Parkinson's New Zealand

What Parkinson's New Zealand does

Parkinson's New Zealand is a national charitable trust (CC55231) founded in 1983 by Andrew Dunn and other co-founders after Dunn's father was diagnosed with Parkinson's. It is the only national charitable organization specifically focused on Parkinson's and Parkinson's Plus conditions (including MSA, PSP, Corticobasal Syndrome, and Dementia with Lewy Bodies) in Aotearoa New Zealand, serving an estimated 12,000-13,000 New Zealanders affected by the condition. Following the 2018 amalgamation of regional societies into a single national trust, the organization now operates 75+ support groups, 15+ Parkinson's Educators delivering home visits and phone/video support, and an annual Living Positively with Parkinson's Conference. The core service mix includes Educator home visits, clinical referrals to allied health professionals, a Parkinson's-specific exercise programme, webinars, a resources library of 50+ educational materials, and a twice-yearly magazine distributed to ~6,000 readers.

The underlying technology stack is lean: a dedicated Client Management System stores client health information to support personalized care delivery, complemented by a website, email newsletter, social media presence (Facebook, Twitter/X, YouTube), and webinar infrastructure. There is no proprietary AI/ML functionality, no mobile app, and no public-facing API. The 2025 partnership with New Zealand Health Group (via HealthCare NZ, Aotearoa's largest in-home and community care provider) is the most significant infrastructural expansion signal, intended to extend Educator training and clinical reach across the country.

The business model is a non-profit donations-and-grants model. Core services are provided free of charge to clients, with revenue drawn from individual donations (tax-deductible over $5), trust and foundation grants (Lotteries, Lion Foundation, Pub Charity, NZ Community Trust, and ~30 other funders), regular monthly/fortnightly giving programmes (starting at $25/month), and bequest/legacy giving channeled through the Parkinson's New Zealand Foundation established in June 2022. Deloitte Access Economics estimated $15.9 million in social impact for the 2019/2020 year against approximately $3 million invested, a 5x ratio. The organization is governed by up to nine trustees, with a Senior Leadership Team led by Chief Executive Andrew Bell. Customer concentration is structurally low given end-user service delivery to over 12,000 individuals, but funder concentration across major gaming trusts and Lotteries creates a different revenue-side risk.

Name

Parkinson's New Zealand

Legal name

Parkinson's New Zealand Charitable Trust

Website

https://parkinsons.org.nz

Company type

Private

Founded year

1983

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Parkinson's New Zealand is a national charitable trust, founded 1983, providing free information, education, and support services to 12,000-13,000 New Zealanders living with Parkinson's and their whānau through 15+ Educators, 75+ support groups, home visits, and an annual conference.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Neurological Disease Patient Support Services

NAICS

Services for the Elderly and Persons with Disabilities (624120), Home Health Care Services (62161)

SIC

Services-Home Health Care Services (8082), Services-Misc Health & Allied Services, Nec (8090)

akta.pro primary industry

Parkinson’s & Movement-Disorder Personal Care Support (HSABABAJ)

akta.pro secondary industry

Neurological Rehabilitation Therapy In-Home (e.g., Stroke, Parkinson’s) (HSABADAE)

Keywords

• Parkinson's support services
• Neurological patient support
• Caregiver education programs
• Community health support
• Chronic disease support

Headquarters

HQ city

Wellington

HQ country

New Zealand

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Fundraising: Individual donations, one-time gifts, regular monthly giving programs, and fundraising activities. Donations over $5 are tax deductible as the organization has donee organisation status.
2. Trust and Foundation Grants: Funding from various trusts and foundations including Lotteries, Lion Foundation, Pub Charity, NZ Community Trust, and approximately 30+ other funders. The organization engages in grant applications to sustain operations.
3. Bequests and Legacy Giving: Individuals can leave gifts in their Will to support the organization's ongoing work. The Parkinson's New Zealand Foundation was established in June 2022 to receive and manage legacy donations.
4. Regular Giving Program: Monthly or fortnightly donations from supporters. Just $25 per month can help provide home visits for families. Regular giving provides sustainable funding for planning.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Parkinson's New Zealand provides free information, education, and support services to people living with Parkinson's and Parkinsonism conditions across Aotearoa New Zealand. Its core offering centers on a network of specialized Parkinson's Educators who deliver home visits, phone/video support, and referrals to allied health professionals, complemented by 75+ support groups, a Parkinson's-specific exercise programme, webinars, and an annual national conference.

