Frequently Asked Questions

At The People’s Project, we support people who are experiencing homelessness in Hamilton and Tauranga.

In Aotearoa, homelessness means people sleeping rough or living in a vehicle. It also includes people who have no permanent or safe accommodation of their own, such as those couch-surfing, living in over-crowded houses or emergency housing.

We specialise in supporting adults (18 years old and over) without dependent children in their care.

We have an open-door policy. People can come to the office and talk to our friendly team to see how we might support you. You don’t need a referral.

Our service is free. Generally, you won’t have to wait to be assessed for eligibility and connected to support.

Come in and have a chat with one of our friendly staff. You don’t need to bring any paperwork or ID.

We just want to get to know you and find out things like where you’re living now, your age, and a bit more about your situation.

From there, we can figure out together what to do next.

Unfortunately, we can’t help everyone, but we can suggest other options if TPP isn’t the right fit for you.

We help tāngata whai ora find a permanent rental property with a private owner, landlord, rental agency, and community housing providers such as Kāinga Ora and Accessible Properties Ltd.

The People’s Project does not own or manage any property.

You can look for places by yourself or with our support.

When you have found a place to live, we can help you set it up as your new home.

We always strive to help you find a place to live as soon as possible.

But it can take time to find a permanent home in Hamilton or Tauranga that fits your needs. Sometimes this can take many months.

That said, our service has very good relationships with some landlords in both centres.

Under the Housing First principles, tāngata whai ora are supported into a home. Then, they are offered specialised support services.

This could include:

• Support to get budgeting advice to help you organise your bills
• Help signing up for services like electricity and Internet
• Guidance about how to keep your place clean and tidy and how to shop well for yourself
• Support to visit Work and Income as needed
• Support to visit the doctor, hospital, and dentists
• Support to access mental health or addiction services
• Support to manage your relationship with your landlord and neighbours
• Support finding a job. Employment advisors from our sister entity Workwise are based in our offices

Finally, if you lose a tenancy we’ve supported you to find, for whatever reason, this doesn’t automatically mean you’ll have to leave our service.

We’ll keep working with you to find the right place and continue other support you may need.

Registering for support with The People’s Project is voluntary and so you can leave our service at any time. Our aim is for you to live well independently in a permanent home.

Because our tāngata whai ora rent from private owners, landlords, community housing providers or Kainga Ora, even if you don’t want TPP’s support any more, there is no need to move house. You can stay in your accommodation even if you leave our service.

For Tauranga, you can come into the office at Marino House, 63 Second Avenue in the city centre.

We are open Monday to Thursday 9am-4pm and Friday 9am-2.30pm.

Or phone 0800 437 348 or email tauranga@thepeoplesproject.org.nz to make an appointment.

In Hamilton, The People’s Project office is at Mānuka House, 871 Victoria Street, on the corner with Princes Street.

We are open Monday to Thursday 9am-4pm and Friday 9am-2.30pm.

Or phone on 0800 437 348 or email info@thepeoplesproject.org.nz to make an appointment.

Click here to see a map to find our offices.

If you know someone in Hamilton or Tauranga who may need our help, you can send us a message to let us know. You don’t have to tell us who you are.

You can use this anonymous form.

We can’t work with people who are already working with services who are funded to help them find housing.

If you are facing challenges that mean you would be better served by other specialist services in our community, our friendly team will give you advice about how to contact these services.