Rebuilding shattered lives

FOCUS: The marae is the most important space at the unit, where families, staff and specialists meet to talk about decisions regarding the care of a young person.

Thuds echo from a small cell as a young teenager throws himself into the walls and slams his fists into the door.

He is 13 and he is high.

Outside the cell is Raewyn Holland, general manager of the Whakatakapokai Care and Protection Unit in Auckland.

The Child Youth and Family facility is home to kids deemed the most vulnerable children in Auckland and Northland.

"You're okay," she says firmly to the boy through the cell's small plastic window.

"Just 10 more minutes."

The 13-year-old had been dropped off at the secure unit of Whakatakapokai by police after he was found in the attic of a gang-affiliated home during a drug bust.

The boy needs to sober up before leaving the seclusion unit. About half an hour later he is slumped on the hard shelf-like bed with his head in his hands. He has been here before and he knows how it works.

He will remain at this Child Youth and Family facility until he is assessed and deemed sober and safe to be returned to a personal unit, which will again be his home for as long as necessary.

Despite struggling through awful circumstances in their early life, the teens at Whakatakapokai are in many ways working at being regular teenagers.

GM Raewyn has been here for eight years, and sees about 900 young people through the unit and the Youth Justice centre each year.

She over-sees a team of about 70 staff members who work on a rotational basis.

External clinical psychology is an absolute must for all the staff, Raewyn says.

"I remind my staff of the airline safety video, you put your mask on yourself before putting a mask on the child."

Steeling yourself against the blows of the young people in her care trying to harm themselves would be exhausting, but Raewyn doesn't let it show.

She walks in to every room in the unit with a smile on her face and her arms open ready for the onslaught of hugs and hand-holding the kids, especially the girls, are so fond of.

There are 58 beds in the country for young people aged 11 to 17 in units such as Manurewa's Whakatakapokai.

Whakatakapokai has room for 20, and one of those beds is currently occupied by a 14-year-old Northlander.

After a long search for any family members able to care for the young boy, Raewyn and her team have found an aunty who they have worked closely with.

The young boy has had many visits to the aunty, gradually progressing to week-long stays.

The teen will soon be transitioned to her home.

The staff spend a lot of time tracking down any family members of the young people in the unit. They find relatives from as far away as Invercargill and bring them up to visit the kids at the unit.

"When we come across a family member, we hug them to our bosom and we don't let them go," Raewyn says.

Raewyn says she doesn't see many Northland kids at the unit for a number of reasons.

"The continuum between agencies up there is very strong."

She says Child Youth and Family and Iwi Social Services work very well together in Northland and the recent establishment of the Child Poverty Action Group has helped to decrease the number of children arriving on Whakatakapokai's doorstep from Northland.

Kids already in the CYF system can come to Whakatakapokai after committing crimes in the community, and the community might need some time to heal. They can be released from the Children and Family unit at Starship Children's Hospital to Whakatakapokai.

They also end up here when deemed a risk to themselves or others.

The unit is not considered a long-term residence, but a stop-off to get the young person back on their feet and to where they need to be.

Iwi social services, social workers, mental health workers, education and district health boards can all be involved in transitioning the young person either into CYF care, whanau, or less appealing options such as mental health units.

Raewyn says there are sometimes between 25 and 30 components to one young person's case.

"They have high and complex needs. They sit right at the top of the spectrum," Raewyn says.

"Sometimes all they need is a short-term intervention. We can get them assessed, often detoxed, and transition them fairly quickly."

The personal unit of a 17-year-old girl looks cleaner and tidier than any teenage girl's bedroom.

Personal items such as make-up and books sit on built-in shelving.

Photos decorate the walls, but happy families and friends don't smile out of them. Aside from a photo sent to her of her young brother and sister, there is one of her and her Nan. The rest are of herself.

"I'm going to be on New Zealand's Got Talent," she says proudly.

Like all the other residents, this young girl is just your average teenager, and she has the same dreams as hundreds of teenage girls in New Zealand.

The teen sang in front of all the residents and staff at a lunch to farewell a staff member.

"We are always looking for ways to showcase the kids' talents, because they've never been showcased before," Raewyn says.

The bubbly young girl has her hair done in a trendy high bun and is pleased with the way her room looks with a new duvet.

The staff like to give the teens their own belongings.

"Many of them come from transient backgrounds, and this might be their first time to ever own anything," Raewyn says.

The teens save their pocket money and can spend it anyway they like.

Some of the girls choose to have an outing at weekend and get their nails done and a haircut. One boy has bought Nike sneakers that he wears proudly.

A favourite outing is to Rainbows End, where most of their savings are spent on a ticket in and the rest at the arcade.

The 17-year-old has earned the most privilege points for good behaviour, and gets access to the privilege room.

It is kitted out with an aquarium, a couch, a fluffy purple rug, and potted plants, a flat-screen TV and an XBox console.

On site there are two classrooms, a marae, a swimming pool, netball courts, plenty of grass and trees, a small shop, the administration block and the accommodation area.

Around the site is a high fence and surveillance cameras.

The kids get as much normal activity as possible. They play touch rugby and netball, some go to mainstream schools, they go to the local swimming pools and gyms for exercise. "We are big on birthdays and even bigger on Christmas. We just celebrate these kids. This might be the first time they've ever had presents, so we go all out," Raewyn said. Tutors come to the unit for different activities such as music teaching, art therapy, and poetry classes. Slam poetry is especially popular with the young boys. Team leader Kapelieli Su'a said slam poetry is a great way for the boys to express themselves, in a way that is familiar to them.

They write rhymes, similar to rap, and can perform it to staff members when they are comfortable.

"We make sure they get life skills. We teach them how to cook, clean, manage money and how to maintain a regular daily routine, when they go on their transition they hold that up," team leader Kapeliele Su'a says.

Raewyn said she often keeps in touch with people once they leave the care and protection unit.

"We have so many success stories. Every young person that we stop from entering the Youth Justice system is a success," Raewyn says.

The most important facility at the unit is the marae. It was built entirely by staff and the young people in the unit,

Inside is artwork done by people who have been through the unit and left.

On one wall on either side of a window are two carvings. The one on the right hand-side was done by a young man who ended up in prison for murder after leaving the unit. The one on the left is by a man who has raised three young kids and is a qualified builder.

"You can never pick it, I look back and think 'did we miss something? Was he ready to go?' but you can't pick it sometimes," Raewyn says.