Cholmondeley Children’s Centre

What Cholmondeley Children’s Centre does

Cholmondeley Children's Centre is a New Zealand registered charity (CC59698) founded in 1925 in Governors Bay, Lyttelton, that provides short-term emergency and planned respite care for whānau with children aged 5-12 during times of family stress or crisis. Its core service is a 23-bed residential facility where tamariki stay for up to three nights at a time, supplemented by the Awhi Team outreach programme — social workers, youth workers, and the long-term Refocus Service that work alongside families in their own homes across the Canterbury region. The on-site Kura (registered school) and adventure-based learning activities (climbing, kayaking, archery, beach trips) round out the care, education, and wellbeing offering. There is no underlying technology platform; the 'product' is human-delivered care, and all services are provided free of charge to families.

The organization is 80% community funded and operates a diversified donation and fundraising model: online donations, bank transfers, automatic payments, payroll giving (with a 33.33% PAYE credit), retail voucher donations, bequests via the Cholmondeley Children's Foundation, and a calendar of community events (Little Gems Cocktail Party, Centenary Sailing Regatta, Centenary Golf Tournament, Fit for a Cause 24-hour fitness challenge, and Christchurch Street Appeals). Corporate and foundation support comes from a broad base including the Wright Family Foundation, Buddle Findlay Child Health Foundation, Yondi Foundation, ILAM Toyota, 2degrees, Royal New Zealand Navy, Lyttelton Port Company, Gallagher Insurance, New World, Christchurch Casino, and others. The leadership team is led by General Manager Darel Hall (appointed October 2024, a former Cholmondeley tamariki and five-year Board Member), with COO Libby, Practice Manager Lisa Hurry, and Fundraising Managers Ingrid and Regan Hines, under Chairperson Nettles Lamont and Patron Nuk Korako.

The Centre's growth posture is programme-broadening rather than scale-up: bed capacity remains capped at 23 (averaging 17 occupied due to financial constraints), while outreach has expanded via the Awhi Team and Refocus Service. The March 2025 centenary — marked by a Governor-General-attended open day, a centenary golf tournament, and a 'Night on the Sea' gala aboard HMNZS Canterbury — was used to consolidate community support and reset the fundraising pipeline ahead of the next 100 years. Geographic footprint is explicitly restricted to Canterbury, New Zealand, with no disclosed plans to expand beyond the region.

Name

Cholmondeley Children’s Centre

Legal name

Cholmondeley Children's Centre

Website

https://cholmondeley.org.nz

Company type

Private

Founded year

1925

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Cholmondeley Children's Centre is a New Zealand registered charity, founded 1925, providing free respite care and outreach support for Canterbury children aged 5-12 and their whānau during family stress or crisis.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Children's Respite Care Services

NAICS

Child Care Services (62441), Child and Youth Services (62411)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Emergency / On-Demand Respite Care (HSABAGAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Family Resource Centers & Wraparound Support Services (EDACALAH)

Keywords

• Children's respite care
• Family support services
• Community social services
• Youth outreach programs
• Charitable welfare services

Headquarters

HQ city

Christchurch

HQ country

New Zealand

HQ region

Oceania

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Donations: Cholmondeley relies on community donations as its primary funding source. The organization states it is 80% community funded, with donations accepted through online portals, bank transfers, and automatic payments.
2. Fundraising Events: The organization runs various fundraising events including the Little Gems Cocktail Party, Sailing Regatta, Golf Tournament, Fit for a Cause, and Street Appeals to generate revenue.
3. Payroll Giving: Employees can donate through payroll giving, receiving an immediate 33.33% PAYE credit on donations. Employers can also choose to match employee donations.
4. Bequests: The organization accepts gifts in Wills, allowing donors to leave a bequest for future sustainable funding.
5. Voucher Donations: Community members donate retail vouchers from supermarkets and retailers which the centre uses to purchase needed items.

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Cholmondeley Children's Centre provides free short-term emergency and planned respite care for Canterbury whānau with children aged 5-12 during family stress or crisis, delivered from a 23-bed facility in Governors Bay, Lyttelton. Services are supplemented by the Awhi Team outreach programme (social workers, youth workers, and the long-term Refocus Service), an on-site Kura (registered school) with values-based and adventure-based learning, and legacy giving through the Cholmondeley Children's Foundation.

