Great Potentials Foundation is a charitable trust for the promotion of education and parental support.

We are in communities that need help to unleash the potential of their children, young people and parents. At Great Potentials we are working for and with children, young people and families to promote family function, relieve suffering, release potential, reduce disparities in New Zealand society, reduce crime and violence and break the cycle of disadvantage.

Our purpose is a broad one - Helping children, young people and families towards brighter futures.

   

We focus on key points of transition
in people's lives:
  

Through - we help parents make the transition to ‘conscious parenting’, helping them develop the empathy and the practical skills necessary for their children to thrive.

Through – our Home Interaction Programme for Parents and Youngsters – we help parents become their child’s first and most important teacher, in preparation for the transition into school and the child’s pathway through education.

 

Through   – our Mentoring and Tutoring Education Scheme – we help young people make a secure transition into secondary school and to make the transition into tertiary study, training or employment.

   

Why we do what we do:

Great Potentials Foundation was founded in response to the troubling fact that a large percentage of New Zealand's children and young people are on the path to a relatively dismal future, through a variety of circumstances, encapsulated in the word “disadvantage”.

For over 30 years we have introduced, developed and managed programmes focused on breaking cycles of disadvantage and unleashing potential for our most at-risk families and youth. We are committed to helping children, young people and families towards brighter futures.

  

"We see miracles."

We have the privilege of hearing the stories from people whose futures have taken a different track as a result of participating in our programmes - young people, children and parents have seen their lives change...

At our 30-Year Anniversary Celebration, our founder, Dame Lesley Max said:

“Why does Great Potentials Foundation exist? Because I could not stand the level of child abuse and neglect in our beautiful country… and because I abhorred the waste of human potential, through failure in education.

“Great Potentials Foundation works at key points of transition – to becoming nurturing parents; to entering primary school; entering secondary school and entering tertiary study.... We are effectively addressing poverty and inequality.

“We see miracles.  The mother of six, who had three taken away from her because she was no mother, was able, through HIPPY, to prepare her youngest for a triumphant start in school.  The turning point was her revelation thanks to HIPPY that, in her words, 'You’re supposed to talk to them!'

“We have the joy of seeing men whose lives have been blighted through gangs and prison, becoming responsible fathers.

“We’ve seen a depressed, poor mother-of-ten being inspired by seeing her little boy graduate from HIPPY in a little mortar-board and gown, and thinking, maybe I could graduate. 

"She gained a degree and became Head Teacher in an early childhood centre.

“We have the joy of knowing that our MATES mentees are graduate engineers, lawyers and Parliamentary officials.  We have two MATES mentors in our current Parliament…

“We’ve shown how a modest neighbourhood family centre can help, heal and motivate.
We’ve shown how to release the power of low-income parents to enable their children to succeed at school.

"We’ve shown how to release the altruism and energy of university students to help young people achieve.”

     

We are so proud to support these children, young people and families.

     

The future is brighter for these New Zealanders, thanks to the support from so many, and we look forward to continuing our path from strength to strength.

DISCOVER OUR STORIES

HIPPY STORIESMATES STORIES FSC STORIES

      

  

"We’ve shown how to release the power of low-income parents to enable their children to start school in great shape.

We’ve shown how to release the altruism and energy of university students to help young people achieve.

Now we need to scale up even further to reach more people who need us and contribute even more to our beautiful Aotearoa New Zealand in the years ahead."

— Dame Lesley Max, Founder and Co-Chair

    

  

We greatly value the support of those who share our concerns and who enable us, through their contributions of funding and personal efforts, to work towards our vision:

"Well-nurtured children and young people, in well-functioning families, contributing to safe communities and a prosperous nation...."

You can help us make a difference.

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