As many of you may know, Raukatauri has been on a cultural haerenga (journey) over the past 18 months, supported through generous funding from Foundation North. Working alongside our clinical-cultural consultant Dr Jessica Gerbic of Pukenga Psychology, we committed to align ourselves more closely with te Ao Māori in both our internal team culture, and the music therapy services we offer. Following Dr Jessica’s detailed review and audit of our services (documentation, policies and client/whānau feedback), we are immensely proud to launch our refreshed Raukatauri Kaupapa/Values and updated organisational policies and procedures. We have also implemented the well-known Māori health model Te Whare Tapa Whā as the official framework for our therapists to plan and reflect on music therapy sessions for clients of all ethnicities and backgrounds.
Our Matariki event in Auckland marks the start of our quarterly Mihi Whakatau and Poroporaki, which will soon be rolled out across all our regions.
Mihimihi from Rachel Foxell, Clinical Services Manager, 8 July 2025
“Welcome and thank you very much for being here today. A special welcome to our newest team members, and whānau. We are thrilled to be sharing this mihi whakatau with you. Thank you to Robbie and Majic for leading this whakatau today, we acknowledge Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei as mana whenua here and honour the ancestral landmarks of Tāmaki Makaurau.
Matariki is the season of new beginnings, and we are delighted to launch our refreshed Raukatauri Kaupapa / Values at this celebration, following a haerenga or journey to align ourselves more closely with te Ao Māori in both our internal team culture, and the music therapy services we offer. Our haerenga has been ably guided by the wonderful Dr Jessica Gerbic of Pūkenga Psychology and we are very pleased she is here today at this significant milestone!
From April - July last year, we spent time as a team working together to understand our shared values, and define our unique internal team culture. Between September and November, Jess Gerbic conducted a number of client and whānau feedback surveys and korero, in addition to an audit of our documentation and policies. This resulted in a report detailing future steps, including a recommendation for renewed values. In February, Jess facilitated a working group of Raukatauri team members, who selected kupu/words that reflected our identified team values in English - understanding that they could not be direct translations but must encompass the concepts and layered meanings of each value.
The whole team had the opportunity to provide feedback and vote on their preferred kupu for each kaupapa /value, empowering us all to embody this mahi going forwards. While these values have been embodied by our team in our work with clients and whānau for years, the depth of this mahi (work) aims to acknowledge the importance of te Ao Māori in our approach to communication, therapy and wellbeing.
Our kaupapa/values posters are proudly displayed in each Centre, and we warmly invite you to spend time reflecting on their meanings, reading the accompanying whakataukī, and joining us in kōrero (discussion) about what they mean to you. We are thrilled to share these with you.
Nō reira, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa”.
- Rachel Foxell, Clinical Services Manager
