ABOUT RICHMOND NEW ZEALAND
THE ESTABLISHMENT OF RICHMOND NEW ZEALAND TRUST LIMITED FROM RICHMOND FELLOWSHIP TO RICHMOND NEW ZEALAND: 1978 - 2010
Richmond New Zealand was established in 1978 to provide community support services for people with diagnosed serious mental illness. At that time, the organisation was known as Richmond Fellowship NZ and was one of the first organisations to set up community services and "therapeutic communities" at a time when the deinstitutionalisation of psychiatric hospital services in New Zealand was underway. The first Richmond Fellowship service was Dorset House in Christchurch.
Richmond Fellowship NZ was affiliated with the many organisations worldwide that form the international network of Richmond Fellowship - which was first initiated by Elly Jansen who set up the first therapeutic community in Richmond, Surrey in 1959. Therein lay the founding of "Richmond Fellowship United Kingdom" which in turn was the catalyst for the subsequent establishment of many Richmond Fellowships around the world.
In 2006 Richmond Fellowship New Zealand rebranded as "Richmond New Zealand". Since its founding in 1978, Richmond New Zealand developed to the point where it was one of the largest national providers of community mental health and disability support services. Its philosophy was based on the belief that people with mental health and disability challenges can live full and rich lives in the community.
Richmond New Zealand was contracted by various Government agencies to provide services and programmes to clients to support them to achieve the best possible quality of life. Richmond New Zealand committed to working with clients to ensure that services were focused on individual needs, and offered the best possible support, for the best possible outcome.
As a dynamic, growing and proactive organisation, Richmond New Zealand continually reviewed its services and strategic direction. In 2008 it signalled its intent to progressively diversify its client base, services and funders - and to actively seek different partnerships with others. This intent, along with some new opportunities arising from policy shifts and environmental change, provided a platform for new developments including changing its constitutional structure, and broadening its involvement in the health and social services.
To this end, 1 November 2010 marks the establishment of Richmond New Zealand Trust Limited ("Richmond").
FROM RICHMOND NEW ZEALAND TO RICHMOND NEW ZEALAND TRUST LIMITED: 2010
Richmond New Zealand Trust Limited came into effect on 1 November 2010 as a new charitable operating company.
Over the past 12 months, Richmond has been working to create this strategic and enduring development which will enhance the quality and range of services available to clients and address the challenges, opportunities and pressures in our rapidly changing operating environment, and provide a platform for collaboration and networked approaches to service delivery.
Richmond New Zealand Trust Limited is now underway, guided by its vision "Partners in Health and Wellbeing".
Governed by a Board of Directors, the company has four operating divisions - Northern (based in Auckland), Central (based in Wellington and offering services from Hamilton through to Wellington), Southern (based in Christchurch and covering South Island services) and Shared Support Services (which has responsibility for the full range of entity wide services).
