Takurua Tawera – Co-Chair (Māori)
Member Organisation: Manaaki Ora

Takurua is a long-standing member of the Partnership Rōpū and has been its Co-Chair (Māori) since 2011.   

As Kaihautū (Clinical Team Leader) at Manaaki Ora and, in his previous role with Moana House, Takurua has profound insight into the ways in which co-existing conditions, including substance abuse, impact efforts to address family violence.

Takurua is Pou Whakarae for dapaanz and is the Chair of the White Ribbon Campaign Trust.  He is passionate about working with men to stop violence against women.

Tahnea Wekepiri – Member (Māori) (seconded)
Member Organisation: Te Puna Oranga (Specialist Practise Lead for the ISR Integrated Safety Response)

Filling a casual vacancy until 2024 AGM

Jamie Addison – Member (Māori) (seconded)
Addictions Counsellor – White Ribbon

Filling a casual vacancy until 2024 AGM

Merran Lawler – Pou Ārahi/Chief Executive Officer

Merran joined the National Office team in mid 2016 as its Kaiarahi/National Advocate, after several years as the manager of member organisation, Living Without Violence Waiheke (now Te Ārai Roa Manaaki).

Originally from Australia, Merran has a long history of working with and managing large multi-disciplinary teams.  A former lawyer working in the community sector with specific focus on law reform cases and in family law, she has significant insights into the ways in which systems often persecute and marginalise the very people they are intended to help.  An unapologetic feminist, Merran maintains that working with men to stop violence at its source and ensure accountability is the most feminist mahi she can do.

Merran lives with her partner and a menagerie of animals on Te Motu-Arai-Roa/Waiheke Island.  She hates flying but travels to Wellington regularly. She dreams of the day when everyone is safe in their homes so she can stop getting on airplanes, retire and open a donkey rescue sanctuary.

Celia Bulman – Kaitohutohu Kaha/Strengths Advisor

Celia was born in Canada, grew up in the UK and has lived in Aotearoa since 2005. She has worked in family violence for many years: directly with women who have experienced violence; as manager of a crisis support service for women; as a professional supervisor; as a researcher and trainer with Women’s Aid in the UK; and started with the National Office as our Kaitakawaenga/Members Liaison in 2018, supporting our member organisations to deliver the very best services within the FV specialist sector.

In January 2025 Celia moved into a new role as Kaitohutohu Kaha/Strengths Advisor. Her new mahi will include supporting member organisations to adapt to the rapidly changing landscape of service delivery with a particular focus on advancing understanding about the value and importance of specialist family violence services.  Part of that mahi will have a focus on evaluation frameworks which meaningfully measure the impact of services and supports delivered by our members to their communities. Given her significant relationship-building skills, Celia will continue to support and nurture organisations seeking to become join Te Kupenga.

She lives at the top of Te Waipounamu/South Island and appreciates it every single day!

Celia (Ce) Hirini – Kaihapai Ahurea/Cultural Champion

Ko Panekire te maunga
Ko Waikaretaheke te awa
Ko Waikaremoana te waikaukau o ngā mātua tīpuna
Ko Ngāti Hinekura me Te Whānau Pani ngā hapū
Ko Haumapuhia te tipua
Ko Te Kuha te marae
Ko Ngāti Ruapani me Ngai Tūhoe ngā iwi
Ko Tūhoe Lambert rāua ko Ada Lambert ōku mātua.
Ko Celia Hirini nee Lambert tōku ingoa.

Ce was born in Wairoa and raised in Flaxmere. She have four beautiful daughters, six stepchildren and an incredibly supportive husband. Ce graduated from Te Rangakura bilingual teacher training in 1999 and completed a Master of Applied Indigenous Knowledge from Te Whare Wananga o Aotearoa in 2019. She has worked as a Community and Service Innovation Specialist for Papakura Marae looking at imaginative ways to co-create solutions, alongside whanau so that they can experience more sunny days.

Ce joined the National Office team in October 2023 in the temporary role of Kaimahi Tautāwhi, covering the mahi of another team member who was then on leave.  In November 2024, Ce started a new role with us as Kaihapai Ahurea/Cultural Champion.  Her mahi involves the national roll-out of Korowai Manaaki (our support space for all kaimahi Māori working within our member organisations) and for nurturing the capacity, capability and safety of all our member organisations in working with diverse populations (including Māori, disabled people, LGBTIQ+, ethnic and refugee communities and Pasifika).

Ce lives in, and works from her homebase, in Tāmaki Makaurau/Auckland.

