Sharing experiences
Te Toha Wheako
The Survivor Experiences Service would like to recognise your courage to share your experiences of abuse in care.
On this page:
- Who the Service is for
- Sharing Experiences
- How to share your experiences
- Wellbeing Support
- Literacy Support
- Privacy
- What the Service cannot provide
- Resources for survivors
The Survivor Experiences Service is for people who were abused in state, faith-based, or other forms of care (e.g., private schools, non-governmental organisations). We offer two services for survivors and whānau:
- Sharing experiences of abuse in care
- Records support - see our Records Support webpage for more information
The Survivor Experiences Service aims to create a safe, supportive, confidential place for survivors of abuse in care to share their experiences.
We aim to provide a space that can support healing for people, allowing their experiences to be heard, validated and acknowledged.
We tailor our services to your unique needs and create a non-judgemental space. Māori, Pacific, Deaf and disabled, LGBTQIA+, MVPFAFF+, Takatāpui and survivors in prison remain at the forefront of our minds.
Find out more information for Māori survivors
Find out more information for Pacific survivors
Find out more information for Deaf survivors (includes NZSL videos)
Find out more information for Disabled survivors (includes information in Easy Read, Large Print, Braille, Audio)
Find out more information for LGBTQIA+, MVPFAFF+, Takatāpui survivors
Find out more information for survivors in prison
Find out more information for rangatahi surivors
You can contact us to register with the Service and share your experiences of abuse in care.
- Phone - 0800 456 090 (NZ) 8:30am – 4:30pm Monday – Friday
- Phone - 1-800 456 032 (AUS) 8:30am – 4:30pm NZT Monday – Friday
- Email - contact@survivorexperiences.govt.nz
- Text - 8328
- If you are Deaf, hard of hearing, deafblind, speech impaired or find it hard to talk, you can use the New Zealand Relay Service - www.nzrelay.co.nz
Once you have contacted us, we will help you complete your registration. We will also help organise any short-term support specific to our service. We will then arrange a time and place where you can share your experiences.
You can share your experiences with someone who understands abuse in care and its impact for survivors and whānau.
How you share your experiences is up to you. You can choose to share your experience in a number of ways, including kanohi ki te kanohi (face to face), virtually, or in writing.
If you are sharing your experience face to face, you can bring your whānau and other support people with you to your session.
If you need emergency support, or other forms of support, please visit our Emergency Support Services webpage for information about 24/7 helplines
We understand that by sharing these experiences you and your whānau may experience some distress or resurfacing of memories of these experiences.
Your mana and oranga (wellbeing) are at the centre of our interactions with you and your whānau.
You can request support at any stage. The earlier you can talk with us about your needs, the more time we will have to ensure the most suitable support is put in place for you.
While the Survivor Experiences Service cannot provide long-term support, providers such as ACC or community providers may be able to assist you.
The document below explains our wellbeing support in more detail, and includes a consent form. We can help you complete the form – just let our team know if you need help. Or you can respond using audio or video.
Wellbeing Support information and consent form [DOCX, 73 KB]
Literacy Support
We can help organise literacy support to help you share your experiences. The document below explains this in more detail, and includes a consent form. We can help you complete the form – just let our team know if you need help. Or you can respond using audio or video.
Literacy Support information and consent form [DOCX, 70 KB]
Your privacy is our priority. We want you to feel comfortable to share your experiences, so it is important that you understand how your information will be kept and used.
For more information about how we protect your privacy, please see our Privacy webpage.
What the Service cannot provide
The Service cannot provide any form of redress or apology. This is currently being worked on by the Crown Response Unit.
We are also not designed to hear concerns or complaints about the Royal Commission. We did not have oversight or input into the Royal Commission’s final report. The Service is independent of the Royal Commission, with its own independent board.
You can read our Information Booklet to know more about sharing your experiences with the Service:
If you want to share your experience in writing, you can complete the booklet below. Please contact us and register with the service before you send us the booklet.