Product overview

Cholmondeley Children's Centre operates as a single, unified service providing respite care and support for Canterbury tamariki (children) aged 5-12 and their whānau during times of family stress or crisis. The core offering is the Respite Care Service, supplemented by the Awhi Team outreach programme (including the Refocus Service for long-term family support), and an on-site Kura (registered school) with adventure-based learning activities. The organisation also publishes the Tiaki Care Magazine and manages the Cholmondeley Children's Foundation for bequests.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Awhi Team: An outreach programme consisting of social workers, youth workers, and the Refocus Service that works alongside whānau in their own homes providing support with parenting, managing children's emotions and behaviours, and setting up new habits or routines.

Products and services

• Respite Care Service
• Awhi Team Outreach
• Refocus Service
• Cholmondeley Children's Foundation (Bequest Programme)

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• ILAM ToyotacoreGTM or Marketing PartnerKey sponsor of the Little Gems Cocktail Party event and Christmas Car Raffle. Donated a Toyota Corolla as raffle prize. Also sponsors the annual Golf Tournament.
• Royal New Zealand NavycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSupported Cholmondeley's centenary 'Night on the Sea' event aboard HMNZS Canterbury. Navy staff participated in the event and provided tours for Cholmondeley children.
• 2degreescoreGTM or Marketing PartnerOfficial sponsor of Fit for a Cause 2026 event - a 24-hour fitness challenge raising funds for Cholmondeley.
• Gallagher InsuranceminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSponsor of the Centenary Golf Tournament, providing prizes including hole-in-one opportunities.
• New World FendaltonminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPresented the Little Gems Cocktail Party centenary edition event.
• BrandhouseminorGTM or Marketing PartnerDonated beverages for the centenary 'Night on the Sea' event.
• John Jones SteelminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPresented the Centenary Sailing Regatta event.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Lifewise: Large Auckland-based social services provider delivering disability support, home-based support, and family and youth services across New Zealand. Comparable as a charitable, community-funded provider of child and family support services, though it is more diversified and Auckland-focused.
• IHC New Zealand: New Zealand disability support charity providing residential, respite, and family/whānau services to people with intellectual disabilities. Comparable because it is a long-established NZ charity providing both residential care and respite services, though it focuses specifically on intellectual disability.
• Barnardo's New Zealand: New Zealand's largest children's charity, providing a wide range of child welfare, family support, and care services across the country. Comparable to Cholmondeley because it operates child and family support programmes with national reach, overlapping significantly on the social services mission even though it does not focus exclusively on respite care.

Regional players

• Barnardo's Australia: Australia's largest child welfare charity delivering foster care, kinship care, and family support services. Comparable as the Australian counterpart to Barnardo's NZ, operating similar child-and-family services in a separate geography.

Direct peers

• Methodist Mission Christchurch: Christchurch-based social services organisation providing family and social support, foodbanks, and community programmes. Comparable as a Christchurch-area charitable social services provider delivering family support to vulnerable populations, overlapping with parts of Cholmondeley's Awhi Team referral pathways.
• Open Home Foundation: Christchurch-based charitable trust providing residential, fostering, and family support services for children and young people across the South Island. Directly comparable to Cholmondeley because it delivers in-home and residential child welfare services in the same Canterbury region, serving similar tamariki and whānau populations.
• Anglican Family Care: Faith-based social services organisation in the South Island providing social work, family support, and care services for children, individuals, and families. Comparable because it serves similar Christchurch-area whānau in crisis with social-work-driven family support, overlapping with Cholmondeley's Awhi outreach model.
• Presbyterian Support (Upper South Island): South Island arm of the Presbyterian Support network, delivering social services including family support, social work, and care for children, older people, and families in Canterbury. Comparable because it is a Canterbury-region charitable organisation providing family and child support services alongside other social services.

Emerging players

• KidsCan: New Zealand charity providing material aid (food, clothing, shoes) and social support to children living in poverty. Comparable because it is a donation-funded NZ children's charity with a community-funded model and broad volunteer engagement, although its focus is on material hardship rather than respite care.
• Variety - the Children's Charity (NZ): New Zealand branch of an international children's charity funding grants for disadvantaged children. Comparable because it is a community-funded (donations, events, corporate partnerships) NZ children's charity with volunteer engagement, though it funds individuals rather than operating direct services.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/Cholmondeley.NZ
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cholmondeley-children-s-centre
• Instagraminstagram.com/cholmondeleychildrenscentre

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Cholmondeley Children’s Centre