Product overview

Parkinson's New Zealand is a national charitable trust providing wrap-around support services for people with Parkinson's and Parkinsonism conditions. The organisation operates as a single integrated service model rather than a platform-plus-modules architecture. Core services include the Parkinson's Educator Service (offering home visits, phone/video support, and referrals to health professionals), Support Groups (75+ face-to-face and online groups), a Parkinson's Specific Exercise Programme (with downloadable booklet and video library covering gait, agility, and fine motor skills), Webinars (regular online educational presentations), and the Living Positively with Parkinson's annual conference. Additional offerings include the Parkinsonian magazine (twice-yearly publication), Resources Library (50+ educational materials), Red Tulip Walks, the Get Going for Parkinson's fundraising programme, Regular Giving and Bequest legacy programmes, and the Parkinson's New Zealand Foundation (established 2022). The organisation also provides Health Professionals Training through the Goodfellow Unit. All services work together to provide information, education, and support across Aotearoa New Zealand.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Parkinson's New Zealand Foundation: Foundation established in June 2022 to provide financial support to Parkinson's New Zealand Charitable Trust to continue improving the everyday lives of people with Parkinson's.

Products and services

• Parkinson's Educator Service

Quantifiable outcome

• Social impact of $15.9 million for 2019/2020 year (5x greater than $3 million investment)
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• New Zealand Health GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 18 August 2025New strategic partnership announced August 2025 between Parkinson's New Zealand and New Zealand Health Group. The partnership will be realized through NZHG's HealthCare New Zealand brand - Aotearoa's largest in-home and community care provider. This collaboration aims to expand reach across the country and provide additional training to clinicians caring for people with Parkinson's. NZHG operates brands including Geneva Healthcare, HealthCare NZ, Solora, NZCL, Private Care NZ, and Freedom Medical Alarms.
• LotteriesmajorOthersMajor funder of Parkinson's New Zealand services. Listed as a special thanks funder on the Funding Partners page.
• Lion FoundationmajorOthersMajor gaming trust funder supporting Parkinson's New Zealand's charitable services.
• Pub CharitymajorOthersMajor gaming trust funder supporting Parkinson's New Zealand's work.
• NZ Community TrustmajorOthersMajor community trust providing funding support to Parkinson's New Zealand.
• Healthcare New ZealandmajorOthersAotearoa's largest and most trusted in-home and community care and support provider. Part of New Zealand Health Group.
• Neurological AllianceminorOthersAlliance of neurological organizations in New Zealand working together on shared issues.
• PD AvengersminorOthersGlobal Parkinson's awareness organization. Parkinson's New Zealand participates in Spark the Night campaign organized by PD Avengers.
• Davis Phinney FoundationminorOthersUS-based foundation focused on Parkinson's education and quality of life. Connie Carpenter-Phinney (co-founder) was keynote speaker at 2024 Living Positively with Parkinson's Conference.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Parkinson's UK: National Parkinson's charity providing information, support, and advocacy for people with Parkinson's across the UK. Highly comparable to PNZ as a national disease-specific nonprofit with educator/advisor networks, support groups, and a research funding arm.
• Parkinson's Australia: Australian national Parkinson's organization offering similar services including education, advocacy, and support groups. Closest geographic and structural peer to PNZ given shared Australasian context and disease-specific nonprofit model.
• Parkinson Canada: National Canadian Parkinson's charity delivering support services, education, and research funding. Operates a similar educator/nurse-led model with Information and Referral associates, comparable to PNZ's Parkinson's Educator network.
• Multiple Sclerosis New Zealand: NZ-based disease-specific nonprofit supporting people with multiple sclerosis. Comparable as a small national neurological charity with similar service model (community support, advocacy, fundraising via gaming trusts).
• Stroke Foundation of New Zealand: NZ national charity for stroke survivors. Comparable in operating as a national neurological-focused nonprofit with educator outreach, community rehabilitation focus, and similar funding mix (grants, donations, bequests).
• Alzheimer's New Zealand: NZ national charity supporting people with dementia and Alzheimer's. Highly comparable in structure, scale, and service model — community educator visits, support groups, advocacy — and serves a closely adjacent neurological population.

Broad incumbents

• Parkinson's Foundation (US): Major US-based Parkinson's nonprofit providing education, support, and research funding. Much larger in scale but operates a comparable community-based support model with a Helpline, online education, and care partner programs.
• Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research: Largest nonprofit funder of Parkinson's research globally. Less directly comparable on service delivery but parallel in disease advocacy and major brand recognition in the Parkinson's ecosystem.

Emerging players

• Davis Phinney Foundation: US-based Parkinson's foundation focused on quality of life and living well with Parkinson's. Already a partner of PNZ (2024 conference keynote speaker). Comparable in mission around education and empowerment rather than cure research.

Others

• Neurological Alliance (NZ): Coalition of NZ neurological organizations of which PNZ is a member. Provides umbrella advocacy and shared policy work — adjacent peer representing ecosystem-level collaboration rather than direct service delivery.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/parkinsonsnz
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/ParkinsonsNewZealand/feed
• Facebookfacebook.com/parkinsonsnz

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 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 Parkinson's New Zealand