Phoenix Hepi – Kaitakawaenga/Members Liaison

Phoenix joined the National Office team in February 2025 in the role of Kaitakawaenga/Members Liaison.  Her mahi involves supporting our members to deliver the best possible family violence services and ensuring they have access to current and timely information about what is occurring across the family violence sector. She will also be supporting members to continue their implementation plans in relation to both the Specialist Family Violence Organisational Standards and the Family Violence Entry to Expert Capability Framework.

Phoenix’s home base is Te Awa Kairangi ki Tai/Lower Hutt.

Tania Hubber – Whakangungu Kaimahi/Training Team

Tēnā koe, my name is Tania and I’m from the deep south – Waihōpai/Invercargill – where I now live, after being an Aucklander for 34 years, with my adult children and grandchildren. I started working in Family Violence over 20 years ago and in this sector I found my zone, my space. I’ve been given so many opportunities to work a range of roles, from practitioner (advocate & facilitator) to manager (Shine Advocate & Programmes Manager; Lighthouse Southland General Manager) and a few more in between. I have been blessed to have worked with some truly incredible people along the way and because of this I have hope for this sector and for ngā tangata o Aotearoa/the people of New Zealand.

Tania joined the National Office in November 2023 as one of our two Whakatinana/Implementation Kaimahi, working on supporting our member organisations to begin implementation of the national Entry to Expert Family Violence Capability Framework (the E2E) and the national Specialist Family Violence Organisational Standards (the SOS). While the Framework and the Standards are not yet mandatory, the Whakatinana/Implementation project supported our members to work towards adoption as representing best practice in family violence intervention and prevention mahi.

Having overseen the development of Implementation Plans across almost all member organisations, Tania moved into the new Whakangungu/Training Team in January 2025.  The Team is responsible for supporting our members to access and undertake training at the enhanced level of the E2E and includes the development and delivery of training opportunities, both in-person and through our new online training portal.  That mahi also includes connecting with other training providers to ensure a consistency of “assessment” about what it means to meet each level of the E2E and in advancing our existing work to create micro-credentials at the enhanced level of practice.

Tania stretches the reach of our virtual National Office, living in and working from Waihōpai/Invercargill.

Lucy Santoso – Kaiawhina

An Indonesian Kiwi and graduate of Massey University in Social Work, Lucy has experience in community work, supporting families with mental health issues and in family violence.   In 2022, Lucy joined Te Kupenga as its kaiawhina, handling the bookkeeping and the complex administrative aspects of keeping a virtual national office operating. Originally based on Waiheke Island, Lucy moved with her partner, and cat, Donny to Whangarei in 2023.

Huia Mohi-Kearney – Whakangungu Kaimahi/Training Team

Ko Ngongotahā te maunga.  Ko Te Arawa te waka.  Ko Rotorua nui ā Kahumatamoemoe te roto.  Ko Tuwharetoa, ko Ngati Rangiwewehi nga iwi.  Kei Ngongotahā tōku whare.  Ko Huia Mohi-Kearney tōku ingoa. 

My mahi background is in Policing, 6 years with the NZ Police and 20 years with Queensland Police. I returned home to beautiful Ngongotahā where I now happily live with my tōku hoa tane, Julian, encircled by whānau and friends. We have 2 adult children Lily (Canada) and Jude (Gold Coast) who continue their journey of discovery.  My return home has ignited a passion to work positively toward a better, safer Aotearoa for ngā tangata while utilising my strengths in connection, communication, and collaboration.

Huia joined the National Office in December 2023 as one of our two Whakatinana/Implementation Kaimahi, working on supporting our member organisations to begin implementation of the national Entry to Expert Family Violence Capability Framework (the E2E) and the national Specialist Family Violence Organisational Standards (the SOS). While the Framework and the Standards are not yet mandatory, the Whakatinana/Implementation project supported our members to work towards early adoption as representing best practice in family violence intervention and prevention mahi.

Having overseen the development of Implementation Plans across almost all member organisations, Huia moved into the new Whakangungu/Training Team in January 2025.  The Team is responsible for supporting our members to access and undertake training at the enhanced level of the E2E and includes the development and delivery of training opportunities, both in-person and through our new online training portal.  That mahi also includes connecting with other training providers to ensure a consistency of “assessment” about what it means to meet each level of the E2E and in advancing our existing work to create micro-credentials at the enhanced level of practice.

Huia lives and works from the beautiful Te Rotorua-nui-a-Kahumatamomoe/Rotorua.