Keeping families together when it matters most.
When a child needs specialist hospital care, life changes instantly for the entire family.
For many whānau, treatment means travelling long distances, putting work and school on hold, and navigating uncertainty far from home. At Ronald McDonald House Charities New Zealand (RMHC NZ), we help ensure families don’t have to face those challenges alone, providing accommodation, practical support, and the ability to remain close to their child during treatment.
In 2025, RMHC NZ supported 4,264 families from across Aotearoa, providing more than 45,900 nights of accommodation and saving families almost $11 million in direct accommodation and living costs. Behind every night stayed is a family navigating one of the most difficult periods of their lives – parents sleeping close to a hospital bed, siblings trying to maintain a sense of normality, and whānau doing everything they can to stay together.
Across our programmes, families receive wraparound care designed to help maintain a sense of normality during extraordinary circumstances. As demand continues to grow and accommodation capacity remains finite, the gap between the number of families requiring support and accommodation available is increasing. These pressures reflect growing demand for both our services and the wider healthcare system, reinforcing the importance of planning for sustainable growth and future capacity.
Ronald McDonald House NZ is about far more than a bed for the night. From home-cooked meals and communal kitchens to educational support for siblings, family wellbeing services, emotional support and spaces where families can connect with others facing similar experiences, our Houses provide wraparound care designed to help families maintain a sense of normality during extraordinary circumstances.
Every family’s journey is different. Some stay for a few nights. Others return over months or even years as their child undergoes ongoing treatment. Some travel from nearby communities, while others journey from the furthest reaches of New Zealand and the Pacific Islands. What unites them is the need to be together.
This report reflects the impact of that support, the generosity of the community that makes it possible, and the thousands of families whose strength and resilience continue to inspire our work every day.