Following a visit to Whakamaru today, the Government have announced that Wellington City Mission’s Crisis Café at Whakamaru is the latest recipient of the Government’s Mental Health and Addiction Community Sector Innovation Fund.
The Crisis Café is a 24-hour crisis prevention and response service operating in a café-style environment at Whakamaru.
Operating from within Craig & Gail’s Café, the Crisis Café provides a supportive environment for people in mental distress who are not at immediate risk of harm to self or others. The service aims to increase early access to mental health support in the Wellington region, and to provide key support to those who need it.
The café is designed to assist those in crisis, helping them navigate immediate challenges with the goal of preventing escalation and fostering well-being.
Operating from Thursday to Monday, 24 hours a day, the Crisis Café will always be staffed. Those working on site will provide trauma-informed care through one-to-one peer support, de-escalation, safety planning, and by providing access to digital mental health services.
The funding provided to the Wellington City Mission will allow operation of the Crisis Café four days a week, but operations at Whakamaru remain 24/7, with support staff on duty at all times.
The Crisis Café at Whakamaru will offer people in need of support somewhere to go, at times of night when there are few options available to the community.
The service is operational throughout Craig and Gail’s usual operating times, but will also remain accessible after Craig & Gail’s closes and throughout the night, Thursday through to Monday.
