Testing changes to Well Child Tamariki Ora: Learning Reports
May 2026
Tamariki Wellbeing
How might Well Child Tamariki Ora shift from a one-size-fits-all universal service towards a model that is more responsive, equitable, and whānau-centred?
TSI’s Tamariki Wellbeing team was commissioned by Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora to facilitate a learning system approach that enabled national and regional Health New Zealand teams to work collaboratively with six community-based partners to live test proposed changes to the Well Child Tamariki Ora (WCTO) Schedule.
Well Child Tamariki Ora is one of the few universal services in Aotearoa, reaching around 90% of children under five, meaning even small improvements can lead to significant gains in equity and long-term outcomes.
Using Niho Taniwha, the prototype created a live learning approach that gathered insights from practice on the ground and brought people together from across the system to make sense of what was being learned. This provided an opportunity to work collectively to understand the extent to which the proposed changes supported responsive, holistic, culturally grounded, and whānau-centred practice, and to identify implications for funding, commissioning, workforce, and governance.
Ngā mihi nui to Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora for the leadership behind this kaupapa, and to Starship Community, Papakura Marae, Raukura Hauora o Tainui Trust, Whānau Āwhina Plunket, Te Rūnanganui o Te Āti Awa, and Te Puawaitanga ki Ōtautahi Trust for the openness, wisdom and generosity you brought to this work.
Four learning reports were produced from the prototype:
Report One: Testing Changes to the Growth and Wellbeing Schedule
Report Two: The Implications of Replacing PEDS with ASQ-3
Report Three: What Matters Most to Whānau in a WCTO Service
Report Four: Shining a Light on Practice in the WCTO Service
