Doocey Opens Te Piringa Āhuru Crisis Recovery Café to Boost Mental Health Support

“A brightly lit, busy emergency department is often not the best environment for someone in mental distress,” Doocey said at the opening.

Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey has officially opened Te Piringa Āhuru, South Auckland’s new Crisis Recovery Café, marking a further step in the Government’s efforts to expand community-based mental health services and reduce pressure on hospital emergency departments.

The café forms part of a nationwide rollout of eight crisis recovery cafés, aimed at providing people experiencing mental distress with calm, peer-led and non-clinical alternatives to emergency departments.

“A brightly lit, busy emergency department is often not the best environment for someone in mental distress,” Doocey said at the opening.

“That’s why we are rolling out eight new crisis recovery cafés across the country, so more New Zealanders have a calm, peer-led, non-clinical space to go to for support.”

Community-Led Solutions at the Centre

Doocey emphasised that the crisis café model is grounded in local knowledge and community-based solutions, rather than a one-size-fits-all approach.

“We know that each community is different. That’s why I have always said the solutions already exist within our grassroots organisations — they just need to be supported,” he said.

The café will be operated by Ember, a mental health and addiction support organisation that has been working in South Auckland for the past six years. Through the new facility, Ember is expected to expand its reach and support more people in the community.

The name Te Piringa Āhuru was chosen to reflect the café’s purpose as a place of safety, belonging and hope.

“Ember named the café Te Piringa Āhuru to signify it as a place of safety and belonging, and a space where there is hope — which I think is a fitting name for this space,” Doocey said.

Peer Support at the Heart of the Model

The Crisis Recovery Café will be staffed by trained peer support workers who have lived experience of mental health or addiction challenges. These workers will provide emotional support, help people navigate distress, and connect them with appropriate community services.

“The café will have peer support workers who can lend a listening ear, link people back into community services, and offer people a place to sit down in a relaxed setting,” Doocey said.

He highlighted the unique value of peer support, noting that shared lived experience can offer reassurance and hope during times of crisis.

“There is real power in knowing there is someone in the room who has walked a similar journey and come through it. It can give people real hope,” he said.

Doocey shared feedback from peer support workers already operating in similar services, including one who said the role was exactly the support she wished she had received during her own struggles.

“Someone who can say, ‘I see you, I hear you, I know what you’re going through,’” he said.

Expanding Peer Support Across the System

The Minister said peer support workers are increasingly being utilised across the mental health system, including in emergency departments, eating disorder services and crisis alternatives, as part of a broader shift towards recovery-focused care.

He noted that Te Piringa Āhuru follows the opening of the first crisis recovery café in Whanganui, and announcements of increased funding for similar services in New Plymouth and Whakatāne.

“I look forward to continuing the rollout,” Doocey said.

Part of Broader Mental Health Reform

Crisis recovery cafés form a key component of the Government’s mental health plan. Last month, Doocey announced a wider crisis response package that includes additional clinical staff in crisis assessment teams, two new 10-bed peer-led acute alternative services, and expanded peer support in emergency departments and crisis recovery cafés.

“My focus is on delivering faster access to support, more frontline workers, and a better crisis response,” he said.

Officials said the opening of Te Piringa Āhuru represents a significant investment in early intervention and community-based care, aimed at supporting people sooner and preventing escalation to acute crisis.