Our History

We were originally called Central Woman’s Refuge when this entity was formed by the National Collective of Independent Women’s Refuges in 1990. We were established to manage an Auckland region-wide crisis line, but in 1993 we became an independent organisation. Throughout the 1990s, our primary function was to run a crisis telephone service for the Auckland region. In the last half of the 1990s, we began to provide a 24-hour callout and advocacy service in response to police and hospital referrals in Auckland, and shortly after, began a men’s stopping violence programme, called No Excuses.

Following the year 2000, a much more expansive vision of what was possible and an opportunistic approach led to rapid growth. Shine services established during this time included KIDshine, Shine safe@home, DVFREE (workplace programme), many of our professional training programmes, and our work in the health sector – including a partnership with the Auckland District Health Board and providing family violence training nationally for district health boards and midwives. Also, during this time our helpline became a national, tollfree, professionally staffed service, run in partnership with Lifeline and Youthline.

Our agency has gone through a number of name changes. In the early days, we were known as the Domestic Violence Centre, then SAFTINET (Safer Auckland Families through Intervention Network), then back to Domestic Violence Centre, and later the name was changed to Preventing Violence in the Home.

In 2009, Safer Families Foundation on Auckland’s North Shore merged with Preventing Violence in the Home. Established in 1985 and formerly known as North Shore Women’s Refuge, Safer Families Foundation had a similar philosophy and similar services. At the time of this merger in 2009, we changed our name to Shine – Safer Homes in New Zealand Everyday – a name which also expresses our number one goal.

In July 2016, Shine became a service division of Presbyterian Support Northern (PSN), alongside Family Works and Enliven, and Lifeline. PSN delivers social services to build strong families and help anyone struggling with age, disability or injury to enjoy a better, happier, healthier life. With almost 1000 staff in 25 service centres, PSN services are delivered in communities throughout the upper North Island from Whangarei to Turangi. PSN, together with six other autonomous Presbyterian Support regional organisations, makes up Presbyterian Support New Zealand. PSN was part of the Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand, until 1954 when it became an independent charitable trust. These days, PSN clients, staff, and volunteers are from a range of religious and cultural backgrounds.