

Special mention and thanks:

♥ Tali & team for putting on the most sumptuous christmas lunch.

♥ Super grateful to Lloyd Kirby, RSM, for gifting the fantastic gazebo (and other goodies) which was put straight into good use.. even though it turned out to be a rain shelter rather than sun a shelter on the day!

♥ Big shout out to Gemmo for the awesome music & drumming

While the last two months have seen those of us in Auckland enduring a restrictive lockdown, daylight saving, and birdsong have heralded in spring and a wellspring of creativity and friendship has flourished at Shore Trust houses. This challenging time has been an interesting insight into what supports are needed to help people thrive in periods of uncertainty.

Our two home bubbles have been busy hives of activity with our whanau enjoying a variety of indoor and outdoor activities and pursuits. Connecting with families and friends using online technology has been a huge boost, along with accessing and participating in dance movement and exercise. The joy of cooking and eating together, dancing together, treasure hunts, gardening and an array of hobbies have helped keep everyone active and engaged throughout this time. With recent relaxation of restrictions some of our people have reconnected with their families outside for walks. Our team’s unwavering support and encouragement throughout has been enormous.
Thank you all.

In May we farewelled Angel Renjith as she heads offshore to sunny Perth in Australia with her family. There were tributes made and tears shed as we all wished her well for an exciting future. Angel has made a significant contribution and difference during her two years with the Trust for which we are extremely grateful. We also welcomed new manager Francie Needham who joined us on 6 April and already 6 weeks into her new role. Having worked in the disability sector for 10 years, Francie is feeling welcomed into the space by all. She is enjoying getting to know residents, staff and families and of course the buzz of activity and delicious cooking at Belmont Terrace and Nile Rd!