About us
Te Whare Hapori o ngā Puna Waiora, Newtown Community Centre
We are a busy and vibrant community hub in the heart of Newtown, Wellington. We have been an integral part of the Newtown community since our centre was established in 1977.
Our main building is a stone's throw from Newtown’s Riddiford Street shops, on the corner of Colombo and Rintoul Streets. We have another venue on Daniell Street.
We host a variety of concerts, gigs, theatrical performances, exercise and language classes, and cultural activities for our diverse Newtown community.
We are home to a number of community services, including Smart Newtown community computer hub, the Wellington Timebank, a Justice of the Peace Service and the Newtown Tool Library (off-site on Constable Street).
We work with community groups to develop and deliver initiatives that benefit the people of Newtown and surrounding suburbs. Please don't hesitate to talk to us about how we may be able to support your group within the community!
About our name
Our name is Te Whare Hapori o Ngā Puna Waiora – Newtown Community Centre. We were gifted the koha of this Te Reo Māori name by Peter Jackson, a kaumātua of Te Āti Awa and Taranaki iwi. We began using it when we moved back into our renovated centre in May 2023. Our new logo, designed by Axel Olsthoorn, shows the springs below our centre.
‘Te Whare Hapori o ngā Puna Waiora’ means ‘the community centre of the springs of wellness’.
Newtown once contained wetlands, with puna / springs and awa / rivers running through the area, likely sustaining Māori communities who also had māra / gardens around the area. As our suburb became built up, post-colonisation, the springs were pushed underground. However, they still run under our suburb, and our new name honours them and their history, as well as connecting us with our purpose.
Waiora / wellness is central to our mahi / work at the community centre – whether it’s providing people with kai, a chance to move their body, or nourishing our mental health with chances to connect – wellness is key for us.
The name also connects us to other organisations in Newtown – Te Kura o ngā Puna Waiora / Newtown School, and Ngā Puna Waiora / Wellington Hospital – both organisations that we are proud to share a kaupapa / purpose with – the separate streams of our mahi connect to nurture and support our community.
Our vision
Enriching community together.
Our aim
To bring people together to make a great community.
Our values
- Welcoming, participating and celebrating the diverse vibrant people of our community
- Supporting each other to grow and achieve
- Have a community where everyone feels safe, involved and belonging
Te Tiriti o Waitangi
We aim to include and support Māori and te ao Māori in the ways that we can. We have a living Tiriti o Waitangi policy which includes the following:
- Acknowledgement that we stand on land stolen from mana whenua
- Practical support for Māori practitioners wishing to bring toi Māori, matauranga Māori or te reo Māori to our community
- New staff all attend a Tiriti o Waitangi course
- Efforts to use Te Reo Māori in the community centre
- An ongoing commitment to learning and growing in this area
Our people
Anna is a Greek immigrant to Aotearoa, a mother of two and partner to one, and has been living in Te Whanganui-a-Tara on and off since 2005. Community organisations have been Anna's work and main interest for 15+ years, she has had the privilege to work with many beautiful projects and groups and thinks that community-based spaces create societies that we all want to live in!
anna@newtowncommunity.org.nz04 389 4786
Edie is a writer who loves storytelling, D&D and drinking lots of coffee. UK born, she immigrated to Aotearoa as a kid, moved to Te Whanganui-a-Tara for uni and never left! Coming from a background in management, volunteer coordination and community engagement - she looks after our comms and supports our awesome volunteers!
edie@newtowncommunity.org.nz04 389 4786
Charlie is Australia born and Pōneke reared and raised! She loves living and working amidst the busy and bustling vibes of Newtown. Live music, the arts and community engagement are her vibes. Want to talk about music gigs in Pōneke? Charlie is your gal.
charlie@newtowncommunity.org.nz04 389 4786
Phil works his financial magic and keeps us entertained behind the scenes at the Community Centre. It is generally agreed that the place would fall to pieces without him.
phil@newtowncommunity.org.nz
Andy does odd jobs and cover for the Community Centre and Smart Newtown. He’s a great chef and puts those skills to good use volunteering at our Quick Kai and Soup Friday programmes! As well as all his community activities, he’s a big sports fan and is an avid reader.
Born and raised in Pōneke and of Chinese descent, Emma loves making things happen in community organisations! She's passionate about justice and equity. She brings this passion to her role at the Wellington Timebank and to the activism and community organising she does in her spare time. She also really loves her kuri Sandwich (who is a part-time worker here at the Timebank) and you can often find them together on a beach somewhere!
info@wellingtontimebank.org.nzhttps://www.wellingtontimebank.org.nz/
Kevin is our resident geek and operator of Smart Newtown. Chinese by birth but raised in Poneke, Kevin is passionate about raising tech awareness and aptitude in our increasingly digital world. By day he provides illumination on computer issues and by night he paints, designs, and writes slam poetry.
kevin@smartnewtown.org.nzhttps://www.smartnewtown.org.nz/Trust Board
As a charitable organisation, we have a volunteer Board of Trustees. They steer our mahi and keep us accountable. If you’d like to contact the Board, or are interested in joining our Board, please contact us. A huge mihi to our current and former Board members.
Our board members
Jane Patterson
As of December 2024, Jane is stepping up to be Chair of our Board!
Peter Frater
Paul Forrest
Demeysa Ahmed
Kim Young
Funders
He mihi nui ki ō mātou kaitautoko – a huge acknowledgement to our funders, without them our mahi would not be possible! We also gratefully receive regular or one-off donations from our community: you can contribute here.
Venue hire
Te Whare Hapori o Ngā Puna Waiora / Newtown Community Centre is based in the centre of Newtown, on the corner of Colombo and Rintoul Streets, as well as operating other venues around the suburb. With seven affordable venues, with different capacity, style and function, we can provide the perfect space for your community event, party, class, hui or much more!
Book a venue