Access to Justice & Wellbeing

About This Project

BAF is a founding partner of this initiative working alongside Legal+, a newly established not-for-profit legal firm.

Aotearoa is witnessing a fundamental shift in understanding and acting on the strong links between hauora (wellbeing and health), poverty and social justice. It’s exciting but progress is too little on action to address early wellbeing issues for people with legal problems, and helping people in health and community services with access to justice. The many people that cannot access the justice help they need or have haoura issues left too long suffer serious negative mental/ physical health, family, work and/or financial impacts. They and their whānau suffer an avoidable downward spiral (driving costs in our social, justice and health services). Māori, rangatahi and the economically deprived suffer disproportionately.

The Accessible Justice & Wellbeing Trust aims to tackle this in Taranaki by co-designing and piloting with health, welfare, legal and community organisations the integration of access to justice and wellbeing services.

The pilot will enable not-for-profit law service (Legalplus) and one or more wellbeing / health providers to partner in a two way process. Wellbeing providers gain a channel for people presenting with accessible legal, advocacy or equity issues to get support with flexible, local outreach and/ or onsite legal capacity. Legalplus (or a court or other lawyers) clients with hauora, wellbeing or related issues will be assisted through the process of getting the support they need from the health/ community / iwi partners or connected organisations.